Friday, August 26, 2011

Imagine for a moment...

Imagine for a moment, a world where your innocent little eight year old girl is awakened from sleep by a violent pounding at the door. She runs to find you opening the door to armed soldiers, pushing you aside while they enter to search for weapons. Your little girl is shaking as she clings to you, and tears begin to fall down her face. She hears the men talking as they rummage through the house, in deep, mean voices, but does not understand what they say. Two days ago, she saw her friend killed on the street while they played. She is not sure if these are the same men. Imagine her fear, her heart pounding out of her chest; sweat pouring down her face, with the tears that you cannot wipe away. By her feet, there is a puddle on the floor...




Can you see her?




Now imagine the girl is an Iraqi.

Your brother is the armed soldier.

And you have supported this for the past ten years.

Now what do you do?

Tuesday, August 16, 2011

Jon Stewart Destroys Media for Ignoring Ron Paul

For days since the Iowa Straw Poll and Ron Paul's close second place finish to Michelle Bachmann, the media has written off Ron Paul as a contender for the GOP nomination. Jon Stewart, and Ron Paul fans across the country, want to know why? This video is hilarious. Thanks to Jon Stewart for shining the light for your viewers, and helping those of us frustrated about this to at least get a good laugh. Our corporate media is a joke! People, start doing the research now before the media selects your "two evils" left in the end!

 The video we had posted here was changed somehow, and I can't find the video on Youtube. But if you search for Jon Stewart and Ron Paul videos, you will find some good ones still.

Monday, August 15, 2011

Ron Paul is Shut Out by the Media

What is going on right now with the Republican presidential candidates for the 2012 election is beyond ridiculous. In all my life I have not experienced such absurd media bias! Here is a great video on how Ron Paul has been shut out by the media (unless of course they want to speak to an expert on the economy or other matters, because they know he is the most intelligent person in congress and the only one who has predicted exactly what has taken place for decades with 100% accuracy.) If you have children old enough to understand (maybe age 12 and up) I would let them watch this video. What a great lesson!

The video is here.

Monday, August 8, 2011

Single Parent Homeschooling

I came across an excellent article about single parent homeschooling. Please read it here and then come back and comment!

As I read the article, I felt the author was speaking right at me. I realized there were others out there in the same boat and it made me feel like I wasn't alone in this. I also identified with feeling all alone, and feeling like I was "out" because my ex-husband and I divorced. I was even told by a fellow homeschooler to prepare to be turned away from some homeschooling co-ops because of my single or "divorced" status. I know she was only trying to be helpful, but it may have closed doors that I never tried to open.

I work from home, and currently receive no child support. That is a long story all in itself, and I can tell you that it makes for LONG days when you are working, teaching, doing household chores, driving kids to activities, all the while concerned that you might not be able to pay your bills that month. As a Christian I have learned over and over again that He WILL take care of our needs, but in the flesh, I worry, as well as have to deal with anger over a father who neglects to help me take care of OUR children.

I also fight jealousy over friends on facebook sharing about their vacations and all the fun things they get to do. I have tried to get my kids to the beach every summer, but have only made it once so far and that was because we were receiving child support. If I am not working, I am thinking about new ways to make money, or better ways to advertise my products or websites. I am constantly "on" and this does not result in anything positive (just ask my kids!) This is 100% because of my kids' father. I currently do not have health insurance. My kids are on the state insurance program, but I make too much to qualify for myself. I cannot put away for retirement because every penny I make goes into our bills. Sometimes I wonder how long this can go on, but all I can do right now is keep on.

Over everything, I know that homeschooling my kids is 100% the right choice for our family. If I do this right, they will turn out to be wonderful people who will take care of me in my old age and that retirement I can't save for will not be missed at all!

Sunday, August 7, 2011

My 10 Year-Old Got Braces

This child and his teeth...SIGH. It has been a topic of discussion since the day he was born. He constantly cried, and I wondered if two months was too early to teethe. There was lots of drool, but that was normal, right? The first teeth arrived at three months of age. By the time he was ten months old, he had ten teeth. By the time he was four years, he had his first root canal. His teeth were not healthy, and at age five, more (expensive) dental work was done. You can read about our journey here.

Last year, I noticed that his twelve-year molars were already erupting. He was nine! Once they came in fully, his bottom teeth began crowding. He already had an overbite and a tooth that did not come down fully, which the kids were beginning to pick on. He began asking me regularly for braces. I could not afford them. But even more, I was afraid that he would have to endure the same trauma I did: extractions, including permanent teeth. As an adult, I REALLY wish I still had those teeth, because they do come in handy! All together I had ten teeth pulled, obviously most of them baby teeth. I was not looking forward to dealing with that and making permanent decisions for my son's mouth!

Luckily, I did not have to make that decision. Though some orthodontists still pull teeth, it is usually only in extreme cases. A new system of braces, the Damon System, made it possible for us to rely only on the braces to move the teeth and make more room in his mouth. Here is a video that shows this system:


It didn't even occur to me to ask, until I was speaking with my neighbor, if my son had any baby teeth left. My son says he lost them all, but I can't remember! So I will have to ask the orthodontist at our next visit if any of the teeth remaining are baby teeth. It is odd that a ten year old would have all of his permanent teeth already, but this child's teeth have been odd since day one! The orthodontist did say that he saw tiny buds developing...wisdom teeth! Ugggghhhhhh!

Anyway, he is on day three with braces. Not going too well so far. He was not estimating the pain factor very well and was asking to take the wire off on the first day. I am running out of ibuprofen and he is likely losing weight he can't afford to lose because it hurts to eat anything. I'm pumping him with raw milk and Ovaltine, and anything else he can squish with his tongue on the roof of his mouth. We are already seeing a difference in his teeth. He's hoping it won't take the full 24 months, but I told him that's NOT what he wanted as that probably will mean more pain to move them faster. He has an overbite, and four of his brackets have hooks for future rubberbands. THAT should be fun.

If you live in Wichita, KS, I suggest Trimmell Orthodontics. They have an office on the east and west side. They are great to work with, and were $500 cheaper than the first orthodontist we visited.