Lauren is turning 8 on Friday. I'm in denial. I think I'm just going to start telling people she's turning 6. You think that might work? Gramma Lynn used to push on our heads, pretending to squish us and tell us we were growing up too fast. I thought she was just being silly, but I get it now. We really were growing up too fast. I know because I'm 28 now and it was just yesterday that she was pushing on my head.
So for the big 8th (or 6th) birthday bash, I'm going to throw a slumber party. I know I'm crazy. You don't have to tell me. I'm purposely going to enclose myself in a house with 8 little girls for the night. Luckily, I'll have backup.
I'm new at this though and was wondering if anyone has any suggestions for party activities/foods/etc. Let me know.
Monday, November 10, 2008
Thursday, October 16, 2008
October Update
October is already half over? NO! It can't be so! This is my favorite month because it kicks off the best part of the year. Halloween, Thanksgiving and Christmas. The weather is perfect too. Not too cold or rainy and the colors are amazing. I need to get out with my kids and the camera and capture some of it.
I took the kids to the pumpkin patch yesterday. Heidi & Lili went with us & a good time was had by all. We got our pumpkins, Lauren chose a white one. Hmmm, not sure how I feel about that. Kate slept through most of our trip, but inevitably woke up from being "dragged" in her stroller through the gravel. As Heidi pointed out, the wheels weren't so much going over the rocks, but through them. Without rolling. No good.
Lauren and Hayden have their parent/teacher conferences today at school. It is such a waste of time. I wish I could say that they were helpful, but we're in our 3rd year at elementary school now and so far they have always been an incovenience and a way to send home a TON of papers and artwork.
After conferences, we have swimming lessons. They are in their 2nd round of classes now (Dolphin 2) and doing very well. They can actually stay afloat for awhile! Even if we don't end up with a Michael Phelps in our family, I'm really glad that Lauren is comfortable with the pool now. She used to only get the ends of her hair wet and stay on the side. Now she jumps in like an animal. So different growing up in the NW compared to southern California. I pretty much had gills.
Josh took Lauren to a play called "Gossamer" last night. They said it was fun and the cast did a great job. The story was kind of heavy for Lauren though. It seems like she got it, but Josh said there were a lot of questions afterward on the MAX. They came walking in at 9:50pm with a pizza and breadsticks. Good thing Lauren's a party animal.
I took the kids to the pumpkin patch yesterday. Heidi & Lili went with us & a good time was had by all. We got our pumpkins, Lauren chose a white one. Hmmm, not sure how I feel about that. Kate slept through most of our trip, but inevitably woke up from being "dragged" in her stroller through the gravel. As Heidi pointed out, the wheels weren't so much going over the rocks, but through them. Without rolling. No good.
Lauren and Hayden have their parent/teacher conferences today at school. It is such a waste of time. I wish I could say that they were helpful, but we're in our 3rd year at elementary school now and so far they have always been an incovenience and a way to send home a TON of papers and artwork.
After conferences, we have swimming lessons. They are in their 2nd round of classes now (Dolphin 2) and doing very well. They can actually stay afloat for awhile! Even if we don't end up with a Michael Phelps in our family, I'm really glad that Lauren is comfortable with the pool now. She used to only get the ends of her hair wet and stay on the side. Now she jumps in like an animal. So different growing up in the NW compared to southern California. I pretty much had gills.
Josh took Lauren to a play called "Gossamer" last night. They said it was fun and the cast did a great job. The story was kind of heavy for Lauren though. It seems like she got it, but Josh said there were a lot of questions afterward on the MAX. They came walking in at 9:50pm with a pizza and breadsticks. Good thing Lauren's a party animal.
Wednesday, September 24, 2008
Apple Madness
Emily and I went to an apple orchard today. I am going to make myself sick on apple pie. That is a promise.
This place was awesome, even had some sheep and piggies. I happened to catch on video two of the funniest things Molly has ever said. We were looking at a horse, who was eating weeds on the ground. Just as I started filming, she said, "He's eating dirrrrrt. Ick." I know it doesn't really sound funny, but try to hear it in Molly's voice. Then a few minutes later we were looking at the pigs, who were making snorting sounds. Just as I resume filming she said, "I think the pigs are farrrting."
I said, "I think they're just snorting".
She said, "They are growling like the hippopotomuses?"
Lauren just asked me about Santa again. Every time I'm about ready to just tell her the truth, she freaks out and starts yelling, "No, don't tell me! I don't want to know yet!" What a freak.
I've been having a kind of nostalgic day. I haven't stopped thinking about what was going on a year ago. I had Kate. But it was more than that. I had her in my shower. God, I can't believe she's already a year old. :(
On that note, I'm going to drink a bottle of wine and make a pie.
This place was awesome, even had some sheep and piggies. I happened to catch on video two of the funniest things Molly has ever said. We were looking at a horse, who was eating weeds on the ground. Just as I started filming, she said, "He's eating dirrrrrt. Ick." I know it doesn't really sound funny, but try to hear it in Molly's voice. Then a few minutes later we were looking at the pigs, who were making snorting sounds. Just as I resume filming she said, "I think the pigs are farrrting."
I said, "I think they're just snorting".
She said, "They are growling like the hippopotomuses?"
Lauren just asked me about Santa again. Every time I'm about ready to just tell her the truth, she freaks out and starts yelling, "No, don't tell me! I don't want to know yet!" What a freak.
I've been having a kind of nostalgic day. I haven't stopped thinking about what was going on a year ago. I had Kate. But it was more than that. I had her in my shower. God, I can't believe she's already a year old. :(
On that note, I'm going to drink a bottle of wine and make a pie.
Saturday, September 20, 2008
Paaaahtaaay!
So it's official. We've got a place to hold the 5th Annual Pumpkin Ball. Since it's a public blog, I won't be listing times and places here, but lemme know if you're interested in attending. It will be on Oct. 24th. We (Amy and I) are working on an evite, so send email addresses this way for friends you would like invited.
Now I have to find a costume. This is the harsh reality of the FIFTH year of dressing up in increasingly cool costumes. I'm completely out of ideas. Anyone have any for me? Or Josh while we're at it?
Today is Kate's first birthday party. I'm having a nervous breakdown. She can't be one already. She just can't. After Wednesday (her real b-day) I will never again have a baby. It makes me unbelievably sad. I'm not saying I want more, don't worry. I just want this to last a little longer... Maybe that's why I'm still nursing her.
I have to admit, I'm really looking forward to seeing Kate shove cake in her face tonight though.
Well, I better get this house clean (again) and then get the hell out while we wait for the party. You can't actually KEEP a house clean with 3 kids. It's literally impossible. They destroy faster than I can clean.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Newsflash!!!
I suppose it's time for an update. I always wait too long to blog and then feel like I have nothing really important to say. Well here goes:
School is back in session, thank God. I was seriously looking into running away. When you're young, Summer isn't long enough. Trust me, when you're the mom of 3 kids, Summer is WAY too long. I enjoy my kids, but not 24/7. And I could say the same for their feelings for me.
I got a tattoo!! Josh gave me the number of a tattoo artist and permission to spend the money to get what I wanted. I worked with the artist to design a gaggle of geese for my back. This is of course to represent my three geese(Lauren, Hayden and Kate). It turned out awesome and I'm definitely addicted to ink.
Kate is going to be 1 in two weeks and I'm getting kind of sad. I'm happy that she's getting a little more independent, but I'm bumming that I will never have another baby living in my house again. It all just happens too fast.
Both mine and Josh's 10 year reunions are coming up. Josh has decided not to go to his, much to my dismay. He doesn't think anyone worth seeing will be there, so I have to trust him on this. He is all for crashing the after party, wherever that might be though, so maybe we'll do that. I'm definitely going to mine. Even if none of my friends go, (they better) I think it will be kind of fun. I never want to regret not doing something like this. I didn't go to prom and I really regret that. I know, not the same, but still...
Time to make dinner, better figure that out. I'll try to post some tat pics soon.
School is back in session, thank God. I was seriously looking into running away. When you're young, Summer isn't long enough. Trust me, when you're the mom of 3 kids, Summer is WAY too long. I enjoy my kids, but not 24/7. And I could say the same for their feelings for me.
I got a tattoo!! Josh gave me the number of a tattoo artist and permission to spend the money to get what I wanted. I worked with the artist to design a gaggle of geese for my back. This is of course to represent my three geese(Lauren, Hayden and Kate). It turned out awesome and I'm definitely addicted to ink.
Kate is going to be 1 in two weeks and I'm getting kind of sad. I'm happy that she's getting a little more independent, but I'm bumming that I will never have another baby living in my house again. It all just happens too fast.
Both mine and Josh's 10 year reunions are coming up. Josh has decided not to go to his, much to my dismay. He doesn't think anyone worth seeing will be there, so I have to trust him on this. He is all for crashing the after party, wherever that might be though, so maybe we'll do that. I'm definitely going to mine. Even if none of my friends go, (they better) I think it will be kind of fun. I never want to regret not doing something like this. I didn't go to prom and I really regret that. I know, not the same, but still...
Time to make dinner, better figure that out. I'll try to post some tat pics soon.
Friday, August 08, 2008
VBS
Or as I like to call it, "free babysitting". We've been lucky enough to be a part of VBS for our old church for a few years now, without ever having to actually go to church there! It's fabulous! The kids get free dinner and 2 hours of sports while I go to dinner with the other moms and dads. This week I went to Bento with Josh on Monday, Red Robin with Allison and Emily on Tuesday, Red Robin again with Josh and Rob on Wednesday and The Venetian with Allison, Sarah and Haley last night. Two of these nights included cocktails. This is the way it's supposed to be, I'm telling you. Unfortunately, all good things must come to an end. Tonight is the last night of VBS for the year. Thanks to all the helpers and organizers! I had a great time! :)
On another note, I'm freaking out a little bit right now. I am in Kari's wedding tonight, which will be fantastic no doubt. But orchestrating the kids/babysitting/getting ready, etc without Josh is terrifying.
Saturday is coming soon too. (tomorrow to be exact) We are going to a grown up Slip n Slide party. I'm going to be seen in a swim suit? I think not...at least not without an almost lethal dose of alcohol.
On another note, I'm freaking out a little bit right now. I am in Kari's wedding tonight, which will be fantastic no doubt. But orchestrating the kids/babysitting/getting ready, etc without Josh is terrifying.
Saturday is coming soon too. (tomorrow to be exact) We are going to a grown up Slip n Slide party. I'm going to be seen in a swim suit? I think not...at least not without an almost lethal dose of alcohol.
Sunday, July 27, 2008
Dancing Fools
I'm home tonight with the kiddos while Josh takes in a little culture. By "culture", I mean "Chromeo". http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EMz0mkfPCjY. Besides the fact that they are extremely catchy, I like them because Kate loves them. She can't help herself when she hears her favorite song, "Fancy Footwork". She starts twisting her wrists and ankles and rocking her little body to the music.
Speaking of dancing...last night was a blast. Kari called me up at about 5pm and asked me to come out with her and her fiance. I quickly pumped a bottle for Kate, made and ate some dinner and headed out. Unfortunately, Kate wasn't happy about me leaving so she gave Josh crap for 2 hours and then finally fell asleep. Anyway, I thought it would be a good idea to get to know Matt (the fiance) before I'm a bridesmaid in their wedding in less than two weeks.
I met them at Coyote's Grill, which is surprisingly a happening place at night. We sat outside on the patio and drank faaaaaaaaaar too much beer. They had a band playing so we took advantage of the dance floor. Kari has an amazing way of luring complete strangers to dance. She was pulling old men and polo shirt clad intel workers out to dance. Like I said, amazing. I must say though that the highlight of the night was when Kari finally got the band to play "Crazy Bitch" for her. The lyrics are deep, so bear with me here..."You're a crazy bitch but you fuck so good I'm on top of it." I know, deep. But what was funny about this is that I was dancing with my sister to that song. Huh.
Speaking of dancing...last night was a blast. Kari called me up at about 5pm and asked me to come out with her and her fiance. I quickly pumped a bottle for Kate, made and ate some dinner and headed out. Unfortunately, Kate wasn't happy about me leaving so she gave Josh crap for 2 hours and then finally fell asleep. Anyway, I thought it would be a good idea to get to know Matt (the fiance) before I'm a bridesmaid in their wedding in less than two weeks.
I met them at Coyote's Grill, which is surprisingly a happening place at night. We sat outside on the patio and drank faaaaaaaaaar too much beer. They had a band playing so we took advantage of the dance floor. Kari has an amazing way of luring complete strangers to dance. She was pulling old men and polo shirt clad intel workers out to dance. Like I said, amazing. I must say though that the highlight of the night was when Kari finally got the band to play "Crazy Bitch" for her. The lyrics are deep, so bear with me here..."You're a crazy bitch but you fuck so good I'm on top of it." I know, deep. But what was funny about this is that I was dancing with my sister to that song. Huh.
Saturday, July 19, 2008
Summer Update
Hayden, you're so street.
My girls, being beautiful.
Josh with Kate in Sunriver.
Me and Kate on our little impromptu beach day.
I'm a serious blog slacker these days. I guess it's probably because I recently discovered Facebook. Anytime I go to the laptop to do anything, I end up screwing around for 30 minutes or more on facebook. I occasionally will forget what I originally came to the laptop for and log out without doing it. Retarded, I know.
So here I am, blogging. I guess a good place to start is to fill you all in on our adventures so far this summer.
We spent a week in Sunriver with my family. Parents, grandpa, Connie, sisters, brother, brother in law, Scott and a plethora of kids. We rode bikes everywhere, played in the pools, guys went golfing, ate insane amounts of food and dessert, drank quite a bit, etc. It was great but we missed Ashley lots this year. Just wasn't the same without you!
When we got home from Sunriver, first order of business was to get bikes so we could continue riding. Josh got a kick ass bike from Portland Citybikes. It's a KHS something or other. I got a sweet Giant bike with a little wooden bike rack on the back. The kids got Schwinns and Kate got the Burley trailer. All in all, we spent a little dough, but it's been worth it. We've ridden downtown Hillsboro a couple times, to my parents' house and just around the neighborhood. We recently took all the bikes out to Sauvie Island, hoping to find the bike trail that I found online. We found it, but it was a country road with nowhere to ride safely, so we left. On a whim, we stopped at the Hillsboro Main Library on our way back into town and rode all over the place there. We went to New Seasons and got ice cream bars and had a snack outside. Fun was had by all.
We had a great 4th of July this year too. The day started out watching the parade downtown. Thanks dad for getting up at the butt crack of dawn again to stake our spots! Later that day, we went to a barbecue down the street with our awesome neighbors. We ended the day at the Chilcotts, watching the Oak Hills fireworks and then blowing stuff up in the street. Nothing says, "Happy Birthday America" like some good illegal fireworks.
Speaking of which, I had an awesome birthday. I never really make a big deal out of my birthday, so it's always a surprise when other people do. Josh tracked down the tattoo artist who did Kara's tattoo and got me all the contact info. He wrote in my card that I can go get mine done when I'm ready. I have a consultation with her next Thursday. I'm really excited.
Coming up, we have my cousin's wedding in California, Kari's wedding (I'm a bridesmaid), camping in Washington and a smattering of little stuff in between. I love summer!
Tuesday, June 17, 2008
Lists
So I'm sitting here, yet again. I'm procrastinating. It's actually something I should compete in, I'd win.
My theory is that if I write it all down, I'll get some sort of satisfaction in crossing it off my list. It usually works, at least to some extent.
1. Get house ready for Amy to possibly stay in it while she dog-sits.
2. Give said beast a bath.
3. Do all the laundry that has been piling up for almost a week.
4. Pack the entire house for Sunriver trip.
5. Hire maid.
6. Hire nanny.
7. Drink bottle of wine.
What do you think?
Tuesday, June 03, 2008
Deep Thoughts-By, Sarah
I've been thinking about something for the last couple of days. I suppose here's a good place to "jot" it down.
I have a facebook account, and on it I have an application called "My Cities" or something. It's a map with little virtual pins to show the places I've been. I have always known that I haven't really gone anywhere, so it came as no surprise to me to see how little of the map I covered. It got me feeling a little bit sad though. I have never been to Canada, let alone overseas anywhere. (Unless you count Hawaii, which you don't.) I always have said, "when my kids are older, I'll travel" but deep down, I always wondered if I really would. It's something I want to do, but will it be a priority? Maybe, maybe not. What finally dawned on me though is that what was a priority to me was having a family. That was the first and most important piece of business I wanted to accomplish in my life. I did it already, so I am content. Most of my friends are on the opposite side of this so it seemed like I should be too, but the more thought I give it, the more I realize how I'm not missing anything, maybe they are. I mean no disrespect to those without chillin's, but I sometimes feel like I'm supposed to apologize for being a young mom of three. I freakin' chose this, I wasn't stuck with it like some disease. If I had wanted so desperately to backpack through Europe or whatever, I would have. Sure, my days are crazy sometimes. Sure, I want to crawl under a rock when I see that there are 50+ cheerios smashed into the living room rug and 6 pairs of shoes on the floor. But I have given birth in my shower, potty trained 2 kids, made a plethora of themed birthday cakes, driven to the emergency room for someone other than myself and celebrated almost 9 years of marriage to my best friend. When I think about it, I've done more and seen more than most people my age.
I have a facebook account, and on it I have an application called "My Cities" or something. It's a map with little virtual pins to show the places I've been. I have always known that I haven't really gone anywhere, so it came as no surprise to me to see how little of the map I covered. It got me feeling a little bit sad though. I have never been to Canada, let alone overseas anywhere. (Unless you count Hawaii, which you don't.) I always have said, "when my kids are older, I'll travel" but deep down, I always wondered if I really would. It's something I want to do, but will it be a priority? Maybe, maybe not. What finally dawned on me though is that what was a priority to me was having a family. That was the first and most important piece of business I wanted to accomplish in my life. I did it already, so I am content. Most of my friends are on the opposite side of this so it seemed like I should be too, but the more thought I give it, the more I realize how I'm not missing anything, maybe they are. I mean no disrespect to those without chillin's, but I sometimes feel like I'm supposed to apologize for being a young mom of three. I freakin' chose this, I wasn't stuck with it like some disease. If I had wanted so desperately to backpack through Europe or whatever, I would have. Sure, my days are crazy sometimes. Sure, I want to crawl under a rock when I see that there are 50+ cheerios smashed into the living room rug and 6 pairs of shoes on the floor. But I have given birth in my shower, potty trained 2 kids, made a plethora of themed birthday cakes, driven to the emergency room for someone other than myself and celebrated almost 9 years of marriage to my best friend. When I think about it, I've done more and seen more than most people my age.
Thursday, May 22, 2008
Time Flies When You're Doing Nothing
Well well well... Where do I begin? It's been awhile since my last post. Here's a cheap way to fill y'all in.
1. We are still planning to sell our house. We'll list it For Sale By Owner as soon as I can get my butt in gear enough to have it ready for such things.
2. School is almost over. I'm looking forward to not having the days broken up by drop offs and pick ups, but dreading long days of kid noise.
3. Speaking of kid noise, we got a Wii. The kids and Josh are slightly obsessed, especially Hayden. It's really fun though.
4. My 10 year high school reunion is coming up in October. I have been thinking about it alot. I don't know why. I will definitely be going because it's at the Cornelius Pass Roadhouse for $25 a head. Nice deal!
5. Kate is getting huge. She has two teeth and has started scooting across the floor if she has enough incentive. Like a shoe for example.
6. We just had a great weekend. The boys (Josh, James, Jon and Dad) went to Spirit Mtn Casino to see Dana Carvey and to gamble. They spent the night and had a great time. In the morning, when they got home, us girls left for the night. We stayed at the Governor Hotel downtown, ate way too much delicious food and drank cosmos in the room. All in all, it was delightful. I'm really hoping we can make an annual thing of it.
7. Lucas is home. Finally. He spent 13 months in Iraq and is home with his wife now. They live in Kansas, so we won't get to see much of them, but they were here this week and we got to hug them.
8. Ron Paul got 15% of the Republican vote for PRESIDENT with absolutely no media coverage. Upsetting.
9. There's more, but I haven't had my coffee yet and the kids need a ride to school.
Wednesday, April 09, 2008
One of those moments...
So, if you need any verification as to whether or not this really happened, just ask Emily or any one of the patrons of the Hillsboro Joann's superstore.
We were shopping for some scrapbooking supplies at Joann's with the three babies today. (Molly & Charlotte in one cart & Kate in the other) Kate was sitting up like a big kid in the front of the cart for her first time. She was loving life, all wrapped up in my sweatshirt so she wouldn't fall over.
Emily and I were a little confused about what we needed to purchase for Tina's scrapbooking party on Friday. I had a list, but was still unsure. Emily suggested I call Tina. Good idea.
Well...when I went to get my cell phone, I noticed the catastrophe. Kate had "squirted" poop out of her diaper. I say squirted, because it literally shot out of her diaper, only barely touching her jeans and landing IN the front pocket of my diaper bag. The pocket I keep my cell phone in. Yes, her poop was in my phone. When I saw what had happened, I said, "uh, Emily? Guess what...no nevermind, you have to come see this." She came over and we both just stared at it for a few seconds, letting it sink in (to our heads and the phone). We then proceeded to clean Kate, the cart, my phone and our hands with about 20 wipes. If I'd had a camera, I promise I would have taken a picture.
Guess it's time to get a new phone!
We were shopping for some scrapbooking supplies at Joann's with the three babies today. (Molly & Charlotte in one cart & Kate in the other) Kate was sitting up like a big kid in the front of the cart for her first time. She was loving life, all wrapped up in my sweatshirt so she wouldn't fall over.
Emily and I were a little confused about what we needed to purchase for Tina's scrapbooking party on Friday. I had a list, but was still unsure. Emily suggested I call Tina. Good idea.
Well...when I went to get my cell phone, I noticed the catastrophe. Kate had "squirted" poop out of her diaper. I say squirted, because it literally shot out of her diaper, only barely touching her jeans and landing IN the front pocket of my diaper bag. The pocket I keep my cell phone in. Yes, her poop was in my phone. When I saw what had happened, I said, "uh, Emily? Guess what...no nevermind, you have to come see this." She came over and we both just stared at it for a few seconds, letting it sink in (to our heads and the phone). We then proceeded to clean Kate, the cart, my phone and our hands with about 20 wipes. If I'd had a camera, I promise I would have taken a picture.
Guess it's time to get a new phone!
Tuesday, April 01, 2008
Friday, March 21, 2008
Disneyland
We're going to Disneyland in 6 days. I'm freaking out.
First off, no one is completely well yet. The kids are fine, but still have hacking coughs. I have a cough. Kate has a cough. Josh is dying. His flu has morphed into Bronchitis. We finally got him something more than over the counter meds today. He's taking cough syrup with codeine now. That might do the trick, but we're screwed if it doesn't.
Second, Sarah Gallo will be here in a few hours. We have a whole week of stuff planned while she's here and (reread above paragraph).
Third, I have NO IDEA HOW TO PACK FOR THIS TRIP!!!! Seriously, is it going to be warm enough for shorts and flip flops? Do I pack jackets? What about for Kate? Stroller? Car seat? What the hell am I supposed to pack?
Lastly, we're flying with Kate and the kids are going with Josh's parents on a separate flight. They've never flown before and although they're not scared at all, I am.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Will It Ever End???
I'm so sick of being sick. We have the flu. Sunday night, I had a fever of almost 103 degrees. Hayden's fever peaked at 104.5. I'm almost better now, and the kids are recovering too. Josh, however is just starting. He's been in bed for a day and a half now. If Kate gets sick, we could be in the hospital. Please keep her in your prayers.
UPDATE: Kate has a fever. Damn it.
UPDATE: It's Wednesday morning, Josh has a 102 degree fever and is still in bed. Kate has a low fever, but is pretty miserable and I'm fairly confident we're just at the beginning of hers. I am currently coughing up both of my lungs. Besides that, we're fantastic!!!
UPDATE: Kate has a fever. Damn it.
UPDATE: It's Wednesday morning, Josh has a 102 degree fever and is still in bed. Kate has a low fever, but is pretty miserable and I'm fairly confident we're just at the beginning of hers. I am currently coughing up both of my lungs. Besides that, we're fantastic!!!
Monday, March 10, 2008
Geek Squad
I just proved myself to be SUCH a girl. I was trying to print something from my laptop to the printer in the office. It didn't immediately work, so I thought maybe there was no paper. I checked. There was. Hmmm, what else could it be? I turned the printer off, waited a few seconds and turned it back on. Nothing. I went back to the laptop, hit print again and waited. Nothing. Gee, maybe I should try clicking "print" again, and again and again. Still nothing. So, I caved and called Josh. He said it's probably unplugged from the computer. He said to plug the blue network cable into the switch that was near the computer. I figured all of this out after a few minutes of standing in the middle of the office and spinning in circles. I often find that this not only helps me think, but also amuses me. So, network cable in, try printing again. Whoa!! It printed. 8 copies.
Friday, February 29, 2008
Autism "Aggravated" by Vaccines
This is a LONG read, but if you're interested, it's worth the time. Josh and I decided not to give Kate any immunizations until she's at least 2 years old, and possibly not even then. We did all the required shots for Lauren and Hayden with no negative outcome, but didn't want to jinx it. So, if you're thinking we're just a coupla hippies, here's some of why we made our decision. If you do read it, let me know what your thoughts are on the subject, even if you don't have kids.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/government-concedes-vacci_b_88
323.html
Government Concedes Vaccine-Autism Case in Federal Court - Now What?
After years of insisting there is no evidence to link vaccines with the
onset of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the US government has quietly
conceded a vaccine-autism case in the Court of Federal Claims.
The unprecedented concession was filed on November 9, and sealed to
protect the plaintiff's identify. It was obtained through individuals
unrelated to the case.
The claim, one of 4,900 autism cases currently pending in Federal
"Vaccine Court," was conceded by US Assistant Attorney General Peter
Keisler and other Justice Department officials, on behalf of the
Department of Health and Human Services, the "defendant" in all Vaccine
Court cases.
The child's claim against the government -- that mercury-containing
vaccines were the cause of her autism -- was supposed to be one of three
"test cases" for the thimerosal-autism theory currently under
consideration by a three-member panel of Special Masters, the presiding
justices in Federal Claims Court.
Keisler wrote that medical personnel at the HHS Division of Vaccine
Injury Compensation (DVIC) had reviewed the case and "concluded that
compensation is appropriate."
The doctors conceded that the child was healthy and developing normally
until her 18-month well-baby visit, when she received vaccinations
against nine different diseases all at once (two contained thimerosal).
Days later, the girl began spiraling downward into a cascade of
illnesses and setbacks that, within months, presented as symptoms of
autism, including: No response to verbal direction; loss of language
skills; no eye contact; loss of "relatedness;" insomnia; incessant
screaming; arching; and "watching the florescent lights repeatedly
during examination."
Seven months after vaccination, the patient was diagnosed by Dr. Andrew
Zimmerman, a leading neurologist at the Kennedy Krieger Children's
Hospital Neurology Clinic, with "regressive encephalopathy (brain
disease) with features consistent with autistic spectrum disorder,
following normal development." The girl also met the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) official criteria for
autism.
In its written concession, the government said the child had a
pre-existing mitochondrial disorder that was "aggravated" by her shots,
and which ultimately resulted in an ASD diagnosis.
"The vaccinations received on July 19, 2000, significantly aggravated an
underlying mitochondrial disorder," the concession says, "which
predisposed her to deficits in cellular energy metabolism, and
manifested as a regressive encephalopathy with features of ASD."
This statement is good news for the girl and her family, who will now be
compensated for the lifetime of care she will require. But its
implications for the larger vaccine-autism debate, and for public health
policy in general, are not as certain.
In fact, the government's concession seems to raise more questions than
it answers.
1) Is there a connection between vaccines, mitochondrial disorders and a
diagnosis of autism, at least in some cases?
Mitochondria, you may recall from biology class, are the little
powerhouses within cells that convert food into electrical energy,
partly through a complex process called "oxidative phosphorylation." If
this process is impaired, mitochondrial disorder will ensue.
The child in this case had several markers for Mt disease, which was
confirmed by muscle biopsy. Mt disease is often marked by lethargy, poor
muscle tone, poor food digestion and bowel problems, something found in
many children diagnosed with autism.
But mitochondrial disorders are rare in the general population,
affecting some 2-per-10,000 people (or just 0.2%). So with 4,900 cases
filed in Vaccine Court, this case should be the one and only, extremely
rare instance of Mt disease in all the autism proceedings.
But it is not.
Mitochondrial disorders are now thought to be the most common disease
associated with ASD. Some journal articles and other analyses have
estimated that 10% to 20% of all autism cases may involve mitochondrial
disorders, which would make them one thousand times more common among
people with ASD than the general population.
Another article, published in the Journal of Child Neurology and
co-authored by Dr. Zimmerman, showed that 38% of Kennedy Krieger
Institute autism patients studied had one marker for impaired oxidative
phosphorylation, and 47% had a second marker.
The authors -- who reported on a case-study of the same autism claim
conceded in Vaccine Court -- noted that "children who have
(mitochondrial-related) dysfunctional cellular energy metabolism might
be more prone to undergo autistic regression between 18 and 30 months of
age if they also have infections or immunizations at the same time."
An interesting aspect of Mt disease in autism is that, with ASD, the
mitochondrial disease seems to be milder than in "classic" cases of Mt
disorder. In fact, classic Mt disease is almost always inherited, either
passed down by the mother through mitochondrial DNA, or by both parents
through nuclear DNA.
In autism-related Mt disease, however, the disorder is not typically
found in other family members, and instead appears to be largely of the
sporadic variety, which may now account for 75% of all mitochondrial
disorders.
Meanwhile, an informal survey of seven families of children with cases
currently pending in Vaccine Court revealed that all seven showed
markers for mitochondrial dysfunction, dating back to their earliest
medical tests. The facts in all seven claims mirror the case just
conceded by the government: Normal development followed by vaccination,
immediate illness, and rapid decline culminating in an autism diagnosis.
2) With 4,900 cases pending, and more coming, will the government
concede those with underlying Mt disease -- and if it not, will the
Court award compensation?
The Court will soon begin processing the 4900 cases pending before it.
What if 10% to 20% of them can demonstrate the same Mt disease and same
set of facts as those in the conceded case? Would the government be
obliged to concede 500, or even 1,000 cases? What impact would that have
on public opinion? And is there enough money currently in the vaccine
injury fund to cover so many settlements?
When asked for a comment last week about the court settlement, a
spokesman for HHS furnished the following written statement:
"DVIC has reviewed the scientific information concerning the allegation
that vaccines cause autism and has found no credible evidence to support
the claim. Accordingly, in every case under the Vaccine Act, DVIC has
maintained the position that vaccines do not cause autism, and has never
concluded in any case that autism was caused by vaccination."
3) If the government is claiming that vaccines did not "cause" autism,
but instead aggravated a condition to "manifest" as autism, isn't that a
very fine distinction?
For most affected families, such linguistic gymnastics is not so
important. And even if a vaccine injury "manifested" as autism in only
one case, isn't that still a significant development worthy of informing
the public?
On the other hand, perhaps what the government is claiming is that
vaccination resulted in the symptoms of autism, but not in an actual,
factually correct diagnosis of autism itself.
4) If the government is claiming that this child does NOT have autism,
then how many other children might also have something else that merely
"mimics" autism?
Is it possible that 10%-20% of the cases that we now label as "autism,"
are not autism at all, but rather some previously undefined "look-alike"
syndrome that merely presents as "features" of autism?
This question gets to the heart of what autism actually is. The disorder
is defined solely as a collection of features, nothing more. If you have
the features (and the diagnosis), you have the disorder. The underlying
biology is the great unknown.
But let's say the government does determine that these kids don't have
actual "autism" (something I speculated on HuffPost a year ago). Then
shouldn't the Feds go back and test all people with ASD for impaired
oxidative phosphorylation, perhaps reclassifying many of them?
If so, will we then see "autism" cases drop by tens, if not hundreds of
thousands of people? Will there be a corresponding ascension of a newly
described disorder, perhaps something like "Vaccine Aggravated
Mitochondrial Disease with Features of ASD?"
And if this child was technically "misdiagnosed" with DSM-IV autism by
Dr Zimmerman, how does he feel about HHS doctors issuing a second
opinion re-diagnosis of his patient, whom they presumably had neither
met nor examined? (Zimmerman declined an interview).
And along those lines, aren't Bush administration officials somewhat
wary of making long-distance, retroactive diagnoses from Washington,
given that the Terry Schiavo incident has not yet faded from national
memory?
5) Was this child's Mt disease caused by a genetic mutation, as the
government implies, and wouldn't that have manifested as "ASD features"
anyway?
In the concession, the government notes that the patient had a "single
nucleotide change" in the mitochondrial DNA gene T2387C, implying that
this was the underlying cause of her manifested "features" of autism.
While it's true that some inherited forms of Mt disease can manifest as
developmental delays, (and even ASD in the form of Rhett Syndrome) these
forms are linked to identified genetic mutations, of which T2387C is not
involved. In fact little, if anything, is known about the function of
this particular gene.
What's more, there is no evidence that this girl, prior to vaccination,
suffered from any kind of "disorder" at all- genetic, mitochondrial or
otherwise. Some forms of Mt disease are so mild that the person is
unaware of being affected. This perfectly developing girl may have had
Mt disorder at the time of vaccination, but nobody detected, or even
suspected it.
And, there is no evidence to suggest that this girl would have regressed
into symptoms consistent with a DSM-IV autism diagnosis without her
vaccinations. If there was such evidence, then why on earth would these
extremely well-funded government attorneys compensate this alleged
injury in Vaccine Court? Why wouldn't they move to dismiss, or at least
fight the case at trial?
6) What are the implications for research?
The concession raises at least two critical research questions: What are
the causes of Mt dysfunction; and how could vaccines aggravate that
dysfunction to the point of "autistic features?"
While some Mt disorders are clearly inherited, the "sporadic" form is
thought to account for 75% of all cases, according to the United
Mitochondrial Disease Foundation. So what causes sporadic Mt disease?
"Medicines or other toxins," says the Cleveland Clinic, a leading
authority on the subject.
Use of the AIDS drug AZT, for example, can cause Mt disorders by
deleting large segments of mitochondrial DNA. If that is the case, might
other exposures to drugs or toxins (i.e., thimerosal, mercury in fish,
air pollution, pesticides, live viruses) also cause sporadic Mt disease
in certain subsets of children, through similar genotoxic mechanisms?
Among the prime cellular targets of mercury are mitochondria, and
thimerosal-induced cell death has been associated with the
depolarization of mitochondrial membrane, according to the International
Journal of Molecular Medicine among several others. (Coincidently, the
first case of Mt disease was diagnosed in 1959, just 15 years after the
first autism case was named, and two decades after thimerosal's
introduction as a vaccine preservative.)
Regardless of its cause, shouldn't HHS sponsor research into Mt disease
and the biological mechanisms by which vaccines could aggravate the
disorder? We still do not know what it was, exactly, about this girl's
vaccines that aggravated her condition. Was it the thimerosal? The three
live viruses? The two attenuated viruses? Other ingredients like
aluminum? A combination of the above?
And of course, if vaccine injuries can aggravate Mt disease to the point
of manifesting as autism features, then what other underlying disorders
or conditions (genetic, autoimmune, allergic, etc.) might also be
aggravated to the same extent?
7) What are the implications for medicine and public health?
Should the government develop and approve new treatments for "aggravated
mitochondrial disease with ASD features?" Interestingly, many of the
treatments currently deployed in Mt disease (i.e., coenzyme Q10, vitamin
B-12, lipoic acid, biotin, dietary changes, etc.) are part of the
alternative treatment regimen that many parents use on their children
with ASD.
And, if a significant minority of autism cases can be linked to Mt
disease and vaccines, shouldn't these products one day carry an FDA
Black Box warning label, and shouldn't children with Mt disorders be
exempt from mandatory immunization?
8) What are the implications for the vaccine-autism debate?
It's too early to tell. But this concession could conceivably make it
more difficult for some officials to continue insisting there is
"absolutely no link" between vaccines and autism.
It also puts the Federal Government's Vaccine Court defense strategy
somewhat into jeopardy. DOJ lawyers and witnesses have argued that
autism is genetic, with no evidence to support an environmental
component. And, they insist, it's simply impossible to construct a chain
of events linking immunizations to the disorder.
Government officials may need to rethink their legal strategy, as well
as their public relations campaigns, given their own slightly
contradictory concession in this case.
9) What is the bottom line here?
The public, (including world leaders) will demand to know what is going
on inside the US Federal health establishment. Yes, as of now, n=1, a
solitary vaccine-autism concession. But what if n=10% or 20%? Who will
pay to clean up that mess?
The significance of this concession will unfortunately be fought over in
the usual, vitriolic way -- and I fully expect to be slammed for even
raising these questions. Despite that, the language of this concession
cannot be changed, or swept away.
Its key words are "aggravated" and "manifested." Without the aggravation
of the vaccines, it is uncertain that the manifestation would have
occurred at all.
When a kid with peanut allergy eats a peanut and dies, we don't say "his
underlying metabolic condition was significantly aggravated to the
extent of manifesting as an anaphylactic shock with features of death."
No, we say the peanut killed the poor boy. Remove the peanut from the
equation, and he would still be with us today.
Many people look forward to hearing more from HHS officials about why
they are settling this claim. But whatever their explanation, they
cannot change the fundamental facts of this extraordinary case:
The United State government is compensating at least one child for
vaccine injuries that resulted in a diagnosis of autism.
And that is big news, no matter how you want to say it.
NOTE: Full text of the government's statement is posted here.
David Kirby is the author of "Evidence of Harm - Mercury in Vaccines and
the Autism Epidemic, A Medical Controversy" (St. Martins Press 2005.
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/david-kirby/government-concedes-vacci_b_88
323.html
Government Concedes Vaccine-Autism Case in Federal Court - Now What?
After years of insisting there is no evidence to link vaccines with the
onset of autism spectrum disorder (ASD), the US government has quietly
conceded a vaccine-autism case in the Court of Federal Claims.
The unprecedented concession was filed on November 9, and sealed to
protect the plaintiff's identify. It was obtained through individuals
unrelated to the case.
The claim, one of 4,900 autism cases currently pending in Federal
"Vaccine Court," was conceded by US Assistant Attorney General Peter
Keisler and other Justice Department officials, on behalf of the
Department of Health and Human Services, the "defendant" in all Vaccine
Court cases.
The child's claim against the government -- that mercury-containing
vaccines were the cause of her autism -- was supposed to be one of three
"test cases" for the thimerosal-autism theory currently under
consideration by a three-member panel of Special Masters, the presiding
justices in Federal Claims Court.
Keisler wrote that medical personnel at the HHS Division of Vaccine
Injury Compensation (DVIC) had reviewed the case and "concluded that
compensation is appropriate."
The doctors conceded that the child was healthy and developing normally
until her 18-month well-baby visit, when she received vaccinations
against nine different diseases all at once (two contained thimerosal).
Days later, the girl began spiraling downward into a cascade of
illnesses and setbacks that, within months, presented as symptoms of
autism, including: No response to verbal direction; loss of language
skills; no eye contact; loss of "relatedness;" insomnia; incessant
screaming; arching; and "watching the florescent lights repeatedly
during examination."
Seven months after vaccination, the patient was diagnosed by Dr. Andrew
Zimmerman, a leading neurologist at the Kennedy Krieger Children's
Hospital Neurology Clinic, with "regressive encephalopathy (brain
disease) with features consistent with autistic spectrum disorder,
following normal development." The girl also met the Diagnostic and
Statistical Manual for Mental Disorders (DSM-IV) official criteria for
autism.
In its written concession, the government said the child had a
pre-existing mitochondrial disorder that was "aggravated" by her shots,
and which ultimately resulted in an ASD diagnosis.
"The vaccinations received on July 19, 2000, significantly aggravated an
underlying mitochondrial disorder," the concession says, "which
predisposed her to deficits in cellular energy metabolism, and
manifested as a regressive encephalopathy with features of ASD."
This statement is good news for the girl and her family, who will now be
compensated for the lifetime of care she will require. But its
implications for the larger vaccine-autism debate, and for public health
policy in general, are not as certain.
In fact, the government's concession seems to raise more questions than
it answers.
1) Is there a connection between vaccines, mitochondrial disorders and a
diagnosis of autism, at least in some cases?
Mitochondria, you may recall from biology class, are the little
powerhouses within cells that convert food into electrical energy,
partly through a complex process called "oxidative phosphorylation." If
this process is impaired, mitochondrial disorder will ensue.
The child in this case had several markers for Mt disease, which was
confirmed by muscle biopsy. Mt disease is often marked by lethargy, poor
muscle tone, poor food digestion and bowel problems, something found in
many children diagnosed with autism.
But mitochondrial disorders are rare in the general population,
affecting some 2-per-10,000 people (or just 0.2%). So with 4,900 cases
filed in Vaccine Court, this case should be the one and only, extremely
rare instance of Mt disease in all the autism proceedings.
But it is not.
Mitochondrial disorders are now thought to be the most common disease
associated with ASD. Some journal articles and other analyses have
estimated that 10% to 20% of all autism cases may involve mitochondrial
disorders, which would make them one thousand times more common among
people with ASD than the general population.
Another article, published in the Journal of Child Neurology and
co-authored by Dr. Zimmerman, showed that 38% of Kennedy Krieger
Institute autism patients studied had one marker for impaired oxidative
phosphorylation, and 47% had a second marker.
The authors -- who reported on a case-study of the same autism claim
conceded in Vaccine Court -- noted that "children who have
(mitochondrial-related) dysfunctional cellular energy metabolism might
be more prone to undergo autistic regression between 18 and 30 months of
age if they also have infections or immunizations at the same time."
An interesting aspect of Mt disease in autism is that, with ASD, the
mitochondrial disease seems to be milder than in "classic" cases of Mt
disorder. In fact, classic Mt disease is almost always inherited, either
passed down by the mother through mitochondrial DNA, or by both parents
through nuclear DNA.
In autism-related Mt disease, however, the disorder is not typically
found in other family members, and instead appears to be largely of the
sporadic variety, which may now account for 75% of all mitochondrial
disorders.
Meanwhile, an informal survey of seven families of children with cases
currently pending in Vaccine Court revealed that all seven showed
markers for mitochondrial dysfunction, dating back to their earliest
medical tests. The facts in all seven claims mirror the case just
conceded by the government: Normal development followed by vaccination,
immediate illness, and rapid decline culminating in an autism diagnosis.
2) With 4,900 cases pending, and more coming, will the government
concede those with underlying Mt disease -- and if it not, will the
Court award compensation?
The Court will soon begin processing the 4900 cases pending before it.
What if 10% to 20% of them can demonstrate the same Mt disease and same
set of facts as those in the conceded case? Would the government be
obliged to concede 500, or even 1,000 cases? What impact would that have
on public opinion? And is there enough money currently in the vaccine
injury fund to cover so many settlements?
When asked for a comment last week about the court settlement, a
spokesman for HHS furnished the following written statement:
"DVIC has reviewed the scientific information concerning the allegation
that vaccines cause autism and has found no credible evidence to support
the claim. Accordingly, in every case under the Vaccine Act, DVIC has
maintained the position that vaccines do not cause autism, and has never
concluded in any case that autism was caused by vaccination."
3) If the government is claiming that vaccines did not "cause" autism,
but instead aggravated a condition to "manifest" as autism, isn't that a
very fine distinction?
For most affected families, such linguistic gymnastics is not so
important. And even if a vaccine injury "manifested" as autism in only
one case, isn't that still a significant development worthy of informing
the public?
On the other hand, perhaps what the government is claiming is that
vaccination resulted in the symptoms of autism, but not in an actual,
factually correct diagnosis of autism itself.
4) If the government is claiming that this child does NOT have autism,
then how many other children might also have something else that merely
"mimics" autism?
Is it possible that 10%-20% of the cases that we now label as "autism,"
are not autism at all, but rather some previously undefined "look-alike"
syndrome that merely presents as "features" of autism?
This question gets to the heart of what autism actually is. The disorder
is defined solely as a collection of features, nothing more. If you have
the features (and the diagnosis), you have the disorder. The underlying
biology is the great unknown.
But let's say the government does determine that these kids don't have
actual "autism" (something I speculated on HuffPost a year ago). Then
shouldn't the Feds go back and test all people with ASD for impaired
oxidative phosphorylation, perhaps reclassifying many of them?
If so, will we then see "autism" cases drop by tens, if not hundreds of
thousands of people? Will there be a corresponding ascension of a newly
described disorder, perhaps something like "Vaccine Aggravated
Mitochondrial Disease with Features of ASD?"
And if this child was technically "misdiagnosed" with DSM-IV autism by
Dr Zimmerman, how does he feel about HHS doctors issuing a second
opinion re-diagnosis of his patient, whom they presumably had neither
met nor examined? (Zimmerman declined an interview).
And along those lines, aren't Bush administration officials somewhat
wary of making long-distance, retroactive diagnoses from Washington,
given that the Terry Schiavo incident has not yet faded from national
memory?
5) Was this child's Mt disease caused by a genetic mutation, as the
government implies, and wouldn't that have manifested as "ASD features"
anyway?
In the concession, the government notes that the patient had a "single
nucleotide change" in the mitochondrial DNA gene T2387C, implying that
this was the underlying cause of her manifested "features" of autism.
While it's true that some inherited forms of Mt disease can manifest as
developmental delays, (and even ASD in the form of Rhett Syndrome) these
forms are linked to identified genetic mutations, of which T2387C is not
involved. In fact little, if anything, is known about the function of
this particular gene.
What's more, there is no evidence that this girl, prior to vaccination,
suffered from any kind of "disorder" at all- genetic, mitochondrial or
otherwise. Some forms of Mt disease are so mild that the person is
unaware of being affected. This perfectly developing girl may have had
Mt disorder at the time of vaccination, but nobody detected, or even
suspected it.
And, there is no evidence to suggest that this girl would have regressed
into symptoms consistent with a DSM-IV autism diagnosis without her
vaccinations. If there was such evidence, then why on earth would these
extremely well-funded government attorneys compensate this alleged
injury in Vaccine Court? Why wouldn't they move to dismiss, or at least
fight the case at trial?
6) What are the implications for research?
The concession raises at least two critical research questions: What are
the causes of Mt dysfunction; and how could vaccines aggravate that
dysfunction to the point of "autistic features?"
While some Mt disorders are clearly inherited, the "sporadic" form is
thought to account for 75% of all cases, according to the United
Mitochondrial Disease Foundation. So what causes sporadic Mt disease?
"Medicines or other toxins," says the Cleveland Clinic, a leading
authority on the subject.
Use of the AIDS drug AZT, for example, can cause Mt disorders by
deleting large segments of mitochondrial DNA. If that is the case, might
other exposures to drugs or toxins (i.e., thimerosal, mercury in fish,
air pollution, pesticides, live viruses) also cause sporadic Mt disease
in certain subsets of children, through similar genotoxic mechanisms?
Among the prime cellular targets of mercury are mitochondria, and
thimerosal-induced cell death has been associated with the
depolarization of mitochondrial membrane, according to the International
Journal of Molecular Medicine among several others. (Coincidently, the
first case of Mt disease was diagnosed in 1959, just 15 years after the
first autism case was named, and two decades after thimerosal's
introduction as a vaccine preservative.)
Regardless of its cause, shouldn't HHS sponsor research into Mt disease
and the biological mechanisms by which vaccines could aggravate the
disorder? We still do not know what it was, exactly, about this girl's
vaccines that aggravated her condition. Was it the thimerosal? The three
live viruses? The two attenuated viruses? Other ingredients like
aluminum? A combination of the above?
And of course, if vaccine injuries can aggravate Mt disease to the point
of manifesting as autism features, then what other underlying disorders
or conditions (genetic, autoimmune, allergic, etc.) might also be
aggravated to the same extent?
7) What are the implications for medicine and public health?
Should the government develop and approve new treatments for "aggravated
mitochondrial disease with ASD features?" Interestingly, many of the
treatments currently deployed in Mt disease (i.e., coenzyme Q10, vitamin
B-12, lipoic acid, biotin, dietary changes, etc.) are part of the
alternative treatment regimen that many parents use on their children
with ASD.
And, if a significant minority of autism cases can be linked to Mt
disease and vaccines, shouldn't these products one day carry an FDA
Black Box warning label, and shouldn't children with Mt disorders be
exempt from mandatory immunization?
8) What are the implications for the vaccine-autism debate?
It's too early to tell. But this concession could conceivably make it
more difficult for some officials to continue insisting there is
"absolutely no link" between vaccines and autism.
It also puts the Federal Government's Vaccine Court defense strategy
somewhat into jeopardy. DOJ lawyers and witnesses have argued that
autism is genetic, with no evidence to support an environmental
component. And, they insist, it's simply impossible to construct a chain
of events linking immunizations to the disorder.
Government officials may need to rethink their legal strategy, as well
as their public relations campaigns, given their own slightly
contradictory concession in this case.
9) What is the bottom line here?
The public, (including world leaders) will demand to know what is going
on inside the US Federal health establishment. Yes, as of now, n=1, a
solitary vaccine-autism concession. But what if n=10% or 20%? Who will
pay to clean up that mess?
The significance of this concession will unfortunately be fought over in
the usual, vitriolic way -- and I fully expect to be slammed for even
raising these questions. Despite that, the language of this concession
cannot be changed, or swept away.
Its key words are "aggravated" and "manifested." Without the aggravation
of the vaccines, it is uncertain that the manifestation would have
occurred at all.
When a kid with peanut allergy eats a peanut and dies, we don't say "his
underlying metabolic condition was significantly aggravated to the
extent of manifesting as an anaphylactic shock with features of death."
No, we say the peanut killed the poor boy. Remove the peanut from the
equation, and he would still be with us today.
Many people look forward to hearing more from HHS officials about why
they are settling this claim. But whatever their explanation, they
cannot change the fundamental facts of this extraordinary case:
The United State government is compensating at least one child for
vaccine injuries that resulted in a diagnosis of autism.
And that is big news, no matter how you want to say it.
NOTE: Full text of the government's statement is posted here.
David Kirby is the author of "Evidence of Harm - Mercury in Vaccines and
the Autism Epidemic, A Medical Controversy" (St. Martins Press 2005.
Wednesday, February 27, 2008
Wierd Ass Dream
I hear people talk about their dreams and they always seem to make some sort of sense. Josh has dreams that are just an extension of his real life. Like he's got a really cool car, or he's on a great vacation, etc. If they get scary, he has enough control to wake himself from his nightmare. Can anyone else do that? I sure can't. I am deep in my crazy world.
The only other person I know who has dreams as wierd as mine is my dad. I must have gotten it from him.
I had a dream last night that I was at prom, in some rundown house. Josh was wearing his fleece and I was wearing someone's borrowed dress. Josh was grumpy, so I decided to go for a walk with my friends Kara, Devon, Sarah and others. We were walking through a cave that reminded me of Indiana Jones. I somehow became barefoot, so Devon carried me piggy back. After climbing a fence to get into Sarah's backyard, we finally made it back to the party. Josh was mad that I was on Devon's back. Jason Rood was sitting at a table having people sign a petition for an Animal Sanctuary. So, what the heck do you think THAT might mean...? I don't do drugs, but I'm starting to think they might help...
Monday, February 11, 2008
Puppies!!
So we finally went to see Josh's dad out in Sheridan. Their miniature dachsunds had puppies in December. Yes, that would be mini minis. Oh yes. There were 5 blonde bundles of fur running around in a kennel. It was a serious cuteness overload. They were pouncing eachother and nearly biting the ears off of their mother. The best was when the mom was nursing them. She's so short that she just stood there while they all got on their backs and slid under her like they were changing the oil. 5 soft little tummies all sticking up while they ate. These pictures are unrelated, just freaking hilarious.
Thursday, January 24, 2008
Since Fox Won't Talk About Him
Just sent an email to Fox News to express my disappointment with their complete lack of coverage for Ron Paul. They actually have the tagline, "We Report. You Decide." on their webpage. Looks like they've already decided for millions of Americans who rely on them for their "news", bless their ignorant hearts...
Whether or not you support Ron Paul, you've got to pay attention to this screwiness. Yes, I just wrote "screwiness".
Monday, January 14, 2008
Monday Monday....
(That would be the Mamas and the Papas song) I actually hate them. Josh had the cd when we got married and it got stuck in our cd player in the car when some jerk off broke in and stole just the face of the stereo. You couldn't turn it off, just down. So if you wanted music, it was always the "Best of the Mamas and the Papas". It was my own private hell. Josh still likes them, but he's crazy.
Yesterday was another birthday party day. We had one at 12 at the aquatic center, or as my dad calls it, the bean dip. It was actually really fun. Josh and I didn't have our suits, but the kids played in the pool for almost 2 hours. They were nice and pruney by the time we left. While we were there, we looked into a membership. It's cheap! For $130, the whole family gets in to the pool and gym for 3 months! I think we might do it, we'll see. The place has been totally renovated, so it's really nice now too. They even put in a giant water slide. I couldn't believe my eyes when I saw Lauren and Hayden going down it. Hayden's brave, but Lauren's a huge wimp. She loved it though!
At 5pm, Lauren had another party at a pizza place. I just dropped her off for this one. No need to sit around and talk to a bunch of people I don't know when I could just come back in an hour and a half.
So after we went to the Thompsons' house on Saturday, I've been feeling a huge weight on me to get my house in order. My goal is going to be getting this house ready to sell, even if it's not going to be for awhile still. Josh was actually contemplating getting a POD in our driveway so we could redo the entire upstairs. We need to replace the carpet, either with new carpet or laminate wood. I think we'd probably go with carpet, but wood would be sweet. We also need to repaint the whole upstairs. Anyone in for some manual labor??? :)
Alright, so I guess I should start doing some of this work I'm talking about. Writing it in a blog won't get it done. Damn.
Thursday, January 10, 2008
Happy New Year!
Ok, so it's already the 10th.
Well, to catch everyone up on my EXCITING life:
We had a great Christmas. It was one of those really meaningful ones for me for some reason. Not too much going on to enjoy the people I was with. We started out at the Chilcotts on Christmas Eve and did the annual prime rib dinner followed by some present action. Their gift to us was a trip to Disneyland in March. Woohoo! We opened presents in the morning at our house. The kids were pretty stoked that the "reindeer" chewed up and spit out their carrots all over the yard. We headed over to the Macs after that for the real Christmas. :) It was great. Our big present from my parents and Papa & Connie was a trip to a house in Sunriver for a week in June. I can't wait! We went to see "Water Horse" afterwards. Cute movie. Cheesy as heck, but cute.
We spent New Years at the Strauss' party. Lauren and Hayden stayed at Gramma Sue and Papa Jim's overnight. Kate came with us. She's a party animal.
Since then, we've just been catching up. The kids finally went back to school on the 7th. Christmas vacation is WAY too long in my opinion.
Hayden got a dirtbike for Christmas, so he and Josh have been riding it around the neighborhood. He can do it by himself now, which is good, but freaks me out. Josh took him last weekend to get his gear. He has a helmet, gloves, boots, shirt, pants, knee pads, elbow pads and a collar. He looks like a power ranger when he's in all of it. Pretty hilarious.
Lauren is completley obsessed with her new ipod. They watch a movie on it in her bed every night before bed. It's so cute.
Josh is getting into the groove of his new job. It's so nice to actually eat dinner together again.
Everyone is really enjoying Kate. She's an awesome and really funny baby. She LOVES the tv. I can set her down on the floor and she'll "watch" it for 10 minutes or so. She talks to it and smiles. She's even been sleeping on and off through the night. The other day, she went to bed at 11pm and didn't wake up until 9am. She woke up happy and didn't even want to eat until after 10. I kept wondering if she was ok, but she was fine! Really, besides being a little on the barfy side, she's perfect! The cloth diaper thing has really proven itself to me. I was using up some disposables that I found in one of the hand me down bins from Emily. She instantly got a little rash and woke up several times during the night. The minute I went back to her cloth, she was back to normal. It's a little more work for sure, and she doesn't fit into her clothes very well with the J-Lo butt, but it's totally worth it and I feel good about not needing to upsize my trash can.
I just found out that my sister in law Jessica is pregnant. This is not totally good news. She's kind of a looney and has all sorts of health issues. I'm happy for her because she and her husband have been trying for awhile, but I'm also nervous about what kind of freaky child they will have.
Well, I'm off to do more laundry. It's never ending around here. I'm blessed to have a warm house with a laundry room in it. I would be a really unhappy person if I had to use a laundromat for all this laundry.
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