PLEASE consider helping

This morning on Foxnews.com I came across an article that absolutely breaks my heart. I personally know this family and have known of this news for some time but due to the family's wishes kept it to myself. Since I saw the article I emailed Laura and asked for permission to blog about it–permission granted.

As I said, I know this family and know their kids. Their daughter is in Sugar and Boo's Little Flower group. They are a wonderful, faithful family that, even with this unthinkable struggle, are not turning from their faith. 

I am not writing about this to simply to inform you of this family. I am asking for your help. The family absolutely needs and wants your prayers. I want your money. If you read the article and go to their website you will learn that medication for ONE child is about $9000/month. They are facing the real likelihood that 2 of their children have it (one has been diagnosed) and the possibility that the third does as well (they are still awaiting test results). As with anyone facing such a huge financial burden, they could use our help. One of the articles says their insurance is paying for medication. This is somewhat true. Like most insurances they are paying a PORTION of the cost, not 100%, and the family's burden is still large.

Please go to the article linked above then visit their website hadleyhope.com to see how you can help. I am linking you directly to the financial help page, click home to see the entire site. 

While their children are aware of the illness, I don't think they know the severity of the disease. For those who are local please keep this in mind when you see them and IF you MUST discuss this with your own children explain it as a cholesterol processing disorder that affects their mind, balance, and body control. Also, when adding them to your prayers, simply say the Hadley family instead of the individual child. If your kids are at all like mine the second you add someone to a prayer list they start asking questions!

Thanks again for any help you can give whether on your knees or from your pocket.

Official WoW

So, since the first WoW post, people have asked how exactly it is going to work. Truth be told, I don't know—I hadn't thought that far in advance when I posted it. I think what we will do is:

::Weigh in every Wednesday. Oops I should say check your WeightOnWednesday (WoW).

::Either in a post on your own blog OR through comments on my blog say how much you are up, down, or stagnate. You DO NOT have to list your actual weight, just the difference for the week. You can also keep a running tally if you would like (total weight lost). 

::You don't have to be here from the start. It is never too late to try and get healthy!

While there are no hard and fast rules perhaps we can take Wednesday's to reflect on the week past—where we faltered and where we succeeded—then get refocused for the week ahead. Again, you can make a post about that if you would like or do it in private. Share as much or as little as you see fit.  I am hoping this provides motivation for myself and those who need it. I also would like it to provide support so I am thinking of linking to all those participating weekly in my own post. If you get a chance, head over to their blogs and give them a "Good job" or a kick in the butt, whichever the case may be.

Thanks for joining in the "fun"!

Sportman Show

This weekend we went to an Outdoor & Sportsman Show (think that was the title). The kids had a great time, the pictures not so great (taken on Tug's phone). There was some sort of tech hunting booth that showed video of an animal and you'd shoot at it (bow) and it could tell you where your shot landed. On her second attempt (EVER, shooting a bow) Sugar got a bullseye. Boo wasn't able to pull back the draw but we found another booth that had regular (not compound) bows and she did that one. Now both kids want a bow. I think Daddy might oblige--especially since I saw him leave this morning with his own bow...something about Eugene having a bow manufacturer there (BowTech), and his bow being the wrong draw length, and needing a new bow. Nevermind that it has been years since he last went-of course, a new bow might solve that problem. 

 

Ham was able to do it with Daddy's help. After he said "Cool, awesome!"

There was also a rock climbing thingy. 

Sugar got to the top; Boo, not so much.

WoW

OK, time to fully embarrass myself. Remember quite a few weeks ago I posted about trying to lose weight? Well, I got off to a great start then got sick then did nothing. For Lent I gave up fast food and have done great, not a bite (alright, in the interest of full disclosure, I had one bite. Maybe two. I picked up a bunch of McD burgers and fries for the kids one day and took it to Jessica's while she ran out to the store. I was divvying up the food for the kids and I had 2 fries. I almost took a bite of a burger but decided not to. I am realizing Lent is more about just the sacrifice of giving something up. It is also about facing the temptation like Christ did, and having to overcome it.) ::tangent:: I was hoping not having fast food would help lower my weight but that hasn't been the case. 

I am obviously lacking on the internal motivation (which usually isn't much of a problem for me) so I am now turning external. Mud on my face for all the world to see (or ice cream and chips on my butt, hips and thigh area). I am now going to institute Weight on Wednesday (WoW-it was going to be Weigh-in Wednesday but WiW as an acronym isn't that cool). Now don't think I am going to go too crazy and post my weight for all the world to see...well not all the world, just those who read this which is generally people I know-which is even worse! And besides, I wouldn't provide much motivation if you all  knew I was 125 lbs trying to get down to 115 {for those who know me you can get off the floor now and stop laughing, for those who don't I have NEVER in my life weighed 125 lbs}. 

So, the plan is on Wednesday's to post how much I am down, up, or stagnate...hopefully down only.  I weighed myself this morning, and next Wednesday will be the first update. Maybe I will be like everyone else and make a second sidebar, to keep track of it all. I know others who are in the same boat right now, whether trying to lose a lot, a little, or just get healthy so if you wish to join in via your own blog or through my comments feel free. 

To our health...

Cool new book

Thanks Jessica for finding this. While most of you won't find this cool, I think it is "cool,awesome" to quote my son.  It is a great new book (great idea that is, I haven't seen the book) with family oriented books to read-aloud and knitting projects to do that correspond with each book (12 books total). 

Click here for the author's blog. 

Click  here for the publisher's website and pre-order information. If you pre-order you even get some wooden knitting needles. 

Cool,awesome indeed!

I used to be fun

This is actually the second time I have taken this quiz. I don't remember the first exactly but I do remember not agreeing with much of it except the very last line when people misunderstand me (something about critical, judgemental, sarcastic, blah blah blah).  I decided to retake today so I could post and I think only one answer was different from before--not to try and change the results but because it is one of those questions that vary based on the situation. Anyhoosle, I agree with this one much more, though I kinda still see myself as more of an extrovert:

You Are An ISTJ

The Duty Fulfiller You are responsible, reliable, and hardworking - you get the job done. You prefer productive hobbies, like woodworking or knittings. Quiet and serious, you are well prepared for whatever life hands you. Conservative and down-to-earth, you hardly ever do anything crazy. In love, you are loyal and honest. If you commit yourself to someone, then you're fully committed. For you, love is something that happens naturally. And you don't need romantic gestures to feel loved. At work, you remember details well and are happy to take on any responsibility. You would make a great business executive, accountant, or lawyer. How you see yourself: Decisive, stable, and dependable When other people don't get you, they see you as: Boring, conservative, and egotistical

What's Your Personality Type?

Gosh, how boring am I?! I really did used to be fun, outgoing, up for a good time. My how the times have changed! (fyi-introverted, sensing, thinking, judging)

H/T: mommylife.net  

The brotherhood

What happens when your son cuts his own hair?

(the big chunk in the middle-he also cut some further back)

He gets an Aryan brotherhood haircut

(we are NOT -nor do we wish to be- members, by the way)!

Time to make the donuts

We go to mass in a town about 45 minutes away. Since most of the other homeschoolers attend the 8:30 mass we try to attend that one. It doesn't always work out (since we have to wake up extra early), especially if SP wakes up at 4, I get up to feed her*, once putting her down I walk past the girls' room and see Boo on the bottom bunk head on her hands staring at me then saying she has been up for  a long time and couldn't fall back asleep. Boo is fine if we forgo the 8:30 mass and stay local (thus skipping CCD as well). Sugar is not. She came into our room at 6:30 frantic that we were going to miss 8:30 mass. When I told her we weren't going she started crying. The concession is to go to the other town to Spanish mass which starts at 10:15. CCD is from 10-11:15 so if we do this the girls don't get to go to mass which we don't really like but since neither has made their First Communion we are ok with occasionally doing this. 

Wow, this is a much longer story than I had intended. Anyway, another reason the girls like going to the early mass is because after it they usually have donuts in the parish hall. There is just enough time between mass ending and CCD beginning to scarf one down. I was getting ready this morning when Boo came in:

Boo: Daddy says he is going to take us to CCD and you guys are going to go to mass.

Mom: Yeah. I'll probably be the one to take you in to CCD but yeah.

Boo: Oh. Well can you pick me up a donut?

*Miguelita, she doesn't usually wake up in the middle of the night, though has been for the past week or so. Anyway, with her and Ham in the same room, I would rather get up to feed her than let her cry it out and chance waking him up. Yeah, yeah, yeah, 3 days is a habit. Get off my back lady.

Another Brick in the Wall part 2

{Hey! Teachers! Leave them kids alone}
I have never been a huge gung-ho homeschooler. When we lived in Albuquerque, Sugar went to Catholic School (kindigarten). When we moved here we went to our local Catholic school and didn't really get a great vibe so we decided to homeschool. Tug was completely against public school, I wasn't as against figuring we both went through public school and turned out fine (though there are certainly some things both of us did that I truly hope and pray our kids don't). Well, turns out Tuggie is the smarter one:
taken from Catholicexchange.com

February 22, 2008
· Instead of punishing child molesters, they're simply moved from place to place without anyone getting a heads up.
· It takes almost a year-and-a-half to investigate claims of abuse.
· If the accused is guilty of touching a minor or accessing porn on a computer, he can continue working provided he sees a shrink.
· Even molesters who admit to their crimes are given a second chance.
· Those empowered to do the investigation are mandated to seek rehabilitation for the offender. · The investigators are not commissioned from the outside, rather they are all staffed from the inside.
· Deals are routinely cut for accused molesters in secret, protecting the identity of the molester from the community.
· The accused molesters not only walk, they walk away with cash settlements, health insurance and letters of recommendation-just so long as they agree to get lost.
Catholic League president Bill Donohue commented as follows:
"The above is taken from a splendid two-part series on the problem of child sexual abuse in the Oregon public schools; it was published on February 17 and 18 in The Oregonian. The same problem-molestation, secret deals, inside investigations, rehab-exists nationwide. Oh, yes, so does the phenomenon of ‘passing the trash' to other school districts.
"So where's the outcry? If this were the Catholic Church, there would be calls for resignations and punitive measures. It only goes to show that kids don't matter-what matters is the identity of the alleged abuser.
"True to form, when a Republican lawmaker in Oregon wanted to suspend rules to deal with this immediately, he was denounced by the Democrats. By the way, of the $53,000 given by the Oregon Education Association to legislators since November 2006, over 90 percent went to the Democrats. Not until the public schools model themselves on Catholic reforms will this problem be checked."

Scripture Shapes Egg Hunt

I just got my newest issue of Faith & Family (I love this mag) and it had a cute idea for an Easter hunt. Besides the usual hiding of the eggs, separate kids into teams and:

Each team is handed Egg #1-which contains the first clue-in their team color. The team must figure out what shape is being described in the clue and find that shape in their team color. At the shape, a new egg will have the next clue.

For example, here is the first clue in Egg #1:

"In the Bible book of Genesis, 

God created two great lights-

A sun to watch over the days

And a - to watch over the nights."

Answer:Moon, The team needs to find a moon in their color.

Egg #2 (labeled as such) will be there with the next clue.

Details and materials are supposed to be available at NCRegister.com (under Resources) but I didn't see it there. I am providing a link anyway just in case it eventually appears. 

I love the idea of actually incorporating Christianity into the holiday and not just relying on the bunny!

Just one more

Amy is getting freaked out so this might be the last one. The kids love taking them though, they think they are hilarious.  In response to Jessica's comment that I have too much time on my hands, it actually takes about 7 seconds. You stand in front of the camera on the computer, pick which effect you want, click the button. It counts down from 3 and takes the picture. Drag the picture to the desktop and finito. Another child wouldn't cause me to stop :)

Not to be left out

I think they all have a future in modeling

AAAHHHH, they got wet and are multiplying like

Gremlins

Hypotheticals

Hypothetically speaking:

If you get your son tucked into bed and 5 minutes later he starts saying "poo,poo" so you go get him, sit him on the pot, let him do his business then put him back in bed then 3 minutes later he says "poo,poo" and you say stop it, go to bed then 20 minutes later he gets out of bed, walks into the living room and says "poo,poo" cuz he's got it in his pull-up, who's to blame?

Hypothetically I suppose it is my fault since I didn't let him get out of bed the 2nd time.

Realistically, it's his. Totally his!

Ain't she purdy

Macs are fun!

I Won

At least I think I did. Well, I know I did but I haven't bought stuff via Ebay and the seller hasn't responded to my email from yesterday so I am hoping it is legit. 

I have been wanting a digital SLR for awhile now and really wanted the Nikon D80. It is pretty expensive though so I have put it off. Well, the D80 replaced the D70 and I found a D70 on ebay so I bid and won. Woo Hoo. Now if the seller would only get back to me (or it show up in my mailbox) so I can be sure.

I've got a Nikon camera

I like to take a photograph

So Mama don't take my Kodachrome away

She got a memory card

Sugar got a camera for Christmas 2 years ago from Juju (betty).  She finally got a memory card (thanks daddy) so now we can actually put her pictures into the computer. Here is the only picture that 'came out'. The others looked like they had a hazy film from her lens being so dirty :)

twinkle toes and chiquita from the other day of play

Another One

 So this is slightly late but that is ok since he has been out of town.

::cough, cough, clearing my throat::

With this new day,

You +1yrs old.

You should wear mitts,

Cuz your hands look cold.

Happy birthday maxipad!!

Worth nearly killing myself

So, the reason I needed to move that surge protector was for this baby!! Tug brought it home today and it is TOTALLY WICKED.  My head/eyes are hurting a little cuz the monitor is so big (20") and it barely fits in our computer hutch so I am sitting rather close to it but it is SO cool. The graphics are amazing and we are finally able to see just how fast cable internet is. With our PC I didn't understand why people loved cable so much. Sure it was faster than dial-up but it wasn't instant as I had previously heard. Well, now I see that it can be. 

If spending money you don't have on a computer you don't need is wrong, then I don't want to be right!

Butterknives and outlets

Just in case you have to unplug a surge protector that is behind a full file cabinet that is too heavy to move and you are too lazy to remove the items to make it lighter but you can't reach the plug enough to easily remove it from the outlet and your fingers are hurting from trying to jam them into the tiny space between the plug and outlet, it is NOT a good idea to use a butterknife. Even though you may reason that you aren't actually sticking the knife in the outlet it will still let out a puff of smoke, blacken the butterknife, blacken the surge protector, blacken the outlet, fry the surge protector, trip your breaker, give off a big, bright spark AND your plug will still be in the outlet.
Don't ask how I know!
I'll show you later why I needed to remove the surge protector...

Bunco-rama and some barf

We played couples bunco last night and Jessica has a great recap post with lots of pictures. 20 points to anyone (aside from you locals) who can identify fellow bloggers Jessica (showerofroses) , Amy (knittingcatholicmama), and Humble mama (legacyleaving).

On a gross note, we went out to dinner tonight since Tug and I both happened to be in town. We still had the gift certificate my mom got us for Christmas to Olive Garden. Everything was great then as we were finishing Boo stands up. She touches her chest, touches her throat and gets a funny look on her face. I say "Are you going to throw up?" Tug is sitting next to her and grabs his napkin as I am saying "She is going to throw up!" He puts his napkin to her face as I medium-toned voice say "Get her face over her bowl, don't try and catch it with the napkin. Get her in her bowl. Get the bowl. Aw, she just puked!" Right there at our table in front of everyone. Luckily most of it did get into the bowl, well most of the first round. As I am getting up to ask for a bag she does it again this time some in the bowl, some on herself, some on her chair. Luckily Tug had her face pretty shielded from others with the napkin so I don't think they realized what was happening (nothing worse than seeing someone barfing while you are eating). I get a to-go box and a bag to put it all in figuring we can just have them throw the bag away. I leave with the kids while Tug cleans it all up. He used one of SP's blankets and I am just now realizing he didn't come out with it. Guess he threw that away too. Fun night!

Wordless Wednesday

Well, not quite. I just don't have much time. Girls have Little Flowers and we have to run some errands prior so enjoy a picture instead.

Taken by Tug 2 nights ago. I don't know why it looks so grainy.

Spell check

Last I checked, bloggers spellcheck still isn't working (or maybe just not for me cuz Jessica recently said it worked for her). Checking some other blogs it appears it isn't working-typepad must not be either which brings me to the conclusion that people just don't spellcheck. So, in the spirit of being nice and in the spirit of homeschooling and in the spirit of being a general turd here is some friendly spelling advice (I think there should have been some commas in that sentence).

:: if you never learned the rule, learn it now. 'i' before 'e' except after 'c' and weird cuz weird is weird. SO, if there is an 'i' and an 'e' next to each other in your word and it doesn't come after a c then the order should be 'ie' like friend. There are some exceptions like neighbor and weight but in general the rule will do you right. Except after 'c' just means order switches if the 'i' and 'e' follow a 'c' like ceiling. Some exceptions here too like science but again in general you're good.

:: loose or lose? Loose with 2 o's means something is not tight. Lose with 1 'o' means you need to call upon St. Anthony because you can't find something. Spellcheck doesn't help here so just learn the difference.

:: When meaning excessive use too. I am too tired to interact with my children today. I am too fat to be eating this snickers. I am too hungry to care.

:: When using contractions you put the apostrophe where you dropped a letter. For example
it + is = it's, you dropped the 'i' of is so you put the apostrophe there. One more
you + are = you're, you dropped the a of are so it goes there.

Alrighty roo, that's your English lesson for the day. On a tangent can someone tell me why the media isn't up in arms about all these baseball athletes (and Marion Jones) getting in trouble for perjury yet when Bill Clinton got in trouble for the exact same thing they were. They felt people were way out of line for going after him for perjury but don't feel the same about the current situation. And, why does the media associate kids using steroids with the baseball scandal BUT doesn't associate their stories of middle school girls giving Lewinskies in record numbers (and not considering it sex) with the former President?

She needs crutches

Yesterday we were gone all day. Sugar needed some new accessories. She was playing in the backyard on one of our ledges and best we could figure she twisted her ankle and fell off. Luckily it wasn't too bad-nothing broken just a pretty bad sprain. She likes that she needs the crutches to get around. I don't think it hurts as much as she is pretending but she has her little bell to order us around while she sits on the couch, leg up, being waited on hand and footankle .






Hmm, wonder if my mom has made it this far or if she has called already to check on her fave. Total lie. We were gone all day yesterday but we went to a kids hands on museum type thingy (Michelle, it was suppose to be like Working Wonders but not nearly as cool).

Just to clarify, Sugar is fine. She doesn't need crutches. I was lying just to have a story to go with the picture from the 'museum'. She did cut her finger today though with a black (steak) knife. Very superficial cut (more of a scrape since it was serrated), but it is her first wound from a non-butterknife, knife.

Blow out the candles

Happy Birthday Johnny-boy!
In the b-day poem tradition:

I can't believe you now are six,
It seems like just yesterday,
You were five(five)!

I can't believe Lent starts today. Way too early. Before I was thinking of giving up meat entirely (especially once I saw some article saying the FDA has approved using cloned animals for food, and that packaging does not have to specify that it is a cloned animal) but then on Sunday I realized it started this Wednesday and I wasn't mentally prepared to do it. Instead I am giving up fast food. That's a biggie! I would rather spend 40 minutes going and getting food than 20 minutes making something myself.
Oh, and just to keep the tradition alive, I am also giving up Dr. Pepper. Hopefully I will break the tradition and actually make it through lent without having any. Luckily it isn't under penalty of sin!

Swap ready

Well, almost. We have finished up the kids projects and now I am working on 2 last things for the kiddies we are swapping with.

Sorry to their mommy for all the glitter!

Weekend Update

:: Wow, great game last night. Though I wanted them to win (because I hate Tom Brady, Michigander) I really didn't think the G-men had it in them. Go Eli! Never saw that drive coming!! I thought for sure he would throw an interception.


:: Boo got her hair cut this weekend. They didn't do what I wanted (shorter in back, longer in front) so it is short and pretty much all the same length. It looks ok, but not as cute as the original style.





:: And in the category of "It's about darn time" Sweet Pea had a super bowl of her own this morning

I was running

I turned my head from the computer screen to the tv screen
R: Aw man! How many times do we have to watch this movie (said like Forrest Gump, sort of).
T: As many times as it takes to memorize all the words (said in a better Forrest Gump voice).

Stupid is as stupid does.

The play by play

Regina is rounding the corner, heading for home, Amy close on her tail. Amy's closing. She's gonna get her. Aw, Regina hits home just as Amy tags. Tie goes to the runner. Regina is safe. Sorry Amy, though you tagged me, I was clearly on homebase so I can't participate in the meme. Besides I don't know much about the saints, I haven't read a single book about/by a saint nor have I seen any movies so an entire meme filled with 20 "I don't know"s wouldn't be very fun to read. Next time Gadget, next time.

I have been sick for over a week and have eaten very little in that time-don't have much of an appetite. Guess how much weight I have lost. That's right-zip, zero, nada. {Channeling Nancy Kerrigan} Why, why, why.

Shelly and shelly, perhaps you two could exchange email addresses and stop hijacking my comments. As for the link to Michelle's blog not working, if you look at the url I think I entered not.linking.to.an.actual.blog.com While I am mean, I am not THAT mean since I know she currently doesn't want anyone seeing her one wonderful post. I just wanted to scare her a little :) [though it would be very easy for you to find it without my help]

Oh crap-a-dil, Bloggers spellcheck isn't working right now. ARGH