Hi Everyone!

Sorry I haven't posted in a while, I have been pretty busy this week! But it was mostly a good busy so that's usually ok. Sunday was John's Birthday (he doesn't read this or else I would've wished him a happy birthday). We had a lovely day. We went out for a birthday dinner with some friends from church. We went to Hector's and indulged in Mexican food which was fabulous as always. He loved his gifts which, aside from the suit, included a giant target that my dad painted on a piece of plywood for John to use to shoot his paintball gun. Lately he has been shooting it wherever he feels like and our white picket fence ends up looking orange.
Anyways, John usually isn't a huge fan of his birthdays so we just had a laid back, relaxing day. Tonight, we head over to my parents to celebrate a combined birthday dinner for John and I. We also get our presents! John is getting a tennis racket, tennis balls, and a bocce ball/croquet set, but don't tell! So those of you who play tennis, invite John to play (he isn't bad and loves to play). I already got my present (a shower curtain that I had been lusting after for a while) but if I know my mother (and I do) I will probably be getting something else tonight, so we will see.
I am having a hard time coming up with something interesting to blog about. I am inspiration-less. So I guess today, I will just ramble about miscellaneous items.
First, the sad story that is the Brewers. Now, I must confess, I don't really follow baseball unless they are winning. I think going to games when your team is losing is boring. (Or did you watch the all-star game? Now that was bo-ring) So I turned it on late last night and it was the bottom of the 9th. The score was 7-0, with Chicago winning. So why, you ask did I watch the game for another 15 minutes? I have no idea, but I am pretty mad at myself for wasting my time. Poor Brewers. They were really doing good. Oh well.
I leave for NC in 11 days! I am super excited. I am a little nervous because I haven't flown since 2003 and haven't had to do the whole "3 oz containers in a 1qt. bag." So hopefully I will be able to get through security. I also am hoping not to have to check any bags. But, I am going to visit because my friend just had her baby so I am going to have lots of presents, and my shoes will take up like half of my carry-on. So it is going to be tight.
My birthday is tomorrow and I don't know what we should do. I need some ideas. We want to go to dinner and then do something, but we don't know what yet. So any suggestions would be welcome.
And a few things about the blog! Thanks to all for voting on the "What kind of Dog should we get?" poll. It looks like the Cocker Spaniel won the vote. Now, how about a poll of "How to trick husband into getting another dog NOW!"? Also, thanks for the comments about the issue of the picture on an earlier post. Apparently, I didn't post the picture right, I just posted the link. And because of that, anyone could change the pic if they wanted. (I think thats how it went) So not 100% sure, but I guess I just have to be more careful with how I post pics. I didn't know that blogging was so complicated!
I just want to also thank my dedicated readers! I appreciate your feedback and welcome more of it.

I would like to apologize...

Hello all,

I would like to apologize to anyone who has visited my blog today. Someone hacked into my account and posted some seriously offensive and inappropriate pictures on my blog. I am hoping that it just happened today, because I only noticed it tonight. The pics are gone and I have changed my password. I have absolutely no idea who would do this. But if any of you saw that picture and were offended by it (which I am sure you would've been) I am very sorry and please know that I have done what I can to end it right now. I really don't want anyone to stop visiting because of that. Has anyone else who has a blog ever had this happen or do you have any advice on how to keep it from happening again? I would appreciate any feedback. I am also trying to find some info online from Blogger that would give me some advice.

Thank you for understanding!

Advice on Special Needs Kids Needed!

Good afternoon all! I had dialysis last night and am a little more tired today because I only got like 3 1/2 hours of sleep last night. But I came home and slept from 7 till 11 and am awake and ready to go! Today I have lots to do. I must clean up the house, finish shopping for John's birthday present, go for my walk, and help John with math. Although, he may be working overtime tonight. Which, I don't like that I don't get to see him, but it would be nice right now if he would work late. First, we need the money. And second, it gives me more uninterrupted time to get my stuff done.
Anyways, I'm looking for a few tips or any advice you may have! I signed up at our church to volunteer with the kids as a "Special Needs Buddy". I wanted to work with the special needs kids because I really feel a special appreciation for them. Many times, when you really get to know them, they are very sweet and gentle hearted. But, I don't know alot about how to help them. I spoke with the coordinator today, and it sounds like most of the kids are either autistic or in some way developmentally disabled. They are all school aged, but many are put into lower aged classrooms because of their limited abilities. My job would just be to be with them, form a relationship, and if they need extra help or are having a hard time, to take care of them (as the actual Sunday School teachers are pretty busy with all of the other kids). I am really excited about this opportunity, but a little nervous. Does anybody have some tips about how to build a good relationship with an autistic/special needs child?

Just a quick update

Hi Friends,

Tonight I go for my 3rd overnight dialysis treatment. Sunday (my 2nd) went pretty well. I got 4 1/2 hours of sleep (1/2 hour more than the time before) and starting to feel more comfortable there. I really can't say enough good things about this place. The 3 people that are there overnight are all really nice. And I do enjoy the overnight part of it, although I will admit I do not like sleeping alone. That makes it a little hard when I have to leave at night. But hopefully, I will get used to it over time. It really has started making me feel better. Yesterday I got home at 5:15 am, went back to bed until about 10:45, and then woke up refreshed and ready for the day. I went for a long walk and completed a few errands. Before right after dialysis I would be totally wiped out for the whole day. So, I am hoping not to waste my whole day today messing around on this stupid computer! (really, once I get on, its like a drug!)
Yesterday, I bought John part of his birthday present. I bought him a really nice suit from Boston Store with a matching tie. It is a brown/taupe color with super thin pinstripes. The tie is shades of brown and blue. I think it will look really nice on him. He has a suit now, but he has had it for more than 10 years and it really doesn't fit him right. I just have to find some shoes. Mens shoes are EXPENSIVE! I was shocked. Even the clearance shoes were like 60 bucks. (which I would have paid but none were in his size) So I will be searching for shoes today.
Today I will also be going for another walk, grocery shopping, and cleaning the house...oh yeah, and trying to teach John how to do algebra.
And as much as I LOVE hot 85 degree summer days (thats not sarcasm, I really do), this cool front that started yesterday has been really nice. I can actually open my windows! It makes it a lot easier to exercise outside, also. The humidity tends to make it hard for me to breathe.
Well, I guess I should go get ready for the day. Oh! And, I am going to start taking my camera with me and posting some pictures for you so don't worry, they are coming!
Thanks for reading!

"Retro Humor" LOVE IT!

You Better Be A Donor or Else....

As most of you know, organ donation has already saved my life once, thanks to a very special family who made a decision that their young son's death would not be in vain. They chose to donate all of his organs after loosing their precious boy due to a 4-wheeler accident in July of 2001. I will be forever grateful to them for their gift. There are over 100,000 people on the waiting list in the U.S. for organs needed to save their lives. Unfortunately, many of those people die waiting. So that is why I am dedicating this post to convincing you that you need to make your wishes known to your loved ones (along with putting the sticker on your license) that if you should be in that situation, you want your organs to be donated.

So, first I am going to counter a few myths about donation that are commonly heard:
1. "If I am in the emergency room and there is someone else that needs an organ, they wouldn't try as hard to save me"
This is not true at all! First of all, a doctor "whose specialty most closely matches your particular emergency"* will be the one treating you. Transplant teams are not even made aware of the patient until the patient is brain dead, with their body still working. The doctors conduct numerous tests to see if there is any chance of recovery, and only after that is your family consulted about possibly donating your organs!
2."I'm under 18, I can't make that decision anyways"
Well, technically that is true. But if you speak to your parents seriously and make them aware of your desire to donate your organs, most parents will want to respect their children's wishes. While you can't control what is done when you are dead, you can help influence their decision. It may also help them cope with their loss by knowing that part of you is still living in someone else, or that they did exactly what you would've wanted.
3. "I want to have an open casket at my funeral, but if I donate, I can't"
If someone donates their internal organs, it is not noticeable once the body is clothed. If they donate their eyes, a glass eye is inserted and the eyes are closed during the viewing anyway. For bone donation, a rod is placed where the bone is removed. And for skin grafts, a thin layer of skin (similar to what would peel off with a sunburn) is taken from the donors back where it will not be noticeable.
4. "Celebrities always get organs quicker than everybody else. I want to make sure that my organs go to the person that need them most"
While it may seem that celebs get organs faster, they really don't. It may seem that way because of all the media surrounding their circumstance, but they really don't. The United Network for Organ Sharing (the group in charge of the waiting lists and sending organs to the correct recipient) conducts an internal audit on all celebrities to ensure that their organs were received just like everyone else.
5. "My family will have to pay more to have my organs taken out."
Untrue! Any procedure (including tests) that relates to the possibility of organ transplant is paid for by either the hospital or the transplant recipient.
* info found on mayoclinic.com

The second way I am going to try to sway you into donation is to appeal to your emotions so here goes:
I would have been dead 7 years ago if it were not for organ donation. I had been put on the "heart-lung bypass machine". Once you are one that, you have about 10 days to 2 weeks to live because after that time, the machine can cause you to get horrible, untreatable infections. 24 hours after that, I was in surgery. I believe in God's hand in everything, but I know that I would not be here if my donor's family decided not to donate his organs. I have known one family who lost their young son to the bypass machine. I have lost a friend because she was waiting for a lung transplant. I have read horrible accounts from people with Cystic Fibrosis waiting for a transplant, being in constant pain, gasping for air, hospitalized for months, close to years, waiting for their new lungs and a second chance at life. Everytime you go for a jog, or run towards the street to grab your child out of harms way, think of all the people who are waiting for lungs so they could do that along with simple things such as climbing a flight of stairs or doing the laundry. Everytime you eat an ice cream cone, think of the person who was born with diabetes and has had to test their sugar and give themselves shots numerous times a day for their whole lives and are now waiting for a pancreas transplant. And everytime you get up and go to work, think of all the people who wish they could do that, but are too sick or tired to keep a full time job and are now waiting for hearts, livers, and kidneys. And I don't say that to make you feel guilty, but if you are not an organ donor, think over your decision long and hard, remembering these people. And like they say "Don't take your organs to heaven, heaven knows we need them here".

My First Post on the New Site!

Hello Everyone!

Obviously you have found your way to my new site. I like it alot better than my old one. You can choose the background and theme of your site and customize it anyway that you want it! So I have been having fun with it.
We had a really nice dinner last night. We ended up at Louise's downtown on Jefferson. We enjoyed the outdoor seating on the patio. It was beautiful out last night. Of course, I canceled our plans to have our friends over for a cookout because the meteorologists said that it was for sure going to rain. Oh, and it was supposed to rain all day today. I guess it rained a little in the morning, but we went to a birthday party for John's cousin's daughter outside in Waukesha where it was beautiful. We also went to our friends house from church for a get together...John played tennis and I ate outside. No rain. I think I am going to write a letter to all of the meteorologists and give them a piece of my mind!
So, today I headed to Target to buy a birthday present for a 4 year old girl. Now, I don't know if it is just me, but I think that Barbie is getting really slutty! Now, I should say that I am not a fan of Barbie to begin with. If I ever have a daughter, she will not be allowed to play with Barbie. First of all, as I said before, the dolls are dressed like hookers and I would want my daughter to know that the outfits that Barbie wears are completely inappropriate until you are 18 and out of my house. Second of all, I don't want her to get the idea that to be "pretty" you have to look like Barbie, or even that Barbie is the sort of woman she should want to look like. (I read an article saying that doctors have looked at Barbie's proportions and if a woman would have her measurements, she would have to be like 7 feet tall and have no internal organs). But now, it's not even just Barbie. They have High School Musical dolls, which are a little less slutty but still inappropriate for young girls. There are also America's Next Top Model dolls, who are definately will not be allowed. Although I do have to say, the new Bratz dolls are the worst. The dolls themselves are ghetto-fied with the thick liquid liner, big shiny hair, collagen-pumped lips, and high cheekbones. The clothes are seriously ridiculous. Not only are they hoochie looking, but, at least in my group of friends, there is no self-respecting woman who would wear these clothes in public. So why are they trying to sell them to little girls? Well, my guesses would be to a.) to hook these girls early to spend (or get their parents to spend) money on the line of dolls, clothes like the dolls, all the things that go along with the kind of image one would want to portray by wearing these clothes.
b.) they have no souls and are ignoring the fact that little girls are being abused and taken advantage of everyday and that by them dressing like this is just making them appear more available to the perverts that are on the loose and
c.) the people responsible for it are all men without daughters.
Anyways, I ended up buying a stickerbook of the Disney princesses, and a Disney princess accessory set with a little purse, some jewelry, her own "credit car", etc. When I have to buy for a kid, I like buying either books or craft supplies. My all-time favorite gift to give is the Curious George Movie Soundtrack Cd. All the music is by Jack Johnson and its a mix of some lullabies and just plain old fun music ("reduce, reuse, recycle" is my personal favorite!) And by the way, the pic of the dolls on the left above curious george is actually an offshoot of Barbie called "Wee Friends". Although, to me they look less"wee" and more"teen", I think they are a wholesome option for girls that want to play with teenage or adult looking dolls.

So, readers, what are your opinions of toys for girls? What kind of toys do you buy instead of the aforementioned dolls? Post your opinions under the comments section!