Make Everyday Safe, not just Halloween

Editor's Note: I have moved these two posts to the top of my blog just to remind everyone to keep our children safe not only this Halloween, but every day.

As parents, we do all that we can do keep our kids safe. Sometimes we like to think ignorance is bliss, but not always. And some things there is just no reason to not be aware of. Be very aware of your neighborhood and surroundings. People who live in your neighborhood who come into contact with your children. You would be amazed at the travels of a child in the course of a half hour or so within your own neighborhood on a bicycle with friends.

I am fortunate to live in a great neighborhood. And I am stunned sometimes when neighbors tell me of conversations or incidents they have had with my children. This is why I have a link to the sex offender registry here on my website. I check it often and I am on the list to have alerts sent to me if an offender should happen to move into my neighborhood. This is an area we need to always be on the alert for the sake of our children.

This Halloween, local enforcement agencies are helping to protect our children from predators, unfortunately, this program is only for the predators who have been caught and we are already aware of, as parents, we still need to exercise caution and make sure to accompany our children as they venture out for an evening or Halloween fun and gathering treats.

I encourage you to add the sex offender registry to your favorites list or blog and stay aware of your surroundings. Be safe this Halloween and every day and keep your children safe too!

National Sex Offender Registry

Family Watch Dog Bookmark this link and use it. I pulled the following facts off of the Family Watchdog website:

The sad facts about sex offenses and those that perpetrate them.

impact on society.

• 1 of 5 girls will be sexually molested before her 18th birthday.
  
• 1 of 6 boys will be sexually molested before his 18th birthday.
  
• 1 of 5 children have been propositioned for sex over the Internet.
  
• 2 of 3 sexual abuses are perpetrated against teenagers or younger children.
  
• 90% of sexual assaults are committed against someone the perpetrator knows.
  
• The median age for male molestation victims under 18 is 9.8 years old.
  
• The median age for female molestation victims under 18 is 9.6 years old.
  
• There are new 400,000 victims of sexual assault every year.
  
• There are over 550,000 registered sex offenders in the US.
  
• There are over 100,000 sex offenders that fail to register in the US.
  
• 76% of serial rapists claim they were molested as children.
  
• Over 40% of male juvenile delinquents were molested as children.

This website and the Indiana Sex Offender Registry are two great services provided to us free of charge to help us protect the safety of our children. When you have some down time, do yourself a huge favor and make yourself aware. Peruse these websites. Map your own address and search the radius around your home. Search further. Look to see who these people are and where they are working and living. I did this the other day after AWB brought to light the sex offender clusters. I was shocked at some of the things I found. I found one offender who I have dealt with in business and did not know he was a molester. He does not have his place of employment registered. He works in a business that takes him into residential settings on a daily basis. It scared the hell out of me because I almost invited him into my home to do some work.

Please use these tools and be very aware. Our children are the most precious possessions we have, and they are only on loan for us to keep care of and protect.

Posted by Lucy.

Women Getting Very Emotional

This article was sent to me yesterday regarding women and politics. A year ago, my mother and I were not able to have a political discussion. We were on opposite sides you see, and her justification for wanting to see Hillary as the next president was only because she was a woman. And when trying to reason with her, she would resort to discussing the war and crying. (Emotional) It came to be we just disagreed and didn't discuss it.

As you know, I had very little respect for Hillary as a woman, it was simple, she let me and women everywhere down when she stayed with Bill during the Monica orderal. Hillary is a strong powerful woman who can make it with or without him and she should have taken that stance for women everywhere. (Emotional)

Actually, when it came down to McCain vs Obama, I was very disheartened. I was going to vote for the lesser of two evils and remain loyal to my convictions. (Unhappy emotions)

Enter Sarah Palin. She struck a chord with me. At first it was indeed and perhaps still is, emotional. I still strongly say....she is living life in full color. I have a son who may choose to enter into the service of our country....she gets that, she understands. I have a 17 yr old daughter, she gets that, she understands. I am trying to live on a budget that goes less and less far each week. She gets that, she understands. I get that and I understand that she is the most down to earth candidate we have ever seen, she can relate to the largest majority of Americans. She will bring a different point of view and insight to the table and I believe it is exactly what America needs right now.

As for the mother daughter rift that was taking place within my family. My mother is terrified of the idea of Obama as president. She is changing tickets this year. My daughter is telling me now that the Book of Revelation has frightened her of her democratic proclamation she made earlier....she is now for the McCain-Palin ticket, if only she were old enough to vote! (Don't pounce on me, that last comment was made in fun, she has yet to truly figure out her political beliefs, all I want her to do is to research, listen and decide for herself.)

Dear Mr. Obama

Powerful

I could almost be miffed about this...

An email today for the Sarah Palin Rally in Jeffersonville.....you can do the RSVP online just like you could for the Fort Wayne Rally but this time you can PRINT YOUR TICKETS!!! Man oh man, how much less stressful my life would have been last Thursday and Friday! Oh well, there are those who are miffed at me for my luck in arriving early and getting in line at my leisure and then getting in and seated...

Sarah Palin in Fort Wayne - tld

It was a great rally!

A plea to my fellow bloggers

The tides worked against me yesterday, and inspite of my best efforts, phone calls and emails, I failed to obtain a ticket to see Sarah in Fort Wayne on Saturday. Originally I needed 4 to take my daughter and my parents, then I just needed two, for my daughter and I, and now, she doesn't care if she goes or not, so if anyone has just one ticket they could spare, well, it would be greatly appreciated.

Sarah Coming to Fort Wayne

According to the Journal Gazette Sarah Palin will be in Fort Wayne this Saturday. It is my intent to get tickets and get there and see what she has to say.

Visions of pink and white....

Today I planted my flower bulbs out around my deck. I have visions of pink and white tulips and pink and white daffodils dancing in my head for next spring! I can't wait, I am already ready for next spring and summer, I have plans of it being the year that I create some really pretty flower gardens. I have not had the patience or desire in the past few years to mess with outside flowers but I did more this past year and guess what? I found it to be therapeutic. Maybe its just what I need!

A 9 yr old's point of view

My little guy and I had an interesting conversation last evening. His two older siblings had other plans for the evening so it left just he and I to hang out. We were driving into town and out of the clear blue he says to me,

"Mom, if Obama wins I think a lot of people are going to move out of country and we are going to end up having no money." Huh? Where did that come from? Of course I had to probe into that statement, because, believe it or not, at this point I had no political discussions with him, I have been too focused on figuring things out myself and trying to understand where my daughter is coming from.

So my youngest son goes on to tell me if he works really hard and makes $1000 a day, he is going to end up with only about $200 for all of his hard work while four other people who did nothing all day end up with the same amount. (Did I mention this kid is 9 years old?)

He went on to say, in his words..."the whole plan is gay". Now I wasn't too crazy about his choice of words, but nonetheless, he gets it. He said, "Mom I want to be rich someday, I want to work hard and have nice things, I will just have to go live somewhere else, why would I want to live here?" (Is the air sucked out of your lungs yet?)

The greatest country on earth, so let's change it???

This whole conversation with my son hit home harder last night when I read this post .

This is what I hear when I really listen to Obama

As I listened to the political debate last night, when I truly tuned in and listened to Obama, I heard him very eloquently tell me in the future I am going to work my ass off and give everything I have equally to everyone else, including the ones who do nothing. Where is the American dream in this? What is the point in having a dream and following it only to give it to everyone???

Communism
A system of government in which the state plans and controls the
economy and a single, often authoritarian party holds power, claiming to
make
progress toward a higher social order in which all goods are equally
shared by
the people. American Heritage Dictionary

I am sorry folks, but there it is, plain and simple. You elect a Democrat President with congress being controlled by the Democrats and we can all watch our dreams go down the toliet. Because like it or not, someone is going to be paying for all of the free stuff somewhere, and its going to be the working folks!

Halloween is going to stink this year!

OUCH!

Two summers ago I was rearranging furniture in my bedroom and went to move one of the white recliners and ran over my big toe with it. I peeled back most of the toenail, had blood every, got woozy and the whole nine yards. I resorted to calling my sister bawling my eyes out and she advised me to go to my mom's and have her bandage it up for me. So I went to Mom's crying and carrying on like a two year old and it took her and my stepdad to settle me down and get me all bandaged up. This was at the beginning of the summer and I hobbled for days and wore flip flops the entire summer. I think it was sometime in August when the nail finally fell off and it was almost an entire year before it grew back in. I was convinced that it wasn't going to grow back in at all. So, why I am I telling you this story now? Well....

Just a little bit ago, I was moving furniture in my bedroom again, moving the recliner again, and guess what I did again? Yeppers! Same toe even. This time I didn't call my mom or my sister. Instead I called my son on his cell phone, he was all the way upstairs in his room you see, and there was no way I was going up the stairs, what with the bloody mess and all...

Let's just smile today.

2008 week 5

This week includes the point spread!
Sunday, Oct. 5

Buffalo Bills 17 at
Arizona Cardinals 41 (-1.5)


AWB ~ Cardinals
JR ~ Bills
TZ ~

Tennessee Titans 13 (-2.5) at
Baltimore Ravens 10

AWB ~ Titans
JR ~ Ravens
TZ ~

Kansas City Chiefs 0 at
Carolina Panthers 34 (-9.5)

AWB ~ Panthers
JR ~ Kansas
TZ ~

Indianapolis Colts 31 (-2.5) at
Houston Texans 27

AWB ~ Colts
JR ~ Colts
TZ ~

San Diego Chargers 10 (-6.5) at
Miami Dolphins 17

AWB ~ San Diego
JR ~ San Diego
TZ ~

Chicago Bears 34 (-3.5) at
Detroit Lions 7

AWB ~ Chicago
JR ~ Chicago
TZ ~

Atlanta Falcons 27 at
Green Bay Packers 24 (Off?)

AWB ~ Green Bay
JR ~ Green Bay
TZ ~

Seattle Seahawks 6 at
New York Giants 44 (-6.5)

AWB ~ New York
JR ~ Seattle
TZ ~

Washington Redskins 23 at
Philadelphia Eagles 17 (-5.5)

AWB ~ Philly
JR ~ Philly
TZ ~

Tampa Bay Buccaneers 13 at
Denver Broncos 16 (-2.5)

AWB ~ Denver
JR ~ Denver
TZ ~

Cincinnati Bengals 22 at point spread
Dallas Cowboys 31 (-16.5)

AWB ~ Dallas
JR ~ Dallas
TZ ~

New England Patriots 30 (-2.5) at
San Francisco 49ers 21

AWB ~ Patriots
JR ~ New England
TZ ~

Pittsburgh Steelers 26 at
Jacksonville Jaguars 21 (-3.5)

AWB ~ Jacksonville

JR ~ Pittsburgh
TZ ~

Monday, Oct. 6
Minnesota Vikings at
New Orleans Saints (-3.5)

AWB ~ Minnesota
JR ~ New Orleans
TZ ~

Bye week: St. Louis Rams, New York Jets, Cleveland Browns, Oakland Raiders

If you want to join in on the fun, just comment here and I will add your picks into the post.

So I totally suck this week, AWB kicked my butt, at this point without the Monday night game he won 8-5!!!

Think about it...

FOUR THINGS YOU CANNOT RECOVER

Author Unknown, but I thought it was definitely something to ponder.

Ho Hum Blues

I have been laying low and dealing with the ho hum blues.

I met with my attorney Monday morning to work on our plan of defense in the child custody dispute. As we were finalizing our plan, there was a knock on the door, the morning mail had arrived with a letter regarding my case. The last appointed judge has withdrawn from our case.

My ex filed a motion for a new judge, a new judge was appointed and he withdrew from the case....and the other two have followed suit. Now we have to wait for a new panel of judges to be presented and we are going to go out of county. Do you see my attorney fees going up and up and up?

Not to mention, this whole case has been taking a toll on all of us and now we are in limbo for who knows how long.

Ok. Thats my report from never never land.