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Thursday, February 28, 2008

Thursday Thirteen #23: 13 Jacks


13 Jacks
1. Jack Russell Terriers

2. Jack Tripper

3. Jack Frost

4. Jack and Jill

5. Blackjack

6. Jack Daniels

7. Jack Johnson

8. Crackerjack

9. Jack the Ripper

10. Jack Nicholson

11. Jack and the Beanstalk

12. Jackalope

13. Jack Sparrow



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Tuesday, February 19, 2008

Wordless Wednesday: February 20, 2008



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A Pox Upon Our House!

We've got it. Finally, we've got it!

The chickenpox had arrived!

*doing the Snoopy dance*

Yes, I'm actually excited. I missed the few "pox parties" my mommy group had a couple years ago and I was worried the littles would get out of childhood without the pox. Which is just not good news. And yes, if you haven't guessed, we don't vaccinate for chickenpox. We actually don't vaccinate for anything, but if we did, the varicella vaccination would definitely not be on the list.

The uber-scary tactics of Merck (the vaccine developer) with their sinister commercial rubber duckie, trying to convince the world that everyone is going to die without the chickenpox vaccine, makes me cringe with embarrassment for them, and seethe with anger at the people who actually believe it.

Getting a good case of the chickenpox naturally (as opposed to getting the vaccine) may provide a stronger, lifelong immunity. Getting the vaccine, however, exposes you to the dangers of the vaccine itself (which are unproven but still a risk) and studies have come to show that the vaccine itself isn't very effective. The "outbreaks" that Merck and others have been trying to use to "prove" that chickenpox is dangerous have occured, largely, in already vaccinated populations.*

Do people die from chickenpox? Yes. But it's extremely rare, and it happens primarily in the very young, the very old, and those whose immune systems are suppressed. And the truth is that no one dies from chickenpox itself - there is always a secondary complication, and it is often iatrogenic (i.e. doctor caused. For example, giving a child Ibuprofen/Nsaids during chicken pox has been shown to increase the risk of flesh-eating bacteria (necrotizing fasciitis) and strep toxic-shock, which are two of the major complications of chickenpox that can lead to death in the otherwise healthy.)*

Merck itself characterized chickenpox as a "benign, self-limiting disease." And yet we're vaccinating all school-aged children? Why, again? Oh right... because we make billions from the vaccines given, and we have access to those children and can strong-arm parents into believing it's required! Like the Hepatitis-B vaccine given to newborns (which serves no purpose except to guard against the possibility they may grow up to be sexually active, IV drug users) the chickenpox vaccine serves no real purpose (except as protection against the 1-2 week vacation from school!)

Dr. Mercola makes a good point, actually, that a strong natural immunity against chickenpox, which is a version of the herpes virus, may protect children later in life from those types of viruses that could cause MS, AIDS, Bell's Palsy, or even cervical/penile cancer. (Oh, but wait, they've developed a vaccine against that, too, haven't they? I wonder if the chickenpox vaccine will cause a rise in herpes-related viruses?) *

One scary possible complication of the chickenpox vaccine itself is its limiting effects. We may be just prolonging the inevitable. Adults may end up the ones who get chickenpox (when it's called "shingles" and is a living hell compared to the childhood version!) and many more people die from shingles than they do from chickenpox. *

So for those of you who think I'm crazy or irresponsible for thinking about exposing my children to chickenpox on purpose, all I have to say is, do your own research. Look outside the box (i.e. outside of mainstream big-pharma studies.) If I'd continued to homeschool, I'm sure a "pox party" is just where they would have contracted chickenpox, but thankfully, school took care of that worry for me.

We've got the pox!

I've got a spotty, itchy little boy (and a girl who's already got the runny nose/fever starting) who I'm dosing with cat's claw, olive leaf, echinachea, burdock and nettle... instead of Ibuprofen.

He's already taken a bath in colloidal oatmeal along with herbals (calendula, nettle, lavender.) And of course, we're avoiding sugar (feeds that virus!) and eating lots of plain yogurt!

Now I just have to plan my own pox party... anyone else need the pox?

Friday, February 15, 2008

Happy Valentine's Day

The littles had a blast at their school Valentine's Day party. We spent an hour organizing and having them fill out Valentine's for everyone in their class. They were very proud of themselves!

Then they come home to Valentine's Day presents from grandma and mom & dad:


And older sister Autumn made them Valentine's and one for mom, too!


Me, I got organic gardening lessons (woot!) a box of chocolate and a huge bag of M&M's.
The green ones. Just the green ones. Michael handed them over and said, "You remember what they used to say about the green ones?"
I laughed. "Well, I know what you want for Valentine's Day!"

I'm pretty sure the card I gave him came in a solid second... :)



Thursday, February 14, 2008

Thursday Thirteen #22: 13 Hearts





13 Hearts


1.

2.

3.


4.=

4.


5.


6.


7.


8.



9.


10.


11.


12.


13.


HAPPY VALENTINE'S DAY!


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Friday, February 8, 2008

Post Secret

I read Post Secret.

I have never submitted one.

But I've made them.

Here's one:

Here's another:





Thursday, February 7, 2008

Thursday Thirteen #21: 13 Things We Don't Do Much Anymore




13 Things We Really Don't Do Much Anymore


1. Wait an hour for a baked potato to cook in the oven



2. Call “Weather”

3. Call “Information”

4. Re-fold a road map (thank you Mapquest!)


5. Get “Trip Ticks” from AAA (thank you again Mapquest!)

6. Shop from catalogs (Can you say "Ebay?")


7. Make sure I have enough cash in my purse on Friday before the bank closes




8. Go to drive-in movies

9. Get up to turn the dial to change the channel on the TV



10. Dial a rotary phone



11. Let the kids ride in the back of a pickup truck




12. Send the ten-year-old to the corner store to buy cigarettes for their parents (Did anyone else's mom and dad do this?)



13. Buy penny candy that actually costs a penny

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