Thursday, May 21, 2009

Of God's Gifts, a Baby/Child is of the Greatest

I am enjoying the most recent additions to the photos of my children and grandchildren that grace my kitchen walls. Smiling, innocent, sweet, beautiful, trusting children. I also enjoy it when photos of these innocent ones appear on your blogs. Do you know what a precious treasure your children are? Of course you do. Do you know what a precious treasure you are to your children? I hope you do. Being a parent is the toughest job in the world but also the most important and wonderful. I am grateful that you, my children, are good, loving parents to your children.



“Know you what it is to be a child? It is to be something very different from the man of to-day. It is to have a spirit yet streaming from the waters of baptism; it is to believe in love, to believe in loveliness, to believe in belief; it is to be so little that the elves can reach to whisper in your ear; it is to turn pumpkins into coaches, and mice into horses, lowness into loftiness, and nothing into everything, for each child has its fairy godmother in its own soul.” ~Francis Thompson

“The child must know that he is a miracle, that since the beginning of the world there hasn't been, and until the end of the world there will not be, another child like him.” ~ Pablo Casals



Recently a beautiful, trusting, four year old boy (Angelo Mendoza, pictured below) was horribly mutilated by his own father. The story was so disturbing, I wasn't sure if it was appropriate to even bring it up here. My prayer is that Heavenly Father will pour down special blessings on this sweet child and that his life may yet be one of joy.



Sunday, May 17, 2009

BTW... Are You OOTL Too?


I had to laugh when I saw this comic strip in today's newspaper. Not only does cartoonist Bruce Tinsley poke fun at the proliferation/plague of texting, he pokes fun at the proliferation/plague of abbreviations.

Dandelion, in her last blog used "RPG" and kindly explained what the abbreviation meant for us OOTL (Out of the Loop) sorts. I'm glad she explained, because RPG also stands for Rocket Propelled Grenade and Rebounds per game (basketball). I was relieved to know she wasn't involved with grenades! Picturing her playing basketball with the JAZZ was also disturbing!

I've been perplexed by the use of soooooo many abbreviations in the online things I read. Not long ago, I kept running up against "MSM." I could tell the article wasn't referring to methylsulfonylmethane--which was the only MSM I was familiar with. What else is MSM?

Mechanically Separated Meat.

Miami Sound Machine.

I resorted to Wikipedia to learn that the articles were referring to the "Main Stream Media."

Another recent puzzle for me was "AGW. " The context ruled out "Autonomous Guided Weapon" or "Armed Global Warfare." I correctly figured out that the GW part was global warming. But, what was the A? Anthropogenic. Who knew.


Thank goodness for Wikipedia. Otherwise I would be forever OOTL. LOL

Friday, May 15, 2009

A Charming Story with a Happy Ending


Hit the following link for a charming story with a happy ending. That is one happy Mama Duck!

Thursday, May 14, 2009

Nice . . . Frames?

I dashed out to WalMart to get a vinyl table cloth for the picnic table this morning in preparation for our backyard picnic on Saturday (the G-Ma's birthday). While there, I also picked up five picture frames that I thought might work ... of course, I can never find what I really have in mind ... nobody makes what I really want. But, I can be flexible. Sometimes.

When I got home, I inserted the pictures in the frames. Then I laid the pictures out in various groupings on the floor to see how I might like to put them on the wall. Then, as usual, half way through hammering nails in the wall and hanging pictures, I changed my mind. Eventually, my project was completed. Undoubtedly, they will have to be in place on the wall for at least a month before I will be able to decide if I like my grouping or not.

After I was finished with my hammering, the Knight came up to see what I had been up to. "Oh!" he exclaimed, as he admired my work. [... Work done nine years ago!! He thought I had just put up new curtains!] I was momentarily confused. When I told him those curtains had been there for nine years, he was momentarily confused. He couldn't recall ever having seen them!

Eventually, he turned around and saw the pictures on the wall. He said it was nice that those pictures finally had frames . . . . And then he hurried away to mow the lawn.

I can hardly wait to hear what the G-Ma has to say about the new pictures on the wall.

Maybe it will take nine years for other people to decide if they really like the grouping or not . . . . . . lol

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Create!

This video was on Meridian Magazine this morning. I especially loved the pictures (besides the message).



Create! Don't waste your time on inanity.

To see it in a wider screen and to give it a rating go here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RhLlnq5yY7k

Tuesday, May 12, 2009

Time to say "YOU ARE FIRED"?

We have had two negative experiences with “Dr. M” in less than a week. To make a long story short, I am now convinced that (1) he falsified a Medicare claim to get more money, and (2) he wrongly prescribed without taking the time to diagnose.

Experience one: I had at first thought that the office staff may have mistakenly billed for something that hadn’t happened, so I brought it up at G-Ma’s appointment last Thursday. He instantly became huffy, jumping to the conclusion that I was accusing him of fraud. I tried to explain to him what I had been concerned about, but he just wanted to play the role of the innocent insulted one.

But, I ask you: if a patient is complaining of BACK PAIN and you give that patient an injection of cortisone, would you inject it into her hip JOINT? The hip joint was NOT in pain. He billed $130 for an injection into a hip joint. A normal injection (which is what I thought he did) wouldn’t be billed for $130.

Negative experience two: the office staff phoned on Monday to say that they needed to talk to the G-ma about the blood tests that were done last Thursday. They said her potassium levels were too high and that she should stop taking potassium supplements and eating bananas, tomatoes, kiwis, and oranges. She’s never taken potassium supplements, and she RARELY eats any of those foods either. As a matter of fact, she hardly eats anything at all. Last week she barely weighed 103 pounds fully dressed with shoes on.

It is obvious to me that if she has high potassium, it is NOT caused by her diet. THERE HAS TO BE ANOTHER CAUSE!! Did the Doc think about her blood pressure medication as the possible culprit? She’s taking the MAXIMUM dose of a “POTASSIUM SPARING” blood pressure pill! The Knight is more than twice her size and that’s how much he takes!

Am I over-reacting? Or is this guy and his staff a bunch of turkeys?

Wednesday, May 6, 2009

Sage--the Rest of the Story

Dara, Emily and I met Sage Volkman at a fireside in Albuquerque (about 1995?). When this week's news included a story about a woman who has had a face transplant, I thought about Sage and wondered where she was and what she was doing. The internet had a few clues.


Sage Volkman’s story has been featured twice in Ensign and New Era stories (see “Sage’s Song”—Ensign Aug 1989 and “Sage’s Story”—New Era Feb 2000). At the age of 5, two weeks after her parents and older brother had joined the Church, Sage was on a fishing trip with her dad and brother, Avery. At one point, while her father and brother were a short distance away fishing, Avery heard a dog bark and saw that their camper was on fire. Brother Volkman rushed back to rescue the sleeping Sage but was unable to do so before she had already received 3rd and 4th degree burns over 70% of her body. Her nose and one ear were melted off. Doctors had to amputate her fingers because they were so badly burned. She was in a coma. One lung had collapsed. But, to the surprise of all the medical staff, Sage survived the night.


A few days later, Sage was moved to the burn unit of a New Mexico hospital. Again, there was little hope she’d make it through the night—only a 10 percent chance—but she survived and improved over the next two days. Then pneumonia struck. Sage’s condition deteriorated, and two weeks later she was flown to a burn institute in Texas, still in a coma. The doctors there said her survival through the night was a “big if.” They also said if she survived she would have vision loss, hearing loss, brain damage, chronic lung problems, and she would be unable to walk. Anything short of that would be a miracle.


Sage pulled through again with the help of numerous priesthood blessings. She also had the aid of loving parents and skilled doctors. One priesthood blessing she received promised full recovery and that she would be safe with her Savior until she was better. After a six-week coma, the blessing was fulfilled, and Sage was finally well enough to go home on December 23, 1986, after three months in hospitals.

One of the first blessings was given by Robert DeBuck. “When Robert blessed her,” his wife, Ruth, recalls, “he told her to go where it was safe—into Heavenly Father’s arms. We lived for a long time on faith in that blessing. We believe that’s where she was.”

Months later, Sage gave evidence of the efficacy of that faith. One day Denise asked her if she remembered anything at all during those first six weeks. Sage said she remembered being with Jesus.
A little skeptical, her mother asked, “What did he say?”
“He just held me and told me he was sorry that I was hurt. He told me he loved me,” Sage replied. “What did you say?”
“I told him I loved him, too. I said I wanted to stay, but he told me I had things to do. Then he was gone.”

Sage grew up in Albuquerque, attended Sandia Prep, then went to Ricks College. She earned her PhD. in psychology from the University of Utah. She is now a counselor for burn victims.

A living miracle, Sage writes, “I am happy and people wonder how I can be with all that I have gone through. I tell them you have two ways to see the world, as a good place with wonderful people to love and be loved by or you can see everything as a problem and feel anger always in your heart. I choose to be happy.”

Friday, May 1, 2009

World's Bravest, Smartest, Funniest . . . .


Hooray! Our income tax refund came in the mail today! This was the first refund we've gotten in several years. Recently, we've been having to write a big nasty check to the IRS every April 15th.
AND ... this year was the first time in several years that The Knight got it right. He figured out the taxes without making some kind of error . . . .
So, three cheers for The Knight! So smart. So brave. So talented.
He juggles words and ideas (which are more dangerous than chain saws).
He wrestles with the alligators of approaching old age (growing old isn't for wimps).
He walks the tightrope of decorum v. humor (I predict he will probably die laughing).
AND he conquered the tax code and sent in our tax returns BEFORE April 15th!!
Three cheers for Pooh!
For who?
For Pooh!
Why what did he do?
I thought you knew...
He saved his friend from a wetting.
Three cheers for bear!
For where?
For bear! . . . . .