There is no joy in Saintsville

The outlook wasn't good for the Saintsville Who Dat's that day; The score stood 30 to 17, with but one down more to play. A pall-like silence fell upon the patrons of the game. A straggling few got up to go in deep despair. The rest clung to that hope which springs eternal in the human breast; They thought, "If only Drew could but get another pass completed — We'd put up even money now, with Brees in the pocket. Then from five thousand throats and more there rose a lusty yell; It rumbled through the Quarter, it rattled in the Ward; It pounded on the river and recoiled upon the swamps, For Brees, mighty Brees, was advancing to the goal line. There was ease in Brees' manner as he stepped into his place; There was pride in Brees' bearing and a smile lit Brees' face. And when, responding to the cheers, he lightly nodded his head, No stranger in the crowd could doubt 'twas Drew Brees in control. Ten thousand eyes were on him as he huddled with his team. Five thousand tongues applauded when he called the play. And now the ball went hurtling through the air, And Brees stood a-watching it in quiet desperation there. Oh, somewhere in this favored land the sun is shining bright, The band is playing somewhere, and somewhere hearts are light, And somewhere men are laughing, and little children shout; But there is no joy in Saintsville — mighty Brees has been intercepted again.  The Who Dats are down and out.


Adapted from Casey at the Bat By Ernest Lawrence Thayer Taken From the San Francisco Examiner - June 3, 1888

Magnificent!!

I hope you enjoy this as much as I did. Video from BBC's "Planet Earth." Song "Creation Calls."

Magnificent

What You Need to Know About The Beef You Eat

Very informative.

What You Need to Know About The Beef You Eat

Veggies anyone?  If not, you can still buy meat that is safe to eat.  Check out Eat Wild for a farmer near you.

5 toxics that are everywhere: Protect yourself - CNN.com

5 toxics that are everywhere: Protect yourself - CNN.com

Toxic America - Special Coverage on CNN.com

Mark your calendar to watch Toxic America - Special Coverage on CNN.com Wednesday & Thursday at 7:00 pm Central/8:00 pm Eastern.

Chloe's 2nd Birthday

Michigan Varnado Family Fun

Ian's Birthday

Ian's Birth Story

Ian Connor was due to join his family on April 19, 2010.  His Mama was ready!  She had been waddling like a duck and getting no sleep for quite some time.  Therefore, when he did not make his appearance as expected, she chose his birthday.  Mama’s are like that.

At 6:30 am on Tuesday morning, April 20^th, Daddy, Mama, Ethan, Andrew, and Lita (that’s me) loaded up in the van to head to the hospital.  Along the way, we dropped off two-year-old Andrew to “play with friends.”  Four-year-old Ethan was excited to be a part of the welcoming committee for Ian so while Daddy went to get coffee, Mama, Lita and Ethan went ahead to take care of the paperwork and get settled in Room 1138 – the birthing room. 

Daddy arrived shortly thereafter with Starbucks and sweets.  Everything was set.  Then Mama, Daddy, and Kelly, the attending nurse talked about needs and rules; specifically the “only 3 people in the room” rule posted on the wall.  So as we counted Daddy, Ethan & Lita we realized we would be over that number when Nicole Deelah, who was the attending doula arrived at 9:00 am.  Daddy tried to convince Kelly that Ethan really shouldn’t be counted but she said she didn’t make the rules, she just had to be the enforcer.  We all went into problem solving mode trying to figure out how we were going to handle this.

In the meantime, Dr. Holly had given orders to start with the breaking of the waters to see if that would get labor started.  At 9:00 am, Nicole the Doula arrived to work her magic.  I asked her to pray with us for a safe and wonderful birth and she led us in a powerful and beautiful prayer that was answered in full.

After a couple of hours with no significant progress, they added a little pitosin to the mix and things started to progress.  Nicole and I massaged Ericka’s feet and manipulated pressure points.  (Nurse Kelly didn’t throw anyone out.  Maybe we were invisible.  Yay, God!)  


Things really started heating up around 11:30 am.  Ericka did some time on the birthing ball and she and Nicole did a few laps around the hall.  Daddy took his turn praising, comforting and letting her lean on him.

Ethan who was still patiently waiting to see his brother, Ian finally decided to take a nap but woke up around 1:00 pm just as Mama was making it happen.  Nicole and Lita helped Mama get into position to push.  Dr. Holly was a little anxious that Ethan would be traumatized by Ian’s birth since she had never had children attend a birth before.  Dad assured her she had no reason to be concerned.  This was the moment Ethan had been waiting for!

So at 1:30 pm on April 20, 2010, Ethan finally got to see his brother, Ian.  Dad cut the umbilical cord after it stopped pulsating and Lita and Ethan watched as the nurse checked him and weighed him in at 9 pounds and 19 ¾ inches. 

After we all got to admire Ian and his Mama for a little while, we left her to rest, picked up Andrew and went home for the night.

Daddy, Andrew and Lita picked up Mama and Ian from the hospital on Wednesday afternoon and then we all picked up Ethan from school.

This was my first experience with an un-medicated birth and it was beautiful.  My beautiful daughter-in-law, Ericka is an “amazing woman” (my son Stephen’s words).  In her usual way, she made quick work of it without complaint.  Amazing!!

The Amish Don't Get Autism but They Do Get Bio-Terrorism

Interesting.

The Amish Don't Get Autism but They Do Get Bio-Terrorism

Wishing you a Merry Christmas and a Healthy New Year

If you haven't gotten around to reading Seeds of Deception, this lecture - The Health Dangers of Genetically Modified Food by Jeffrey Smith, summarizes the contents of his book.  You should also check out his Seeds of Deception website to find out Everything you HAVE TO KNOW about Dangerous Genetically Modified Foods.

Just Say No to GMO!

This is a very informative must read from the Institute for Responsible Technology - The GMO Coverup.

Chemicals in Everyday Products Turning Boys Into Girls? | Healthy Child Healthy World

Chemicals in Everyday Products Turning Boys Into Girls? | Healthy Child Healthy World

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What Does Corn & the McDonald Brothers Have to Do With E. Coli O157:H7?

Food, Inc. has finally been released on DVD.  I rented it from Netflix and watched it twice.  While "The Future of Food" enlightened me about the genetic engineering and patenting of seed by Monsanto, this documentary also opens the curtain to let us see inside the meat producing industry and it's pretty dirty.  They interviewed farmers for an inside look at the strong arm tactics of the Big 4 industrial food producers. We met the mother of 2 year old Kevin for whom Kevin's Law is named who died within 12 days of eating E.Coli O157:H7 contaminated hamburgers.  I promise you that you will never look at industrialized food in the same way once you watch this film.

But they don't just leave you hanging, they tell you what you can do to keep your family healthy and how to change the industry by voting with your grocery dollars. The good news is that "the winds, they are a changing" and now you can find Organics on the shelves of Wal-Mart in response to consumers' demands.  I may even have to stop boycotting them if this continues.  Well, at least to buy my organic foods. :)

EWG's FoodNews :: Shopper's Guide to Pesticides

EWG's FoodNews :: Shopper's Guide to Pesticides

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