Thursday, December 31, 2009

Reflections

We just took down the Christmas decorations in record time. There are some years you are just a little too anxious to see depart. This would be one of them. You would think that being an ox I would have enjoyed the past year of the ox. But I have to admit working so hard at tasks that seem to have no production gets very frustrating.

In reflecting on why I feel so exhausted by 09 I have decided it is all my mind set. I have got to be more positive. Reading over old journals did not help either. I think sometimes that I have PTss from the child bearing years of having, nursing and homeschooling kids for 15 years, with no outside input or stimulation.

At any rate I digress into the past and not just the past year. The past year was fun on one level. I had a great, very awareness promoting trip to my moms house. Note to self four weeks is too long to be away from home. I enjoyed working at massage again and realized that I still love massage and look forward to sharing it with many more students.

I also got to be at Micah's last update hearing and hear his sentence with his plea read. I also got to tell the victims family that I was sorry for their loss. I am and that was a good thing for me to be able to tell them that.

I also got to visit my brother in Texas and his girls and meet his new woman. That was fun and I am really thankful for so many brothers. I don't get to talk to them much and see them even less, but they are a great influence in my life. And they are also a great motivator.

It has been great to see my older kids start making life decisions and get the ball rolling in their direction. My oldest is a changed person, as well as his family and I have sure enjoyed watching their growth. Bekah is awesome and has completed two years of college, worked full-time and taken care of the two kiddos. Jesse finally got the web site up and is doing more art work. Jake is figuring things out, and I am thankful to have one of my boys here with me. Hannah is doing so much growing up and learning, just wish I had a box to put her in to keep it a little safer while she grows up. Baby is getting ready for kinder and learning to read, too fun.

All in all I guess it really has been a great year once I see it in writing. We have had some awesome students, hubby returned to school to finish his degree and I have a garden growing in leaps and bounds.

Man the longer I write the more thankful and happy I feel about 09, I guess there is some merit to writing things down. Now if we can all survive the year of the tiger, which is upheavel and movement, we will be thrilled. Happy New Year all!

Wednesday, December 30, 2009

Feeling Left Out

In reference to the comment left on the last post, that maybe I eat healthy enough that I don´t need to cleanse. Well honestly usually I eat healthy enough. The holidays are the exception and I held nothing back this year. You name it fudge, peanut butter fudge, cake, pie, and of course lots of salty things.

But I am getting a little concerned that I am either so full of (//&& and so nothing is cleaning out. Like I have this image of junk cemented all along the sides of my colon. Think I have been reading too much? That or else I am doing something wrong and so I need to do more. No forget that, I will be lucky to last 7 days with this yucky stuff I have to drink.

The last time I did a 10 day juice fast I drank lots of really tasty juices and it was almost fun. This lemon, molasses, and cayenne drink gags me. That plus the wonderful quart of water and salt flush, yuck! Now I have to admit it is not as bad as the gallbladder cleanse I did. That entailed drinking apple juice for a few days and then a half a cup of olive oil with lemon juice and coke. The only problem was I forgot the coke! My sons did get a kick out of watching me gag as much down as I could. So we get hard up for entertainment what can I say?

Anyway today is day 5 and I am thinking 7 is a pretty magic number at this point. I promise myself to be good and not junk out anymore. I can´t afford to, I am getting too dang old for this cleansing for health stuff!

Tuesday, December 29, 2009

Gross Post

If you are not into cleansing, you will not find this at all interesting. I decided it was time to do a cleanse after the holidays. I have not done a cleanse since 13 years ago, so maybe time. Then again maybe not. I felt sure I would have all kinds of crazy crap, no pun intended, cleaning out of me.

Well today is day four and I am very disappointed and ready to eat. I really don't care about eating, but if I am just cleaning out the water I am drinking I am getting frustrated. I will give it seven days and see how it goes.

Last time I did this I just consumed mass quantities of different juices and some herbal tea. After day three I had to start doing enemas to make sure you clean out while you are not eating food. This cleanse is called the master cleanse and involves drinking lemon juice, with water and maple syrup and cayenne pepper. Yeah gross. Then you do a salt water flush in the evening, which is two teaspoons of salt with a quart of water, yuck. Then of course there is the laxative tea in the evening before bed. Yeah it is fun.

The bad news like I said is no results. I have not had like worms and mucus and all the gross things I read about on the internet????? I will keep you posted on that one maybe it will get more interesting.

Saturday, December 26, 2009

Aftermath




Another fun, successful Christmas done! The good news is the kids all loved their gifts, and there is no bad news. Oh I guess the bad news would be that I ate as much as a whole third world country the week of Christmas and am feeling it. Time to clean house and do a fun lemon juice fast for 10 days. Great way to start the Year of the Tiger and send off the Year of the Ox!

Thursday, December 24, 2009

Merry Christmas

Here is a wish for a very Merry Christmas to all of my friends and family, and followers here on Hotmomsrus. We have been just partying like crazy and are about ready to all die from sugar overdoses or just plain exhaustion. But it has been a very merry Christmas season for us and I believe as Micah so aptly expressed it is not about the presents. He made the comment that sitting in jail, on Christmas he does not think or even remember any presents he ever received, just all the good times with his family. I would agree with him on this point!

As a side note, I lost a follower! That may not sound like a big deal, but hey I don't have very many! I am just trying to decide if I offended them talking about the Savior, or I offended them by saying that there are no guarantees in life. At any rate I think it all goes back to the comment left on my last post JUDGMENT!

Judgment is a funny thing. I have to make a very honest confession, I was very judgmental in my younger years. Yup, I was convinced I knew it all. I knew that no one in the world should have a T.V. in their home, I knew that everyone should homeschool their children, I knew everyone should have a temple recommend, I knew no one should allow their children do this and that. Yeah maybe even opinionated would be a better word.

But the sad truth is life has dealt me a hand that I cannot deny. I cannot look at anyone else on their path and say what in the heck is good, bad or ugly for them! I am like a recovering alcoholic, one day at a time, one problem at a time. I believe their are black and white rules called commandments. Any further than that I would say question it and check it out.

My big question of the day is, Why am I living a R rated life when I can't even watch R rated movies? I deal with jail, prison, drugs, alcohol, alcoholism, wild parties, piercings, tatoos, oh the list just goes on and on. And you know what? I still love these R rated kids of mine like the day they were born! I can surely see why the Savior died for us. He loved us, even in our sins and mistakes. Because you know what? He knew they were just that "mistakes". And he never gave up on us and he continues to love and extend that love to us every day and every minute.

That is why I celebrate Christmas and do it with all my crazy family!

Wednesday, December 23, 2009

Things I Was Not Supposed to Have to Do.....

As a Mormon mom I just assumed there were things I would never have to do. Like for some reason I thought my kids would be smarter than other kids and not make the same stupid mistakes and therefore I would not have to do certain things.

There are not any guarantees in this life. In other words just because you have FHE every single week, and read your scriptures every single day as a family, and pray together twice a day or more, still there are no guarantees!

Your family will still be tried, tempted and thrown to the wolves. The best news though? Jesus died for us and we can repent. When I think about that I just shake my head and know there is hope for all of us, not just wayward children, but all of us. Their mistakes are much more evident but they don't necessarily make any more than the rest of us, just more visible.

In the meantime I will be thankful for them and keep on praying!

Tuesday, December 22, 2009

Visiting Teaching

For church we are each assigned two or three ladies from church to visit and keep an eye out for. It is a great system, when it works. I read an article on a blog about how Mormons are great at circling their wagons. That is the truth and that is the purpose behind visiting teaching. If you visit these sisters you know when something is not going well and they need help. A new baby, sick kids, family tragedies and sometimes just a bit of depression or something like that is great reasons for wagons to circle.

I have had the wagons circle for our family and will be forever grateful for those who helped. After baby six I had an abdominal catastrophe that called for two weeks in the hospital after baby, and about four weeks of bed rest. The ladies from church, as well as friends from the Post Office brought in meals for six weeks. That is a long time to get people to cook for a family of eight! They were awesome meals too.

This month I was determined to visit the three women assigned to me and a friend. She speaks a little English and they speak none, nada! I spent the last three days baking bread and cookies and fudge to pack up for them. I sent my daughter with the goodies and let her explain to them, her Spanish is much better than mine.

One of the ladies sent home a gift for our family. A little loaf of fruit cake, drenched in rum. Yup that's right a rum cake to our Mormon family from their Mormon family LOL!!!

Monday, December 21, 2009

BFF


These two give new definition to the words Best Friends Forever! They even take care of each other in their sleep. Breyssi had slept over for Maleahs' graduation and she had a bit of a cough. Every time she would cough Maleah would reach over pat her back and tell her it was o.k. This was how they looked in the morning after a long night.

Friday, December 18, 2009

Kinder Graduation



And did I mention that Ticos love to celebrate any and everything? And that they can drag said celebration on for hours at a time? For example look at babies kinder graduation, yes kinder. Be there at nine thirty sharp. Oh yeah and then wait 45 minutes to get in. Not to mention waiting in the very hot sun. Oh sorry all of you being buried in snow and freezing to death up north.

After finally being let in we wait another thirty minutes for all the kids to line up. Then they come out two by two and have their names read while they parade up the aisle. I had to laugh because I did not think baby would hold a boys hand and I was right, she came out first with the teacher between them. The guy reading the names read her two very simple names and added the little boy with her first name, poor girl just did not have enough names.

Finally after two and a half hours we were done with the big day and off to the ice cream store for a ice cream to celebrate the happy day. Of course tonight is the sleep over with niece to watch Frosty, eat popcorn and hot chocolate.


The worst thing about the whole deal was I was ready to cry the whole darn time! For those of you who know my older children you will understand why I weep to see babies grow up.

Thursday, December 17, 2009

Chinese Princess



Today was the Fantasia party at school to celebrate the last day of school. Tomorrow is the graduation. Hard to believe my baby is graduating. Can't decide on Harvard, Yale or MIT, hmmmm? Baby decided she wanted to dress up like Mulon, a Chinese Princess. That made mom very happy since I did not have to come up with a new costume. I must say she looks very princess like.

Wednesday, December 16, 2009

Give Peace a Chance

The votes are in on sanctions against Iran. There were only 12 votes against sanctions:
Here is the honor roll who voted against:
Tammy Baldwin (D-WI)
Earl Blumenauer (D-OR)
John Conyers (D-MI)
John Duncan (R-TN)
Jeff Flake (R-AZ)
Maurice Hinchey (D-NY)
Dennis Kucinich (D-OH)
Stephen Lynch (D-MA)
Jim McDermott (D-WA)
Gwen Moore (D-WI)
Ron Paul (R-TX)
Pete Stark (D-CA)

Yeah for Jeff Flake from Arizona! They have proven over and over again that sanctions only effect the poor and needy people in a country. The thinking is that these people will put pressure on their government to do whatever is being required. Unfortunately as has been proven again and again, the governments don't really give a flip about the poor and needy therefore they are the only ones who suffer from these sanctions. What a shame.

Tuesday, December 15, 2009

Gingerbread Houses (with sick girlies)


The little artists hard at work.

They weren't feeling good, but still enjoyed making their houses. Even if they fell!

Next time use the melted white chocolate like it instructs rather than the frosting.

Once we told Breyssi they could eat them once they were done she started piling on the candy!

Monday, December 14, 2009

Wendys, are you freakin kidding me?

Today was the day to get the Christmas shopping done. Got it all done in one fell swoop at the Universal store, think Walmart. We actually had to go check out the new Wendys that just opened before shopping. Hubby commented, "I guess there is no reason to return to the states now, they have it all here in Costa Rica." I guess that lengthens our five year plan a little bit.

It is a little strange to go Christmas shopping in shorts and a t-shirt, not complaining just totally enjoying. Tomorrow is graham cracker gingerbread house day. We are trying to get the kids well and enjoy the holiday season. For sure have to fit in a pool day this week as the weather has been perfect.

The fireworks have begun and will continue until after New Years. Every night and tons on the weekends. I think we will go for a few this year, just an excuse to let the pyro in all of us out for a little bit.

Sunday, December 13, 2009

Join Me For A Run in Costa Rica


This is the first street I begin running on. It is around the corner from our house. the people on the left actually have horses and chickens in their yard that Benji gets a kick out of watching.

This is the main road going into San Rafael. You can see the beautiful mountains in the background of Monte de la Cruz.

I had to get a picture of public enemy numero uno on this street. Yes it is in fact the bus. They get extra points if they take out Gringos. On the left is the internet cafe we used to spend many hours at until we got internet at home.

It does not look like it but this is one of the toughest hills we climb. I think just because it is so soon into the run. At any rate it is also a very narrow road making for some fancy footwork at times.

Ah, fan club alley. Here in front of the ferreteria, or hardware store is where all the toothless old guys hang out all day. It just makes their day when we run by and they get a little eye candy to make the day a little brighter. We did make a decision early on that all fans would be kept at arms length!!!

This is the road to Getsemene. We lived up there for the first ten months after we moved to Costa Rica. It is beautiful, but man the hill is a killer.

On your left is the best place to stop for Power Aid. We made it a point to stop here when we do the loop more than twice. Gotta refuel on something that long. This particular loop is over five miles by the way.

This is our "resting place".

This would be for sure the hardest road of all times to try and cross safely, without peeing all over yourself and trying not to get hit, all at the same time.

They just about got away from me, but there were some mighty fine looking cyclists, on some mighty fine bikes up ahead. They were just lots faster than me.

Here we circle up around the back of our neighborhood, and it is sorely tempting at this point to call it good and head home. But no we do not we persevere.

This is heartbreak hill. Or just we try and get up it as gracefully as possible without dying. Or just walk.

At this particular blind curve Bekah saw her life flash before her eyes. That is what happens when a car comes squealing around the corner and realizes him, you and the car coming from the other direction are not all going to fit on the road. Guess who gets voted off? I dove she just kept going and lived to see another day.

Could not pass up this shot of the view off to the right. I think this is what Rebekah was watching, because she sure was not watching for cars.

By looking at this pothole you may get a good idea of why the cars cannot decide whether to hit us or hit the hole, hard one.

This shot of the view from this road is just a great way to explain why we risk life and limb to run here, beautiful.

Here we are in the "guarded neighborhood". See the guy in the blue shirt sitting on the bench chatting with the neighbor and reading the paper? Yeah that is the guard, good thing they pay him to watch their houses ha?

No I don't think this road was blown up by a land mine. I do think last January's earthquake did lots of damage on our roads though. The good news? No traffic on this road.

On the last curve it is a little scary to guess if me, and both cars are going to fit on the road at the same time.

Friday, December 11, 2009

Beauty

As I was running this morning I could not help but be very happy with all the beautiful weather and green around me. There was a light breeze, about 78 degrees and just absolutely beautiful out. I needed that just as I need my run every morning to keep me a sane mommy. How can any mother do it without exercise? Just getting out breathing hard, sweating and jammin down to my mp3 player, makes my day.

I keep saying I am going to do it and by golly maybe tomorrow is the day to go out and take some shots of my running route. I am just too lazy to carry the little half pound camera with me. I don't know why, I carried one on a belt for a whole marathon when we did cowtown marathon.

So stay tuned tomorrow for photos of a beautiful day for a beautiful run in Costa Rica.

Wednesday, December 9, 2009

My Lips Just Hurt Really Bad

Ever had a fever blister? If not I feel very happy for you and hope you have a life free of them! They are awful, especially when your whole bottom lip and part of the top lip are covered with them. Man oh man do my lips hurt. I don't even think the beautiful weekend at the beach was worth it, and that is saying a lot for me because I love the beach.

I am seeing more and more the merits of a really big hat and a very big umbrella. Going to have to happen before my lips fall off. I have gone through five tubes of Carmex and only have a little bit of one left. I just hope I get to keep my lips for all of my life.

Tuesday, December 8, 2009

Peeping Tom or Ben



Today was coffee scrub day in school. It was great and we will sure keep that one. The funniest part was when I happened to glance down and this is what I saw! Sure enough Benjamin was peeking under the screen watching Aunt Hannah get her coffee scrub. Of course the fact that there were four women in bikinis rubbing coffee all over each other must have just been too much for him to resist!

Monday, December 7, 2009

Snow Storms Back Home

Flagstaff is getting slammed! They are up to 20" and counting. Times like these I am really thankful for my sunburn and broken out lips here in Costa Rica. Went on a nice warm run this morning in shorts and tank and had a great day in school.

Tomorrow we will be doing coffee scrubs in lieu of salt glows since our student has already had salt glows and never had coffee scrubs. And in Costa Rica you should certainly be doing a coffee scrub.

We don't drink coffee, but supposedly it is great for your circulation, and even gets rid of cellulite, we will see tomorrow. I invited Bekah over to try it out with us, the more the merrier and that way we can have more people to check it out on.

Off to fight the mosquitoes and try to get some sleep.

Sunday, December 6, 2009

Beach Time




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Happy days at the beach. Once again we had a great trip to Manuel Antonio to take our student and do some practice massages. It was a fun trip and it made her very happy she is about done and gets to go surf for a few days before heading home to work.

I was laying on the massage table on Friday while our student practiced on me, listening to the waves and the girls playing, and the thought came to me,"I have the best job in the whole world". I really don't think anyone could beat that for a hard day at work.

As the weather gets worse in the States it gets better in Costa Rica and we are very happy. It makes all the things we do without, or all the hassles we experience here worth it every winter.

Thursday, December 3, 2009

Cars

Woo hoo we got to drive around in a real live car today! The bad news is after riding in the downtown traffic to Escazu to visit the big mall, and driving home, I have had enough driving to last me a couple of years.

The roads in Costa Rica are barely wide enough for two cars, and the people try to drive three wide on them so it is crazy. I never realize how crazy the folks here drive when I am on the bus or in Taxis since I am not the one worrying about getting hit.

When we moved here we made a decision not to have a car. Some days that turns out to be a big fat mistake. But I have to admit most days I love not having the headache of breakdowns, tires, oil changes, etc to deal with.

When we want to go someplace we just call a Taxi and away we go. Now we have to babysit our car for the next few days and make sure it is kept safe and does not get ripped off or damaged. The joys of wheels!

Wednesday, December 2, 2009

Birthday Bash



I love birthdays! I keep wondering when I will quit liking my birthdays so much, but so far for the last 48 they just keep getting better and better. I got great gifts this year, that were much needed,(except maybe the pipe, which will be awhile). The rest were much needed.

My family put together a great feast of mexican food as well as a wonderfully sinful earthquake cake. I felt like the python that ate the pig before the night was over to be sure.

The only bad part of the whole night was that my son who is 21 and should know better, beat me at scrabble! He should know that you don't beat people at their favorite game, especially on their birthday. Ah I guess I will survive. I am trying to get him to do a rematch and he refuses until next year

I guess I better explain the picture. It just happens to be the only picture taken on the big day, but was a joke. Because I have dreadlocks people always assume that I must smoke pot. I do not smoke pot! I have dreads because Micah always wanted them, can't have them so I am his proxy for the dreads. Once he is free and can get his own mine may or may not come off.

I will do a different post on the true history of dreads and why the rastafarians are actually mistaken about where and why they came about. Anyhoo as a joke one of my comedian kids decided it would be funny to buy this little pipe and give it to me on my birthday! I have to admit I was shocked and they got that on video, but this pic says it all, pretty funny!

Monday, November 30, 2009

Teenagers Augh!!!!



There are many, many things to love about teenagers. It just so happens that at the moment I cannot think of any of them. Mmmmm, o.k. they come up with really funny pictures like the above, but that is it for today.

Several weeks ago I had a talk with my teen and we made it very clear that there would be three hours of school work done every day. Well that lasted about two weeks and here we are again, sleeping in, getting up whenever and then swimming or running and hanging out with friends. I am all for "unschooling" but there needs to be something going on upstairs for her to even develop the capacity to think!

Now she is very angry because she wants to go on a date with a boy she met on the internet. Now she is very clear that it is not a date because she is paying her own way, so that makes it o.k. to go alone with this boy and hang out.

We have a policy that the kids don't date until they are 16. With the boys you don't have to worry, they can't drive until they are 16 and are not into picking up girls on bikes. With the girlies that is a little tougher to enforce. Especially when the 16th birthday is exactly one month away. What a mean mom I am ha?

I guess her 21 yr. old brother will be going to hang out with them tomorrow afternoon, woo hoo!

Friday, November 27, 2009

The Day After





Our family has a tradition of decorating for Christmas the day after Thanksgiving. I believe that we should give thanks before we start worrying about what we may be getting! This year Thanksgiving was a little later, so we won't have to worry about that beautiful grandson of ours taking the decorations down too often.

I do hope everyone had as enjoyable a Thanksgiving as we did. My great friend here, Sally invited our family over for dinner and great conversation. Most people shush me when I start talking politics, it is great to hang with people who can, and will talk back.

The only rival for the company was of course the great food. More roasted chicken, mashed potatoes, gravy, vegees, and pies than anyone could ever eat. But we all tried our hardest and made a bit of a dent in it for sure.

Of course the fact that Obama declared, with the power invested in him that is, that it was a national day of Thanksgiving. Whew I am glad I had his permission to celebrate!

Wednesday, November 25, 2009

Happy Thanksgiving

I love Thanksgiving! It is my favorite holiday of all. Mostly because I am a pretty grateful person on the whole, but also because it is close to my birthday :) That counts for lots.

This year I am especially grateful for my family and friends. Our family has been extremely blessed with excellent health, happiness and joy this year. Even Micah has received a few blessings along the way.

Just going running this morning in the beautiful green place that we are blessed enough to call home. Making it home from the store before the rain hit. Being healthy enough to walk and not have to have a car.

Having a son who is celebrating two and a half years sober, and is happier and healthier than 10 years past. A daughter who has found a great way to realize her dream of being a nurse, even though she has to work and struggle to get there. For a son that finally launched his web site and is sharing his beautiful art work with the world. Another son that has made Costa Rica home and is being invaluable in the growth of our massage school here. For a son that calls Coconino County Jail home, and still laughs and cracks jokes with me when we get to talk three times a week on the phone. A daughter that has finally discovered the joy of reading and is making quick work of the big stack of books we bought at the used book sale. For a baby that was able to survive a whole year of pre-kinder, and the anxiety that finally maxed out her tummy, but still smiled and struggled through. Even though she did not understand much of what was said.

And last but the most, a husband who has learned to accept living without the security of the P.O. and still smiles and makes the best of life.

With that list I can never complain now can I? Life is good!

Tuesday, November 24, 2009

Sarah Palin Myth


Am I the only "soccer mom" that resents being represented by Sarah Palin? I of course resent being represented by anybody, but especially someone that does not share any of my values or principles, besides babies are great and large families rock and abortion sucks!

I really don't know if I am more surprised by the success of the Twilight movie, or the fact that the Sarah Palin book is looking to be the biggest non fiction seller of all times. That is a toss up in the whole shock department.

Just what is it about Sarah Palin that makes people care what she has to say? Now don't get me wrong, I am not a liberal or anything like that, more like a very Independent. I just listen to her and read what she has to say and it is like the most dumbed down, dumb rhetoric that I have ever heard. It is totally emotional and non factual.

As for the Twilight movie, while I am bashing, I cannot believe that the teenage girls of the world are actually buying this crap. Do they really believe that the "bad boy" is going to take care of them? I guess nothing should surprise me in that department. Since going to jail my son has received three marriage proposals and the girls line up and fight over his visits every Sunday morning.

What the heck is this world coming to?

Monday, November 23, 2009

Tis the Season

I love the Holidays. It all starts with Thanksgiving, a wonderful time to count our blessings and feel really thankful for everything we have been blessed with. Then it just gets better because we get the opportunity to share what we have with others. Don't you just love that? How could you show your Thanks more than by sharing?

I am always looking for ways to help, even if it is miniscule, I still like to give a little. In the other life I would take the kids down to Mexico the day after Christmas and stay for 10 days building a house for a needy family. It was awesome.

Since we moved here we have not been able to share as much, mostly because of not finding the people, but also because we have not had much to give.

Today I found this great organization Kiva that gives micro loans to enterprising folks in countries all over the world who want to start their own business. The best part is you only have to loan $25.00. You eventually get that back and can turn around and loan it again and again! The coolest idea I have ever heard. I signed up today and plan to make a couple of loans over the holidays.

Sunday, November 22, 2009

Christmas Ideas

When you talk to baby you may be surprised when she starts telling you that her sister is a pig, or that her brother is a dragon, or her and her dad are goats. The deal is she knows everyone in the family (and that is a lot of people) Chinese zodiac signs. We have a great book about it and she has memorized everyone's signs. We even bought Dad a shadow box for Christmas last year with all the animals in it.

I have been wanting a "mothers braclett". Because I do massage I do not wear rings too much, because I lose them every time that I take them off. So therefore I decided a charm braclett as a mothers braclett. The deal is I want all the Chinese zodiac animals for my kids on it instead of the stones. The reason I don't want stones is that I have three kids born in Jan. that would be three red stones. One born in July, another red stone, and two born in Oct. In other words not a whole lot of variety on the whole stone thing.

When I was doing some searching for Christmas gifts I found the perfect gift for me :) I found Chinese zodiac bracletts at John Hardy, a jewelery sight. They have some really cute baby bracletts also with the Chinese zodiac signs on them. I may just have to buy baby one of the cute little baby goat bracletts, she would love it!

Saturday, November 21, 2009

Me Pay for Abortion?

I will not pay for any abortions! If it means not paying taxes, well I guess I will have to stay under the maximum of eighty nine thousand as an expat so that I do not have to pay taxes. I absolutely refuse to let one penny of my money go to pay for any part of an abortion.

Thursday, November 19, 2009

Decisions, decisions!

It is so nice to be able to have choices about our life. It is an amazing feeling to be able to say, "well I think I would like to try this out for awhile." For over 25 years we were tied down by the JOB and now have the freedom to actually learn and grow.

There is this false thing called "security". There really is no such thing as we have all seen by the demise of some so called secure jobs and even secure money. We have had the awesome opportunity to learn that in the last three years.

We have tried out our massage school, teaching English, going back to the states to work, and just plain ole' doing massage here in Costa Rica. It is so cool to be able to do and try all these things with no worries about what the repercussions would be for the family.

When we quit, and sold the jobs in the States we had no idea that life was just about to get very, very exciting and at times challenging. I am so glad that we made that choice. I have seen both hubby and I grow in ways we would never have grown planted in Flagstaff.

I read recently an article about how living abroad made people more creative. All I can say is thank goodness for that, the ride has been worth it.

Wednesday, November 18, 2009

Winter

Brrr! We are into winter now, and it is cold. We have actually been into the sixties in the nights and only up to the seventies during the day. Time to get the sweaters out. I have begun to prefer the rainy season as it is at least hot during the morning until it rains in the afternoon.

Today we took baby to Ropa Americana to get some warm shirts. She about freezes because of no body fat! Good thing we live in Costa Rica where she is able to stay somewhat warm. Of course I believe we have just become really wimpy. Considering the brutal winters we have suffered from for years in Flagstaff.

Monday, November 16, 2009

Backwards Weather

It did not rain this rainy season in Costa Rica. Now it is dry season and it has rained everyday for the past couple of weeks. I even went to the gym and did a quick spin this morning for fear of getting wet if I went running. Of course it did not rain while I was spinning and the sun was shining when I walked home.

I tried to back workouts off to four a week and started gaining weight very quickly. It is six or nothing. Actually that sounds weird but it is true. If I do not work out six days a week I tend to start packing on the pounds. It does not have to be hard workouts, just some type of workout.

The good part is I love working out. In fact if anything I have to reign myself in when it comes to working out. When I was doing triathlons I loved going for a good two hour run, and a four or five hour bike ride. Here I could cross half the country if I did a bike ride that long.

Of course there is always the option of eating less. Nah.........

Friday, November 13, 2009

Safe Kids

Tonight I am thankful that all my kids are safe and sound for the moment. Yesterday I could not say that, so today I say it with joy. It is hard to believe when the kiddos are young and you can actually do something to keep them safe that one day you will not be able to do a darn thing in the world to keep them safe except to pray like crazy.

I once read in a book that mothers prayers go straight to heaven, like before all others. It has been my experience that this is true. I have had some pretty intense periods of prayer for my children. From not knowing where they are at all for days at a time, to knowing they really are in trouble.

I am reminded of a time my son just disappeared. He got angry at a party with friends and stormed out of the house. He turned up three days later at a truck stop in Chicago. He had gone out to hitch hike to Florida because it was warm there, and woke up in Chicago. He had a great friend who actually went there and picked him up. Oh yeah and he missed his sisters wedding in the meantime.

My daughter taking both kids on a 19 hr. bus trip to travel across Central America to visit their other grand parents. The bus got a flat and they got home about two thirty this morning, another good chance to hit the knees!

A son that decided to go check out a job in a really shady part of CR, being Jaco, the slimiest beach town around. He was gone for three days and returned today, safe and sound and determined that no job is worth selling your soul for!

As a mom all I can do is pray like crazy and know that my prayers are getting there faster than anyone elses!!

Thursday, November 12, 2009

New Friends



Yesterday we met some new friends that own the potpurria on the corner. I had gone in last week to buy baby a snack on the way home from school. Here in Costa Rica they have these little stores on every corner, pretty much. These folks really found a great corner to put theirs on, as there was not one close. Anyway so baby and I went in to grab a snack. The owner guy asked me if she was cheena and if she was mine. I told him yes she was cheena and yes she was mine. I did not think anymore about it.

That evening the teens went over to buy something. When they got home they asked if I knew that the owners wife was cheena. You don't see that very often so I was surprised. It also made sense why the owner was so surprised to see us. So yesterday when hubby was walking baby home from school the owners waved him over. They went over and met the owner and his wife, their daughter was still at school and they wanted baby to come over later and meet her.

After changing her out of her uniform we walked back over to meet her new friend. The little girl is very shy and a year younger than baby. It took a little while for them to warm up but soon we were invited up to their apartment above the store. Now I know the people here are poor, but I am always surprised at how little they actually live with.

In their apartment there was only a bench to sit on, and a few cooking things in the kitchen. They did have beds and a little table and chair for their little girl to sit at to eat. She did have a few toys to play with and they had a good time with that. We talked the best we could as the mom only speaks mandarin and spanish.

When we got ready to leave the girls were looking at some cheena dresses the little girl had. Her mom asked me if baby had any cheena dresses. I tried to explain that no she had not gotten on yet. She went into the bedroom and brought out a new one, still wrapped and gave it to baby. Baby was so thrilled she insisted on wearing it home. Boy did she get stared at on the way home, as you can see by the picture she looked stunning! Of course she did not have the cowboy hat for the walk home, kind of Jackie Chans it don't you think?

Wednesday, November 11, 2009

Remember

Today is a great day to remember all our soldiers who have given of their lives and time and energy to try and keep us a free nation. Having had a hubby in the armed forces I know that they are really subject to many things they would not have to put up with in a "normal job".

It is a sacrifice for them to leave home for deployments, pull cq duty, and all the other extras that are required of them. And for some of them they are even called upon to give their lives.

So today I remember them and salute them and thank them with all my heart for sacrificing for me and mine!

Tuesday, November 10, 2009

Books! Books! Books!



Saturday was the used book sale by the womens club in Belen. It was awesome and we had a blast. The bad part was there was only two children's books and we bought both of them. The above picture was our bus ride home, reading of course. We ended up buying 25 books and I have already finished off about five of them.

We have a huge surplus of books and I am thinking about having a book swap here at my house. We could just have everyone bring books they want to get rid of and everyone go around the room swapping. I think it would be great fun, and it would help us even the score with all the thousands of books we have here.

When you go to someone's house do you check out the books? I do. I have to say I judge people by what books they have in their home, if they even have books and how many. That sounds really weird, but it is true. I can't even imagine life without books.

All our children have been readers. Not having a t.v. in the home certainly helped cultivate good reading habits also. In fact the younger kids did not read as much as the older ones. Until Micah went to jail he had never read a whole book. Now he just finished Crime and Punishment and is reading Pride and Predjudice. He is always reading something and due to lack of something better to do enjoying it.

The only problem for me with reading is my poor old eyes. I have reading glasses but never take the time to dig them out. Hence red and tired eyes. I guess I am just waiting until the big five oh catches up with me and then I will get them out for good. Until then better go and work on the thousands of books that need reading.

Monday, November 9, 2009

Reviving Ophelia

I have been reading the book "Reviving Ophelia" by MaryPipher. It is a really good book, and actually I believe I have read it before about ten years ago when daughter number one was 15. It makes many good points about teenage girls, the dangers we as mothers try to protect them from, and the growth we want them to experience.

The world is such that we have to literally protect our teenage daughters from many things. In the olden days they could make mistakes that were just that, mistakes. These days these same mistakes could get them killed, or addicted for life or any myriad of things.

With our sons we were not quite as protective as we are with the girls. Sometimes it does not seem fair that there is this double standard for girls versus boys, but there it is, it is there. After the recent rape of a 15 yr. old girl at her high school after a dance I was just amazed. Like I said these days if girls are not careful they can get hurt very bad, even killed.

I am maybe a little overprotective, but I really feel that you cannot be too careful these days!

Friday, November 6, 2009

Family Movie Night

Woo hoo! Movie night! We usually try and have at least one movie night a month, more if we can get together. Tonight was ordained a movie night and now the trick? Trying to find a movie everyone likes. Usually we end up with an animated one, like we really liked the Ice Age movies. The last couple were the Monster Versus Aliens ones, they are really cute.

As far as family movies that would appeal to kids aged 6 to 21, now that is a little tricky. Usually like I said we end up with an animated one. Though some of the cute ones like Daddy Day Care and the one about the Dad using his kids blanket with Eddie Murphey were pretty cute.

And of course part of the fun of movie night is the food. Usually popcorn, but occasionally we will break down and have ice cream. I don't eat ice cream though, so Hubby does not like to do ice cream. I think I ate too much ice cream as a teen and have sworn off it! Now if you talk cookies, I am all over that!

Thursday, November 5, 2009

Happy Kids



I have heard it said that a mom can only be as happy as her saddest kid. While I would not totally agree with that, I would say that happy kids can really make us feel happy.

There are days when I think "wow, no one is in distress or drama at the moment". I should not even think that with seven kids. It is like just opening the door and saying, "come on in trouble, we need a little humility". Or something like that.

Today my son called from jail to tell me he had the best day in 15 months! That made me feel very happy for him, and just made me feel like it was a great day all the way around. It also helped that I got off my butt and went to the gym and worked out. It also helped that the sun finally peeked through the clouds for about 30 minutes this afternoon.

All things to feel really thankful for and have a glad heart!

Wednesday, November 4, 2009

Weather

I am trying to figure out what the heck is with this weather? We are actually having fall weather. Our poor student is from a really warm place and had to go shopping tonight and buy some sweaters, she is freezing! Last time we had class our student had to work in our quasi outdoor clinic during a hurricane. I am beginning to think we are somehow attracting this lousy weather.

Supposedly this is just a front moving through and will clear in the next two days, yeah! In the meantime I am enjoying a little bit wearing long pants and a sweatshirt, that is a first for a long time. Maybe we will even have hot cocoa!

Tuesday, November 3, 2009

So Much for Healthy Kids

I really should have known better than to write my post yesterday! Sure enough last night the baby started complaining about her neck and jaw hurting. I took a good luck at her and her jaw was swollen! I had her rest and stay home from school today. Now she looks fine and is just a little sore in the jaw. All I can think is it was some kind of gland infection. The thing is she kicks back awfully fast and will probably be back at school by Thursday.

The thing to think I guess, would be that good thing she is so healthy, or she would not have kicked back to quick and be bouncing off the walls already. I am so thankful for healthy kids!

Monday, November 2, 2009

Healthy Kids

True health is a gift. It is probably the greatest gift as well as responsibility we as parents have to pass on to our children. Our children will develop their eating habits as well as likes and dislikes in their formative years, under our care. We can determine whether they are junk food junkies or gourmet lovers.

When our kids were young we were very strict about our diets. We went from vegetarians, to eating some fish and chicken occasionally. We also kept all refined sugar and sugar products out of our home. I was a little oc about this, but that is really the only way to keep on top of that one.

As the kids got older, and I got tired of fighting we let little junks creep in, until they totally took over. When most of the kids were teens we had pretty much adopted a SAD or standard american diet.

Now it is interesting to watch the kids grow up and raise their own kids. None of my over 21 kids drink soda, or eat junk food. They are all getting through their "trying everything" phase and going back to the way they were raised. My 23 yr. old was laughing the other day on the phone about not being allowed to go trick or treating. He at the moment was dressed up and ready to go to his work party.

All of my older children work out and try really hard to stay healthy. I look at them and it makes me feel that we must have done something right. Now if I can get the 21 and 15 yr. old to give up the energy drinks and sodas that will be real process.

The really cool thing is the baby does not like sweets. She loves candy, but we never buy that. She does not like cakes, cookies or ice cream. I don't know why, but it makes it much easier to get her to eat healthy. Right at the moment she is eating popcorn and drinking her special milk. She gets her raw milk boiled with a little honey and cinnamon in it to make it more digestible for her. Next to boiled eggs this is her favorite snack!

Saturday, October 31, 2009

Friday, October 30, 2009

Crazy Kids

I know I am a very conservative person, but somehow that does not just "rub off" on your children. In fact you are very lucky if you can teach that one to children these days.

Last night my two daughters 15 and 25 went to the work party, at the bar. Things got a little crazy and they had a wild time, to say the least. The biggest problem is the very beautiful 15 yr. old, and the fact that she is a gringa makes her even more desirable. My older daughter was wishing she had brought a bat to the party. In fact maybe that is what byob meant?

At any rate also got a call from the prodigal son, the inmate in coconino county. He always brightens my day and makes me laugh. This call was no exception. Seems he decided it was finally time to cut off the Sampson locks. The problem of course is they do not allow scissors in jail, duh and so he just hauled out the little handy dandy nail clippers. Of course what else would you use in that situation? The problem came when they broke by the time he got to the back. Mullet boy is his name now.

I still have not heard from the crazy 21 yr. old in the middle of the Hondurus mess with his brother-in-law, no telling about him. They barely made it out of the country without being arrested. Good thing they were headed out of the country when they got pulled off the bus and threatened. Sometimes the immigration police just slay me here. Not the brightest bulbs in the bunch to say the least.

And there is still Halloween tomorrow! No telling what that will bring.

Thursday, October 29, 2009

Sanctity for Life

Fifteen years ago I was working for Birthrite. It was a crisis pg. center and I really enjoyed my time working as a volunteer there. While working there I had to do training to be able to council the women and girls that came into the clinic for free pg. tests. I learned a lot in that training that is becoming more apparent to me lately.

The main thing we learned was about something called the "slippery slope". This was in reference to sanctity for life. There was a chart that showed how the slope quickly declined with the introduction of the birth control pill. That quickly sloped into abortion, now we have the morning after pill, and an attitude about whole populations that is alarming.

Today in Yahoo news there was an article about at risk prisoners getting h1n1 shots. People were up at arms that "this population" should receive any shots at all. Now don't get me wrong I have already told my son not to take the shot, so have no interest at all in my "inmate" receiving one. My shock here is that people could be so callous as to voice their belief that these at risk individuals should be denied any medical attention, just because they are in jail.

That is not the only group that seems to be singled out by the population at large. There are of course the "illegal aliens, fetuses, inmates, and hippies (I just threw that last one in there :) Anyway it is scary to see that people will single these whole groups of people out to be denied health benefits, help, or even life. Do you see that people are very hardened in this? It is very Nazi Germany to me and very alarming. We need to wake up and realize that a person is a person no matter what!

Wednesday, October 28, 2009

Oil Fire

Did you know that oil fires make a huge mess? Did you know that the smoking, catching fire point of olive oil is very low? Did you know that you should never, never leave a 21 yr. old alone in your house while you are gone? Actually you should not even leave a 21 yr. old with his 29 yr old brother-in-law in your house while you are gone? Did you know that it takes about 6 hours to clean up the mess if you ignore the above advice?

Tuesday, October 27, 2009

Gotcha Day



Today is just one of the happiest days of our lives that we have celebrated every year for the past five years. It is the day we got blessed with Jin Li Neu joining our family and our hearts.



I could write pages and pages about the changes she has brought into our family, just suffice it to say they have all been good. She has softened very hardened teenage boy hearts, as well as gluing our family together forever.



To her we say we love you and will always be happy for this day that we were able to take you home with us!

Monday, October 26, 2009

Do You Have Skeletons In Your Closet?



It is time to get the skeletons out of the closet, dust them off and prepare for classes. Here Benjamin is making friends with Fred, our main man for anatomy classes.
When we get out Fred and the clay baby comes out to play with us. She loves clay and any other art medium.

We do most of the anatomy and physiology online now so Fred does not get out as often as he used to. But we will continue to use him, because doggonit he cost a lot, all one half of him!

Friday, October 23, 2009

More on Vaccines by my friend!

My friend Sally over at abroadincostarica wrote this and I loved it!

Vaccination Screed

"Those who are unaware are unaware of being unaware". --Merrill Jenkins, economist and author

V smileDebating vaccination on social sites takes so much time. Mostly because I have to repeat my reasoning every time the topic comes up, remember where I saw the documentation behind the apparently insane idea that vaccination is not all it's cracked up to be. No more: this is my Vaccination Screed. (Good word, huh?) If anyone wants to debate vaccines, I'd love to. They will need to read this first and I promise to read whatever they throw at me. You know, like studies proving vaccines are safe (there aren't any) and effective (none of those either). Then we can debate from a level playing field.

If you don't have kids, you've had all your vaccinations and are perfectly healthy (like me), this post may not interest you. If you have kids and aren't 100% on the vaccination thing, why not read up before you decide? You'll at least get a good start here.

If you've had all your vaccinations and are NOT healthy, there's a chance your illness is related to injected junk. Today's illness might be, if not cured, then much-relieved by removing the junk via chelation and bio-medical intervention.

Alice down the rabbit hole If you follow me down this rabbit hole, you'll meet people who've cured themselves and their children of incurable disease. The funny thing is, you are not likely to hear of these methods from your doctor. In fact, your doctor will laugh at you if you mention them. As will your friends. Your enemies will have a field day. Even though none of them have done any research.

But, then, why would they? What they know about vaccination was told to them by Doctors, the indisputable Gods of the 20th century, who learned about it from a drug salesperson or journal article (possibly written by a Big Pharma ghostwriter), all verified by public indoctrination schooling and the MSM. And everyone - doctors, teachers, MSM employees, you and me - assumes there's hard science behind vaccinations. Don't worry, we'll be gettin' to that.

Oh, and don't tell me the "vaccine question has been answered." Maybe it was at one time. Back when the world was flat.

The problem is not vaccination. From what I know, the science behind vaccination is sound. It mimics the way you get natural immunity. Take smallpox. Put some smallpox in your body, your body attacks it, builds up antibodies, bingo: immunity. It's in the perversion of the science where one finds the root of vaccine evil:

#1. It's one thing to vaccinate against a true deadly virus, like smallpox, another to vaccinate against every little germ that comes along, like swine flu. Here's the thing: natural immunity lasts forever. Vaccine induced lasts but a few years. Many childhood diseases are more severe for adults. If one suffers the disease in childhood, one has little chance of dying from it yet gets lifelong immunity. But get vaccinated and, when immunity runs out and you get the disease, you are more likely to suffer devastating consequences, like death. Risk/benefit.

#2. Vaccines are chock-full of nasty additives: neomycin, formaldehyde, thimerisol, aluminum, to name a few. And cultivated in unappealing places: tissue from diseased monkey brains, aborted fetal tissue, rotten eggs. You are injecting this crap into your bloodstream. Um, the smallpox vaccine didn't have any of this.

#3. We vaccinate against everything, regardless of risk/benefit. Like Rubella. Rubella causes a mild rash and fever for two days. Rubella only poses a danger to a pregnant woman who may pass it to her fetus. So... why do we give infants two doses of Rubella vaccination? They are out of the danger zone. We fill infants with crap to protect pregnant women? Even though no one around them is pregnant anymore?

And why do we give two to four doses of the Hep B vaccine to infants when Hep B is only transmitted by blood? Particularly when this vaccination is no longer effective after eight years. Do you reckon your infant will be a drug abuser or prostitute? Is our blood supply so tainted we can't trust it against Hep B?

An aside: the CDC reports 99,000 U.S. deaths per year from nosocomial infections: infections which are a result of treatment in a hospital, most of which are preventable. The truth is mainstream medicine kills more people than almost anything else, yet we can't wait to bow and scrape at its feet if a new germ appears? Insanity.

#4. Is all this vaccination shutting down our bodies' natural ability to build immunity, leaving us vulnerable? MRSA came about because little germs had to get tough to fight disinfectant in hospitals. We could be setting ourselves up for a real pandemic. Maybe one day we'll all die from the common cold. Or acne.

“Immunisation programs against the flu, measles, mumps, polio, etc., actually may be seeding humans with RNA to form pro-viruses…which under proper conditions become activated and cause a variety of diseases including rheumatoid arthritis, multiple sclerosis, lupus erythematoses, Parkinson’s disease, and cancer. Spare me this ‘medical miracle’.” --Dr. Robert Simpson, Rutgers University, 1987

#5. Aside from undermining our natural ability to build immunity, what is the long term effect of shooting all this poison into our bodies? Oh, no studies on that?

I wasn't born wary of vaccination, the FDA, the CDC, Big Pharma, my government and doctors. But trust must be earned and I can't think of a single thing any of those entities have done to earn my trust. Au contraire. The more I know, the less I trust.

If I could quickly share with you everything I've learned since August 2008, I'd do it. But, as a pro-vaccine friend said to me recently when I quoted a tiny bit of data on polio, "You can't just pick 2 or 3 years out of a hat and call it a trend. You need to look at all the data. That is science, not opinion." Nor can you squeeze over a year of constant study and information overload into a single post. Although I've done my best.

"The CDC would be the last place in the world to go for information regarding health. The CDC is a government bureacracy funded by theft (taxation that has reached confiscatory levels) and run by white collar criminals who regularly misinform and misdirect the public while creating pandemonium in the marketplace (unnecessary destruction of livestock, recalls etc) and conspiring to incite public panic on an almost daily basis, in violation of the Constitution of the United States."--Dr Duffy, Doctor of Chiropractic Medicine

Perhaps you think Dr. D is a little hard on the CDC. Finish this post, follow the links, watch the videos. Then we'll talk.

And science? Forget science, there is no science. I almost LOLed at another friend's link to the CDC because "that's where all the science is." Not LOLed at my friend, but at how foolishly we presume the CDC makes recommendations based on science. There is no vaccine science, much less on the CDC website. None. Hard to believe, I know. Go look, like I and thousands of parents have. You won't find any. In fact, the vaccine truther's current rallying cry is "Show us the science." Should be easy, right?

"My suspicion, which is shared by others in my profession, is that the nearly 10,000 SIDS deaths that occur in the United States each year are related to one or more of the vaccines that are routinely given children. The pertussis vaccine is the most likely villain, but it could also be one or more of the others." --Dr. Mendelsohn, M.D.

Take SIDS, for instance. On vaccines and SIDS, Wikipedia says:

"Vaccination does not increase the risk of SIDS. According to the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention: From 2 to 4 months old, babies begin their primary course of vaccinations. This is also the peak age for sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS). The timing of these two events has led some people to believe they might be related. However, studies have concluded that vaccines are not a risk factor for SIDS.[108]"

Hey, studies, whaddya know! But, oops, the CDC's 108-link goes to a Page Not Found. I found the CDC's main SIDS page. At the bottom is a link for SIDS and Vaccinations. I clicked: Page Not Found. That CDC is such a tease. Could you just post the studies and end the debate??? Or could it really be coincidence that SIDS occurs at the same time as primary vaccinations? So far, "coincidence theory" is what vaccine pushers rely on for proof: "Millions would have died without this vaccine."

Puzzle But back to me. I have 100s of sites bookmarked: information, documents, yahoo groups, personal stories, videos, podcasts, you name it. The info is dripping out my ears, puzzle pieces painting an unholy alliance. Is today's vaccination policy rooted in profit or public health? The profit is ginormous, the corruption well-documented. There is no proof these vaccines are safe or necessary, and a mountain of evidence to the contrary. Call me crazy (many do), but I'm going with the evidence.

Both of my sons were born perfectly healthy. One had a a seizure after the first Hep B vaccine. He is fine today. The other mysteriously developed asthma at three. No doctor has a clue why. They know what drugs to prescribe to mask the symptoms. They know how to warn me about the dangers of not taking the drugs. But they don't know why it happened, or how to control it, other than with drugs.

Funny, with a little research on the internet, we learned from other moms how to control asthma with diet and very little drug intervention. We are hoping to cure it with chelation. It sure won't hurt him. How come no doctor ever took us down this path?
We didn't give any more vaccines after Mo's seizure. Not that I knew what it was really. I just never liked the vaccines, the seizure was scary and I was too disorganized to pay attention to a vaccine schedule. I'm sure I could have been frightened into giving them all, particularly if the boys had gone to public school. Thank goodness Hal insisted on home schooling.

"Anything that implies that immunisations are not the greatest medical advance in the history of public health is ignored or ridiculed. Can you imagine the economic and political import of discovering that immunisations are killing thousands of babies?" --Dr. Douglass M.D.

The government who helps force these vaccinations upon us refuses to do any meaningful study. Why is that? I say follow the money. If they did a study and found out vaccines cause more harm than good, the backlash would be ginormouser. Picture Congress being visited by over 3,000,000 enraged mothers (of vaccine damaged kids), then sued, collectively and individually. Yummy.

Here's a taste of where I've been lately. There are 100s more links in my bookmarks folder:

FLU:

* Desiree Jennings got a flu shot
* Swine Flu: Cases Overestimated?
* There is ton of info on swine flu right now. You will easily find that the regular flu vaccine has been debunked everywhere: it has only been shown effective in people over 65 and even that is shaky.
* Am. Lung Assoc. flu & pneumonia surprising facts.
*
o Page 4: "For the second year in a row, pneumonia and influenza together remained the eighth leading cause of death in the U.S. in 2005. Pneumonia consistently accounts for the overwhelming majority of these deaths. In 2005, 61,189 people died from pneumonia and 1,812 people died from influenza."
o Page 4 bottom: "For the 65 and over population, pneumonia and influenza are the sixth leading cause of death. Close to 90% of deaths due to these diseases occur in this age group. Very few deaths are attributed to influenza in the population under age 55. As seen in the 2005 mortality statistics, the highest death rate for influenza is in those over age 85."
o Page 9: See actual number of deaths from flu alone.
o From the American Lung Association
o CDC on flu
* Why would anyone bother to get a flu shot? Why has the CDC not challenged the "flu kills 36,000 people a year in the U.S." lie? Flu kills almost no one. Pneumonia kills old people. What a scam. All to sell drugs... unless you can think of another reason?

SHAKEN BABY SYNDROME:

* Scandals & wrongfully convicted
* Sean's case
* On one of the videos listed below (think it's the first one), you'll hear the story of a family that proved their "shaken baby syndrome" was caused by vaccination.

HEP B:

* Ian dies after Hep B vaccine, good info. Brace yourself for the photos. If I'd seen this before, no way would I have had my boys vaccinated. Fair warning.

GARDASIL: Barabara Loe Fisher always has the facts.

More GARDASIL:

* Mike Adams, the Health Ranger
* Even CBS has questions
* Teen girl dies of tumor, not vaccine... So the coroner is saying she would have died that morning regardless of whether or not she received the vaccine. Within 2 hrs of her jab she was dead, but the vaccine is not implicated at all. This is such a fantastic lie, I'm amazed anyone believes it.
* If you go to the CDC website and read about Gardasil, you'll see the word "may" everywhere: as in "may" cause cervical cancer, "may" prevent cervical cancer, blah blah blah. They don't know. Or, they are lying.

Here's a little info on Merck, who brings us Gardasil. The case against Merck is so damning, it is hard to believe the CEOs are not in jail.

* Largest health care fraud settlement in DOJ history
* Dumped vaccine and chemical waste in public water supply
* Medicaid "mistakes"
* Fosamax
* Hiding negative test results for Vytorin
* Skimped on taxes (although the IRS goes after big pockets routinely)
* Vioxx 27,000 dead and lawsuits galore
* Recalls 2.1 million doses of childhood vaccine
* Drew up a list of doctors to be neutralized for criticizing its drugs

Why would anyone take a drug made by Merck?

FDA & Big Pharma:

* Mercola on FDA
* Dr. Weil is threatened by the FDA, FTC over immune-boosting supplements. But Merck is allowed to stay in business.
* Mercola on FDA & Big Pharma's cozy relationship
* Who's on the FDA's Advisory Committees?

SV40: cancer-causing DNA virus that was - whoops - put into a polio vaccine

POLIO: Already on the way out before vaccine developed: 1952 saw 58,000 cases; 1953 less than 35,000; first vaccine introduced 1955. Google it, it's everywhere.

First places I go for vaccine information:

* Barbara Loe Fisher's NVIC.org
* Jenny McCarthy, Jim Carrey, Stan Kurtz at GenerationRescue.com
* Mercola.com
* Whale.to (a clearinghouse of info so includes the "out there" stuff)
* Yahoo groups: AustimMercury, frequent-dose-chelation, GFCFKids, adult-metal-chelation, mb12valtrex

Two moms who cured autism with mercury chelation (using Andy Cutler's protocol) and bio-medical intervention:

* Moria
* Dana

GREAT DOCUMENTARIES:

* Vaccinations - the Hidden Truth
* Are Vaccines Safe?
* Vaccine Nation
* Prescription for Disaster
* Making a Killing: on the psychotropic drugs we give America's children... from age 2

MISC SITES:

* Excellent faqs re. diseases we vaccinate against on this home school mom's page.
* Tattling on the vaccine industry
* Vaccine liberation
* Shirley's Wellness Cafe

I'll add to this page as I find new information so it's all in one place. If anyone can prove vaccines are harmless and good for us, sign me up. I am ready to be wrong. Then we can move on to discovering why our children are sicker every year in every way, in lockstep with increasing Big Pharma intervention. Coincidence?

Why do I care? My vaccination decisions have been made. The thing is, I've been made a fool of on the vaccine front to line someone else's pocketbook. That makes me angry. I also don't like people thinking I'm stupid. (So... I risk looking stupid to prove I'm not stupid. Really: this is a smart thing.) Injustice makes me nuts. I don't want anymore kids damaged or killed by vaccines. And I need people in my camp in order to force the government to take a hard look at the vaccines they are mandating. Before they really mandate them and take away my choice in the matter.

I really hate being manipulated. Do not try to scare me into being vaccinated against every germ that comes down the pike. Besides, it's smarter to butch up for a little lifelong immunity. As long as it's still my choice, that's the path I'm taking.

"Of all tyrannies, a tyranny sincerely exercised for the good of its victims may be the most oppressive. It may be better to live under robber barons than under omnipotent busybodies. The robber barons' cruelty may sometimes sleep, his cupidity may at some point be satiated; but those who torment us for our own good will torment us without end, for they do so with the approval of their own conscience." --C.S. Lewis