1
No, I can't believe it. BG is still two in my mind, even though there's a big difference between twenty-four months and thirty-four and a fourth. Glad you'll be back for her birthday.
Posted by: Amritas at January 07, 2013 09:15 PM (22bCy)
2
Yes, definitely, good luck! What you're doing must take a fair amount of courage.
Also, check your email.
Posted by: david foster at January 21, 2013 12:35 PM (Nt2PJ)
RONERY
The last thing I had time for was baking a cake, but dictators croak on their own schedule. So I baked a butterscotch Hennessy cake today. Too bad you'll never taste your favorite booze again, Kim. We'll enjoy it for you though.
SIX RAMBUNCTIOUS YEARS
Yesterday was Charlie Pup's sixth birthday. Who would've thought that little sweet potato we picked out of the litter would grow to be such a silly mess? We do love him so.
He has proven so good with Baby Grok, better than I could've hoped for. Her new favorite activity is to bring things to him. She brings him things all day long. But when he takes them from her, the game is over...so she is constantly taking toys and treats away from him so that she can give them to him again! The dog is a saint: he will let her take bones out of his mouth, just so she can hand it to him again. She also taunts him with her food constantly, but he never steals it from her grubby little hands.
He's not our baby anymore, as anyone who's had a pet discovers when they have a child...but he's our beloved doggy and an important member of our little family.
Happy Birthday, Charlie! Sorry your new toy keeps getting snatched away...
Charlie is a good Big Brother Grok. That sounds Orwellian ... oops.
Baby Grok will grow into Toddler Grok and talk to him. What will she say?
Posted by: Amritas at April 19, 2011 02:39 PM (5a7nS)
2
Six! Really? I was wondering how they were geting along. Sounds just right.. When my first boy was born we also had a sweet pup about the same age. She was great with him. They had a symbiotic relationship. My toddler would open the cupboard and get out the dog treats. The big doggie cookies. My son would give her one, she would crunch it and the two of them would dive for the bits! He couldn't bite them and she couldn't open the cupboard. My mom wasn't thrilled with this trick!
Posted by: cindy h at April 20, 2011 10:18 PM (ND10h)
MY NORMAL
I am knitting and watching Krauthammer. I just wanted to document it because two weeks ago, I really and truly thought that part of my life was over. I thought "me time" was a thing of the past. I am figuring this out. And baby is a napper, which is great.
MYLICON
P.S. I must be doing something wrong, because we've been using Mylicon and gripe water, and it doesn't seem to help. Or her gas would be phenomenally worse without the two products...
1
You aren't doing anything "wrong," it's trial and error with almost all babies. Might take a look at what you are eating...sometimes that can cause gas...at least from what I remember, my boys are 27 & 25. Big hugs! Things will get better as they get different
Posted by: Connie at March 31, 2010 08:08 AM (L6nIP)
2
My first son had awful gas depending on what I ate. My second son, I could eat whatever I wanted and it didn't effect him at all. So, food may or may not be her problem, but it's worth a shot!
What bothered my first son was anything that can cause mild gas in adults~it really bothered him. I had to avoid broccoli, onions, beans and cucumbers with him.
When she seems to be in a lot of pain, think about what you ate before she ate. Like Connie said, it's trial and error.
My son also got better after he hit the 6 week mark.
Posted by: Tracy S at March 31, 2010 08:55 AM (3N/bf)
Our big problem with our littlest guy was that I eat a lot of dairy and was breastfeeding. He just couldn't handle the dairy. At one point he was on 3 different prescriptions and was still having problems. The pediatrician agreed with me that we needed to start from scratch instead of adding more meds. He suggested I cut dairy out of my diet. Within 12 hours of me stopping dairy he started feeling better. It made ALL the difference. He didn't even need the prescriptions after that.
He's 19 months old now, and handles dairy just fine. He eats pretty much everything.
Just back then his delicate little tummy couldn't handle it.
I thought I'd mention this because dairy can be a common culprit among babies who are breastfed and having tummy problems. Good luck finding something that works for you. It's terrible to see our babies uncomfortable.
Posted by: Amber at March 31, 2010 11:35 AM (DRxYU)
4
I would ask the doc about possible reflux. I think the vomiting and gas can be symptoms of that. If it is reflux, propping her at night (towel or something under the top of her mattress, or a sleeping wedge) can sometimes help.
I remember now, after reading your last post, how tough that first month was. I think I had a little bit of mommy amnesia... now that he's 6 months, I'd almost forgotten how hard it was in the beginning. I think I called my mom every day or so asking for advice, and if this or that was normal, and if I was doing this right. I second-guessed myself so much, and yes...I was definitely still hurting from labor (I too had a nasty episiotomy), plus I was under the impression that breastfeeding wasn't supposed to hurt if you were doing it right, and yet here I was with cracked and bleeding nipples - I ended up doing a lot of pumping and bottle feeding the first couple of weeks until we both got the hang of it.
Yeah, it's hard, but like I said...it's one of those things that you just kind of forget as your baby gets older and you move on to new & different challenges, until someone reminds you. If we didn't have mommy amnesia, I think fewer people would have multiple children
Best of luck to you.
Posted by: Leofwende at March 31, 2010 01:14 PM (28CBm)
5
NONE of those worked for us. There were these gas drops we had to buy at our pharmacy that finally helped. I will try to remember what they were called...you might be able to get them. Not sure since we are in Canada. They were the ONLY thing that finally worked. They had to be kept refrigerated. One dose a day...it was heaven to finally have SOMETHING that worked.
Posted by: Stacy at March 31, 2010 02:15 PM (qlReK)
6
We had scads of other stuff going on, so not sure if any of this is relevant--but keeping him upright, even to sleep (like in a bouncer chair?) and cutting out dairy *completely* (even reading labels and avoiding things like natural flavorings, which can be dairy-based) were important for us. And waiting for growth. I know hearing you have to wait can be horrible--I'm sorry. I hope things smooth out quickly for you.
Posted by: Lucy at March 31, 2010 04:49 PM (YNvUz)
7
The drops didn't work for us either...just made him spit-up more...
Posted by: CaliValleyGirl at March 31, 2010 06:05 PM (yMqzQ)
8
If Mycolon and Gripe water aren't working then it might be time to see the pedi. Our daughter could not handle a single drop of milk and it wasn't until I stopped breastfeeding and went to an amino based formula combined with Prevacid that she stopped projectile vomiting and slept through the night. She was almost a year at the time. No one told me that what I was eating was affecting her and it took a GI specialist to recognize she was having food issues. There are a few products designed to help them sleep in the upright position, one is the Tucker Sling; it is to be used in their crib to keep them from sliding down the mattress when you elevate one end. The other is the Nap Nanny, which is a "chair" for newborns and you can even put them on their tummies to help press the stomach sphincter closed. The first 2 months are the hardest!! It does get better or at least you get better at meeting their needs before they realize what is needed so the fussyness is shortened in duration. Ditto to everything posted above!
Posted by: Tracey at March 31, 2010 06:58 PM (x+F0t)
9
Mutant babies likely need mutant baby milk. Our son got gassy if The Mrs. ate broccoli, the daughter just liked to vomit until we started giving her zantac. We didn't have to give her the zantac very long, eventually she grew out of the projectile vomiting.
Posted by: Chuck at March 31, 2010 08:57 PM (bMH2g)
10
Also, now is the time to throw out all of you dijon or other brown mustards. Eventually, you'll change a runny diaper, and then be making lunch, and notice the small spot of mustard on your wrist, and lick it off, only to realize THAT. WAS. NOT. MUSTARD.
It's been French's yellow for me ever since.
Posted by: Chuck at March 31, 2010 09:02 PM (bMH2g)
11
Just a thought....if you continue to have cracked and bleeding nipples have baby grok looked at for thrush. It would show up as a white fuss or film in her mouth. I nursed two and had no problems untill number three. I sympathize.
Posted by: cindy h at April 01, 2010 08:21 AM (gcBP7)
12
Sarah, ditto to what the other said - I really had to watch what I was eating when nursing - anything spicy, broccoli or any alcohol (not that I was boozing it up, but even a glass of wine would set them off) If she keeps projectile vomiting, I'd ask the ped if she has reflux. keep us posted!
Posted by: Keri at April 01, 2010 08:27 AM (6/M22)
13
Caffeine irritated my older daughter's reflux. Even just a cup of coffee or a glass of Diet Dr. Pepper would cause hours of crying and projectile vomiting. Of course, it took about two months before I realized what was causing her "colic", but once I eliminated caffeine from my diet, it was like having a new infant. I hope you figure out what works for you. Motherhood is an exhausting, but ultimately rewarding enterprise :-)
Posted by: Val L. at April 01, 2010 10:25 AM (qNYP5)
I haven't read a news site, watched a news program, or followed any current event at all this whole month. A few days ago, I asked my husband, "Is Corey Haim dead or something?"
I want to get back to my hobby, but it's just so low on the totem pole. But I do need to get back to at least reading the news.
And maybe once I know what's going on, I might have something to say here. In between feedings.
1
I'm glad you're getting the chance to just be with your little girl. But I know having waited long for these moments doesn't make the hard ones any easier now. Hang in there!
Posted by: Lucy at March 18, 2010 01:16 PM (YNvUz)
Take a break Sarah! You have more important things to do. The world will still be turning even if you're not paying attention all the time. ;o)
I just started back to school this week for the first time in 20+ years and my attention span to the web is very constricted. I miss it, and squeeze it in when I can (this is the first place I went today--and every day), it's an adjustment in my time I have to make right now.
Baby Time is sooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooooo much more important than school, so believe me, no one here begrudges you at all! [Cheers from the crowd!] Infancy goes so incredibly fast, soak up every Blessed second of it you can get.
I've been holding off 'til the right time, and since I'm posting, this must be it. The BEST advice I got being a 1st time mom was this:
Night time feedings are just that. Just feeding. Don't turn on the lights, don't play and talk with your angel. Just feed. Full tummy, back to sleep. (I always did it in the recliner, just so I wouldn't be tempted to fall back asleep with baby.) The very first day I started my boy on cereal he slept through the night. (3 mos.?) My sister had her kid sleeping in Mom & Dad's bed until he was five. Didn't want to go there at all. Bed time was never an issue from the get go for me and mine.
Thanks for taking the time to share what you have. I wouldn't have been disappointed if you didn't post for weeks at a time.
Bless all of you! Enjoy this wonderful beginning of your family!
Posted by: MargeinMI at March 18, 2010 03:38 PM (BZPZQ)
3
When I first saw the title, I thought, "Who's Mia?"
Then I realized you're Mia.
You haven't missed out of much. I'm sure that if the USA became the USSA, your husband would have told you.
Posted by: Amritas at March 18, 2010 03:40 PM (+nV09)
4
Ditto what everyone else said. Good advise about feeding and back to sleep for nighttime. Really, you'll look back on this time and realize just how fast it went by...you are doing the most important thing for now! Continued best wishes for your family.
Posted by: Connie at March 18, 2010 06:10 PM (L6nIP)
Posted by: Code Monkey at March 18, 2010 08:40 PM (9AuQG)
6
Above all, DO NOT WATCH THE NEWS, it might spoil your milk.
Posted by: Ruth H at March 19, 2010 01:51 PM (YpblU)
7
Trust me, it will all be there when you finally do have time to get back to it. Not to worry. If anything hugely major happens you'll find out without having to watch anything - someone will call or email you.
I think I missed most of the 1980's because of the kids. Heh.
Posted by: Teresa at March 19, 2010 04:03 PM (ZCuP9)
Wow this is what I get for finishing grad school and not touching a blog for almost a year? Maybe I should stay away from blogging a little more often.
Congrats to you and dad! What a beautiful little chub chub. I'm so very happy for you all.
Household6
Posted by: Household6 at March 20, 2010 11:30 PM (V86CJ)
FINDING MY FLOW
I'm still going to finish that blog post that got lost -- I started rewriting it and got sidetracked nine hours ago -- but I just wanted to let you all know that I am doing much better tonight. My fantastic husband took the baby all afternoon and let me take a long nap and do my sitz bath. The two of them drank beer and watched The Godfather all afternoon, which is so adorable. He knew I needed a break, and didn't even ask; he just disappeared with her and let me be alone for a while. I appreciate it so much.
I am feeling much better and ready to face another sleepless night.
Next ... her cute hands! She's trying to hide them, but I can see them!
Her cheeks are so rosy. Are they always like that?
She seems to be sleeping. I hope you can find such peace.
I'm glad your husband's back to father her.
I wrote this comment in Google Chrome which isn't compatible with the paragraphing function of your blog. So I switched to MSIE (argh) to post it ... only to discover I had closed the Chrome tab with this text in it. ARGH.
I hope you're composing your new post outside a browser. One reason why I usually type comments within a browser is that it's annoying to paste plain text comments and add formatting (bold, italic) and links by hand later - it's easier to format as I type.
Posted by: Amritas at March 07, 2010 02:09 AM (TZltr)
Posted by: Sespi at March 07, 2010 07:28 AM (BWd7p)
5
What a beautiful child! Glad you got some sleep so you can enjoy your family more. I'm so glad your husband got to get home for her birth and is able to share in the baby duties and joys. In the military, that's not always possible, but I'm glad he got there. It means a lot.
Posted by: HChambers at March 07, 2010 10:15 AM (m6pqD)
Posted by: sharona at March 07, 2010 11:39 PM (BeRta)
8
I can't look at that picture for too long, or I'll end up with massive baby fever! She's so adorable. Ditto what everyone has been saying about slowing down, focusing on yourself and the baby, and letting go of all but the most essential jobs (eating, sleeping, feeding). The two of you will eventually settle into a rhythm, and life will take on some semblance of normalcy. For now, try to rest and kiss those little toes frequently! :-)
Posted by: Val L. at March 08, 2010 09:00 AM (qNYP5)
Posted by: Laura, A Military Mom at March 08, 2010 12:58 PM (oLHZ3)
10
She 'almost' makes me want to have another baby. Till I see my kids current college tuition bills... Sigh. Still, I adore them when they are still so little. Glad to see your husband is treating you so nicely. They are both definitely keepers and I can see why you didn't throw either of them back.
Posted by: Lemon Stand at March 09, 2010 09:55 AM (Cf8rK)
11
She is SO beautiful! You and Russ make pretty babies!
Posted by: genie at March 10, 2010 08:00 AM (h8TNx)
12
Sarah and Russ, Oh, she is so beautiful. I know you must be totally exhausted but that will change so save lots of pictures so you can go back and appreciate those first few days. I know your mom, Sarah, will be crying all the way home. Jane
Posted by: Jane Boswell at March 10, 2010 09:09 PM (KooAp)
13
She has a delicious nose too! Not just feet ... thought I'd point out the obvious for you ...
Posted by: Darla at March 12, 2010 02:41 PM (RAPsl)
EXHAUSTED
I don't mind sharing the baby's name with people, but I just don't want to post it publicly. If you want to know, shoot me an email at tryingtogrok at hotmail and I will let you know.
When I find time. Which has proven to be phenomenally hard so far. I haven't even found the time in two whole days to take a sitz bath -- something I desperately want to do -- because I feel like I am constantly starting or ending a feeding. I haven't taken a single nap. And most days I forget to take my medicines too.
This is chaos. I am still figuring it out.
Has anything happened in the world? Baby watched O'Reilly with my mom last night, so she's more up to date on current events than I am at this point.
Absolutely nothing has been going on - let alone anything more important than taking care of your littlest sweetie.
I totally sympathize on the constantly beginning-continuing-ending-cleaning-up a feeding thing!!! That was why I didn't eat or drink much of anything, let alone get more than a wink of sleep, for DAYS... and it was a bad idea. All sorts of unpleasantness.
You might try setting a timer for your meds; inspired by the hospital's charts, keeping a chart that someone more mobile can review helped me, too... seriously, have someone else keep your "brain" documented outside of your body for a while.
Once I was through with *some* of the very early, made-me-want-to-just-die, rigamarole, I'd feed Kiddo; then just sit there holding him until we both fell asleep. Wake up & feed him again. Then fall back asleep. (Not sure how much of that was painkillers, and how much was sheer exhaustion...) Every few minutes helps, and I promise it'll get better... these first few days really are rough.
Timing-wise for a bath, the best time would be right after a feeding so she's happy & you can hand her off to whoever's helping; OR... you could probably even nurse her *during* the bath, once you got settled... not sure how slick that would work, but it occurred to me just now, so I figured I'd mention it. But yeah, you'll probably have to really, intentionally, schedule the most mundane things for a little while.
Anyway, we're totally pulling for you & hoping it gets just that much easier, that much sooner... *hugs*
Posted by: Krista at March 05, 2010 05:17 PM (sUTgZ)
3
I agree on focusing on feeding the baby. It will get better. The more she feeds now the more milk you will make and it will eventually get on a schedule. Not a perfect one but a do-able one. Having a baby the first time is HARD. No one tells you because its something you just have to experience. But she will only be 1 week old once and 2 weeks old once, and so on. Enjoy it even though it sucks. If that makes sense. I've followed your blog for fourish years now and realized at some point that I had met you. The hubs and I were stationed in Germany the same time ya'll were. What I am trying to say is that after all you have been through I am so happy for you to be a mom. I'll be emailing to find out her name. I HAVE to know what you named the baby you waited so long for! Cheers -gina
Posted by: gina at March 05, 2010 05:17 PM (TQYlv)
4
Oh, Sarah - I well remember days when at 5 in the afternoon, I still hadn't managed to shower or get dressed, or eat anything. It bothered me until I realized that my only responsibility was to snuggle with my kids, feed them, change them, and snuggle some more. The first couple of weeks, everything seems overwhelming, then you two will develop a routine, and everything will fall into place. Really, it will.
I don't blame you for not posting her name publicly - although it really is BabyGrok, right?
Sending much love & many prayers for you and your family.
Posted by: Toni at March 05, 2010 05:23 PM (OoGre)
Posted by: Eric at March 05, 2010 06:00 PM (BnXyO)
6
Sarah, Mine are late teenagers now. I well remember and cherish the newborn days. We bottle fed from the beginning, so as a dad I was able to feed them too. One big thing to know and remember. There is NOTHING going on in the world that is even close to important as snuggling with your baby girl. Cherish every single moment. And take lots of pictures. Those pictures will be cherished keepsakes. Congratulations again! She is a cutie! Jim
Posted by: SciFiJim at March 05, 2010 10:35 PM (kJF1e)
7
LOL, it gets much better soon. I call the first weeks home with the baby the "survival" period. Don't worry about anything that's not directly related to your or her survival. Everything else is secondary and optional. :-D
Except, sitz baths and pain pills. You need those, girl. Believe me, I speak from experience. The sitz baths will help you heal much, much faster.
Posted by: Heather at March 06, 2010 09:52 AM (k6tVi)
UP AT 6 WITH NOWHERE TO GO
When my husband has been home for a while, I get used to sleeping with
him. I can sleep through his movements and even his early departures.
But I'm not used to him yet, so his 6 AM wake-up is now mine. Fortunately, I'm not having any of the insomnia problems that I had when he returned last year. I pretty much want to sleep when he wants to sleep. But I'd just like to sleep a little longer in the morning while I still can.
You've been quiet....Have you looked her in the eyes yet? I remember...well, that is my story. I wanted to be super mom so when my babe slept I used that time to get chores done. What I learned was to be a super mom I needed to nap(at least take a break) when he did so at night when it was just the two of us it was also a time for snuggling and learning about each other. You know...I think I am feeling jealouse!
Cindy H.
Posted by: Cindy H. at February 26, 2010 07:21 PM (gcBP7)
A FAMILY AGAIN
My husband laughs when he touches my belly.
I stayed in bed until the very end. He was supposed to arrive late Thursday night but ended up here Friday morning instead. I passed many excruciating Hours In Between dreaming crazy things like that his flight had been diverted to Cincinnati or that he had to hitch a ride on Noah's Ark to get home.
When I saw him, I thought his beard looked a lot nicer in person than in pictures. He thought my belly was much smaller than he imagined it would be.
He likes getting kicked. But he says he's ready to meet our baby on the outside already.
I got out of bed after two weeks, and my legs are weak. The baby also seems a lot bigger and heavier than she did previously. I can't believe how much she's grown while I was just lying there.
And I now officially understand lightning crotch. I wish I didn't.
But I promise I won't complain. I got everything I wanted: a healthy baby, a safe deployment, and my family all together again before baby arrives.
I will remind myself of that when my legs go numb with pain.
1
WOO HOOOOOOOOOOO. Cant wait to read the post when the little one is born. Enjoy your time together before babygrok arrives.
Posted by: Keri at February 20, 2010 08:52 AM (dtvJC)
2
Wooohoo!!!! I am so glad to see this post! Enjoy your time together and I'll be sending thoughts and prayers your way for an uneventful labor and delivery! I'm so happy for you two!
Posted by: Stephanie at February 20, 2010 09:24 AM (AksCG)
3
Yay! So glad you two are going to get to share this experience in the same room! As Stephanie said, prayers for a safe, healthy labour and delivery.
Posted by: Linda at February 20, 2010 10:50 AM (krOs7)
I'm so happy he's home, safe and sound and that you're sweet little girl has managed to wait for him. :-)
Posted by: Heather at February 20, 2010 11:26 AM (9k/pz)
7
Yaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay! I'm so glad he made it home before she arrived. I'm so happy you will be able to share that experience with each other!
Posted by: sharona at February 20, 2010 12:13 PM (SSnIN)
8
Sorry sweetie, but your new nickname is lightning crotch.
Posted by: Chuck at February 20, 2010 12:18 PM (bMH2g)
9
I vaguely remember the term "lightening" (with the e) but I can guaran-double-damn-tee you I never heard it referred to a crotch. Course, ladies in my day didn't use that word, at least if we weren't sewing up some pants. ;D We did refer to babies as having dropped and I know some still do. Only because I live on the Gulf coast and know people in the business do I know that an oil tanker sits offshore until it is lightered. I suspect there is something to grammar of the lightening crotch akin to a ship lightering. TMI? Lightering
- Wikipedia, the free encyclopediaLightering
is the process of transferring cargo between vessels of different
sizes, usually between a barge and a bulker or oil tanker.
Posted by: Ruth H at February 20, 2010 04:30 PM (4u82p)
As much as I love having these updates I DO hope this is the last we hear until the baby is about 72 hrs old. Enjoy these precious QUIET moments together.
And congratulations!! I am so very VERY happy for you guys!!
Posted by: LauraB at February 20, 2010 05:46 PM (F24xe)
11
Cheers from Virginia ~ so happy for the three of you! Deployment gremlins ha - no more! *poof*
Posted by: awiv at February 20, 2010 05:57 PM (4McD6)
Posted by: MargeinMI at February 21, 2010 08:20 AM (hYFF2)
15
Oh yay! I'm so happy to hear that everything worked out for you!
Posted by: Sespi at February 21, 2010 12:27 PM (pjsKA)
16
I'm so glad!!! So glad he's home, so glad he's gotten to see you pregnant. I hope all continues to go smoothly for you (and I'm sorry you're not feeling super physically).
Posted by: Lucy at February 21, 2010 12:38 PM (uaK5D)
17
Three cheers for your husband! I'm so very glad he's home! And that you've gotten out of bed once! And I hope Charlie starts feeling better! Take care ... that baby will be bouncing around and causing sleepless nights before you know it!
Posted by: Darla at February 21, 2010 12:41 PM (XvIN7)
18
Thank goodness. You guys have been on my mind a lot lately. I'm glad he's home and getting to experience some of the pregnancy with you. He's there for the really important stuff.
I'm sorry your legs are so weak. Sounds like you're doing the right thing though.
Posted by: Sara at February 21, 2010 07:26 PM (PdlOu)
1
This has happened to our dog and one of our cats for various reasons. Instead of letting your pup sleep directly on the bedspread, can you put down a sheet or towel for him? Much easier to wash. With our dog, we put up a gate to keep him in the linoleum area instead of the carpeted areas, and tried to have activities (or couch potato time) near him. The kitty got a special (expensive) tummy diet, the dog got chicken and rice, just rice at first. There's also a spray or diffuser (like Glade plug ins) called Feliway that seemed to help. They make it for dogs & cats, we used it for our cats. It helped most times (4 cats). It might help him to also deal with your upcoming changes as well. They'll be great changes, but still stressful! Enjoy being a new mom and being reunited. I know you will.
Posted by: HChambers at February 17, 2010 06:48 PM (m6pqD)
2
Aw, MAN. You really CAN'T catch a break, can you? Well, I'm glad he'll be okay when things get better. And they will!!
Posted by: Lissa at February 17, 2010 07:49 PM (mgjM7)
3
Just wait til the baby cries and Charlie decides to howl in sympathy!!!
Posted by: Pamela at February 18, 2010 03:56 AM (dlFxI)
OF ALL THE TIMES
At SpouseBUZZ we like to joke about "deployment gremlins," all the little things that go wrong as soon as your husband leaves for deployment. Well, I have been having bed rest gremlins.
It started with a broken garage door. Two days before bed rest started, the garage door decided it likes going up but not down. And then I ended up in bed before I could fix it. Luckily I haven't needed my car in two weeks. Unluckily, the door is still busted.
Then my mom arrived to help me. My mom with the broken foot who moves at half her normal speed and has trouble getting up and down stairs, which is the whole reason I needed her help. She's still doing it, bless her. I am not picking on her, just stating a fact. Of all the times for her to break her foot...
And then the dog. The first day my mom was here, the dog ate her meds. She had to induce vomiting. And now, the dog is mysteriously sick. We can't for the life of us figure out what could've made him sick, but he has had diarrhea and vomiting for three days. The first night, I tried to take care of him, but after going up and down the stairs six times to let him out, I knew I had to relinquish the chore to my mother or else the baby was gonna fall out on the stairs. So now the dog wakes me and then I wake my mother so she can let him into the backyard. And he probably needs to go to the vet by now, but that means sending my mom with him. Of all the times for him to get sick...
And you know, I don't remember having any moral qualms about letting my mom take care of me when I had my wisdom teeth out at 18. She fetched and comforted. But it's a whole different game for me as an adult. I hate asking her for help. I hate it. I hate waking her in the middle of the night so she can wipe my dog's bottom with toilet paper to make sure he doesn't soil my bedspread again...since it's had to get washed twice already in the past two days. It's one thing to have her go make me a sandwich -- and believe me, I don't like asking her to do that either -- but it's a whole nother thing to make her take care of my dog's vomit and poop.
We're both exhausted and stressed out. And unfortunately, this story won't end with a nice vacation and a long nap; it will end with a crying baby who needs even more attention than the dog.
I can't believe this is how I'm spending the end of my pregnancy.
1
Wow. Sounds like Murphy has moved right in with you! I agree it is very stressful. BUT - it won't end with a crying baby that needs more attention. It will BEGIN your life as a mom, and after the birth you will be MOBILE again which will change everything.
I would think the dog's affliction is from the meds he ate (or did you see them come out WHOLE when he vomited them?). Our dog ate a whole plate of Christmas cookies (never knew she could get things off the table!) and had stomach 'issues' for days. It was awful, and our comforter went through the laundry a few times too! I'd give it a few more days. Or call the vet and ask their opinion. Maybe they will be able to check a stool sample and that would be easier for your mom to drive over there than actually bringing the dog with her. Good luck Sarah. You are on the home stretch now. The blogosphere is cheering you on!
Posted by: Amy at February 17, 2010 10:31 AM (Cy1WK)
Yes, but hearing the baby cry is so much better than NOT hearing that sound. You are almost there, Sarah!!
Bad things come in three's.... and you've already had your three, so it's smooth sailing now!!
Posted by: AFSister at February 17, 2010 11:08 AM (HoMeG)
3
Does your vet have boarding? Forgive me for sounding callous, but seriously sometimes there's only so much you can take. I am one of those rotten people that loves her dog a whole lot less since my kids were born, but with vomit/poo and bedrest, I'd be inclined to drop him for a doggie vacation at the vet!
Posted by: Lane at February 17, 2010 01:59 PM (DWrpt)
4
Aw, I 'm so sorry. I wish I could come over and take care of your dog and make you a sandwich, and bring you a new book to read and pop in a good DVD and try to keep you entertained. I am really proud of you. Someday she will read all of this and realize how much her mom loves her AND how much you love her DAD and she will realize what a special gift she is!
Posted by: Stacy at February 17, 2010 04:21 PM (7FV6m)
5
Charlie will be okay. Dogs just take longer to get meds out of their system. It's why people drugs are usually the wrong dosage for doggie drugs. His body's doing its best to get rid of the meds.
Just a thought, but one of those cute little diapers with a tail-hole cut out would probably work out okay--we used to use them when our female pekingese was in season (when I was a kid.)
Don't worry about the garage door. Add it to the honey-do list. Park the car in the driveway and get the door closed, then forget about it.
Finally, your mom is going to be your mom. If she didn't want to help any way she could, she wouldn't be there, broken foot and all. You don't feel like you need to be waited on, to have someone take care of things for you, but that's why she came, and believe it or not, you need her to be doing exactly what she is doing, because you are unable. It's a parenting thing. You'll understand soon enough when you are picking boogers out of noses with your fingers, not getting grossed out by having a little vomit on your shirt, and playing "what the hell is THAT!?" when changing diapers.
In 20something years, repay the favor. Or if you want to assuage your guilt, feel free (when you are up and about) to fetch me a sandwich. I have no trouble with being waited upon.
Posted by: Chuck at February 17, 2010 04:39 PM (bMH2g)
6
Sarah, I'm here for you because you're my daughter and I'd do anything for you! I'll always be your mom no matter what age you are, and not only now, but in the future, when you need help, I will be here for you. I know we've had a crazy set of circumstances with the dog, my foot, your little dancing baby wanting to be born and waiting for her daddy to come home. Yes, I'm not as fast as I was when you were growing up, and this darn foot doesn't help matters, but I hope you will look back someday and be glad we had this time together. You are my precious daughter, and I love you very much.
Your Mama
Posted by: Nancy at February 17, 2010 11:56 PM (gWUle)
Sarah: you and your mom are making me cry and laugh all at the same time! I'm so glad you are documenting all this craziness in your blog, because you are building great memories. These stories will be told around the Christmas tree, and at the Thanksgiving dinner table for years to come! Try the plain white rice and boiled chicken for Charlie; definitely put the sheet over your bedspread for a few more days, and forget the darn garage door for now. Know that we are praying for your whole family. Just hang in there for a little while longer...
Love and hugs,
Mary
Posted by: Mary at February 18, 2010 12:08 AM (MZGTX)
The baby is fine, Dad is on his way home, your Mom is there to look after you, Charlie will be OK, the garage door will get fixed. Life...it's strange, but, wow are there ever compensations. When you and your hubby hold that sweet baby girl in your arms all of this will seem not quite so awful.
Oh and let me tell you what will make up to your Mom for everything she is doing now: a hug and a kiss and a quiet heartfelt "I love you Mom, I don't know how I would have made it without you here." That's all a Mom needs to keep her going, that and to be allowed to rub as much of the new off the baby as she can before she goes home.
Posted by: Pamela at February 18, 2010 03:53 AM (dlFxI)
9
I won't repeat what's been said above...they're right, you know. However, I will focus on one thing you put in your post, "the end of my pregnancy." This is it! Baby Grok will be here healthy and happy before you know it. Continue taking care of yourself.
Moms totally rock and yours is no different.
Posted by: Susan at February 18, 2010 09:44 AM (4aKG6)
10
Yup, you are definitely living in a sitcom, way too real to be reality TV. I can assure you, your mom's foot may hurt but she is there for you, she said so. And I have been in much the same situation. Only the pregnant one matters. Dog's can have Pepto bismol. Don't try giving him the liquid, use the pills. I learned that from some really dumb experience. I had a pink Yorkie. Ask the vet how much. As for the garage door, the little thingy that sends the little signal across the bottom of the door probably got off kilter. That happened to ours. If you live long enough you kind of know a lot of solutions. Not guaranteed, though. ;D Still waiting for baby news, and do you have a Target nearby?
Posted by: Ruth H at February 18, 2010 01:53 PM (JCV5R)
I loved my husband's qualities before I ever had any inkling he
would become my husband. In fact, he had declined my suggestion that we
date. Weeks later, he came to me with his mind and said that he had made a mistake and we should be together. We figuratively shook on it, and that was that.
Effectively, our love was transacted like a pound of butter on a grocery counter.
My husband earned my love. I too had to earn it from him, and it took him two weeks longer than I to weigh the merits of it.
We sat there in his dorm room, and he said that after much thought, he agreed that we ought to be together. And we looked at each other shyly and said, "OK then, I guess we're dating." And that was that.
Today he finally got access to a webcam and skype. For the first time since July, I got to see him. His appearance was shocking; I am definitely not used to the beard. Or the muscles. And on the flip side, the size of my belly blew him away.
1
I'm sure he thought you were beautiful! The ultimate sight-for-sore-eyes
Posted by: Lissa at February 15, 2010 09:50 AM (mgjM7)
2
Sarah, I am so happy you got to see him and he got to see you and your growing belly.
Posted by: Keri at February 15, 2010 10:15 AM (dtvJC)
3
I bet he was just as happy to see you as you were to see him! I'm so happy for you both.
Posted by: Lemon Stand at February 15, 2010 01:05 PM (SUov1)
4
What a thrill, I sure hope he gets home in time to see your belly in person. It is a huge thrill to feel that baby moving around inside of the one you love. Well, at least that was my husband's take on it, I never had the experience of being on that side of it. LOL
Posted by: Ruth H at February 15, 2010 01:35 PM (KLwh4)
5
That is the most FANTASTIC news I've heard recently! Yea! That is excellent I bet your belly made his deployment.
Posted by: Darla at February 15, 2010 11:11 PM (XvIN7)
6
Sniff, sniff. You're getting me all teared up. Great post, and I'm *so* glad you got to see each other.
Posted by: Lucy at February 16, 2010 05:20 PM (YNvUz)
WHAT, IT WAS? HOORAY!
Six years ago my husband was leaving on his first deployment on Valentine's Day. Now I am anxiously waiting for him to come home.
Even though we're apart, I will still participate in our traditions. And look forward to tomorrow, an even better day for us to celebrate.
SO MANY PICTURES
I am prone to mushiness these days, so perhaps it's not surprising that looking at photos of my husband and me from last summer before he left for Afghanistan would make me all sentimental.
He hates having his picture taken. Hates it. And yet he lets me do it constantly. He poses and fake smiles for me, and every once in a while I get a real smile or a smirk that only he can make. Those are the photos I like to look at when he's gone, to see his grimaces and laughter, the faces he makes every day. The real him.
We had so much fun in Las Vegas. When we were there, AWTM called and said she was envious...that we were still just a couple, that we could jet off to Vegas whenever we wanted. She said she and her husband took a trip shortly before SR was born, and that they still talk about it and what a great trip it was, just the two of them. And that because my husband was leaving and I was supposed to be doing IVF while he was gone, that this too was our last trip just as a couple, and to enjoy ourselves.
And I look at those photos from Vegas, and I had our baby inside me already and didn't know it. I think it's wonderful to have so many photos of us in that brief time when our baby already existed but we didn't know it yet.
I look at how happy we are in those photos and I just feel so lucky and blessed. And I know it's only going to get better.
I miss him very, very much. I can't wait to see him again.
Posted by: Lissa at January 22, 2010 09:44 PM (mgjM7)
2
I love this post! I was pregnant with Rusty when we went on our Caribbean cruise and every time I look at those pics I'm like HE WAS THERE! There is NO way you can tell, but HE WAS THERE! Someday I will enjoy telling him that he went ot all of those fun places and enjoyed that adventure with his dad and I.
I hope this next month+ goes quickly for you! I am really hoping that your hubby makes it for the birth!!! Your baby is blessed to have you guys and she is going to be sooooo loved!
Posted by: Stacy at January 23, 2010 12:43 AM (5C0TQ)
3
And post at least one picture of the two of them....I'm already misty eyed. That picture will make me cry like a baby. :-)
Posted by: Pamela at January 23, 2010 01:00 AM (GmA86)
4
You guys have ridiculous smiles in your Vegas pictures that doing nothing else but radiate LOVE. How awesome that your baby was there to share in that and the worry part of pregnancy had not existed. Even your eyes were smiling in those pictures!
Posted by: wifeunit at January 23, 2010 11:02 AM (4B1kO)
5
This post needs a "like" button (similar to FB). I recently was looking thru old pictures - my husbands college graduation week, commissioning, etc. I get so sentimental
Posted by: Keri at January 23, 2010 02:28 PM (dtvJC)
SCHIZOPHRENIC 2009
2009 doesn't feel like one year to me.
My husband returned home from Iraq at the end of 2008, a couple days before Christmas. We began 2009 with his trip to SERE school. And getting pregnant for a third time. And losing that baby too. Then finding out about the translocation.
It was a sucky first six months.
But then we took a great vacation to Vegas. And I got pregnant again. And the John Elway Baby worked out. My husband is deployed, but he's there with a great team and they've done some good work that apparently everyone else wants to steal credit for. I'm proud of him. I wish he were here to share in the joys of pregnancy, but in the long run, the second half of 2009 has been pretty good. He's impressing all the right people, and I have a three pound person bouncing on my bladder.
And 2010 should be great: my husband and my baby arriving at the same time! We'll be a family. I can't wait.
BOOK LIST VI
I joked that I needed to start cheating if I'm going to make it to 62 books by the end of the year. Unfortunately, I had misremembered the goal: Rove read 64 books. I realized this only a couple of days ago. Even with a couple of hanging-chad books in here towards the end (books that probably shouldn't be counted but we're gonna count 'em anyway on a technicality), I couldn't make it. No one can beat The Architect.
But I didn't get divorced either, so who's the big winner? (Ew, that's mean.)
All in all, I was surprised that I could average more than a book a week. And a decent mix of fluff and "real" books. I found that a year of reading goes by fast, and several books are still in the pile. I didn't read a book in French like I planned to. I also never made it to Lone Survivor; I just didn't have the stomach for it right now. I'd like to read it once my husband gets home. Also in the stack for the beginning of next year are several baby books. I have two months to study up on baby's first year, breastfeeding, how to get her to sleep, etc. And then, according to popular wisdom, I'll never read again.
All in all, this was a neat exercise, and that original article about the challenge remains one of my favorite things written about George Bush ever.
62) Zen and the Art of Knitting (Bernadette Murphy) I had forgotten how much I enjoy reading about knitting. Once I realized it was hopeless to make it to 64 books, I decided to read something relaxing. It's a little hippie-ful for my taste, but it's soothing.
61) Babyhood (Paul Reiser) It's my understanding that there are lots of books lying around Iraq and Afghanistan. The troops read them and leave them in common areas for someone else to pick up. My husband happened upon this book and read it. He then bought it for me for Christmas because he thought it was funny and I might enjoy it. I laughed so hard I cried in parts. (Of course, I'm hormonal, so then I kept crying.)
60) The Crisis of Islam (Bernard Lewis) I don't know how I didn't read this six years ago, but I ought to have. Nonetheless, it was still worth reading today. It's a basic primer on where Islamists are coming from, the history and philosophy that drives terrorists.
59) Charlotte Sometimes (Penelope Farmer) I've been stocking up on books for my little girl, and I got this one because of the song. And because of, well, other reasons. And who knew that there would also be a character named Sarah? Or that the first lines of the song, the ones that make me think of my struggle to have this baby, were the first lines of the book...
All the faces, all the voices blur
Change to one face, change to one voice
58) Charlotte's Web (E.B. White) An endearing secondary storyline I remember from the TV show Ed was when Carol said she liked the book Charlotte's Web and didn't understand why people always thought it was so sad. It turns out, at the end of the episode, her dad gives her a new copy of Charlotte's Web, saying that when she was young and her mother died, he had cut the final pages of the book out and typed up a new ending in which Charlotte lived happily ever after. He had wanted to protect her from sadness. I always thought that was a sweet story of parenthood.
57) Pursuit of Honor (Vince Flynn) I wanted to read this just because Glenn Beck called Chapter 50 "conservative porn." Heh. It turned out to be an enjoyable read all around. A while back, Amritas asked why I liked Brad Thor's books. I think Vince Flynn's character Mitch Rapp falls in the same category as Scot Harvath. And my answer was simple: these protagonists are like Jack Bauer, but in the books, the bad guys are always terrorists and usually Muslims...unlike the show 24, where we always seem to learn in the fifteenth hour that the bad guys are really white guys working for a corporation. They are simple stories about clandestine operatives working to keep the United States safe, with none of the PC baggage that shows and movies seem to have these days. No evil white CEOs.
56) What Americans Really Want...Really (Frank Luntz) I had no intention of reading this book because, really, I thought the title was just too goofy. But AirForceWife also gave it her seal of approval, so I went for it. What struck me about this book is how unlike me everything seems. I don't fall into one of the five categories of how people behave and think, I thought the political chapter was absolutely off-base with my values, I thought the chapter on teens made me feel like an old fuddy-duddy (I stopped dating before cell phones and digital cameras), and so on. I don't doubt Luntz's work or research; I just wonder how I am so unlike these great swaths of Americans. I feel like that apocryphal lady who didn't know anyone who voted for Nixon: my people, my tribe, doesn't believe these things. So how American does that make us if everyone else around us just wants security and organic food? (I mean, nearly 50% of poll respondents said that the 2nd Amendment mattered the least to them...and a good margin less to them than even the self-incrimination part of the 5th!)
55) Survival of the Sickest (Dr. Sharon Moalem) AirForceWife lent me this book, and I couldn't recommend it more. It explains why we have certain diseases today: At one point in history, diseases like hemochromatosis and diabetes were actually selected for because they helped people survive in their environment. It was so interesting. There was also a section vindicating Lamarck and talking about how your fetus' genetic makeup can be altered by what you eat even before you know you are pregnant. I ate seven days of Las Vegas buffets...yikes.
53) Pearl Harbor (Newt Gingrich) The authors really did a good job of making you feel like you were at Pearl Harbor. It was harrowing. However, I didn't realize until I was finished that it was a set-up book for an alternate history sequel, in which the Japanese hit hard in a third strike and really piss off a sleeping giant. I guess I would've preferred a straight-out historical fiction instead of trying to figure out after the fact what was real and what was invented.
51) What to Expect When Your Wife Is Expanding (Thomas Hill) My husband got this book as a gift when I was pregnant the first time. He read a few pages and then set it aside when disaster struck. So I pulled it back out and decided to read it now and annotate the margins for him, noting things I was indeed experiencing. I mailed it to him so he could flip through it in Afghanistan, and he said he has been reading it.
1
I told you how horrified the Frank Luntz book made me! All I could think for three days after reading it was, *We are all so screwed. So damn screwed...*
And I think I need to get Charlotte Sometimes for my girls. Thanks for reminding me.
Posted by: airforcewife at December 31, 2009 06:30 PM (uE3SA)
2
I didn't read many actual books this year. Most of my reading has been online. Time not spent online, I mostly spent on other projects (a lot of cross-stitching, and for a good cause). Grim over at Grim's Hall has a post about doing a book club kind of thing, starting with a Louie Lamour book, and I think I'll try to participate. I still have a stack of books in my possession (not all mine, some are my dad's) that I want to get read. I need to finish the one book I've been working on for a while (it's been on hold a lot, so I could hit my deadline in the fall for the cross-stitch). I need to get that one done, and then get started with some other reading.
Think you'll find out how many books Bush & Rove read in 2009? I don't think I'll be able to get anywhere near 1+ books a week. I tend to go through phases where I read, read, read, and then phases where I don't pick up a book for quite a while...
Posted by: Miss Ladybug at January 01, 2010 08:27 PM (vqKnu)
3
Whoa, I had no idea that Charlotte Sometimes was a book first!! And an Emma is in there, too.....
Posted by: Kate at January 04, 2010 12:57 PM (JIGe1)
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There is neither happiness nor misery in the world; there is only the comparison of one state with another, nothing more. He who has felt the deepest grief is best able to experience supreme happiness. We must have felt what it is to die, Morrel, that we may appreciate the enjoyments of living. --The Count of Monte Cristo--
While our troops go out to defend our country, it is incumbent upon us to make the country worth defending. --Deskmerc--
Contrary to what you've just seen, war is neither glamorous nor fun. There are no winners, only losers. There are no good wars, with the following exceptions: The American Revolution, WWII, and the Star Wars Trilogy. --Bart Simpson--
If you want to be a peacemaker, you've gotta learn to kick ass. --Sheriff of East Houston, Superman II--
Going to war without France is like going deer hunting without an accordion. You just leave a lot of useless noisy baggage behind. --Jed Babbin--
Dante once said that the hottest places in hell are reserved for those who in a period of moral crisis maintain their neutrality. --President John F. Kennedy--
War is a bloody, killing business. You've got to spill their blood, or they will spill yours. --General Patton--
We've gotta keep our heads until this peace craze blows over. --Full Metal Jacket--
Those who threaten us and kill innocents around the world do not need to be treated more sensitively. They need to be destroyed. --Dick Cheney--
The Flag has to come first if freedom is to survive. --Col Steven Arrington--
The purpose of diplomacy isn't to make us feel good about Eurocentric diplomatic skills, and having countries from the axis of chocolate tie our shoelaces together does nothing to advance our infantry. --Sir George--
I just don't care about the criticism I receive every day, because I know the cause I defend is right. --Oriol--
It's days like this when we're reminded that freedom isn't free. --Chaplain Jacob--
Bumper stickers aren't going to accomplish some of the missions this country is going to face. --David Smith--
The success of multilateralism is measured not merely by following a process, but by achieving results. --President Bush--
Live and act within the limit of your knowledge and keep expanding it to the limit of your life.
--John Galt--
First, go buy a six pack and swig it all down. Then, watch Ace Ventura. And after that, buy a Hard Rock Cafe shirt and come talk to me. You really need to lighten up, man.
--Sminklemeyer--
You've got to kill people, and when you've killed enough they stop fighting --General Curtis Lemay--
If we wish to be free, if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending, if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained -- we must fight! --Patrick Henry--
America has never been united by blood or birth or soil. We are bound by ideals that move us beyond our backgrounds, lift us above our interests and teach us what it means to be citizens. Every child must be taught these principles. Every citizen must uphold them. And every immigrant, by embracing these ideals, makes our country more, not less, American. --President George W. Bush--
are usually just cheerleading sessions, full of sound and fury and signifying nothing but a soothing reduction in blood pressure brought about by the narcotic high of being agreed with. --Bill Whittle
War is an ugly thing, but not the ugliest of things. The decayed and degraded state of moral and patriotic feeling which thinks that nothing is worth war is much worse. The person who has nothing for which he is willing to fight, nothing which is more important than his own personal safety, is a miserable creature and has no chance of being free unless made and kept so by the exertions of better men than himself.
--John Stuart Mill--
We are determined that before the sun sets on this terrible struggle, our flag will be recognized throughout the world as a symbol of freedom on the one hand and of overwhelming force on the other. --General George Marshall--
We can continue to try and clean up the gutters all over the world and spend all of our resources looking at just the dirty spots and trying to make them clean. Or we can lift our eyes up and look into the skies and move forward in an evolutionary way.
--Buzz Aldrin--
America is the greatest, freest and most decent society in existence. It is an oasis of goodness in a desert of cynicism and barbarism. This country, once an experiment unique in the world, is now the last best hope for the world.
--Dinesh D'Souza--
Recent anti-Israel protests remind us again of our era's peculiar alliance: the most violent, intolerant, militantly religious movement in modern times has the peace movement on its side. --James Lileks--
As a wise man once said: we will pay any price, bear any burden, meet any hardship, support any friend, oppose any foe, in order to assure the survival and the success of liberty.
Unless the price is too high, the burden too great, the hardship too hard, the friend acts disproportionately, and the foe fights back. In which case, we need a timetable.
--James Lileks--
I am not willing to kill a man so that he will agree with my faith, but I am prepared to kill a man so that he cannot force my compatriots to submit to his.
--Froggy--
You can say what you want about President Bush; but the truth is that he can take a punch. The man has taken a swift kick in the crotch for breakfast every day for 6 years and he keeps getting up with a smile in his heart and a sense of swift determination to see the job through to the best of his abilties.
--Varifrank--
In a perfect world, We'd live in peace and love and harmony with each oither and the world, but then, in a perfect world, Yoko would have taken the bullet.
--SarahBellum--
Freedom is never more than one generation away from extinction. We didn't pass it to our children in the bloodstream. It must be fought for, protected, and handed on for them to do the same, or one day we will spend our sunset years telling our children and our children's children what it was once like in the United States where men were free. --Ronald Reagan--
America is rather like life. You can usually find in it what you look for. It will probably be interesting, and it is sure to be large. --E.M. Forster--
Do not fear the enemy, for your enemy can only take your life. It is far better that you fear the media, for they will steal your HONOR. That awful power, the public opinion of a nation, is created in America by a horde of ignorant, self-complacent simpletons who failed at ditching and shoemaking and fetched up in journalism on their way to the poorhouse. --Mark Twain--
The Enlightenment was followed by the French Revolution and the Napoleonic wars, which touched every European state, sparked vicious guerrilla conflicts across the Continent and killed millions. Then, things really turned ugly after the invention of soccer. --Iowahawk--
Every time I meet an Iraqi Army Soldier or Policeman that I haven't met before, I shake his hand and thank him for his service. Many times I am thanked for being here and helping his country. I always tell them that free people help each other and that those that truly value freedom help those seeking it no matter the cost. --Jack Army--
Right, left - the terms are useless nowadays anyway. There are statists, and there are individualists. There are pessimists, and optimists. There are people who look backwards and trust in the West, and those who look forward and trust in The World. Those are the continuums that seem to matter the most right now. --Lileks--
The best argument against democracy is a five-minute conversation with the average voter.
--Winston Churchill--
A man or a nation is not placed upon this earth to do merely what is pleasant and what is profitable. It is often called upon to carry out what is both unpleasant and unprofitable, but if it is obviously right it is mere shirking not to undertake it. --Arthur Conan Doyle--
A man who has nothing which he cares about more than he does about his personal safety is a miserable creature who has no chance of being free, unless made and kept so by the existing of better men than himself. --John Stuart Mill--
After the attacks on September 11, 2001, most of the sheep, that is, most citizens in America said, "Thank God I wasn't on one of those planes." The sheepdogs, the warriors, said, "Dear God, I wish I could have been on one of those planes. Maybe I could have made a difference." --Dave Grossman--
At heart I’m a cowboy; my attitude is if they’re not going to stand up and fight for what they believe in then they can go pound sand. --Bill Whittle--
A democracy is always temporary in nature; it simply cannot exist as a permanent form of government. A democracy will continue to exist up until the time that voters discover that they can vote themselves generous gifts from the public treasury. From that moment on, the majority always votes for the candidates who promise the most benefits from the public treasury, with the result that every democracy will finally collapse due to loose fiscal policy, which is always followed by a dictatorship. --Alexander Tyler--
By that time a village half-wit could see what generations of professors had pretended not to notice. --Atlas Shrugged--
I kept asking Clarence why our world seemed to be collapsing and everything seemed so shitty. And he'd say, "That's the way it goes, but don't forget, it goes the other way too." --Alabama Worley--
So Bush is history, and we have a new president who promises to heal the planet, and yet the jihadists don’t seem to have got the Obama message that there are no enemies, just friends we haven’t yet held talks without preconditions with.
--Mark Steyn--
"I had started alone in this journey called life, people started
gathering up on the way, and the caravan got bigger everyday." --Urdu couplet
The book and the sword are the two things that control the world. We either gonna control them through knowledge and influence their minds, or we gonna bring the sword and take their heads off. --RZA--
It's a daily game of public Frogger, hopping frantically to avoid being crushed under the weight of your own narcissism, banality, and plain old stupidity. --Mary Katharine Ham--
There are more instances of the abridgment of freedoms
of the people by gradual and silent encroachment of those in power than by violent and sudden usurpations. --James Madison--
It is in the heat of emotion that good people must remember to stand on principle. --Larry Elder--
Please show this to the president and ask him to remember the wishes of the forgotten man, that is, the one who dared to vote against him. We expect to be tramped on but we do wish the stepping would be a little less hard. --from a letter to Eleanor Roosevelt--
The world economy depends every day on some engineer, farmer, architect, radiator shop owner, truck driver or plumber getting up at 5AM, going to work, toiling hard, and producing real wealth so that an array of bureaucrats, regulators, and redistributors can manage the proper allotment of much of the natural largess produced. --VDH--
Parents are often so busy with the physical rearing of children that they miss the glory of parenthood, just as the grandeur of the trees is lost when raking leaves. --Marcelene Cox--