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January 15, 2003
God Bless America
With the latest news on so many troops being deployed, as a mother, I tremble at the thought of mere children going to serve our country, stepping on enemy soil to defend our freedoms. I am so thankful for all of the soldiers and their supportive families who do fight for my freedoms so that I might worship God as I wish, work for nearly equal wages as my male counterparts, that I may carry a gun to protect my loved ones, and that should I walk down the wrong pathway, I will have a fair and speedy trial in my claim for justice.
I have a great deal of confidence in my country and those who serve. The American armed forces have completed some of the most elite training programs, and are extremely knowledgeable in their weaponry and combat scenarios.
It heavies my heart for so many young people to go and sacrifice so much so that my family and myself can take so many things for granted. I am troubled to think of the millions of people that have no idea what it would be like to make their own decisions about religion, or education. So many families will be effected--spouses will miss their spouses, so many children will long for their parents, so many parents will worry about the fate of their children that are going off to fight a war where weapons and biological warfare, like we have never imagined before, will be used.
It brings tears to my eyes to see some of these young kids kissing their new brides, and newborn babies as they board a ship to possibly witness the same thing as my dad. They are going to unknown places, behind enemy lines, to protect our homeland.
I have the upmost respect for the men and women who are so unselfish to represent their country. I pray for their families and friends to be a supportive as they can, and commend these soldiers for their bravery, not many can do the jobs they have been trained to do.
GOD’S SPEED TO THOSE WHO SERVE OUR COUNTRY, GOD BLESS THE USA!
My dad was a Marine and entered the Reserves when my sister and I were young. He entered the USMC right out of high school and completed many tours when he was in Vietnam. To this day, anyone close to my dad will tell you that he will hardly speak of Vietnam. Rarely, when he and his fellow Marines reunite, we will hear a story or two, but they are mostly stories of when we were off we went here, or did this. The images of the actual war, I feel, are buried to deep in the back of his mind in hopes he will never have to witness or think about them ever again. The sights he witnessed as a young man still bring him nightmares, but has given him the closest friends one could ever have. The comradery they share is like none other, my dad actually entrusted his life to them, and they did the same with him. He saw some of his friends killed, and some of them injured so badly they wished they had been killed. My dad is the first to tell anyone war will make the most immature person age 50 years in seconds. My grandfather was in the Navy and served in WWII.
I want my girls to be extremely proud of their country and realize all of the liberties that they have. So many other little girls are not even allowed to attend school, I hope that Hannah and Camryn will seize every opportunity they have to learn and grow in their knowledge. I pray they have enough courage and integrity to stand up for what they believe in and enough humility to admit when they have been wrong. Above all, I trust their safety to God, and trust that wherever they may travel He will always return them safely to my open arms, safe and unharmed.
The Kiddos
On the 2nd Camryn had her 4-month appointment. She weighed 16 ½ pounds! She received her second round of vaccinations, 2 shots in each thigh. YIKES! She got very upset, but she recovered wonderfully!
We had already received the go-ahead from her pediatrician to start on solids because she had doubled her weight and her bottles no longer were enough to satisfy this hungry little girl. We started on Rice Cereal first, and Camryn sucked it down with ease. I waited until she had made it passed four months before giving any baby food. We started with apples and she loved it. I have given her apples, pears, bananas, squash, and sweet potatoes. So far her favorite is pears, her least favorite was bananas. I would feed her a jar in the morning and a jar at night along with her bottles. She loved the new tastes and textures. After being on the sweet potatoes for a day, the next afternoon, I noticed a dry spot on her forehead that went around to the back of her forehead. I thought she was probably allergic to the sweet potatoes, so I just decided to discontinue that vegetable and move on to something else. Well the reaction did not get any better, in fact it was getting worse. I could tell that Camryn was feeling a bit out of sorts, so I decided to page the pediatrician after hours. He said hat it was not an allergic reaction to food if it was only on her forehead, but without seeing it, he did not want to call in a prescription, so I gave her ¼ tsp of Benadryl, and coated the area with hydrocortisone cream. The next morning I brought her to the doctor and he thinks it may be a form of eczema or it could be a milk allergy. He prescribed a special shampoo and some itch relief medicine, and we are going to see if it re-appears. Gosh, it sure seems like we have taken our turn with doctors and prescription medicine this winter. And we still have a long way to go until spring.
Camryn is getting stronger by the day, she is trying to roll over, but only manages to get her head and bottom off the floor, she will throw her legs up and lift her neck and head of the floor like she is doing crunches, after a few times she even grunts. I have a feeling a rolling baby is in our near future. We place her on her stomach, but she is so inquisitive, she prefers the view from lying on her back. So after a few minutes on her belly, we will help her roll over so her muscles do not get sore, and then we show her how to roll back over to her tummy.
Hannah is fabulous. We have started talking about the potty a lot! She tells us randomly that she has gone to the bathroom, sometimes she has already gone to the bathroom, and sometimes she tells us before. With either circumstance she tells us but is not ready to sit the potty. We have tried both methods, the small potty and the smaller seat that fits on any full size toilet. We have bought the Bear in the Big Blue House tape that discusses potty training, and she is not really interested, so I am thinking she is curious, but not quite ready to start actually training.
One of the cuter things that I want to remember for Hannah--The Bunnies!! Hannah loves the Teletubbies, on most of the shows, there are live rabbits as part of the scenery. In the background you can see some burrows where these bunnies live. In all of the Teletubbies movies I have seen, and we have seen some shows, I have only seen the bunnies beside the burrows, in the background, the Teletubbies really never make the bunnies part of the show. Now to my point, a few houses down from Hannnah’s grandparents, some neighbors have a deep ditch with the large circular culverts. Hannah is determined there are bunnies in those culverts. It is hilarious! Most afternoons, when I am going to pick the girls up after work, I will see Hannah and her Paw-Paw down the street sitting in the ditch with the neighbors looking for bunnies. She will squat and peer into the culverts waiting for a bunny to come out. My FIL cannot wait to find Hannah a bunny for her very own. So precious is the innocence of a child.
I am still undecided about the Day Care facility. The owner is still working on a price, and I am not rushing her. I am thinking if I am patient then the right answer will somehow happen upon me. This is a new approach for me, but I have a certain, unexplained peace about it, so I am just letting things happen. Usually I am more proactive and assertive in my business dealings, I have no idea why the approach is so different this time. I will record all the latest developments.
Love your children, they are the most precious gift!
Jamie, Hannah and Camryn
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