Tennesssee

Amy (my sister) picked us up at 5am on Friday. We started out with 5 kids and 2 adults in the mini van and Kerry (my sister's SO) and his friend, Mike, in the U-Haul behind us. We didn't really get on the road til around 6-6:30am. The first stop that we made, about 2 hours into the trip, my nephew Dante went and road in the U-Haul with his dad and stayed there until we got to Tennessee - which I'm sure made for a more peaceful ride (lol). It took us around 17 hours to get to her house in Milan, TN (about 1.5-2 hours northeast of Memphis). Her kids slept almost the entire time. My niece, Ariana was awake for maybe 2 hours total (lol). Maddox took a half hour nap around 7am and then fell asleep again at 7pm until we got to Tennessee and then went back to bed around 12:30-1am. Faye slept most of the time and I fed and changed her every two hours. She even slept really great that night even after sleeping all day long.

We got to her house around 11:30pm and when the boys in the U-Haul got there, we went over to Walmart to get groceries. We didn't do a whole lot while we were there. They have a huge backyard and mostly the kids just played. Amy took me around her little town and we drove up to the biggest city near her (Jackson, TN which is about the size of a small-average sized Mpls suburb). We had Lee's Famous Recipe for lunch on Saturday and Tuesday (for my nephews 8th Birthday) and for Dinner on Sunday night. We had a BBQ at Kerrys friend, Charlie's, house (his family owns Lee's Famous Recipe, the restaurant that Kerry will be working at) on Monday night. Amy's yard has no tree's except a small little area at the very end of it and so I taught Ariana to fly a kite and she did awesome at it. Amy kept her house so cold that I wore a sweater inside and outside the entire time I was there and I gave Faye a bath outside in the little shark pool LOL

My nephew Kaden (Maddox's BFF who is 6mo younger) made me cry on the way too Tennessee when he was crying to his mom that he wanted to go home. Amy said "we are going home, we're on our way" and he cried "no, to my REAL home" meaning here in MN. He made me cry again when we were leaving. Amy wanted to get a picture of the boys hugging. Maddox gave him a huge hug. Normally Kade is the hugger, but he just stood there with his head hanging down and his arms limp at his sides. I got down and wrapped my arms around him, kissed him and started bawling. I still cry when I think about it. I tried to talk Amy into letting me bring him back home with me, but it was a no go!

Amy drove Maddox, Faye, and I out to the Memphis International Airport. We had 1 checked suitcase, a checked car seat, and two carry on backpacks. They helped me get my boarding passes and everything and when I got to security they wouldn't let me through because they never put Faye on the boarding pass. We had to walk back over to the check-in place with no shoes on or anything and they wrote her on the passes with pen. The flight to Atlanta was really fast. 1 hour and 20 minutes and it felt like a half hour.

The Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport sucks and so do all the people in it. When we got off there was a guy calling for transfers. I went up to him and told him that we were going to Minneapolis and needed gate D2. He said "yep, gate D2", I asked where it was and he said Concourse D but was completely unhelpful after that. We got off at Concourse C. I decided I would get Maddox to the potty and change Faye's diaper as she had been in it since before we left for Memphis at 9:30am and it was now 2:30pm. We got to the PACKED bathroom and they have no changing tables. A woman informs me that there is a family bathroom down by a different gate. We go over there and wait for 15min before knocking on the door. The woman asks what we need and I said we needed to use the bathroom. She yells at me that she is changing her sons diaper. We waited for 5 more minutes and went into the regular bathroom so that I could at least get Maddox to go potty. We come back out and the same woman is STILL in the bathroom. There had been a woman waiting in line before us that left and a man that was waiting behind us that was still waiting when we got out of the regular bathroom. I was frustrated that that was the ONLY bathroom that I was going to be able to change her in and cannot figure out how in the world it would take more than 20 minutes to change a kids diaper. A flight attendant that was in the bathroom told me that if I didn't get to our gate, it would close soon. She showed me how to get there. We had to go downstairs and take a train to the next concourse. There were no seats on the train so I had to get Maddox pushed up against the wall of the train and holding on to the rail. There were 4-5 people surrounding him to make sure he stayed put and I had to hold a pole because the thing just took off. The airport was large and hot and full of rude people.

Faye fell asleep right before the plane took off and Maddox fell asleep right after the plane took off. He was mostly unimpressed with the airplanes. He thought it was fun to open and close the window. He watched out the window as we took off and landed and looked out while we were in the sky, but didn't really care. Both kids slept the entire way. Faye was wiggly and fussy, but never really cried.

When we got to Mpls-St Paul International, it took forever for our stuff to come off the baggage claim thing. The car seat was the very last thing to come off and our suit case was around 10-15 suitcases before it and the plane was full. The guy that lined up next to me at the baggage claim said if I had more than one thing, he'd grab it for me, but his suitcase came off right away and he took off. There was another guy that was wondering around and came over to me about half way through the suitcases being dropped down and said he would grab my stuff if I wanted him too. I declined politely. He grabbed his suitcase and said he would stick around if I wanted him to get our stuff, but I said we were fine (Faye was strapped to my chest). Maddox waited very patiently next to a column with our two carry on backpacks and we waved and smiled at each other.

Clayton was just leaving from work in rush hour (which is around 20min during NON-rush hour) when I got off the plane and got there before our bags came down!

Poor little Faye was soaked and smelly half way through our second flight and had to stay that way til we got home :( Yay for Cloth diapers though, she didn't get any diaper rash or anything.

I brought 10 cloth diapers with for the car ride down and changed her every two hours. I planned on using disposables while in TN. I used all of the diapers and put her in a disposable. Changed her once and threw all the diapers in the wash. I used 3 disposable diapers and was done with them and used cloth the rest of the time. I brought about 20 or so disposable diapers and left them for a friend down there who has a 4 week old.

The cool flip down mirror thing - you can see all of us, except Faye.. even the cats!


Kaden


Kerry, Dante, and Mike


Ariana (lol)


Maddox


The clearest pictures of Faelyn that I have


Scooby Doo van in Wisconsin


Lee's Chicken Dinner LOL


The Mall Of Milan.........


Lee's Restaurant


Dante & Ariana's new Elementary School


Pretty self-explanatory... lol




Picture of Amy's house taken from the end of the back yard


Cuties in Boxes!


Ariana's Horses




Faye's Tennessee Bath


(sorry it's so small, a tidbit of baby parts that I didn't want to show)


Kite flying


Miss Smiles


The boys cuddled on the couch


Dante's Birthday at Lee's


Dante and Ariana getting ready for their first day of school


Before the kids left for school


Flying Three Year Olds


Tons O' Cheese with Kaden and Maddox


Memphis International Airport










Memphis to Atlanta




Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport




Atlanta to Minneapolis
Atlanta






Southern Minnesota

Preschool!

Tuesday, September 9th was Maddox first day of Preschool! He was really excited. He did awesome going in and coming out. Mrs. Gellner had all the kids line up behind her an Maddox just took off with giving me a hug. I had to call him back or one and he came, hugged me and lined back up. The majority on the kids parents wanted to walk their kids to class, but I didn't think it was necessary and Maddox wanted his independence. When he came out of class, he was happy to see me and VERY excited to tel me all about his day. It was a kids birthday and the parent sent him/her with a treat for all the kids.



I tried to get a picture of Maddox lined up before class, but all the parents got in the way.

Today I got my hug and was going to walk Maddox to the line and he asked me why! He saw all the other kids holding there parents hands and asked to hold mine. I walked with him to the line and then he walked alone to his class. The other kids parents, again, insisted on walking to class with them. He had a wonderful day again and wanted to show me right away what was in his bag. We talked with our Friends Leah and Berit (and Griffin) before leaving and caught up with another child and mother who lives near us who decided to walk too. Maddox and I had been talking about class and he said he had played cars with two boys but didn't remember their names and it turns out that this boy, Michael, was one of them! He said he likes Michael and wants to play with him, so hopefully something will come out of that.





Grandma & Bepaw Miller got him a First Day of Preschool Card and some cookies!

3 Months!

JCPenney Portraits

We took Faye in this morning to have her pictures taken. Poor little bunny wasn't feeling well though. She was screaming all morning and fine when we left. She was fine when we got there and even smiled when we laid her down, but then she was just upset. We were going to wait, but she was still crying and upset with bright red eyes and she spit up all over her clothes so we rescheduled for next Saturday at 2pm. Hopefully she doesn't have a tummy ache that day.

Some Pictures / 8.19-8.25.2008

Dear Friends:

We hope you will take a moment to help working families stay healthy by supporting breastfeeding mothers in the workplace! We know that breastfeeding is good for mothers, babies, and society:

Studies show that infants who are not breastfed are more likely to be hospitalized for respiratory infections and diarrhea. Breastfeeding protects children from the debilitating diseases of asthma and childhood obesity, potentially decreases the risk of SIDS, and protects mothers from developing breast and ovarian cancer. Breastfeeding has significant economic and environmental benefits for families and society by improving maternal and child health and decreasing or eliminating the need to purchase expensive formula.

Encouraging breastfeeding also benefits employers. Breastfed infants are healthier and therefore parents with breastfed infants have an almost three-fold reduction in absenteeism to care for sick infants. Given all of these benefits, the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, the Maternal and Child Health Bureau of the Health Resources and Services Administration, and the DHHS Office on Women’s Health recommend that infants be exclusively breastfed for six months, and continue to breastfeed for the first year of life and as long afterwards as mutually desired by the mother and infant.

Interest in breastfeeding is at an all-time high—77% of women breastfeed their infants at birth. But breastfeeding rates drop rapidly after hospital discharge. Only 40% of all U.S. infants, including only 20% of African-American infants, are breastfeeding at six months of age.

More than 50% of women with infants less than one year old are in the labor force. Employed mothers are more likely to stop breastfeeding early if they do not receive the support they need in the workplace.

**Tell your Congressperson to co-sponsor H.R. 2236: the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2007!

Forty-seven states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico and the Virgin Islands already have enacted various laws protecting breastfeeding mothers, but they are not uniform and most are not comprehensive. Don’t miss this opportunity to ask your Congressperson to support the Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2007 to provide a unified national policy to keep mothers, their children and their communities healthy.

The Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2007 includes four provisions:

• Amends the Civil Rights Act of 1964 to protect breastfeeding women from being fired or discriminated against in the workplace.
• Provides tax incentives for businesses that establish private lactation areas in the workplace.
• Provides for a performance standard to ensure breast pumps are safe and effective.
• Allows breastfeeding equipment and lactation services to be tax deductible for families.

Read the text of the bill here:
http://thomas.loc.gov/cgi-bin/bdquery/z?d110:h.r.02236:

And there’s yet another way YOU can make a difference on the national level: We really need your support to strengthen our work to improve the health of mothers and babies in the United States. Please consider becoming a Friend of the United States Breastfeeding Committee (USBC) by making a donation today. (Easier to contribute small amounts on an ongoing basis? You can use the donation form to set up automatic recurring donations! Pledge your support by the week, month, or quarter!)

DONATE NOW

Your support will enable the continuation and expansion of USBC programs such as:

• The National Conference of State/Territory Breastfeeding Coalitions
• The NEW State Coalitions Mini-Grant Program
  
• The Coalitions Electronic Forum
• National advocacy actions like this one!

Working together, we are making great strides at the state level, and we know we can do it at the national level too! With a few clicks of the mouse today, you can help build critical support for a groundbreaking bill to protect, promote and support breastfeeding in the United States.

WRITE YOUR CONGRESSPERSON

Take a moment to forward this email to friends and family. The more constituents that Congress hears from, the faster they'll realize that something must be done now.

DONATE NOW

Thank you!

Vaccine Information

In summary, this is a vaccination schedule that I would recommend:

1. No vaccinations until a child is two years old.
2. No vaccines that contain thimerosal (mercury).
3. No live virus vaccines (except for smallpox, should it recur).
4. These vaccines, to be given one at a time, every six months, beginning at age 2:

1. Pertussis (acellular, not whole cell)
2. Diphtheria
3. Tetanus
4. Polio (the Salk vaccine, cultured in human cells

American children are the most highly vaccinated kids in the world. This schedule is an alternative to the one that rules our "vaccine nation" (as the Village Voice terms it). In contrast to the CDC’s immunization schedule, it is user-friendly.

Source: Donald W. Miller, Jr., MD

4 Months - HIB and Polio
5 Months - DTaP
6 Months - HIB and Polio
7 Months - DTaP
8 Months - HIB
9 Months - DTaP
15 Months - Measles
17 Months - HIB and Polio
18 Months - DTaP
24 Months - Hep B
25 Months - Hep B
27 Months - Rubella
28 Months - Hep B
39 Months - Mumps

Source: What Your Doctor May Not Tell You About Children's Vaccinations by Stephanie Cave MD

2 Months - DTaP and Rotavirus
3 Months - Pc and HIB
4 Months - DTaP and Rotavirus
5 Months - Pc and HIB
6 Months - DTaP and Rotavirus
7 Months - Pc and HIB
15 Months - Pc and HIB
5 Years - Tetanus Booster
10 Years - Blood tests for Measles, Mumps, Rubella, Chickenpox, and HepA immunity. Consider vaccinating if not immune. Also consider a 3-dose Polio if traveling to Africa or Asia is a possibility.
11 Years - HPV (3 doses, girls only).
12 Years - HepB (3 doses).

Source: The Vaccine Book by Dr. Robert Sears

Measles in the US.

Vaccine refusals fuel jump in measles outbreaks

This article is really bothering me for a few reasons.

1. About 2 weeks ago a 10-Month Old child in my county was reported to have the measles. The fact that my 2-Month Old baby is at risk for measles is scary (Maddox has been vaccinated).

2. Doctors being frustrated about being asked questions about vaccines really ticks me off. Why should we be encouraged NOT to ask questions about our child's health and weird chemical concoctions that they want to insert into our child's body via a needle?

3. Why are we only limited to about 15 minutes (or less) per doctors visits (with the actual doctor, not including the waiting time, nurse time, waiting time, etc)? In the first 2 years a lot of stuff is going on and there may be a lot of stuff we need to talk about. After that, our children are only seen once a year unless they get sick. Is that REALLY enough time to cover all your concerns about your child's well being. The article talks about doctors being frustrated with parents getting crap information off the internet and TV, but in the same breath complains that we expect too much of their time?

Auntie Amy and Faye