An update on the past week

Rachael was able to leave Children’s Mercy on Saturday. She has her prostatic eye in and she is doing great. Saturday, she came home to her friends in her yard and signs put up all around her house. She seemed to be grateful that all of us were there to greet her home. She is able to shower by herself and she will tell anyone how hard it is for her. “I have to sit in a chair to shower, and I hate it! I tried to stand up and take one but my eye lost focus and thank goodness the shower curtain was there to hold me up!” She had me cracking up; Rachael is not the one to complain in a sad manor she is always to say something hilarious even though the situation itself isn’t funny at all.

Sunday came and Deja and I cooked her and her family some Mexican Spaghetti and brownies. Rachael, who has a plate in her jaw, can eat only soft foods. We were a little worried that she wouldn’t be able to eat the dinner, but thankfully, she said she devoured it. I can’t imagine how much pain she has gone through. She is truly a strong woman. She also has a deep cut that goes from below her left eye, across her nose and to the bottom of her right eye. A plastic surgeon was able to stitch underneath so she wouldn’t have a nasty scar from the stitches. Her face isn’t swollen anymore and her brother is doing magnificent!  

Mike, my boyfriends’ dad, is much better. He has so many friends and they all are there for him. Last night, he had the elderly lady’s family come over. He said, “I don’t want to do this, and I am not looking forward to it, but it’ll do my heart good.” And that is exactly what it did. While the family was over they had their serious talks, but by the end Mike and the other family was cracking jokes and laughing about the good ol’ days. (Mike and the others were good friends and Mikes other son, Jimmy, went to school with one of the family members.)

Mike still won’t drive a vehicle no matter what it is, and truly I don’t think I would be able to drive if I was in his situation. Thankfully, because Jody works in the family business he can drive his daddy to where he needs to go, not only can Jody help him, but so can his friends. His heart is healing slowly, but when it is done I beyond doubt believe he will be much better. I think what happened to him will be with him for life, but it’ll be pushed into the back of his head and he can move on with his life.

The other family that was in a fatal car accident isn’t doing so well. Please keep them in your prayers. I am still not sure on the detail of that wreck, but I don’t believe they are needed.

After all of this craziness I believe something good can come out of it. If you are driving keep your FULL attention on the road, don’t let other things find ways to get attention.

Be Carefull When You Are Driving.

There has been so much on my mind lately and I figured I’d share it with all of you! I guess you could say this is me getting everything off my chest.

Last Friday one of my good friends was in a horrible car accident. She was going home from school with her younger brother, she’s a senior this year and he is a freshman. He is alright, just a few stitches under his chin; however, Rachael got the worst of it. She burst her eye and broke her jaw and nose. She was life lighted to Joplin, then from there to Kansas City to Children’s Mercy. There they reconstructed her eye and put a plate in her jaw. The doctors informed her parents there was a chance that she would lose her eye; however Sunday morning her doctor shown a light in it and she seen something!! Later that afternoon she was released from ICU and I went up to see her Monday. She looked great compared to what my imagination was showing me. Her face was swollen and she had a patch over her eye. For what she went through, she was in high spirits and ready to take a bath!  The hardest part for me was that when I entered her room she latched onto my hand and kept squeezing it. I didn’t let go for a long time. While I was sitting by her I kept thinking about all the good times we had, had. The horse back ridding, volleyball games and those nights where there wasn’t anything to do and we just rode around listening to music trying to figure out the words. Rachael I knew was going to be okay, no matter how the pain hurt, she was being tough and she had many medicines to take some of it away. I left that night in high spirits also because when you are around someone like her, you can’t help but smile and look at the bright side.

Tuesday came and it was like a turn for the worst. Her eye was giving her so much pain that she was begging for the doctors to take it out. Her parents knowing that there was a chance for her vision to come back in that eye, and that there was a possibility that she would lose her vision all together, made it clear what Rachael wanted to do. She was terrified, but she knew it’d be alright. The surgery went well and she is in less pain. If you didn’t know Rachael had a prostatic eye, you wouldn’t be able to tell. It looks like the real deal! Our technology today is truly amazing.

Wednesday came and went and there was a special prayer for Rachael and her family. She was recovering great. Thursday came and the doctors told her she might be going home as soon as Friday!! That was great news to her and her parents.  I haven’t heard anything so far today, but I’m hopeful that she will be coming home shortly.

*She was wearing her seat belt(or she wouldnt be alive)and she was not on her phone(thank the Lord!).

Monday while I was heading to Kansas City, by boyfriends dad was in a semi going up a hill and an elderly lady was going down it at a pretty high rate of speed, and smashed into Mike, he, thankfully, is okay, just shook up very badly. After he was hit, he got out of the semi and found the lady in her car dead. While that was going on, two other people I knew of was in a bad wreck and died instantly.

Please keep these people in your prayers and my gripe is that when you are driving PAY ATTENTION, true that it’s not always your fault; but if you’re paying more attention then maybe you can save a life.

Religious Beliefs, to Some, Still Come First

Earlier this morning I heard about a boy in Iowa who wouldn’t wrestle a girl in a State Championship in Des Moines. The first thing that came to mind was that there was a girl who was actually wrestling! We didn’t have wrestling in my 2A high school, so I am not to up-to-date on the sport. Area schools around us did, but no girls ever joined the team. I was quite surprised that it made the national news. Joel Northrup, a sophomore boy who was homeschooled refused to wrestle the girl, Cassy Herkelman, in the State Championship.  He said it was against his religious beliefs. Some believed that he would have won the championship if he wouldn’t have forfeited the first match against Herkelman. Her record was 20-13 going into the match and Northrup’s was 35-4. He had every reason to want to win that Thursday.

Cassy Herkelman was not hurt by what 14- year old Joel Northrup did. She said it was his beliefs and he made the choice; no one made it for him. Northrup’s father wasn’t angry at his son either. He was in high spirits that his son didn’t fall for the pressure from his religious beliefs and that he stuck with what he believed. I’m sure it wasn’t an easy choice to default to a freshman, let alone a girl. Not to mention it was the first time ever a girl won by default in the state of Iowa and she actually quilified for state in its 85 - year history. If I was in this position I think I would feel the same way the Cassy feels. She couldn’t make Northrup wrestle her and she wasn’t hurt over it. I also believe that Joel made the right choice, wrestling can become very violent.

To me, if there is going to be more girls becoming involved in Wrestling, then there should be separate matches, those for boys and then those for girls. I’m all for girls being able to prove that they can play the same sports as boys. Believe me, my 9 year old sister played peewee football this past summer and she loved it. That’s why there is such a thing called powder puff football for girls because when the boys catch up our maturity they hit much harder and are built more stout. When it comes to someone’s religious beliefs I believe somewhere there should be separation in the sport. There are some states that do have separate teams for boys and girls, Texas being one of them. With wrestling being very popular in Iowa, I think they should defiantly step up their game and get girls a league of their own so these situations don’t pop up any more and so someone with a much better record than his opponent can shoe his/her stuff.

Mornigns at the Bates House

The average family today has two, three or even four kids. Average…that is a word that does not pertain to our family, literally. Me, being the oldest I have had some great young children experience. I am now 19 and the youngest is 4.  I have 7 younger siblings, yes, 7… four brothers and three sisters (not counting me). Then I have a half brother that is older than me but we don’t see him very much. We recently moved out of a two story house with four bedrooms!! Let me tell you, it was crammed packed! Now that we have moved there is much more room… but with 10 people in a household at all times, it can get pretty crazy and very loud!

The mornings are always hectic, that might be the reason I’m an early bird and love to get up before the crew does, my brother, Brandon-18, is the same way. Around 6:25 is when Kaitlyn (4) wakes up…well that’s our first attempt to get her up. Meanwhile, the boys are starting to rise and two of them, Jeremy- 15 and Zachary- 13, are around that age where they like to bug you to death. Not to mention that they think they are helpless. While they are complaining; Kathleen-12 is in front of the mirror trying to do her hair. Thank goodness for big sis, who can say, “maybe this looks better.”  Here goes the second attempt to wake the toddle up…still nothing though. Then there is Courtney who is 9, she is a little mommy and tries to make sure everything goes smooth in the mornings. While all this is going on Kenny Paul-7 is putting on his “cowboy” clothes, which consists of Cowboy boots, Wrangler jeans and a button up shirt. He has the same problem every morning… he has lost his hat!! To a 7 year old… this is like the world has come to an end, and for Kenny (Kenneth) it is an every morning occurrence.  This craziness in our house takes up only about 20 minutes, so it’s around 6:45, and there is one little girl still in bed with her pillow over her ears and the blanks up to her neck. So the third attempt always works because there is only one of us who can get her up and moving and that is Courtney (probably because they share a room).  

Time to walk out of the door, and it’s 7:00, mom always makes sure that everyone has everything they need-Backpacks, P.E clothes, Permission slips, afterschool activities clothes… everything. Now that we live about 20 minutes away it is a little tricky if one of them forget something.

After school gets out, depending on the time of the year, Brandon, Jeremy, and Zachary have football practice, Kathleen has volleyball practice, Kenny and Courtney have peewee football practice and Kaitlyn is bored because Kenny and Courtney are gone. During the winter, now that I am out of school, there are Kathleen’s basketball games and Courtney’s basketball games. It is EXTERMELY hectic during the first of the year, as I am sure you can imagine.  

*Bits and Pieces a New Pet Owner Might Like to Know*

Think about this… you have no clue about what vaccinations puppy’s needs, what worm medicine, grooming him/her, spaying/neutering, and what foods are okay for the puppy to eat? Where does a new owner know where to start? There are many different opinions out there. Someone might ask a person working at Pet’s Mart, or a Humane Society employee; however these people can only point you in the direction that they are familiar with. A Doctor of Veterinary Medicine (DVM) can actually tell you when you need to get your puppy vaccinated and what wormer gets every worm and what get the most common worms. The ways you spot one of these doctors is looking under Veterinarians in the phone book, or if you know one, just ask. A veterinarian is a doctor that practices veterinarian medicine. Now, there are times where you will need to make an appointment and let the Veterinarian look at your pet, but what is the harm in calling if you need some information?

Every puppy needs his/her vaccinations. When your puppy is six to eight weeks old is when a veterinarian will give them. It does not have to be a vet, but it does have to be someone that is WORKING at the clinic you are in. At the clinic I work at, Dr. Bates will give a Bordetella 1st vac., which is a shot that helps prevent your pup from coughing. He will give a DHLPP (Distemper, parvovirus) this is a combination vaccine and it covers those three viruses. Finally the last shot he will give is corona virus. Your puppy will get a check up, wormed, and some free goodies (not all places have the goodies since it is not a requirement.) My father, whom is the vet, boosters the vaccinations ever three weeks until the puppy is 4 months of age. That way his/her immune system has been boostered twice.

There are many wormers out there and I really only am familiar with two. One being IVERHART PLUS, this is a pill and it gets EVERY worm. Yes, including heartworms. It is a monthly treat and if you give this to your pup then you don’t have to get a 6 month test, when your pup is 6 months of age. This pill is not given at your first or second set of shots. If the owner wants to start his/her pet on it then he/she will start giving it at 6 months of age. The seconded wormer is liquid, Pyrantel pamoate, and it gets the common worms like round worms, whip worms and hookworms. With this wormer you can give it whatever the age. Most people get this wormer when they get the first set of vacations, and it lasts a month.

Grooming is something every owner has to do to his/her pet. Wither it is just a bath or a full blown hair cut, nail trim/painting, and a bath. Some vet clinics have pet grooming and when he/she is done they all look so cute!! Spaying/neutering your pet is something a responsible pet owner should do. You can look at my older post about spaying and neutering your pet to find out the information there. Another thing is buying your pet food. There are a number of brands out there and it can be hard for a pet owner to determine what they are, but there are many that are great for your pet, on the other hand they do cost more. Yeah, you look at the price and grab the cheapest one, we all do; yet there are not as many nutrients and the puppy has to eat more than if you would feed it, say Science Diet, which is the brand name of cat and dog foods marketed by Hill's Pet Nutrition, Inc. A good food has many nutrients in it and the puppy will only eat what it says on the package, which means your puppy will need to go out less and he/she will still have all the nutrients he/she needs!

Troubled Egypt:What Will Come?

When I first heard all this nonsense about Egypt I did not know if their president was the one killing or if it was all the people protesting against Hosni Mubarak's presidency. I now know that it’s really the protesters and the president’s army. “President’s army” the reason why I stated those two words that was is because President Mubarak was in the air force. The people of Egypt will listen to the Egyptian army because they believe that the army is for the people and will listen to their cries, when really; President Mubarak and the Egyptian army have been considered “one” for thirty years. He has been very good to the military. In my own opinion he has been good to the army only because he served in the air force and if he’s good to them won’t they be good to him? This is not how the army should work. They can take orders from the president but, overall they should be listening to the people, considering, how Hosni Mubarak isn’t.

Hosni Mubarak has been in power since 1981, stated by Janine Zacharia, that right there blows my mind. He has been in power for 30 years!! I strongly agree that he needs to be gone. He has never denied that he will used force to challenges against his rule. He recently stated in a press conference that he has no desire to step down. What he will do is not run in the next election, which is help in September, and is seven months away and that has some secrets to it also. Do you think this is going to fly with the Egypt’s citizens? I think not. While in his press conference, Fred Kaplan, dotted down that Mubarak  “Urged the young people in the square (whom he likened to his "children") to "restore the normal way of life to the Egyptian streets." To me, that right there is severe sarcasm. He knows the protesters are against him and the government and, yet, he calls them his “children.” I also believe he said it knowing that the protesters would get a riot over it.

So does the United States get involved in this since we are already in Iraq fighting one? President Obama has stated that America will state out of this. One reason is because Egypt has been our ally for years and why mess that up? But are there any other, hidden, reasons?  After Mubarak’s conference there has been many questions brought up. Now, that the world knows that he is not going to step down until the election, and that he is not afraid to use force will President Obama change his mind and will be over there next to try and help them? Also, what about the Egyptians army? They too have a decision to make. Will they stand by the president, who has been in office for thirty years, or will they stand by the people, whom they are supposed to stand behind anyways?

I do not see this whole ordeal coming to an end quickly. I think it will still be going on months from now and I believe The U.S will most likely get involved.

Go to http://www.slate.com/id/2284669/?GT1=38001 to get the whole story.

For those of you that don’t know, Egypt is located between the shores of the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea and connects Eurasia with Africa, and it borders Israel, Sudan, and Libya.

Super Bowl Ughh Ooohs

It’s that time of year again, February 6^th, where everyone all around is excitedly preparing for the game of the season...that is, the football season. During every sport there is that one big game, no matter if it’s soccer, basketball, track, or volleyball. Your nose is going to be in the TV until it’s over. The Super Bowl is defiantly one of those games. On that special day our family starts building up all sorts of junk food to eat, like cheese dip, ham with cream cheese and a pickle all rolled up(it’s very yummy!), poppers, and of course chips and salsa! Well unlike the past years, this great game was great to watch but the entertainment was a little…sketchy?

It started off when Christina Aguilera started to sing the National Anthem. Everything was fine when she started, right? Although then she got into the song a little deeper… and whoops! She totally messed up!! What in the world? How can a so called “professional” singer forget the words to our Nations song, it isn’t like this was her first ball game.  What she said was, “What so proudly we watched at the twilight’s last reaming.” At least she got the rhythm, rhyming, and timing down; but she couldn’t fool the crowd, who were expecting the traditional, “O’er the ramparts we watched, were so gallantly streaming.” I feel sorry for her on a low level, simply because she couldn’t just stop singing and rack her brain for the right words. Then again, I don’t. I had to learn the National Anthem, preamble, and the Pledge of Allegiance when  I was younger and I can still say two out of the three (preamble being the one where I can’t get passed the first sentence.) That wasn’t the only mess up on Sunday though.

Then the coin toss was also a little confusing. According Mark Pesavento of Yahoo Sports, statistically, the team that loses the opening coin toss is actually more likely to win the game, so when the AFC Champion Steelers loss their call of tails and the NFC Champion Packers deferred to their opposition, it’s no wonder the game was already on. However the referee was the one who was all but on the right page. Then, they cut in for a commercial. The commercials were another thing that I, personally, did not think were as good as in the past. My favorite ones are the Budweiser commercials, simply because I love the Clydesdales, I only recall seeing one this year and that was a little disappointing.

The Half time performance was just another oops… when Fergie started singing, I didn’t hear anything until she was half way through what she was trying to spit out. I know it wasn’t her fault, I’m sure she was just as frustrated as the rest of us were. I not a huge fan of Black Eyed Peas, but I do know that it wasn’t their best performance ever. Go to http://soundcheck.ocregister.com/2011/02/06/black-eyed-peas-a-glittering-bore-at-super-bowl/43502/  and see what this critic said. He is very right and some of his points are his opinions.

Finally, the poor, poor, individuals that paid for a $900 seat (or more), were not allowed to go inside and sit in them. Instead they were summoned down to the basement and outside in the blistering cold to view the game. I, for one, think they should get their money back for their seats, the money they had to put into their tanks, hotels to stay the night, and money for food. Why shouldn’t they get that money back? They weren’t going to spend it if they just stayed home. http://post-gazette.com/pg/11039/1123857-66.stm -- this is a great article to read over what happened.

People these days--I tell ya what!

My goodness!!   In today's society, is everyone so busy doing something that he or she can't take the time to stop and smell the roses, or help someone in need? The reason for these questions is because I was in Joplin the other day and there was a lady at Wal-Mart who slipped and fell right in front of the walk-in entrance. Her beverage went flying and absolutely no body would help her up. If anyone has ever fallen or even tripped you know how humiliating it can be.  She was a little older, maybe close to her early 50's and couldn't get up. She needed a helping hand; but no one near her would take three messily steps over to her and ask if she was okay or give her a hand up. I, on the other hand, was behind her a ways and hurried over to help her. The other people walking in, turned and just snickered to themselves like it was some sort of joke. One person even pulled out his phone and started taking pictures. How can someone have the decency to stand there and take a picture of someone who has fallen? This poor lady needed help and no one around her was going to give her anything but a good laugh! What is this world coming too? Can we not take the time to drop what we are doing to help those in need? Are we all really in that big of a hurry? I, personally, don't think so. What I think is that each of us thinks we are too busy talking or texting on our cells to look up or we just don't want to get involved, or even both!

We all were raised differently and with different values, but would one of these people’s mothers be laughing right along with her child or would she be helping the elderly lady up? I like to think she would be helping her up, getting out of that horrible situation and scolding her child for his or her behavior, no matter the age. What would she think if she was the mother to the adult man taking snap shots like a pauperize? I for sure would think she would be embarrassed and outraged. Has our society of mothering children changed that much over the last couple decades? My mom has taught us right from wrong and she would be ashamed if we walked away from someone in need. Even if our mothers didn't teach each one of us  a thing, a grown person can see what is right and what is wrong... so HELLO, do what's right and stop making fools out of yourself!

Thank you for letting me get this off my chest!! :)  Remember stop and smell the roses and no one is in that big of a hurry not to help someone when he/she needs it the most.

Oh and sorry if this offended anyone, I would hope it didn't but just in case!