Another cast for Michael

Last week's MRI showed a micro fracture in Michael's left foot, which has landed him back in a cast. The good news is that the cast should come off in three weeks, the bad is that his right foot surgery is three days after that three week date. We are all pretty bummed out as we have been looking forward to going to Kings Island and spending a bit of time in their water park. We are still considering going but we will have to pass on the water parks for this season. I know that everything will work out fine and that come December Michael will have put this whole ordeal behind him and can concentrate on training for his Nidan. ( second degree Shoto Kan black belt) Once he has the perfect feet nothing should stand in his way of his goal to a scholarship and maybe even the Olympics.

No mother would ever wish that she had one of these at home !

Geauga Lake's wildlife

The ladies who work at Big Lots laugh at me when I make my weekly ( or more often) visits. I am known to clear their reduced racks . Boxes of cereal, crackers, cookies , and much more that is close to it's expiration date are put on these racks with a price of usually between twenty five cents to one dollar. It is not at all unusual for me to fill my cart with these various products. One of their main questions is what do I do with all of this? The answer is many things. First of all my kids will eat some of it. They are picky but can't resist boxes of certain cereals, soft chocolate chip cookies and other such treats that are still within their expiration date. Whatever is left and still within date sometimes goes to other people. Mike has taken some chips ,cookies, or such to work where he sets them next to the coffee pot for coworkers to help themselves. Cindy does the same where she takes her medical assisting classes, as does Michael for his school class. Still there tends to be boxes of cereal, crackers and even more cookies left for some children whom we know from lower income families. On many occasions I have filled a couple grocery bags for these kids to take home. For the most part most of it gets eaten within the packages date however from time to time there are certain things that go beyond date or that the kids open to decide that they don't like . No reason to panic, even though I hate to waste food, all hope is not lost for I have the solution. We feed it to the ducks, geese , and fish. Some lakes have more people feeding the wildlife than others so one of Our favorites is Geauga Lake. Most people do not think about bringing "fish food" with them to an Amusement park and the bubble gum type of machines cost fifty cents for maybe fifteen food pellets so the wildlife here will eat about anything . Last visit I took three boxes of Cheddar crackers( total of seventy five cents) and we spent a good half hour feeding the wildlife.

Cindy and Michael had the geese eating out of their hands
There are so many carp and geese fighting for food that the geese end up walking on the carp to get fed
Buy this stuff ? No way !

Happy Birthday Curt

Happy twenty seventh birthday to my baby brother Curt. The only picture I can locate is the one below with his English Mastiff, Samurai . The Mickey mouse wedding ears were from Curt's actual honeymoon in Disney but don't they make a cute couple?

Clarissa's Birthday

Five DQ cupcakes for the humans Two doggy ice milk sandwiches with a scoop of Carrot flavored ice milk for the canines
Clarissa is not impressed with the candles

Clancy steals the show with a kiss for Mike while everyone else poses
Our Dogs usually don't eat at the table but Clarissa sneaks a bite before she and the bowl are put on the floor

( The table was promptly cleaned with Clorox wipes before we ate)

Very Nice weekend

I couldn't have asked for a much better aniversary weekend. We started celebrating Saturday evening. After learning that the prime rib buffet that we planned on eating at had closed, we ended up at our local Golden Corral. There was no Prime Rib but I found some mid rare steak, BBQ ribs, and Burbon street chicken that I was quite pleased with. After over eating, Mike and I had reservations at the Funny Farm.We had a table right in front of the stage. The comedians were Ok though nowhere near as good as many that we have seen there in the past. Either way we had a good time.Sunday we slept in a bit then I got up to make chocolate chip pancakes . Since I don't eat pancakes, Mike made me Homemade nacho's after he and the kids had eaten. We ended the day by spending a few hours at Geauga Lake.

The only drawback to the weekend was that we didn't celebrate Clarissa's birthday, so we are going to do that today.Celebrating our dog's birthdays is something new to us. We knew Clifford the little brown cocker spaniel's birthday but never really celebrated( I guess it was less of a priority since we were newlyweds , both working at least one job full time and starting a family) Since Seymour was a rescue cocker spaniel, we never knew his birthday . Clancy and Clarissa however came along now that the kids are a bit bigger so we have celebrated every one of their birthdays, usually with liver ( for them steak for us ) and cake or ice cream.

Happy 2nd Birthday Clarissa

Clarissa , our Female Cocker Spaniel flew to us a year and a half ago from Missouri, to be a lifetime partner to Clancy as well as a Loving pet for the whole family. She has proven to be one of the sweetest Cocker Spaniels that we have ever seen. We are so glad to have her !

Eighteen Years ago today

If we knew then what we know now............

We would do it all again

Without hesitation !

Update

Mike had another eye appointment yesterday to check the sty that has been giving him problems for a couple months now. It has been too swollen to operate on so he has been there every couple of weeks in hopes that it could soon be taken care of. Yesterday the swelling had gone down enough to precede. Now that the swelling had subsided we noticed that there were two others on that eye that though not swollen, never went away. There was also another on the other eye that though not swollen needed removed.In all of the visits that we had there they always got us in and out within an hour ( not speedy but not too bad ) but Yesterday they were backed up big time. Our Appointment was for four fifteen and we were not even called to the consultation room until five thirty. The medical assistants tried to talk us into rescheduling but I had too many return visits as it was so reluctantly they prepped the surgical suite. All four sty were successfully removed and though Mike could not see much at all I brought him home. He seems to be doing well and even went to work this morning . ( The overtime pay was too hard to resist) Hopefully that will be his last of this procedure as we will now start baby shampoo scrubs daily once he heals .

Friday

Yesterday was an up and down day. I stayed up after Mike left for work to get ready for a lunch date. Every couple of months some of my aunts, a couple of their cousins,and some miscellaneous relatives, such as myself , meet for lunch. We go different places , never anything fancy , and just eat and talk for maybe an hour,never much longer.Yesterday was the scheduled day and though we usually meet at noon, yesterday was supposed to be an early eleven O'clock. At ten O'clock I still was not sure where we were going so I called Aunt Donna who usually handles all the arrangements. I was amazed that her voice mail at home picked up. Donna is usually so good at keeping us all on the same page though lately she has been swamped trying to help a niece ,who is a single mother of two , raise her children. Anyway, I didn't leave a message but went hunting for Donna's cell phone number. Luck would have it that I found it and called her. It seems that my ninety year old Grandmother had fallen and her medic alert service called Donna. Thankfully Grandma was fine and between Donna and another Aunt, they got Grandma up without an ambulance.Donna told me that we would meet at one but since the cousins were shopping, she wasn't sure where they were going to choose. I waited and never heard what was happening so I decided to run the errands on my list . I had my cell phone if anyone wanted to fill me in. Finally at a little after one I got a call. It was Mom telling me where to meet everyone. OK I had to go home to drop off some groceries that I bought but I would be there in plenty of time. When I got Home I got another call.Mom again and someone messed up. She gave me the right name. OK they were a few minutes behind me so I stopped at Big Lots just to check the reduced rack. While I was in Big Lots,not realizing that I dropped my cell phone in the car, Cindy called from home. Seems that Aunt Donna lost my cell number and plans were yet again changed. By this time I was rethinking the whole meeting. I understand the setback but this was ridiculous. I was headed for home when I passed Aunt Donna. She seen me which meant that they would wait for me before they ordered so I couldn't just blow them off now. We ended up at Olive Garden which as anyone who knows me knows that I despise. I figured that I would just get a diet coke and chat. Once I got a menu I seen they added fried calamari to the menu. Wow I ordered it before I even noticed that they also added fried ravioli. Everyone else ordered soup and salad. Amazingly everyone at the table tried all three soup choices and nobody liked any of them. They all ate salads but again were not thrilled. Nobody would ever believe it but out of a party of eight, I was the only one satisfied with Lunch from the Olive Garden.
While we were there Mom's cousin Judy's daughter Chris ( You can figure out how the great once removed cousin thing works)Mentioned that she got all of her son's school clothes at Gabriel Brothers . I have not been there since last year about this time but I got Polo ( real Polo by Ralph Lauren) shirts for the boys for ten dollars each. ( same shirts that still had the tags on them from Macy's for sixty five dollars each) I decided that I had to make the trip there ,as I mentioned before,it is about that time.So after Mike's eye appointment I decided to go. I'll update you on my bargains later :-)

Sunday turned upside down

Last Sunday, as we were contemplating whether to relax at the ride side or the water park side of Geauga Lake , Michael mentioned that his left foot was hurting pretty bad ( the one he already had surgery on) I was occupied at the time and Mike offered to take a look so I didn't think much about it. Mike mentioned to me that there was some swelling that could have been due to a sprain or something minor . We decided that this was not the best day to be at the park so we decided that Mike would copy some home video tapes that he promised his Grandmother and we would take them to her. As he was doing this, I decided to run to the store for a few groceries that we were in need of.While in the check out line, my cell phone rang. It was Mike and he seemed a bit shook up as he told me that Michael could not stand without pain and that his foot was turning blue. he called the doctor as I headed home. Unfortunately the doctor's answering service answered and the doctor was taking his good time to return our call. Once home we decided on an ER visit. This visit served worthless except to take up a little over six hours of our day. The ER doctor had no clue so we only seen him once for three minutes Finally after x rays looked normal a nurse splinted the foot and we left. The doctor was in surgery all day Monday so we seen him Tuesday . Within a couple minutes of him walking in the room he told us that Michael had torn a ligament. The best treatment was immobilization with permanent compression wrap and the air cast. Michael seems to be doing better but is back to square one with being off balance from the air cast. The good news is that so far the second surgery will not be pushed back. Prayers are gladly accepted .

Back to school sales already

Sunday morning as I got my paper I realized that it was a little thicker than usual. When I got it home I noticed that it was quite a bit thicker because there were many many Sunday store ads. At first I was sort of shocked because The forth of July is over and it isn't quite time for Labor day but then I seen the headings on all those adds Back To School ! Oh No I thought it is barely July. Not yet. Then I realized that though my kids don't go back to school until September, many go back in August. I guess for many this is the time to shop. Actually it is probably the time for all of us who don't want to settle for whatever is left after the early birds get all of the bargains.

The problem is that I am not ready to think about Back to School. I have been told that I am odd but I love having the kids home for the summer. I could never handle home schooling on a regular basis but I love the summer. Here we are in the middle of Vacation and still have so much left to do. We have not yet visited Kings Island like we planned due to Michael's feet we have only been to Cedar Point twice . We haven't even been to Geauga Lake more than a few times.
I guess that I need to get moving and enjoy what is left of Summer . After all time stands still for no one.

Constructive criticism

After picking up Cindy's senior pictures on Monday , I finally got around to filling out the customer service survey this morning. I always try to fill these surveys out ( good or bad ) as I feel that they are a good way for me ( the average person) to give feedback. How else would management , most of which never actually step foot where actual work is being done, know what kind of service is actually being given. I try not to make these all about "so and so should be fired" or anything like that but I do try to be honest. Many times people do not even realize that they are being perceived in a certain way , or that what they say can be overheard.For instance the other day I went through a fast food drive through to buy a couple drinks after Michael got out of Physical Therapy. When I got to the window one employee was telling another that the lady who just left the speaker ( not me ) was swearing at her and added what a four letter word this woman was. I politely asked that they save this for the break room as I just wanted my drinks. ( I am sure I was cussed out too as I left) My hope here was that these girls realize that they can be heard and that this sort of thing is inappropriate. I could have called the manager over but I felt that my words were good enough. Anyway this Senior picture survey was tough. I have a hard time remembering every name of every person that I have a comment about . but I hate to generalize and besides some people need retrained and others need to be the trainers. OK I am anal about this ! Anyway I looked up names on papers and think I painted a pretty good picture of my experience. Let's hope that the studio is appreciative of my time .

God is my Navigator

I got the cherries !

Hopefully I can get everything else I need for the pies tonight and have a couple done for this weekend.

Sour cherries

There are a few things in life that I consider myself pretty good at. However there are many more that I am not so good at. One thing that I am not good at would be the ability to give or even receive directions. I have known this for some time which is why I try not to. Expedia has been a God send for me and though I subscribe to On Star, Mike does not see the significance of turn by turn directions (Directions come quite simply to him ) so we only have safe and sound. The first time that I realized my deficiency in this area was when Mike and I first met and I had just accepted a date. Obviously Mike needed to know where to pick me up .My inability to give him clear directions led him to believe that I was not really wanting to go out with him ( OK I had my reservations lol )so I agreed to meet him at a place which we both knew. Unfortunately, my skills have not improved at all over the nineteen years since we met. This ugly problem reared it's head again last night when I remembered that I had to pick up the sour cherries that I ordered from the fruit farm . I have never driven to this particular fruit farm but I missed the order cut off date from the one from which I have ordered from in the past . Since Mike and I have both been hungry for sour cherry pie and these are only available here in our part of Ohio for a few days a year and since there is such a demand you must reserve your order to ensure that you even get any. Anyway today is my pick up day so Mike spent an hour last night trying to show me on the map where to go. When this failed we went to Expedia. This method wasn't much better as I am just more confused.I thought that Mike could take me when he got off of work but realized that we would have to leave as soon as he got home and hope that we didn't hit any construction or other delay as they close at five. So after looking at Google Earth which shows a couple landmarks I think I am ready to go alone. Trust me I wouldn't do this for apples or any other fruit for that matter but sour cherries........

How did I know that it was going to rain ?

The weather man did not predict rain but I knew it was coming. Why else would I have drug the garden hose to the front yard at five thirty this morning to water my flower beds and tomato plants that were looking Oh so dry? Oh well at least I didn't wash my car !

I got 100% on the Chocolate quiz !

The Hershey candy company has put out this little quiz with a few interesting chocolate facts.

http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/1615721918x1135392362x1079053738/aol?redir=http://food.aol.com/food-trivia-quizzes/hersheys-kiss

Though I sort of guessed at the question of how many kisses were in a pound ,basing my answer on a pound Valentine box of kisses. I knew the rest mostly from being a fan of Hershey products. More specifically from taking Hershey's tour of their virtual factory a few years ago.

If any of you are ever in the Hershey Pennsylvania area, I highly recommend this tour. It is actually a free tour . The kids loved it as at the end you get free samples. When we were there in addition to the regular samples given, we got to taste some new products that Hershey was thinking of adding to their product line and give feedback. After this tour they had some other neat activities such as a simulated packaging plant for kids to pretend to work at which is free unless you want to buy the Employee tag or a box of kisses ( packaged at the sanitary plant ). There are also quite a few additional charge activities such as a trolley ride through Historical Hershey,4D movies and lots of other activities. In the summer you can also spend the day at Hershey amusement park,Though this is a cute park where you can take pictures with life size candy bars and other such activities be warned it is expensive !

So Little time.

Though I was busy running all day yesterday, I didn't seem to accomplish anywhere near what I would have liked to. I was doing good before Mike got home but once we ate and got things cleaned up I was beat. Mike and I spent the biggest part of the afternoon with the kids cleaning up a three and a half foot pool that the kids have splashed around in for a few years. I honestly didn't think we would get to it and actually thought about purchasing one a bit bigger but Mike didn't care for the idea so we all pitched in to clean up and use the old one. When it got dark Mike realized that he never got around to changing his oil in his car so he started that. Meanwhile, as I was playing around and went to splash Cindy by kicking some water that we were draining from the pool my toe let me know that it was still injured. Mike insisted that I go get an x ray so at 11:00 we went up the street to the local ER. They took x rays but before they were even looked at the doctor on call taped my toes together and told me that it didn't matter if it was broken or not that this would help. I was then discharged.Amazing that by midnight I was home and getting ready for bed. Too bad that the alarm had to go off at five this morning for me to get up and get Mike off to work. Now that he is gone I am faced with a choice of going back to bed ( The bed looks sooooo good !) or getting an early start on all the things that I didn't get done yesterday plus the things on the list for today . Such a dilemma, maybe I will just take a few minutes to think about it. Maybe I should lie down while I am thinking. Yes that sounds like a great idea !

Water park fun

Mike's last day of shutdown week was spent at Geauga Lake's Wild Water Kingdom. The weather was hot and humid and the park was packed but , for the most part we had fun.By the end of the four hour afternoon that we spent there Michael's foot and leg were bothering him quite a bit. As for me , I smashed my toe on the lazy river as soon as we got there. It hurt so bad that I expected to see a bone through the skin but thankfully this was not the case. Because of the swelling and pain Mike wanted to leave the park right away and get it x rayed but I agreed to go after the park closed. Of course , taking it easy on a lounge beach chair while everyone played in the activity pool and went on water slides, I felt a lot better when the park finally closed. Much to Mike's dismay, I decided that bed sounded better than Emergency so we skipped the visit. This morning however, I think that I will have to make that visit yet as swelling and pain have me rethinking the whole situation.We will just have to see how much time I have after picking up Cindy's senior pictures, grocery shopping , and all the other things on my to do list today. Speaking of Cindy's Senior pictures, as I mentioned before, many of the shots taken of Cindy left a lot to be desired.In many her hair could have used a smoothing before the shot was taken ( Something a GOOD photographer as opposed to the cranky lady that unfortunately she got would have done) another of Cindy's main complaints was that though they posed her with a couple of her chosen backgrounds, they did close ups and she did not end up with her requested shots. The main shot where this happened was in front of a waterfall. In Cindy's picture you could not see that waterfall at all and it looked like a swamp shot. She has mentioned her displeasure about this a couple times so when we walked by the decorative waterfall at the park yesterday, I had an idea. Though Cindy was not dressed quite in senior picture style I suggested that we take a couple digital pictures of her with this water fall. Not really as a senior picture but just a nice picture. below you can see a couple. I was impressed. Maybe when they boys need senior pictures I will spend the six hundred plus on some updated equipment and let Mike take them. .

Kim tagged me for SCATTERGORIES

SCATTERGORIES...it's harder than it looks! But Fun! Rules: Use the 1st letter of your name to answer each of the following...They MUST be real places, names, things...NOTHING made up! If you can't think of anything, skip it. Try to use different answers if the person before you had the same 1st initial. You CAN'T use your name for the boy/girl name question... Now Go! Copy and Paste to comments or an E mail. ....Send on to other friends...should be fun.

Your Name: Diane

1. Famous singer/band: Duran Duran

2. 4 letter word: dime

3. Street name: Dundee ( Thanks Wayne )

4. Color: Dark red ( OK I know this is pushing it )

5. Gifts/presents: Diamond

6. Vehicle: Dodge

7. Things in a Souvenir Shop: dog figurines

8. Boy Name: David

9. Girl Name: Danielle

10. Movie Title: Dogma

11. Drink: daiquiri

12. Occupation: die maker ( Thanks Mike)

13. Flower: daisy

14. Celebrity: David Lee Roth

15. Magazine:Diane ( Curve's magazine )

16. U.S. City: Dallas

17 Pro Sports Team: Denver Broncos or Dodgers

18. Fruit: date

19. Reason for Being Late for Work: DUI

20. Something You Throw Away: dirty diaper

21. Things You Shout: DARN IT !

Clarissa

I will call the vet tomorrow to make an appointment for Clarissa . We were told that in two weeks the Vet can tell if we will be expecting puppies in September. I am ambivalent about the whole subject but this is yet another one for God to handle for me.

Prayers that all goes well either way will be appreciated !

prayers please

Please pray for my Mother. She had her carotid arteries cleaned out last August. We thought she was recovering well however a follow up visit showed signs of more plaque building up. This is an extremely rare occurrence but tests have confirmed that she will need the same surgery repeated. Please pray that this second surgery is success and also that after this time the arteries will not fill back up. This is a terrible surgery to recover from in the first place let alone twice in ten months.

Also if I may, I would like to ask for prayer for Michael's second leg surgery. The first is healing well though at the last visit the doctor informed us that a second surgery on that foot will probably be needed as he grows. For right now though we are looking at having the right foot done at the end of August. Michael did wonderful ( considering) with the last foot so please pray that this one goes as well if not better.

Lastly, Robby was seen by Michael's surgeon on our last visit (Tuesday) and as we suspected, he has the same deformity that Michael has, just not as advanced. The doctor recommended that we try orthotics for two months and see if we get any improvement. If not he will have to have both feet done also.

As you can see when it rains it pours but it is nothing that God can't handle for me !

July 4th

Though the weather man called for thunderstorms all day July fourth in Sandusky, we finally decided to take our chances and drove to Cedar Point. We got there late in the afternoon to beautiful weather and a huge crowd. Though Michael finally got the OK from the doctor to walk on his left foot without using his air cast, we were cautioned against too much walking just yet. Because of this he spent most of the time in his wheel chair. Many employees and other guests were feeling sorry for him and commenting on how sad he must be. Quite to the contrary, Michael was having the time of his life. Cedar Point has a handicap policy which allowed Michael to go to ride attendants with a book that we got from the main office and get a ride time to come back so that he didn't have to wait in line. He could then go play games , eat, watch shows, or even go on another ride with short lines. Then at the appropriate ride time he would go through the exit door and straight to the ride.This worked out great especially since he had never rode the new ride, The Maverick. This ride had between an hour and a half two over two hour wait which would have been way too long for Michael but he got to ride it not once but twice. He also got to ride many other rides with less of a wait. The other kids benefited by this too as he was allowed buddy passes. We had a great time and it never did rain while we were there. Honestly the only draw back to the trip was the traffic on our way out. Even though we passed on the light show and left an hour before the park actually closed , the traffic out was terrible. Parking in the Handicapped zone like we did proved to be a drawback as we waited a good half an hour to even get out of the parking lot. We finally did and the trip home didn't seem as long as usual, though it was three thirty AM when we finally pulled in our drive. The kids and I went promptly to bed as poor Mike walked the dogs and tried to come off of his coffee buzz. All in all I must say that it was another great independence day !

Michael rides one of the carousels
Robby and Cindy ride the rabbits on the carousels

Fireworks at Cedar Point

Happy forth of july !

The Fourth of July Holiday has a special significance to me. July 4, 1988 was Mike and my first date after meeting four days earlier. What a night it was. Mike's brother was in an auto accident the night before so we ended up at the hospital's ICU , where he was in a coma. We then had dinner at Brown Derby and watched fireworks
Now July fourth week is shutdown ( mandatory vacation) week for Mike so we always get to spend it as a family. In years past we have went on vacations during this week but this year , weather permitting , we will spend the fourth at Cedar Point. They usually have a pretty decent fireworks display, since fireworks here were all last weekend.
May you all have a great Independence day !

Ok one more ... What is this world thinking ? Then I will let it rest

I just finished my last post when I came across this Story - Attack Survivor Dies in Cruise Ship Jump - AOL News. It seems that this Mexican American kid was brutally beaten awhile back and though his friends and family thought he was doing OK he jumped off of a cruise ship to his death. Upon reading the headline I felt so bad for this poor child, but after reading the article I feel just a bit infuriated.

First of all, the article talks about how his brutal beating took place. It seems that he was at a drug and alcohol party where he was drunk and high when he was being inappropriate to a twelve year old girl. ( Anyone else not feeling so sorry for him yet ?) Anyway when a couple guys ( one the girl's brother ) decided this was inappropriate and beat him ( OK they went a little too far ) suddenly because this kid is of Mexican decent this is a hate crime ? Maybe he shouldn't have been doing drugs and being inappropriate ? Anyway since this poor kid was beat up he got a full college scholarship. So the way to a good education is to drink in excess, do drugs, and hit on little girls??? That is what I am hearing ! How about my daughter getting a free ride to college for her volunteer work at the local nursing home? How about the sweet girl from church getting a scholarship for all of her effort in starting a new youth organization that's only priority is community service? How about a scholarship for someone who was born with disabilities beyond their control? No , they go to the poor kid who does drugs and does inappropriate things to young girls. Makes sense to me ????

Again I do say that these kids went too far in their beating of this boy but to reward him when he realizes that drugs played a big role in his fate is ridiculous ! How about a scholarship for those of us who have never done drugs, stay out of trouble, and actually try to do good?

What has me so upset?

After lunch yesterday , we decided that a trip to Geauga Lake would be nice afternoon fun. Though Michael's leg is not anywhere near up to all of the walking, now that his permanent cast is off he can ride in his wheel chair but get up and get on rides with minimal problems. All was going great until the kids decided to ride one of the smaller roller coasters. Due to Mike's back problems and my having a tight neck we took a seat by a nearby game stand while they rode. The game was the one in which you try to climb a rope ladder up an inflated platform. If you reach the top you can press a buzzer and win a big stuffed animal. This game must be pretty tough as the prizes were huge. Another indicator of the skill level needed for this game is that you rarely see anyone attempting it. Anyway, Mike and I set down and was watching the employee who was running the game show us all " how easy" it is . For some reason this called quite a crowd. Mostly little kids. Then a family walked up. One little girl decided that she was " owed" the big stuffed wale hanging on the fence right next to where I was setting . She ran and threw her body on it as though it were her bed. Even though she probably weighed less than seventy pounds, the poor stuffed wale was broke from his binding to the fence and fell to the ground. Surely her parents had seen this and were about to correct her for such an obnoxious act I thought. However , the mother glanced at her and then back to another of her children who was attempting the game. Amazed as I was ,I was sure that maybe she didn't realize what happened, after all the game attendant hadn't. The poor wale didn't even get left alone when he fell. The girl stood on him, then her two sisters seen her and joined her. Three children ( all old enough to know better ) were standing on this stuffed wale. Surely the Mom would correct them. Nope, Their Mother walked over and counted her kids where they stood ( wouldn't want to loose one) Then she stood next to them( at least she didn't step on the wale I guess.) I couldn't believe it. She didn't care. I was so upset that I stood up and mentioned that those kids were going to ruin that poor stuffed animal to which she acted like I was invisible. Finally I walked away with my blood boiling . I knew that if I stayed that the temptation to knock some sense into that Mother would have been too hard to resist.

We had a wonderful rest of the day but this incident still bothers me. Even though I am pro family and love children, I am a major advocate of making your children mind. Mine are older now and the instances of correcting them has slowed down quite a bit but that is because when they were younger they did not run free . Somewhere like an Amusement park ( Cindy went for the first time when she was two months old ) they were in my sight constantly. They were corrected when they needed it and yes punished when needed too.

I guess what upsets me so is that I constantly hear how today's children are so bad, have no morals, and many other negative comments that are made. I take offence to these because I have made raising my children right a priority in my life, Now this is not a I am better because I quit my job to raise my children comment. For those of you who have not known me as long as others, I worked for many years when Cindy was small and even awhile after Michael was born. Teaching children morals, behavior, and discipline ( when needed) can be taught by any mother in any situation. The mother must just choose to. How hard would it have been for this Mother to say " get off of that". Is she afraid that her kids will not like her or does she feel that they are entitled too? I don't understand. What will she do if in ten years she discovers that her precious entitled babies are doing drugs? Turn her head? Maybe she should stop trying to earn her children's love and earn her title as Mom !

Sad that for so many things in this great country that we live in, we must prove ourselves before we get the privilege ( driving a car, schooling for careers, etc.) but anyone can be a parent.

I apologise that this is not what some of my readers want to hear and I do not intend for this Blog spot to be an arena for my complaints but maybe if one person sees this post maybe just maybe they will realize that there are good kids out there and not judge all on what a few bad parents have created.

No Kings Island this week

Plans to go to Kings Island in Mason Ohio during Mike's Forth of July Shutdown ( vacation )week have been put on hold . Weeks ago something told me not to book that nonrefundable hotel room just yet and sure enough my instincts were right.

It all started two years ago when we had just adopted Clancy. He was such a beautiful red specimen of the Cocker Spaniel species that Mike wanted to breed him. The problem was that we didn't have a female. Well, after days and hours of looking we found another beautiful specimen of the Cocker Spaniel species, Clarissa. We have seen black and red mix pictures and they can be gorgeous so Clarissa was flown in to be Clancy's wife. Clarissa was not quite a year old when she got here so we had to wait awhile. Well the waiting is over and this is an ideal time to see what happens. Only problem is that I don't feel comfortable not being here so we have put our trip back a couple weeks .

Even though the trip is postponed we are finding quite a bit to keep us busy. So far we have pressure washed, sanded , and waterproofed ( sealed ) the deck, caught up on some laundry, cleared out some clothing that no longer fits from over loaded drawers and closets, did some mild cleaning and a few other things.We were even lucky enough to get together with Grandma , Grandpa and Greg yesterday for a mini wiener roast. Too bad that the ninety degree weather left us for low seventies with wind. Though I am a bit sniffly today, we had fun. We are also planning a couple day trips where Clancy and Clarissa can stay at home ( Clarissa will wear her diaper) so things should work. Hopefully by the end of the week the timing will be right and in September we will have puppies, God willing.