Giveaway at Green Fairy Quilts

Here's the link to her blog post about it.

Green Fairy Quilts Blog

What's your definition of Veteran?

It seems that there are many definitions of what a Veteran is. To me a Veteran will always be that soldier who fights on foreign soil to protect our freedoms. Why you might ask do I believe a Veteran is one who has done at least one tour of duty? That is simple. Anyone can join the Army and do their time and then get out. Avoiding deployment for whatever reason. Can you really say that those who choose certain jobs knowing they won't deploy are veterans? How can they watch their brothers and sisters sacrifice all going off to war while they stay home on their comfy couch out of harms way? Shame on them. Those soldiers whose courage and honor give them the strength to leave family and loved ones at home while to protect the great USA. While they are sad, lonely, and not necessarily wanting to go off to war their sacrifice will always be felt by those who appreciate their service.

Also, thank you to the many families who sacrifice so much as they support their soldiers while they are off fighting in a foreign land. You are also not forgotten. I know all too well the hardships of deployment and the sacrifices families make.

God Bless our true Veterans and their families!

Commentary: It’s time again to count the cost of freedom

(click the above title for a link to the article.)

By Joe Galloway | McClatchy Newspapers

Veterans Day has come around again, as it does every fall, arriving with a new crispness in the air, the woods painted in glorious color and the days of a year that seemed new just yesterday now dwindled to a precious few.

If none of those signs had signaled its arrival, the advertising of big sales at the malls would have reminded those without more personal and less commercial ties to military service.

In this year, the last living British veteran of World War I died. The last American combat veteran of The Great War died in 2007 at age 108. The last of the Greatest Generation veterans of World War II, who once numbered some 15 million and changed the face of this nation, are slipping away fast now. The veterans of Korea, the forgotten war, are fading away, too. The ranks of more than 3 million who served in the Vietnam War are thinning out, as well.

Our ongoing wars in Iraq and Afghanistan are contributing a smaller but steady stream of new veterans joining the ranks. Political and military leaders are analyzing and deciding on a future course in Afghanistan that could lock us into years more of combat and many more new veterans.

Military service today, however, is reserved for the few who volunteer, unlike the days of big wars and conscription or the draft, which filled the ranks with millions of young men.

Today in this nation of 300 million, fewer than 1 percent wear the uniform, and, with their families, bear all the burdens and sacrifice of protecting and defending the rest of us who give little thought to those who pay the price for our freedom.

It isn't right, and it certainly isn't what those bold revolutionaries who ripped a continent out of the hands of a king at the risk of their own lives and property intended for the nation they created.

The least the rest of us can do is show a bit of gratitude and respect for our veterans, old and new, and for those serving under our flag today on foreign fields of battle. They don't start the wars. That's up to the political chicken hawks who so proudly and loudly bang the drums and march the sons and daughters of other, quieter citizens off to bloody battle.

If there were a fair and equitable requirement for national service — if the chicken hawks had some skin in the game — I wonder if they'd vote differently on those resolutions enabling and paying for wars without end. You seldom hear old soldiers prescribing war as a solution for anything.

Today's wars are bringing home hundreds of thousands of new veterans in dire need of jobs, education, medical and mental health care and a warm welcome home to a nation grateful for all that they've so selflessly given.

More than 30 percent of returning combat veterans, many of whom have served two or three or four or more combat tours, are in need of skilled counseling for post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Others are victims of traumatic brain injury (TBI) from the blasts of the enemy’s powerful homemade mines and bombs. Still others have lost arms and legs.

We owe them not only respect, but also the best medical care this nation can provide, although that's a less popular a vote for the drum-banging warmongers on Capitol Hill than any measure to dole out billions for the latest defense industry boondoggle.

The same Pentagon bean counters who happily rubber-stamp more no-bid contracts for contractors who've been stealing millions or billions for years also concoct plans to raise the fees and co-pays for veterans' health care insurance.

They also pressure military doctors to search for some pre-existing mental health issue so they can deny a PTSD claim and throw a soldier out the door with no health benefits.

Shame on them for doing that. Shame on us for letting them get away with it.

Veterans Day is just around the corner. Think about what that means besides bargain day at the mall. Think about whom we owe big-time. Write or call your Congress critter and offer him early retirement if he or she isn't voting right on these issues.

If you hear a band playing or read about a small ceremony honoring veterans, go there and say thank you to the men and women who have given so much for your rights and freedoms. It will bring a tear to their eyes.

Ft Knox Army Wives - Monthly Get-together/Craft Exchange?

Hello everyone,

I posted this on a couple sites and I wanted to put it here for those who aren't part of the same groups.

I was just thinking about this today. A Yahoo group I am a part of used to do a monthly get-together and I was just wondering any of you would be interested in doing that. Maybe one day out of the month we can get-together for lunch (kiddos invited of course!).

I was also wondering if anyone would be interested in doing a quilt block exchange or? (Maybe we can exchange them at the monthly luncheon?) We'd need a few people to be interested in doing it for it to work. I had a couple ideas:

1. Quilt block exchange: My idea was to make 8 inch block with whatever design/color you like. Something that represents you. Then a coinciding white 8" square of material talking about yourself, signed, and e-mail address to go with the block for the back of the quilt.

2. Scrap Fabric Exchange: Everyone brings 1 or 2 (amount will be determined if we decide to do this) fat quarter size pieces of scrap fabric that you don't know what to do with and it is the person who receives it's job to make something interesting with it. This would be a 2 luncheon project.

3. Small Holiday Craft Exchange: Set price (say no more than $5) and you have to make something featuring the given holiday that month.

4. Kid Crafts: What is your best craft idea that you do with your kids? Maybe you could bring and example and instructions for everyone.

I'm sure we have tons of crafty people out there of all levels of experience. You might know how to quilt, but know nothing of crocheting. It will be a great way to teach others while we also get to know each other. Something we as Army Wives can pass on to the next base we go to.

Amanda

What A Week!

Wow, I am so glad this week is over! Well, I guess it started 2 weeks ago. Victoria had diarrhea after having eaten some ice cream and got what I thought was a small diaper rash bump on her bottom. It looked like an itty bitty pimple for about 2 days then went away (or so I thought). Well, Sunday evening I changed her diaper and it was back, only 3 times the size. I didn't feel like going to the ER so I figured after I dropped Tom off at the airport Monday morning I'd just call and schedule an appt. Ha Ha. I called the appt line 3 times and each time there were 20+ people ahead of me. So I figured I'd just stop at the hospital and go talk to them instead of going on home. Well, no appts that day so I just walked over to the ER and waited. Luckily it was only a little over 2 hours for the entire ER stay. The docter said it looked like a boil or absess so he scheduled an appt for the surgical clinic the next morning. Ugh...had to reschedule my dentist appt because getting her in was more important. So we go wait an hour for her medicine and I finally get home around 12:45pm (mind you I've been up since 5:15 so far). So now I'm a bit worried for her and on top of that I am alone...Tom is in Alabama at school and I have to deal with this. So I pick myself up and deal with it because that is they only logical option I have. Well, needless to say Victoria decides to stay up until midnight. Thankfully my parents are watching Gabriel and his parents are watching Katheryn (though this makes me even more lonely). So Tuesday rolls around and go to the Surgical Clinic. Thankfully I brought the papers from the ER because they didn't see where they had an appt for her. The doc was really nice though. He tried to schedule it in the OR so that Victoria would be able to be more comfortable (not put to sleep, but just made a bit sleepy). The anestesiologist was ok with it because he had done this before, but hospital rules say...nope, no one under one. Ok so on to plan b. Oh I guess I should say that they are going to take a scalple and poke a small hole in the absess to drain it and take a culture. *Insert Amanda getting nasueus.* Well, they put some lydocane gell on it and do it (with me standing outside the door because I'd probably pass out). End result...no puss inside...apparently it had all drained out already. Ugh. Oh, I guess now would be a good time to say that Victoria had never once cried or complained when I changed her diapers which is why I didn't think it was anything too bad (well until it came back). Even after having this done they warned me she'd be really sensitive and would fuss when I went to change her diaper and that I should expect blood on her diaper (so me the worrier was expecting a lot). Well, I was worried for nothing. There was barely more than you would have if you gave blood and she never once cried not even the first time I changed her diaper afterwards. She has never once acted like it has bothered her. So Friday I took her for her follow-ups with pediatric and surgical clinics. You can barely tell that anything has happened to her there. It's almost 100% healed. Oh and the only time she has fussed about it (aside from when he did it) is when he went to check it at the follow-up.

Oh and I'd also like to say that the best way to get an appt is NOT by calling the appt line. Instead go straight in to the clinic. When I went in on Monday to make her follow-up appt with the pediatric docter, I asked about making a well-baby appt (well, if I needed to make one for 9 months because I was scatterbrained). They said yes and that she had an opening at 2 (it was around 9:45), but that she could see me then. So I was back seeing the regular doctor within 10 minutes of asking! I was surprised because I usually had to wait. There's always a loop hole, you just have to find it. The almost 10 month well-baby went great! Victoria still is eating every 2 - 3 hours (unless I substitute with regular food) and giving me maybe a 4 or 6 hour break at night, but that is normal! I am so lucky to have a doctor (well nurse practitioner) that promotes breastfeeding and reassures me that my baby's is normal. (The first one I had with Gabriel was horrible.)

Oh and my dentist appt went great again! No cavities! Woo Hoo!

Kiddos, Updates, and Ponderings

So, wow summer break is almost over. Gabriel starts school on Wednesday...why Wed...I have no clue. Crazy if you ask me, but they never do. I'm both dreading and looking forward to it. Gabriel is looking forward to it. He has a great teacher (I used to work with her when I worked there before kiddos). I asked him if he was looking forward to school...he said "Yes, so I can get away from you." Wow...brave kid. LOL Apparently I'm too strict, unlike his grandparents. Oh well.

Katheryn is talking non-stop now. She is a princess and will twirl everywhere. (seriously) We are not allowed to call Victoria (Tora as Katheryn has named her) a princess or Katheryn will have a fit. So she is Tinkerbelle (with Katheryn's approval).

Victoria is growing like a weed! She's pulling herself up and standing on things and she'll move if she's in the corner from one side to another, but that's the extent of her walking. She talks at home, but when we go out she puts her serious face on and studies everything. She's going to be my mastermind.

We finished the Pergola yesterday. YAY! Now I get to go get some furniture so we have somewhere to sit. We've figured that since we'll be moving around alot that we're just going to get some stackable chairs and a couple side tables. I'll post a picture as soon as we get everything done.

So something that I read recently and something my neighbor said sparked me thinking about people in general. There are alot of people who for one reason or another have to have every aspect of their lives scheduled. My neighbor recently lost her husband suddenly (killed in a motorcycle accident), said that she never realized how short life was and that you never know when you might die and that she has now just stopped worrying about alot of other things and has been spending more time with their 1 yr old daughter and enjoying the time she has with her. It is sad how tragety causes us to open our eyes to what we have been overlooking. Having been one of those people, I can see both sides. Maybe it took several people dying and the loss of a baby to realize how short and precious life is. The last 7 years I have really changed who I am and have "grown up". LOL I'll admit I was extremely selfish and things had to be my way and I couldn't see past my own nose to really enjoy things. That is one thing I regret when my son was a baby. I tried to make him fit my idea of a schedule in my head that I wanted. I was too busy trying to make sure I stayed to the schedule that I didn't have time to relax. Yes, I enjoyed the time with him, we had fun, but I always felt something was missing. I felt so pressured by "experts" that I tried to make him fit their idea of what he should be doing. After about 6 months, I kinda gave up because I was discouraged. I couldn't take a step back and see he had his own way of doing things. Having lost a baby really changed me. As hard as it was it caused me to take a step back and open my eyes. When I had Katheryn, I decided that I wasn't going to take the short time she was a baby for granted. I took a step back and let her set her routine and then I would tweak it here and there if we were going to do something (I knew she ate every 2 - 3 hours so if we were going to be somewhere I would start feeding her where she would eat right before I left for whatever it was I was doing). She probably started giving me 6 hours of sleep when she started eating solids. So I would give her some cereal and fruit before she went to bed. So, because the feeding on demand and a free flowing schedule worked so good with Katheryn, I have been doing the same for Victoria. Maybe I'm crazy, but this is what works for us. I guess what I'm really wondering is why it always takes tragedy to open our eyes to what we are missing? I've just been thinking about that alot lately. Ugh...

On another note, Tom had another test done (I forget what it's called, but it's where they poke you with needles to listen to your nerve) and has talked with the new specialist. It looks like he is going to have to undergo exploritory surgery on his shoulder to see what damage he has to his nerve. They have it pinpointed to a section of the nerve. The doctor told him though that he's going to have a nerologist in the OR with him because of the unknown damage. He was told he had 1 of 3 possible outcomes: 1) he'll regain movement in his arm/shoulder, 2) nothing will change, or 3) lose movement in his arm/shoulder. We're aiming for #1 with a stop to his pain. We are just waiting on a call back from his doctor with a date for surgery. Ugh!