Tuesday, October 14, 2008

Full Moon and Fall Nights...


I love the fall, the colors, the fog, the crisp mornings where you don't want to get out of bed...

I miss the nights of sitting around the campfire looking at the full moon, and climbing into a tent and waking to the brightness in the middle of the night...The cold air in the tent and just barely being able to see your breath...

Can you tell I want to go camping? I just can't bring myself to go with the kids in tow!

Monday, October 13, 2008

Apples Anyone?


Not much to report, we cut the day short and didn't get many apples or a pumpkin... but we will go back soon!


Saturday, October 11, 2008

Went Fishing... But Came Home Without Supper...

We spent our Saturday in the mountains, on an adventure/fishing trip...


We once again are coming home without supper.

Walking away from the river empty handed, I decided something... I apparently need to get a fishing license and show the Gittings men how fishing should be done ;o)

It became clear today that summer really is over and that fall has arrived. The autumn colors have started to appear, and falling leaves are making an appearance everywhere you turn...





While we were hiking out, as dusk and then dark fell we saw this little guy... do you see him? We saw a few more of his friends on the path as we tried to get out before all the light was gone... (Oh did I forget to mention that it was well after dark when we got back to the truck? Yeah.)

Friday, October 10, 2008

Will This Election Be Rigged?

Excuse me as I climb onto my soapbox...

I had made a promise to myself not to get political on my blog. I made this blog about my family and the moments of our lives and the stuff that effects us/influences us...

Unfortunately, the current government and the past 20+years of it has effected us, and has become a daily problem for our family. It influences our daily lives; it influences everything from our finances, and whether or not we can afford to keep our home, to our health coverage for the family (or lack there of) and our choices for the care of our family... (meaning vaccinations, eastern medicine, holistic choices, whether or not we even see a pediatrician, midwives VS OBGYNs, homebirth vs hospital, etc)

Carl and I even struggled with obtaining a SSN for Canyon. It would have been so easy to start that walk towards going "off the grid". Why do babies need SSNs? Why isn't that something they should apply for as they become adults?

I have 3 boys, all of whom may be forced to fight in "wars" that our country declares on others when we aren't threatened. I lay here in fear that more than a "back door draft" will be in place as my children grow older. That the concept of "Manifest Destiany" that our country has followed will continue and lead us to more wars, more confrontations, and more death.

We have a public school system that is "dumbing down" our children and breeding an entire generation of soldiers and followers. I struggle daily as to what I am going to do in this coming year for Rory's schooling. I have a 4YO who is already starting to read phonically. Something that the kindergartens don't necessarily teach. Most children in NC starting Kindergarten don't even recognize the entire alphabet or their names.

Lately, I have been trying to watch politics and make a decision as to who/what I want in our national government, and I have to say that I almost don't want to vote. I said this out-loud to Carl and Rory (to whom we have stressed the importance of voting and democracy) over heard and responded with"But mom, you have to (vote)!"

My response to Rory was, "You are right, if I don't vote, I don't get a say, but if I do vote, I don't have a say either..."

I have voted in the past two elections, but like the majority off Americans, my vote was not taken into consideration. Bush was appointed to office even though he was not elected. Those elections were fixed.

I am to the point that I am literally depressed and sickened over the electoral process in our country. Nothing that the American People say or do matters. We are discounted, ignored, dismissed...

Our country is following the path that other countries followed as they fell into fascist governments and dictatorships.

There are 14 main points of fascism. (http://www.secularhumanism.org/library/fi/britt_23_2.htm)
1. Powerful and continuing expressions of nationalism. From the prominent displays of flags and bunting to the ubiquitous lapel pins, the fervor to show patriotic nationalism, both on the part of the regime itself and of citizens caught up in its frenzy, was always obvious. Catchy slogans, pride in the military, and demands for unity were common themes in expressing this nationalism. It was usually coupled with a suspicion of things foreign that often bordered on xenophobia.

2. Disdain for the importance of human rights. The regimes themselves viewed human rights as of little value and a hindrance to realizing the objectives of the ruling elite. Through clever use of propaganda, the population was brought to accept these human rights abuses by marginalizing, even demonizing, those being targeted. When abuse was egregious, the tactic was to use secrecy, denial, and disinformation.

3. Identification of enemies/scapegoats as a unifying cause. The most significant common thread among these regimes was the use of scapegoating as a means to divert the people’s attention from other problems, to shift blame for failures, and to channel frustration in controlled directions. The methods of choice—relentless propaganda and disinformation—were usually effective. Often the regimes would incite “spontaneous” acts against the target scapegoats, usually communists, socialists, liberals, Jews, ethnic and racial minorities, traditional national enemies, members of other religions, secularists, homosexuals, and “terrorists.” Active opponents of these regimes were inevitably labeled as terrorists and dealt with accordingly.

4. The supremacy of the military/avid militarism. Ruling elites always identified closely with the military and the industrial infrastructure that supported it. A disproportionate share of national resources was allocated to the military, even when domestic needs were acute. The military was seen as an expression of nationalism, and was used whenever possible to assert national goals, intimidate other nations, and increase the power and prestige of the ruling elite.

5. Rampant sexism. Beyond the simple fact that the political elite and the national culture were male-dominated, these regimes inevitably viewed women as second-class citizens. They were adamantly anti-abortion and also homophobic. These attitudes were usually codified in Draconian laws that enjoyed strong support by the orthodox religion of the country, thus lending the regime cover for its abuses.

6. A controlled mass media. Under some of the regimes, the mass media were under strict direct control and could be relied upon never to stray from the party line. Other regimes exercised more subtle power to ensure media orthodoxy. Methods included the control of licensing and access to resources, economic pressure, appeals to patriotism, and implied threats. The leaders of the mass media were often politically compatible with the power elite. The result was usually success in keeping the general public unaware of the regimes’ excesses.

7. Obsession with national security. Inevitably, a national security apparatus was under direct control of the ruling elite. It was usually an instrument of oppression, operating in secret and beyond any constraints. Its actions were justified under the rubric of protecting “national security,” and questioning its activities was portrayed as unpatriotic or even treasonous.

8. Religion and ruling elite tied together. Unlike communist regimes, the fascist and protofascist regimes were never proclaimed as godless by their opponents. In fact, most of the regimes attached themselves to the predominant religion of the country and chose to portray themselves as militant defenders of that religion. The fact that the ruling elite’s behavior was incompatible with the precepts of the religion was generally swept under the rug. Propaganda kept up the illusion that the ruling elites were defenders of the faith and opponents of the “godless.” A perception was manufactured that opposing the power elite was tantamount to an attack on religion.

9. Power of corporations protected. Although the personal life of ordinary citizens was under strict control, the ability of large corporations to operate in relative freedom was not compromised. The ruling elite saw the corporate structure as a way to not only ensure military production (in developed states), but also as an additional means of social control. Members of the economic elite were often pampered by the political elite to ensure a continued mutuality of interests, especially in the repression of “have-not” citizens.

10. Power of labor suppressed or eliminated. Since organized labor was seen as the one power center that could challenge the political hegemony of the ruling elite and its corporate allies, it was inevitably crushed or made powerless. The poor formed an underclass, viewed with suspicion or outright contempt. Under some regimes, being poor was considered akin to a vice.

11. Disdain and suppression of intellectuals and the arts. Intellectuals and the inherent freedom of ideas and expression associated with them were anathema to these regimes. Intellectual and academic freedom were considered subversive to national security and the patriotic ideal. Universities were tightly controlled; politically unreliable faculty harassed or eliminated. Unorthodox ideas or expressions of dissent were strongly attacked, silenced, or crushed. To these regimes, art and literature should serve the national interest or they had no right to exist.

12. Obsession with crime and punishment. Most of these regimes maintained Draconian systems of criminal justice with huge prison populations. The police were often glorified and had almost unchecked power, leading to rampant abuse. “Normal” and political crime were often merged into trumped-up criminal charges and sometimes used against political opponents of the regime. Fear, and hatred, of criminals or “traitors” was often promoted among the population as an excuse for more police power.

13. Rampant cronyism and corruption. Those in business circles and close to the power elite often used their position to enrich themselves. This corruption worked both ways; the power elite would receive financial gifts and property from the economic elite, who in turn would gain the benefit of government favoritism. Members of the power elite were in a position to obtain vast wealth from other sources as well: for example, by stealing national resources. With the national security apparatus under control and the media muzzled, this corruption was largely unconstrained and not well understood by the general population.

14. Fraudulent elections. Elections in the form of plebiscites or public opinion polls were usually bogus. When actual elections with candidates were held, they would usually be perverted by the power elite to get the desired result. Common methods included maintaining control of the election machinery, intimidating and disenfranchising opposition voters, destroying or disallowing legal votes, and, as a last resort, turning to a judiciary beholden to the power elite.

Can you see where I am going with this and why I am freaking out? Does it make sense to anyone else?

I am not someone who typically stands in fear of things that may happen, or worries about unforseen things... my problem is that these things are not unforseen and are becoming a reality.

Here in NC, if I vote for anyone who is not "approved" for the general election ballot, my entire ballot will be discarded (ie thrown away). So I am left with only 3 choices: Obama (a socialist), McCain (a war monger with demintia), Barr (who really only offers a little main stream change). No Green Party Canidate, no Constitutionlist Party Canidate... no one that I would actually feel is making a difference or a move towards what I see as a government that is what we were founded on.

Our founding fathers are jumping in their graves watching what is happening. We are dismissing the past, ignoring the present, and dooming ourselves for the future.

The next 10 years or so are going to be a WILD RIDE, and at this point, all we can do, short of a Revolution/Civil War, is sit back, hang on, and try to survive and pray for the best.

But I really ask, at what point are we as a nation going to WAKE THE HELL UP and start standing up for ourselves?

Thursday, October 9, 2008

Been at the hospital for the last 2 days...

Not Solid, but off and on with Joyce. She is having some "health" issues. I'm not up to reporting on it. I'll update later. But she and the baby look normal and great according to the doctors.

Tuesday, October 7, 2008

ARGGGGGGGGGGGG...

My sewing machine is not working at all now.

I'm not done the costumes, so I need to find a machine to borrow. I'll have to ask at church tomorrow night. (Insert a photo of a mom pulling her hair out.) I still have one chap and Rory's duster. I think I was "frugal" enough when cutting that I have enough to make the baby chaps and a vest too.

The machine is skipping stitches, jamming between stitches and pulling the material all of a sudden. And breaking needles. I wonder if it is the timing? Doesn't matter, no money to go get it fixed.

Monday, October 6, 2008

I am a slacker.

Yup. I have slacked on photos.

I am trying to get laundry and the winter/summer clothing swap finished up... I hope it will only be another day or two, but with the kids (hubbie included) being sick, things are slow going.

We did go to the chiro today. I LOVE TODD STONE. I want to shout it from the roof tops! Carl knows it too. I went in today with my back so bad that I wasn't able to lean over. I have been sleeping on the floor of the living room b/c it is so bad.

Well I left feeling like I could run a marathon!

The boys all had adjustments too. Arden was WAY off, mostly from his fall a few weeks ago. It had him all kinds of funky. Everyone seems happier now. So, YEY for Todd. He rocks the house!

Sunday, October 5, 2008

No Fish for You...

Rory went fishing with Carl and Vince. They went to Cherokee to get some equipment and made a day of it.

Here is the thing... No bites. Not one fish. Nothing. Nada.

Well I think Vince might have caught one little fish...

Here is my speculation, the screaming, splashing 4YO scared them off.

Saturday, October 4, 2008

Late night children...

So last night, the boys didn't sleep.

First it was Arden. He came to our room screaming and crying. It continued for hours. First our heads were on the wrong side of the bed, then the baby was in the wrong place, then he had the wrong pillow, then the wrong sippy cup, then we we all positioned wrong on the bed...

Eventually he passed out on a pillow on the floor. It was dreadful, but at least he was asleep...

Fast Forward 1 hour to Rory getting out of bed all flustered and upset. Rory came fumbling into our room, and starts screaming "WHAT IS THAT?!?!?!?!?! WHAT IS ON THE FLOOR???" Apparently he thought that there was 1.) a wild animal in our room, or 2.) a monster. I told him it was his brother and he said "Oh, ok." And then got into the bed with me, which set off another fit from Arden who woke in the meantime.

Of course Carl slept through most of it. And our bed is SO NOT BIG ENOUGH for all 5 of us. I just want to say that.

Friday, October 3, 2008

Rory is half done...

Well, his costume is, lol.

One chap, his vest, and his shirt are ready, just the belt, chap and duster left.

Thursday, October 2, 2008

Costumes have begun...

The older two boys are going to be Wyatt Earp (Rory) and Davey Crockett (Arden).

Both boys will have vests and chaps from this pattern:


Rory's will be dark brown and no fringe. Arden's will be a light cream with black fringe.

Rory will also get this jacket in dark brown with cream shoulders:


So far I cut out Rory's Chaps and Vest, and got the vest pinned. I will do more tomorrow night. I hope they like the costumes!

I think I might try to find a horse costume for the baby... or an Indian.

Wednesday, October 1, 2008

Where do little boys get this?

The boys get to watch PBS in the mornings while I make food and get ready for the day. I'm not proud of it, but hey, at least it is educational.

Today they are watching Sesame Street and learning the letter of the day. Here is my conversation with Rory:

"Hey Mom! The letter of the day is "B" today."

"Oh yeah? B like Beautiful?"

"Yeah, like that."

"What are some other "B" words?"

LONG pause, to which I said, "Well, if I am a girl, you are a...?"

Another pause, and then the reply...

"A BUTT! That starts with B!!! If you are a girl, I am a BUTT" (Followed by hysterical laughter from Rory.)

Where in the world do they get this stuff?

Tuesday, September 30, 2008

I did it!!

I actually made a blog a day for an entire month! WHOO HOO! I am going to try to keep it up for this coming month as well~

Not much to report today. Nothing out of the ordinary.

Carl went to a screening for a new movie that will be coming out soon.

I did laundry. Oh and by the way, the weather man is full of poopoo. There WAS a chance of rain, and it DID get my clothes wet.

Monday, September 29, 2008

No Rest for the Weary

Well, last night followed the same pattern as the last few nights: no sleep for me.

I got a phone call sometime before 5, (it was early enough I am surprised I made it to the phone). It was Joyce, telling me that she was in labor, or at least that she thought she was... I convinced her that if she was in labor she should call the OB, and get things ready to go to the hospital.

So, I crawl out of bed, somehow make it to the bathroom, brush my teeth, get ready, get the baby in his car seat ready to go, and tell Carl that I am heading to the hospital. By now it is about 4:45 or so.

He groggily responded with "You have to take Canyon with you!"

My response was "Well duh?!" I mean does he think I thought he grew a boob or something?

About 5:15am I got to the hospital, just before Joyce, and we spent the majority of our day there.

No baby.

She wasn't in labor. Her labor was not stalled but wasn't working like it needed to. Since she is still only 36 weeks they decided after about 10 hours, to let her go home and come back if/when it picks up/really starts. I think this was a great decision. Babies need to bake in the oven as long as possible!

Joyce wanted to encourage the labor and walked like 7 miles of stairs and hall, and did what she could, but that little bugger just needs some more time to bake. (Good thing in my opinion). Man are my legs and back KILLING me. I better at least get a toned butt out of this.

So no baby, but great blood pressure, good on-going BH (early practice) contractions, and a great heartbeat!

This little one will be making his or her appearance very soon! Here is her belly right after her first "strip" was taken.


Here are a few more:





Sunday, September 28, 2008

No pics today...

BUT I will have some tomorrow. I've been in a mild funk.

No sleep again last night. This time it was all me, and I don't know why.

I have WAY TOO MANY CLOTHES for this family. Anyone want to come thin it out and de-stash for me? Pretty Please?

Blah. Done folding and sorting for tonight.

Hopefully I will be starting Halloween Costumes tomorrow. Wyatt Earp and Davey Crockett.

Saturday, September 27, 2008

Pooped.

No sleep last night either. Arden decided it was his turn to stay up all night.

Carl got home this evening.

Maybe now I can sleep?

Friday, September 26, 2008

Freaking the Heck Out!

Ok, so last night at like 1-2am Rory had an accident in bed and came in to sleep with me since I can't change his bed with Arden asleep on the bottom bunk, no biggie. (But him having an accident is V E R Y unusual, especially since he went potty before bed.)

Well at like 3-4am, I hear the TV in our kitchen come on (there is no remote or anything for that TV, the part in the TV that the remote points at broke). It was really loud, so I know I didn't leave it on or anything.

I get out of bed to chase Arden back into his bed, figuring it was him. He has this habit of turning on TVs when he gets up...

It W A S N ' T him!!!!!! I'm freaking the hell out! There isn't anyone in the house, I checked. (And Carl is out of town).

And the SCARY part is what was on TV. It was tuned to the local Christian Channel with a preacher talking about what happened to the Jews just prior to the Holocaust.

Needless to say, I haven't slept.

The conspiracy theorist / paranoid person in me says it is a warning... There is so much similarity between Germany at that time and what is going on here...

It may have been nothing... But there is NO way for it to have turned on, no pets to hit it, no kids out there...

I am freaking the hell out!

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
ETA: After going in to clean the bed, there was no accident... not sure what happened there.

Thursday, September 25, 2008

PaPa Larry Came to Visit...

This morning PaPa Larry came by for a short visit. He was bearing gifts... well bearing gas... which is appreciated much more than toys.

He ran around with us here are there, and has now left, but the boys had a great time with him as always. I hope he stops by again soon. The visits are too far apart.


Wednesday, September 24, 2008

How far from animals are we?

So exactly what separates us from animals? From acting on basic instincts rather than thinking about our actions? Is it DNA or the fact that our brains are slightly more developed? Or is it that we are fat and happy?

That thin line that is keeping us above the animal kingdom is starting to blur. This gas shortage has people on the edge, ready to dive over the line. People are fighting while waiting in 3-4 hours lines for gasoline, taking baseball bats to each other, stealing gasoline from yards, drilling holes in gas tanks, and threatening to kill fellow humans.

What are we going to do when the real issues start. When there are food shortages, when there is no medical care, when there are no jobs, no money, no water? Because it is coming. This is just practice...

Scary isn't it?

Here are so photos from my drive around town. Most every station was out of gas, those that had gas ran out in hours. Lines were MILES long, and blocked the main lanes of traffic. Even stores were closed b/c of the shortage. I just heard on the news a local college is closed b/c of the shortage.









Tuesday, September 23, 2008

The Gas Shortage and Spending Crunch...

Most people aren't aware, but here in NC we are out of gas. Just a few stations are open, and the lines are literally hours long!

It make absolutely no sense. Other areas that are fed by the same pipeline are fine. It is just us...

Well, it means tightening the purse strings even more. No more fun trips unless they are to the store for a necessity, no more special treats...

We as a country really need to think about our daily habits. We drive and "go" too much. We consume too much. We teach our children to want too much. It is just too much.

We need to make serious changes... It isn't about more regulations from the government, it is about less government regulations, less dependency and more conscious decisions.

Monday, September 22, 2008

Kleptos, Car Rides, and Contusions...

Yup, that summarizes our day.

My Father-in-law decided to pick today to become a klepto. He up and stole Carl's wallet. Seriously.


Ok, so he isn't really a kleptomaniac, my husband left his wallet on the table and it is remarkably similar to DadDad's wallet, so he grabbed the wrong one and headed over to work. Needless to say he was quite disappointed at the amount of cash (or lack there of) in the wallet!

We left the house in a rush to get on the road and get the wallet. Carl had to catch an airplane in Charlotte in the AM, so time was of the utmost importance.

Well, Canyon had other ideas. After the first few hours, he decided that the car ride was not going to be comfortable for anyone. We stopped at every single exit for a good portion of Virginia. At one rest area, there was an unexpected turn of events...

Arden decided that walking wasn't enough fun, so he began to run down a handicap ramp towards the lower sidewalk. As you can imagine (and guess from the title) that this didn't go so well for him... These were taken after the dent popped back out.




We got to the Erwin Walmart as it closed and got 5 containers for gasoline. WNC is out of gas so bad that I had to get Carl and some friends enough gas to get them to and from work tomorrow. I drove from our house to Hendersonville to take Joyce and Mario some much needed gasoline at 5am this morning.

On our drive home, cops (or "the law" as another passer-by called them) were lined up at the few gas stations who had gas, it looked like martial law was in effect in Asheville.

We did finally end our trip about 12.5 hours after it began... not bad for a normally 6 hour trek eh?

Needless to say, I'm sticking around the house for a few weeks.

Sunday, September 21, 2008

The Land of Fairies and Chicken Sharks...

Does anyone else live there? No? Well Grammy and Dad Dad do! We went to Grammy's and DadDad's house on the way home from the festival.

They live in a land adorned with fairies...



Of course we did some fishing in the land of fairies...


And while we were fishing, we came across the amazing "chicken sharks"... Now what are chicken sharks you may ask... well, they are sharks that eat Grammy's chicken for dinner...

Ok, and now that you are totally confused... here is our bait:


And here are the sharks:



We had a great time!




We also went to the play ground!



After a day of enchanted fish and fairies, the children decided when and where to go to sleep...

Saturday, September 20, 2008

American Whitewater's Gauley River Festival

We made it up to the G-Fest for the weekend and as usual, it did not fail to impress!

Boats, boats, gear, and more boats! The funny thing is that Arden cannot pass by a boat without stopping to touch it and sit in it. (As you can imagine, it makes for a long walk at the festival!)

We stopped and saw Paul and MK at the PS booth...



We were lucky enough to hang out at the Jackson Kayaks area and meet EJ and his family. Congratulations to the newest member of their family, and I can say for sure, the smallest visitor to the festival! K.C. is beautiful! The are a blessed family for sure.

Rory and Arden (and Canyon) played most of the day on the kayaks and with Dane as I made burgers to feed the masses.

Thank you to the Jackson Family for the hospitality and for the tee shirts!