Pictures

These are mostly of Sammy from our weekend in Branson and the trip to the zoo. I'm sorry for bragging, but I'm convinced he's the cutest baby boy around.




I never knew how white I was until I had Sammy.  He looks like he's in the clutches of a cadaver.
Evan is such a good big brother. He adores Sam.  I don't know many fifteen year old boys who would cram themselves into the baby rides to make a baby happy.  You can't really tell by his face in these pics, but Sammy loved the rides.  He was saying, "wooOOOoooOOOooo..." the whole time. 



I figured I should include one picture of myself...  My hair wasn't cooperating that day, but this is as good as it gets.

Mike had to dress up for "Western Day" at school.  I think he looks pretty cowboy-ish, don't you?  The funny thing is that his costume is made from his brother's actual clothes.  Alex wears these proudly.  How did I spawn such a redneck?
These are from Homecoming.  Mike was just escorting this girl- she's not his girlfriend. 

Did you see this story?

The thing that gets me most about the following story is the quote, "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else."

Hmmm. I don't know whether I want to laugh or cry. I never knew that letting black people use your bathroom is proof that one is not a racist.

Read on...

Interracial couple denied marriage license in La.

By Mary Foster, Associated Press Writer – Fri Oct 16

NEW ORLEANS – A white Louisiana justice of the peace said he refused to issue a marriage license to an interracial couple out of concern for any children the couple might have.
Keith Bardwell, justice of the peace in Tangipahoa Parish, says it is his experience that most interracial marriages do not last long.
"I'm not a racist. I just don't believe in mixing the races that way," Bardwell told the Associated Press on Thursday. "I have piles and piles of black friends. They come to my home, I marry them, they use my bathroom. I treat them just like everyone else."
Bardwell said he asks everyone who calls about marriage if they are a mixed race couple. If they are, he does not marry them, he said.
Bardwell said he has discussed the topic with blacks and whites, along with witnessing some interracial marriages. He came to the conclusion that most of black society does not readily accept offspring of such relationships, and neither does white society, he said.
"There is a problem with both groups accepting a child from such a marriage," Bardwell said. "I think those children suffer and I won't help put them through it."
If he did an interracial marriage for one couple, he must do the same for all, he said.
"I try to treat everyone equally," he said.
Bardwell estimates that he has refused to marry about four couples during his career, all in the past 2 1/2 years.
Beth Humphrey, 30, and 32-year-old Terence McKay, both of Hammond, say they will consult the U.S. Justice Department about filing a discrimination complaint.
Humphrey, an account manager for a marketing firm, said she and McKay, a welder, just returned to Louisiana. She is white and he is black. She plans to enroll in the University of New Orleans to pursue a masters degree in minority politics.
"That was one thing that made this so unbelievable," she said. "It's not something you expect in this day and age."
Humphrey said she called Bardwell on Oct. 6 to inquire about getting a marriage license signed. She says Bardwell's wife told her that Bardwell will not sign marriage licenses for interracial couples. Bardwell suggested the couple go to another justice of the peace in the parish who agreed to marry them.
"We are looking forward to having children," Humphrey said. "And all our friends and co-workers have been very supportive. Except for this, we're typical happy newlyweds."
"It is really astonishing and disappointing to see this come up in 2009," said American Civil Liberties Union of Louisiana attorney Katie Schwartzmann. She said the Supreme Court ruled in 1967 "that the government cannot tell people who they can and cannot marry."
The ACLU sent a letter to the Louisiana Judiciary Committee, which oversees the state justices of the peace, asking them to investigate Bardwell and recommending "the most severe sanctions available, because such blatant bigotry poses a substantial threat of serious harm to the administration of justice."
"He knew he was breaking the law, but continued to do it," Schwartzmann said.
According to the clerk of court's office, application for a marriage license must be made three days before the ceremony because there is a 72-hour waiting period. The applicants are asked if they have previously been married. If so, they must show how the marriage ended, such as divorce.
Other than that, all they need is a birth certificate and Social Security card.
The license fee is $35, and the license must be signed by a Louisiana minister, justice of the peace or judge. The original is returned to the clerk's office.
"I've been a justice of the peace for 34 years and I don't think I've mistreated anybody," Bardwell said. "I've made some mistakes, but you have too. I didn't tell this couple they couldn't get married. I just told them I wouldn't do it."

Comments, anyone? I'm just glad this idiot wasn't from Kansas. What an embarrassment to the good people of Louisiana.

And you thought you'd gotten rid of me...

No such luck. I'm still here.

Hey, guys. Long time, no blog. We've been crazy-busy. First, I have to confess I'm lame because I received the Honest Scrap award from the lovely Lina weeks ago and I never got around to posting about it. Thank you, Lina! And sorry.

Here's what I was supposed to do:
1. Choose 7 blogs that you find brilliant in content or design.
2. Show the 7 winners’ names and links on your blog and tell them they won the award.
3. List at least 10 honest things about yourself

Okay... Thinking of seven will be easy, but finding seven who haven't already gotten the award will be almost impossible so I'm just listing whoever I please. If you've won this already, don't feel obligated to mention it on your blog.

In no particular order:
Looking For George ( The Racy Mormon in motorcycle boots)
My Minivan Rocks
Da Bees Knees (the aforementioned Lovely Lina's blog)
Mrs. Broccoli Guy
Cheers Y'all
Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds
Dreams Do Come True
Second Generation
Woopsie. That's more than seven. I guess I was going for ten. I got distracted.

My ten honest things:
1) My house is a constant disaster zone. I never keep it clean anymore, and honestly- I've given up even trying. At some point I realized that no amount of effort on my part would ever be enough so I just stopped caring. That's not completely accurate. I must care, because I'm horribly embarrassed if someone comes over and sees how we live. I just don't care enough to do anything about it, I guess. The little bit that gets done these days is done by the kids. June Cleaver I ain't.
2) This one is embarrassing. I have a fear strong dislike of clowns. I don't like saying I'm afraid of them because I won't run away screaming or anything if one is around, but I will avoid clowns like the plague. I could do a whole post on clowns. They cannot be trusted. Evil alcoholics with big shoes- the whole bunch. Same goes for mimes. Mimes are just clowns with a slightly better fashion sense. I wish they'd all remain trapped in that stupid box they're always trying to escape from.
3) My feelings for most dolls are virtually the same as my feelings for clowns. Dolls give me the creeps. I'm nuts.
4) I vaguely remember the days when I was half-way smart. I miss those days. I feel stupid. I feel like I've gotten so lost in Mommyville and House Frau City that I'm out of the loop on... well, everything, and can no longer carry on an intelligent conversation about... well, anything.
5) I never, ever, ever look at myself and feel remotely pleased by what I see looking back at me. I truly, honestly, fervently hate the way I look. And I hate that I hate the way I look. I wish I had more confidence in myself. I love the way confident women carry themselves. You can see it in the way they move that they feel good about themselves. I want that. I wish I could find one feature to appreciate- one thing I could call "pretty," but there isn't one. I don't know if it's the weight, or just my rasty old face, but I don't see anything pretty. I'll get on these kicks where I'll splurge on several pairs of pretty new shoes or a bunch of new makeup- trying to make myself feel good. I'll put it all on, then I realize I'm looking at the same old pig-just in lipstick... and awesome shoes.
6) I wish I would have finished college. I don't regret having my babies (never- not even for a second), but I do regret not using my mind while I had one.
7) I really miss my dad.
8) I feel like "Real Life" is passing me by and I'm missing my chance to live it. I envy those ditsy, irresponsible, free-spirit types who embrace life and do whatever fun thing they want to do at any given moment. Wouldn't it be great to live that way? These days I feel that fun is a luxury I can barely afford and I get so overwhelmed by all that I have to do that I wind up doing nothing.
9) I have a nervous habit that drives me insane. I pick at my cuticles and the skin around my fingernails to the point of bleeding. I hate that. How gross.
10) I expect way too much from myself. Waaay. I'm a horrible perfectionist. Isn't that funny? A lazy perfectionist?!? HA! I want to live in a perfect house but I won't get off my lazy butt to clean it! Hil-ar-eeee-ous.

Wow. These were a bit of a downer. Certainly not what I intended.

Onto other things... We went on a short vacation to the lake. It was a lot of fun, but Mike and Alex didn't get to come with us, so I was missing them. Sam loved being outside. We took nature walks with him in the sling and he was in heaven. We took him down to the water and he meowed at the ducks. He barks or meows. No quacks yet, so the ducks got a meow.

Shortly after coming home, we took a field trip to the KC zoo and that was a great time with the little kids, too. The weather was perfect so the animals were really active and the kids got to see a lot of behaviors you usually don't get to see in the summer when the animals are just laying around like they're half-dead. Also got to stop at my all-time favorite place on earth to eat- Dixon's Chili. It's a dumpy, greasy dive and I love it. And it always reminds me of my dad. If you're in Kansas City, you have to give it a try. I'll try to get some pictures up of the kids from our recent adventures soon.

Tomorrow, I have the joyful task of going in to get my jumblies smashed in a vise. My favorite time of year- mammogram time. You did know I was talking about a mammogram, right? I also hope to get some news soon on my other fun health stuff. I'll keep you posted. Because I know you're just dying to know.