U.S. Dept. of Labor vs. Rosie

In her latest “ask Rosie” section of her blog, there was a very interesting question/comment submitted.  Apparently, this unknown person, who also stated they did not use their real name, let Rosie know that her blog has been blocked by the Dept of Labor.  This person said that he/she used to read her blog at lunchtime and yesterday when he/she went to pull it up, it is now “a restricted site on the internet”.  Are you kidding me?  This is the highest level of censorship.  A government agency forbidding employees from reading whatever they want on their own time.  I’m at a loss for words………………well, not really.

Rosie has made it very obvious that she believes this administration is corrupt.  She voices her opinion on The View quite often and the administration in one form or another is a Hot Topic almost every day.  I do not agree with all of her opinions on the show.  But, her blog is her business.  This website of hers is for her to be able to say and do whatever she wants.  Again, the news items and videos she posts do not reflect my opinion all of the time, but she has this venue to do what she wants.  I have this blog to write what I want.   Granted, I am not in the public eye and am not considered a celebrity.  But, isn’t it considered Free Speech to say what you want on YOUR website?  Is the US Dept of Labor scared of what Rosie is saying?  Are they afraid that people will begin to believe what she says?  Is there truth in any of the negative comments that she makes?  Is this considered another cover-up?  Or is there no truth at all in what the unknown Dept of Labor employee submitted to Rosie?  It would be pretty hard for a civilian to get the answer to that.  Part of me really wonders if this is just some jokester pulling a very bad prank.  I would think that if it were true and an official in the Dept of Labor caught wind that an employee squealed to Rosie, that that person could/would lose their job.  It can’t be that hard to track down who actually sent her the e-mail because when you submit a question you also submit your e-mail address.  So, what do you think?  Government censoring or some looney who just wanted to see their name in print?  I’m hoping it’s the looney.        

Helpful Tools for Autistic Children

I just thought I would pass along  a few websites that Bryce’s teacher gave me.  I was looking for materials to use over the summer to help him get used to the idea of Kindergarten and helping him express himself in a more clear cut manner.  I do not endorse any of the medicinal products only the materials used for learning.  They are as follows:

www.autismcoach.com

www.greenhousepub.com

The greenhouse publications website is not necessarily for children with autism.  In fact, Brady, with his speech delay and lack of social skills will benefit from these materials as well.   I will try to make up a more comprehensive list and post that later. 

Remembering the Good Times

She was slightly round, wore glasses and polyester pants.  She always had an apron on when she was cooking and washing up the dishes.  She liked to sit and talk on the party line with her two good friends.  She liked to watch the CBS Soap Operas every afternoon and not be disturbed.  She enjoyed the company of her grandchildren and would feed them homemade chocolate cake that she always kept in the tin cake holder in the corner of the kitchen.  She made the best fried chicken you will ever imagine and was known for being a good cook.  Her children teased her that when they were growing up and had to save pennies, she could make just about anything out of gravy and always served applesauce at every meal.  There was always glasses of Tang, Post Toasties and bacon and eggs  for breakfast.  On a hot summer day, you could find glass bottles of Pepsi in the fridge and buckets of vegetables that had just been pulled from the garden.  She showed her love through her cooking and talking about the past, oh and there were always her good-bye kisses – wet, sloppy ones that she planted square on your mouth.  She cared for her husband – even though they bickered at times – and her children and grandchildren.  She came from the city and spent her married life on a farm.  New surroundings.  New rules.  I think she learned how to be a farm wife really well.  She was a hard worker and her efforts did not go unrewarded. 

She was my Grandma Marie Stevens and today is her birthday.  She passed away 8 years ago this month.  It was hard losing her since she was the first grandparent to die.  I loved her then and I love her even more now.  Over the past few months, I have learned some new facts about her and it just makes me miss her even more.  For example, Grandma had a recipe box and on every recipe she would “grade” her entries.  Words like”easy”, “Yummy”, “A+”, “good”, “really good”, “so-so” were on every recipe.  I found that to be so cute and endearing that I have thought about doing it myself – something my children could look back on and make them smile.  Each one of my grandparents were different and had their own characteristics.  A bond was formed with each one, but that bond took on it’s own meaning in accordance to what their personality was.  Grandma reminds me of Mrs. Wilson from “Dennis the Menace”.  Willing to bake cookies for you, have a nice chat with you, but ready to send you on your way just before you wore out your welcome(or got in trouble by your Dad for visiting too long and not getting your chores done at the barn!-believe me my sister and I both experienced that many times!!).  She was great.  A true gift.  The sad thing is that I’m not sure she knew how much she was appreciated while she was here.  I hope she did.  God Bless Grandma. 

When Bad Things Happen to Good People

Yesterday, it was revealed that John Edwards would indeed keep on track in his bidfor the Democratic Presidential  race.  What he also revealed was that his wife has been diagnosed with a type of bone cancer.  She had successfully beat breast cancer that had been found towards the end of the last election.  It has been reported that this type of cancer is treatable but almost always does not get the best results.  So, I’m thinking that here they are, having dealt with one cancer scare, lost a son in an unfortunate accident and now this.  Mr. Edwards is not someone that I will probably vote for but that doesn’t mean that he is not an OK guy.   In fact, he seems rather likable and has a good family.  I feel bad for them.  How many tragedies does one family have to endure.  It is said that God only gives you what He knows you can handle.  If this is true, then the Edwards family must have a very strong faith.  Whether you like him or not; will vote for him or not; he and his wife deserve our prayers for a healthy recovery.       

The Greatest Babysitter Of All Times

I was watching The View on Wednesday.  It was Rosie’s birthday and at the end of the show, Elisabeth said that Rosie’s favorite baker had made her a cake.  Stage  left and here comes Marjorie Johnson rolling out her birthday cake.  Rosie had no idea she was coming and that made it all the sweeter.  For anyone who watched Rosie’s first show, you know who Marjorie is.  The little old lady who was kooky and funny and just lovable.  She would do these cooking segments on the show and it was a delight.  That evening, I was thinking about Marjorie and how she made me smile every time I thought of her and all of a sudden it dawned on me.  Marjorie reminded me of another little old lady that had been in my life a long time ago.

Mabel Hayden was the absolute best little old lady.  I think she and Marjorie could almost be twins.  Mabel stood at a around 4′11″ and was probably 75 pounds soaking wet.  What she did not have in size she made up for in her laughter and tremendous amount of energy.  She was married but they did not have any children.  Mabel was the baked good queen in the area.  She made orange cookies, cinnamon rolls, angle food cakes, noodles and so many other delectable down-home food and sold it out of her house on Saturday mornings.  You considered yourself lucky to be able to get a baked good from Mabel – she was the best.  At Halloween, she would make her own popcorn balls and give those away for trick-or-treat.  She lived in a tiny town, so we had to drive to her house to see her.  Our Dad always volunteered to take us trick-or-treating because he knew that when we got to her house that she would give him a popcorn ball, too!

Mabel also was the best babysitter.  She was in her 60’s when she babysat for my sister and I.  Our parents belonged to a card club and they met on a Saturday night once a month.  It was always a fight to the finish to see which parent could secure Mabel to watch their children each month.  Us kids triple loved having her as a babysitter because this sprout of a woman knew how to do it.  When the morning would come, we would be anxiously awaiting for it to be time to go pick her up and then shoo our parents out the door so the fun and games could begin.  We always had a TV dinner(another big thing to look forward to-a special treat)  that night and watched Hee Haw as Mabel would entertain us.   We played Name that Tune,  Fruit Basket, Hide and Seek and Duck,Duck Goose.  Fruit Basket was a particular fave of mine.  You would take turns saying that you were going to the market to pick up some fruit, A is for apple and B is for banana and each time it was your turn you had to remember what the previous letters were and then  say the next letter with your fruit choice.  Great fun.   When it was time for bed, we never whimpered or begged for more.  We knew that if we wanted her to come back we had to behave and mind her.  So, my sister and I would go to our beds and she would tuck us in.  After that she would get out her little notepad that she always brought with her and would write letters to her family members.

Sadly, Mabel has passed away.  Her name just triggers so many fond memories of my childhood.  She was truly a special lady and I’m sure that when she got to heaven, God set her up with a kitchen so she could start baking up a storm.  I have a list of people I can’t wait to see when I get to heaven and Mabel is most definitely on my list.  Consider yourself blessed if you have had the fortunate opportunity to have a Mabel Hayden in your life.  She was one of a kind!      

Kindergarten Screening

This week, Bryce went to Kindergarten screening.  I hardly slept the night before.  I was on pins and needles and my head would not stop thinking about all of the possible or impossible situations he could face the next morning.  We had to be at the elementary by 8am.  Bryce’s pre-school teacher was waiting for us there.  She would be his shadow at each station.  The elementary had requested an aid for him in case of any speech problems or having trouble following the directions.  I wanted her there to help him retain his composure and to put my mind at ease.  We did not have to go to the screening since he will be on an IEP but, I wanted him to go through this process.  The reasons for my decision were three-fold.  First, this would give Bryce another opportunity to visit the school and see some of the teachers and administrators.  Second it was going to help him with learning to sit in a controlled environment and follow directions.  Third, I want him to lead as close to a normal life as possible.  I don’t want him to ever use this diagnosis as a “crutch” in life. 

Once we arrived, I was shuffled into the “holding area”.  We learned about the rules of the school, important dates, busing, health issues, etc.  Finally, we were told the testing criteria that they were using that day.  It is a state issued test-KRAL:Kindergarten Readiness Awareness Literacy.  The test has a possible 29 points and last years screeners averaged a 21. It consisted of sentence repetition, rhyming, phonics, alphabet knowledge and simple social questions.  I knew that the rhyming sections were not going to go well but, I thought he might be able to hold his own elsewhere.  There were also other sections on Math, Fine Motor(hold a pencil correctly, copy shapes from simple forms to complex groupings), hearing, vision, language and speech.  After each child had finished their testing, one by one we were called to speak with someone and go over the results.  At the end of that the official(teacher, guidance counselor, principal)stated their opinion on what areas of difficulty the child was having, what to work on and whether or not the parents should consider holding the student back another year.  In Bryce’s case, he has to go this year.  By law, his age requires that he attend Kindergarten this fall, so no matter how bad he did, they were going to see him in a seat come August.  First, we went over the KRAL results.  He got a 16 out of 29.  I was right about the rhyming but, he also had problems with the social questions and phonic awareness(meaning that he could not identify what letter words started with, such as “zipper” starts with “z”-actually that is the one he knew).  His math score was great and hearing was fine.  He was very “excited” during the language portion and speech – well that was a given-he will be attending speech therapy.  His fine motor was awesome.  He drew all of the pictures and even did an excellent job on the complex ones.  I was told that he did the best in that section than any of the other students during his session.  I know, I am bragging but, it felt good that he had excelled in an area.  His vision showed a possible problem in his left eye.  He has had regular check-ups since he was three years old and is due for one this year so we will see if there is actually a problem.

Overall, Bryce had a great time and enjoyed being at the school.  His teacher said that under the circumstances he did well.  He met Allison’s Kindergarten teacher and as we leaving, she and a few other women told me how cute he is(I know another bragging, but hey, I think he’s cute, too).  When we got home I sat down and absorbed everything from the past two hours.  I can’t explain my emotions about this.  I was happy that he like being there and did not have a horrible crisis with anything.  I was happy that he had areas that he excelled in.  I was confident in knowing that I had pinpointed his weaknesses before we went.  But, there was a hint of sadness and remorse.  As I fought the tears, I told my Mom that you know that he is not perfect and you know that he has a disability.  You know that he will have a hard time of it and there will be many struggles ahead, but to hear a professional actually verbalize these things to you is very overwhelming.  It’s like, as long as it is not said out loud it may not actually be real but, as soon as that first word is spoken, you realize that, in fact, it is true.  Bryce is autistic.  Bryce is going to Kindergarten.  Bryce will have roadblocks to face.  There I said it.  It is real.           

Completely Random Thoughts of the Week

This has been a very busy week and my brain is on overload.  Time to rid it of some useful and not so useful tidbits of information.

The View – I did not see it Thursday or Friday but I did hear about Thursdays show.  Ok, I like Rosie.  I think that if we lived close and actually knew each other we would be friends.  She does a lot of good and is sincere and caring but, OMG she can not let up on our President and all of his merry men.  Her political negativity is driving me crazy.  But, for some insane reason I can not turn away.  If she was not on the show, I probably would not watch – crazy I know!

American Idol – Simon Cowell has now said that if Sanjaya wins the whole thing he is quitting the show.  Geez Simon, that kid does not need another reason for people to vote for him!!  Think before you speak, man.  Even though I wanted Sanjaya to go Thursday, I was not surprised Brandon left.  Cardinal sin – he forgot his words and HE was a background singer for some pretty big artists.  He knew better so – Bye Brandon, hope you-know-who joins you next week!

“Find Me” – read this book this week.  It is a book written by Rosie O.  It is a very quick read and I was surprisingly astonished.  At the end, though, it opened up some flood gates and triggered some memories that I have had repressed for a long time.  This story made me laugh, cry, and scared me all at the same time.  I have issues and they need to be dealt with – soon.

Families – can’t live with them, can’t live without them.  Enough said.

Friends – the shiniest coins in the fountain.  You can see them in the clear sparkling water but sometimes it takes more than one try to actually grab ahold and keep them forever.

Bryce – he had an appointment with his developmental specialist today.  We are starting to form a game plan for his IEP for kindergarten.  Funny how you think that there has been progress made until a professional analyzes everything and can point out all the weaknesses.  There were some strengths but more weak areas than I thought there was.  So, time to re-focus and start anew.  This is a big journey for us and if I misinterpret something and lead us down the wrong path, it takes a lot of time to re-configure and get back on the right footing.  Lots of reading to do and lots of Internet time being spent to find just the right things for our agenda.  Hey, can anyone clone me for the next few years.  I’d really appreciate it!

Doctor visit – my visit with doctor did not go as expected.  There seems to be evidence that my bladder could be causing me problems.  I’m still having pain and the doc says that even with all of the ovarian cysts, they are not the cause.  He is sending me to an urologist.  Hard part now is finding one that is in my network!  My doc thinks he will do this procedure that will not be comfortable and will require sedation.  I hope he is wrong.  I want to feel better but I have to draw the line somewhere. 

NCAA Mens Basketball Tournament – Duke LOSES in the first round!  When was the last time that happened!  Oh well, I guess they have to lose sometime because my Buckeyes are going to do what the football team could not get accomplish – win the national title!  GO BUCKEYES!!

Spam – I love hearing from people who read these entries on my blog, but thank goodness for the spam filter.  I checked it this morning and somebody posted a nice comment and then told me to check out this link.  So, I click on it and it was a pornography site!!!  Needless to say, he got deleted FOREVER.  This is Welcome to the World of Moms NOT Welcome to the World of Hugh Hefner!! 

He said the “F Word”

Last night, as bedtime was approaching, I asked Allison what she did at recess.  She looks at me and without missing a beat tells me “Bobby said the “F” word today – three times”.  I stand there with my mouth hanging open and a bit of bewilderment in my eyes and I said “what word?”  She says that it is the word that is the worst word of all – you know Mom - THAT word.  I continue to stare at her and I ask her if it rhymes with “duck”, at the same time hoping she says no, but yep it rhymes with duck!  So, I get into Super Mom mode and tell her to sit down we need to talk.  She told me that he said it during the first recess and apparently another little boy said it twice.  She continues that her friend Grace told a teacher on them and they had to sit in the hall for the rest of the recess and miss ten minutes of the next recess.  I ask her if that is all that happened to them and she replies, “well yeah”, as if that was punishment enough.  I told her that if I ever hear her saying that word or if I ever find out she had said that word that missing recess would SEEM like recess when I got done with her!  And then her father would have his two cents and ……oh……my…YIKES!!  I told her that when I get very short tempered I have said bad words but I always feel bad about it afterwards and sometimes I ask God to forgive me or to give me better insight on how to handle the situation better.  She seemed to accept this clarification and wished to go to bed.  After I tucked her in,  I had time to clarify my thought process on this little matter.  

Should I be more upset that a child in my daughters classroom is spouting this obscenity as easily as saying his own name OR should I be upset that my daughter knows to refer to it as the “F word”?  Should I be more upset that this boys only punishment was missing recess OR that he felt comfortable enough actually saying the word, repeatedly?  Should I be mad at the teacher for doling out such a lame punishment OR should I be mad at the parents for allowing their child to have knowledge and obviously free use of this word?  Ok – well, in a nutshell, I am upset with the parents, the teacher and the boy.  If you want to fill your house with this type of language – fine – but at least have the decency to explain to your 8 YEAR OLD child that HE should NOT repeat it, ESPECIALLY AT SCHOOL(DUH)!!  I think that denying recess is not a strong enough punishment.  Our school has a peace school.  It is designed as a softer way of handing out detentions for elementary students.  Bobby should have been told to come to peace school the next morning and maybe his parents should have been told to come to.  Sounds like the whole family needs a time-out.  Ooh, you must be thinking, how judgmental I am being.  So what.  If I ever said a word like that in school at that age, I probably would still not be able to sit down! and not able to eat because of all the soap bubbles left in my mouth.  Actually, as far as having my mouth washed out with soap, I personally never had that happen, but my sister did(heehee).  But, seriously, when I was in the 4th grade, we were playing kickball at recess.  I got mad and said “dangit”.  One of my friends went home and told their mom and she in turned called my mom and well, I didn’t say that word again – at least not around that friend!  No, I’m kidding.  I was trying to seek some independence and I thought that talking “rougher” would give that to me but, really all it gave me was an extremely stern lecture accompanied with the “evil eye” and a “wait until your father gets home”.  Yikes,  don’t tell Dad!!    

So, if I parlay Bobby’s situation into mine, he is probably seeking attention.  That still does not excuse the language though.  I have heard from Allison other things about Bobby and I think I might have to keep up on this situation.  As I have been writing, things have been coming back to me and I’m pretty sure that I have not heard the last of Bobby.  But, I hope Allison and the rest of her class have heard the last of the”F word”! 

Ann Who?

Ann Coulter is an educated, conservative, blonde,  average looking woman who puts her money where her mouth is……………..and sometimes her foot, too.  Today, I have read two separate articles about this woman.  One was a light-hearted take from D.L. Stewart who wanted everyone to know that there is more to her and he wanted to “find her softer side”.  The following are some remarks she has made in the past:

Bill Clinton:  “We’re now at the point that it’s beyond whether or not this guy is a horny hick”(Equal Time, not dated)

Immigration:  “I’d build a wall.  In fact, I’d hire illegal immigrants to build the wall………it’s cheap labor.”(The O’Reilly Factor, 2006)

Women: “I think women should be armed but should not vote…..women have no capacity to understand how money is earned.”(Politically Incorrect, 2001)

New York Times: “My only regret with Timothy McVeigh is that he did not go to the New York Times building.”(New York Observer, 2002)

Herself: “I’m here, I’m not queer and I’m not going away.”(In Godless: The Church of Liberalism, 2006)

She has also been quoted on Fox News as saying that this probably makes her 17th time of having a career ending moment, but people still keep putting her on the air.  This was in reference to her gay slang word that she used to describe presidential candidate John Edwards.  

Is this woman nuts or is she really this frightening real.  I will admit, I chuckled at at least one of her prior quotes, but the rest I found to be very insulting and deeply damaging.   She just keeps spouting things out of her mouth like a bull in a china shop.  Hey lady, have you ever heard of “think before you speak”?!?  One of these days, news executives are going to finally say that they have had enough of Ann Homophobe Ageist Sexist Coulter.  The only place you will see her on your TV will be in reality TV’s ”The Surreal Life” or a celebrity version of “The Apprentice”.  Millions of people bought her book and she thinks that she represents the voice of the conservative Republican.  Well, Ann, darling, I am a woman; I am a Republican; I did not buy your book and you MOST definitely do not speak for me.  In fact, you are an embarrassment to women everywhere.  I leave you with this final thought – Ann herself said that 9/11 widows ”broads” were “enjoying their husbands’ deaths”.  Can we give her a one way ticket to anywhere but here?       

The Results

I found out the results from my ultrasound and I have numerous cysts on both ovaries, some the size of pennies.  Initial results do state that the cysts are non-cancerous, which is delightful.  There does seem to be a slight problem with my bladder, but not sure quite yet what that is.  I have an appointment this week with the doctor to go over everything and figure out a plan.  All bloodwork came back in decent shape and so did the pap.  Just need to get rid of these cysts because they are very painful and uncomfortable. 

I actually have a pretty busy week of appointments and errands.  Haircuts, speech therapy, doctor and specialists.  I am also going to give that treadmill a go.  I decided last night that I need to make a plan, one that fits my schedule and that is not so ridiculously unattainable.  I’m turning 40 in a few weeks and I have gone mad.  Don’t like the number and what it represents.  Oprah can tell me to embrace it all she wants, she’s just blowing smoke when she is talking to me.  Half my life is over and what is there to show for it?  Let’s just say that where I am today is not where I thought I would be at this age.  Besides the faults in my personal appearance, I have many other flaws.  I am a pushover, I do not like confrontation, I would rather live my life all messed up on the inside just to avoid huge blow-ups on the outside.  Little by little that has to change.  I do need to take control and stand up to people.  Some family members are not going to be to crazy about this, but each time I take a baby step towards voicing my opinion it is going to make me stronger.  

So another new week is here and if I stick to my guns and fulfill my plan each week, I am going to reward myself with something small.  Again, it would be nice for support, but my husband is not equipped with that feature.  To some extent, I think this is a man thing.  Annoying.  On a lighter note(or maybe not depending on your affiliation), I got an e-mail that had a slogan on a t-shirt.  The shirt said “Life’s a bitch………so don’t vote for one!”  There was a picture of Hillary with a backward slash through her.  Ingenious.  I have so many things I could say about it but I won’t.  I’ll be nice.  Anyways it’s Sunday – the day of rest!  God Bless America!!!!