Update on Hospital Baby

But not the update I had been hoping to bring y'all:


Baby injured in hospital room dies
An 8-month-old girl who was critically injured in her room at Connecticut Children's Medical Center died Friday morning, a hospital spokesman said. Hospital officials did not provide the cause of death.

The baby was found Feb. 19 in a pool of blood on the floor of her room by a nurse. She had been in critical condition since then with severe head injuries.

Hartford police have said their investigation is focused on a 7-year-old boy who slipped away from his family while they were visiting another child in a nearby room Saturday evening.

No member of the hospital staff faces any discipline as a result of the incident, Hanley has said.

***************************************

I have a few problems with this, ZPT fans.

FIRST: NO ONE at the hospital is going to be held accountable for this in any way? What kind of bullshit is THAT? They were directly responsible for that baby. The baby was on the floor in a pool of blood, and then died. How could they NOT discipline someone for this tragedy? I am not a person who likes lawsuits on the whole; I believe we have become an overly litigious society. But in this case? I hope the parents sue the mother fucking pants off these assholes. They trusted their precious infant's life to these people, and they won't even take responsibility for her death. I'm sure the billing department won't forget the parents, though. And it sickens me.

SECOND: I've had a child in NICU. I know exactly what cribs they are speaking of. If that hospital uses the standard cribs (the ones I've seen in at least a dozen hospitals in four or five states), then there is NO WAY a 7-year-old got in there and took that baby out. The cribs are high off the floor, to make it easier to transition the sick babies. The sides of the cribs are also very, very high...to keep more active toddlers from climbing out and injuring themselves. Even standing on a chair, I can't see a child being able to not only reach into the crib, but pull a baby out of it.

THIRD: Let's suspend disbelief for a moment, and say the 7-year-old DID, in fact, cause the baby's injuries. Where were this child's parents? Why was the child permitted to roam the hospital unattended? Did no nurse notice this child wandering the halls, going into other patients' private rooms? I've been to NICUs before, and they usually have tight security and many nurses on the floor. This hospital claimed to not only have many nurses and tight security...but to having video cameras as well. So why didn't anyone see this kid going in to the room? And why didn't anyone see him LEAVING it? I have kids, folks. If a child dropped a baby, unless the kid's a budding psychopath, that kid RAN out of the room. And yet, no one noticed THAT, either?

FOURTH: The original article I read about this story claimed that this happened AFTER visiting hours. They are only NOW claiming that this family with the 7-year-old was there...and once again, in my experience, families are not permitted to be in the NICU after visiting hours. Mom is often allowed to stay overnight, especially if there is surgery scheduled for the next day or Mom is breastfeeding...but 7-year-olds? Who could be carrying viruses that many of the babies are suseptible to? Whose play could disturb the other babies? Not a chance. And if the hospital DID permit it...how can they say they AREN'T to blame?

FIFTH: I've also never seen a baby in the NICU who wasn't attached to some sort of device: IV, respirator, heart monitor. This baby had heart problems...you can't tell me she wasn't attached to a heart monitor. A monitor that should have gone off the second the feed was disturbed, which moving the baby in a rough manner (such as a small child would move her) would do. So I ask again: WHERE WERE THE FREAKING NURSES?!?!?!?


I am saddened beyond words for the family of this child. And sickened that the hospital is side-stepping any responsibility for what happened. I don't buy the 7-year-old story. Maybe I'm wrong. But it smells like a whole lot of who-shot-John to me. Too much like a hospital passing the buck. And with a dead baby on their hands...maybe they should stop passing the buck and start finding out what is wrong in their NICU that this could happen. Or, Heaven forbid...it could happen again.

NDN News: False Organization Warning!

Thanks to my friend Wolfie, for bringing this to my attention:

Please feel free to distribute, please help us to combat the exploitation of the American Indian People!

False Indian Organization Warning issued by Comanche Lodge.

For Immediate Release:

According to the authorities, an organization registered online as the "Original Keetoowah Society" is operated by none other than William Scott Anderson of Cabool Missouri.

This individual is claiming to teach Cherokee Spirituality and Religion over the Internet.

The individual registered as operating this false organization has also been linked with numerous bogus Indian Tribes over the years that includes the following:

The Southern Cherokee Nation, Indian Creek Band of Chickamauga located in Deltona Florida, Western Cherokee Nation of Missouri, and last but not least the Amonsoquath Cherokees led by convicted felon Martin "Walking Bear" Wilson.

All of the above mentioned groups are entirely false.

Anderson for several years was claiming on the Internet that the Amonsoquath Group he represented was a federally recognized Indian Tribe. Anderson was known to solicit donations online for several years under the false auspices of maintaining an Indian Reservation.

It is to be noted that the State of Missouri has no Indian Reservations.

In 1996 Anderson was known to exploit the Lakota People by also soliciting donations on New Age Newsgroups while claiming to have received a vision from the Virgin Mary who Anderson claimed was the Lakota Peoples Sacred White Buffalo Calf Woman.

Anderson at that time claimed that the White Buffalo Calf Woman instructed him to go to Bosnia to stop World War III from taking place by teaching Europeans the Lakota Religion, which would, according to him, spread world peace.

Anderson claimed this event would take place by gathering the people of the world in the very same way as was seen in the Hollywood Movie Close Encounters of the Third Kind.

Anderson was caught committing this perverse exploitation by several American Indians. These individuals were informed that Anderson was begging for money on several New Age/Witchcraft discussion groups under the titles of Pipe Carrier, Native Peace Delegate, and also was representing himself as an American Indian Prophet in the spirit of Wovoka the famous Paiute Ghost Dance teacher.

As a result of this intervention, Anderson was quickly exposed as a fraud to the American Indian Community through several popular Native Newsgroups.

William Scott Anderson has now turned his greedy eyes towards the Cherokee Nation and is currently engaged in exploiting the names of respected Cherokee Indian Leaders as a way to solicit money online in yet another monetary scam being done in the name of the American Indian People.

Once again this Charlatan William Scott Anderson is exploiting yet another respected American Indian Nation, and he is currently engaged in exploiting the name of the Honorable Cherokee Chief Chadwick Smith.

In addition to these gross unethical abuses of honorable Indian leaders, William Scott Anderson also exploits the name of the Chief's own ancestor the respected Redbird Smith as yet another way for Anderson to beg for money online in the name of American Indian People.

Please be advised that none of the scams and the numerous false organizations operated by William Scott Anderson either now or in the past have been authentic American Indian organizations and they have all been based entirely on falsehood and deceit.

William Scott Anderson is a wicked fraud and a very well known exploiter of the American Indian People and as such this depraved and twisted individual should be shunned by all.

Anderson is proud to boast associations with such dubious exploiters of American Indian People such as Robert "Ghostwolf" Franzone, Harley Swiftdeer, Brooke Medicine Eagle, and many other well-known frauds who continually exploit the American Indian People.

If you or anyone you know has been victim to the fraud perpetuated by William Scott Anderson, please report such incidents to the following authorities:

United States Department of Justice:

U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20530-0001
Internet: http://www.usdoj.gov/

Department of Justice Main Switchboard - 202-514-2000
Office of the Attorney General - 202-353-1555

All My Relations!
-Quohadi

Comanche Lodge

Find This Nutbag & String Him Up: Child Injured at Hospital

A pox on whoever did this, and a pox on the hospital for allowing it to happen:


Baby injured at Children's Medical Center

(WTNH, Feb. 20, 2005 10:20 PM) _ Police in Hartford are investigating how an eight-month-old baby ended up critically injured while at Connecticut Children's Medical Center.

She was found on a bloody floor last night with severe head injuries.

Officials at the Connecticut Children's Medical Center say they have extra security guards on duty tonight to make the patients and their family feel safer tonight.

"Right now she has brain trauma. She may have a fracture. We are investigating exactly what happened," says Dep. Chief Darryl Roberts.

"Shortly after 8:30 on Saturday night a nurse heard baby cry out she found the child injured and called a code blue emergency response team," says Thomas Hanley, CCMC Spokesperson.

The hospital says the baby was in an oversize crib with bars and doesn't know how the child wound up on the floor, where police say there was also blood.

"The Connecticut Children Medical Center is locked down 24/7. The only way you can get in is if you are an employee with a badge or it you were buzzed in from the nursing station and there were video camera recording everyone that goes into and comes out of the medical surgical units," says Hanley.

The child was a patient on a medical surgical unit and was being treated at the hospital for an undisclosed medical condition since her birth 8 months ago.

"This is a very difficult day for the Connecticut Children's Medical Center. She has been a patient of ours for 8 months she was part of our family," says Hanley.

The hospital says the child's real family did visit often and was here Saturday but police say not at the time of the incident.

HELP!

Why is this happening again????? My posts are showing up at the bottom of the page AGAIN.

I added a few things last week, and they were fine...for about two days. So I deleted them...but my posts are still messing up.

Anyone have any ideas where I've gone wrong THIS time?

Geez, I'm a numbskull....

My Perfect Thursday

I had the most perfect day yesterday, I just had to share.

Jonathan worked on Valentine's Day, so we didn't do anything special. He made up for it yesterday...big time.

First, he let me take a wonderful afternoon nap. As any mother of a baby will tell you...an afternoon nap is worth more than all the gold in Fort Knox. We'd die for it. We'd kill for it. Either way, don't wake us 'til it's over.

After the nap, we went thrift shopping (always a favorite pasttime for me). I found the most comfortable pair of shoes I've ever owned in my life...a pair of black slip-ons by Issac Mizrahi (one of my favorite designers; yes, it's just the IM for Target brand, but I'll take what I can get, thanks). They still had the tags on, and I got them for a third of the price. I also bought a gorgeous pale-green fisherman's sweater. The kind you can wrap around you and just melt. Both are going to be ideal for the long train trip. Among my other finds: several books, another pair of shoes (I call them my "naughty librarian" shoes, lol), a mushroom jar for my kitchen (my entire kitchen is done in a mushroom theme) and a few toys for the kiddies...including a brand-new Weebles village for Eden! A very profitable day of shopping all around.

From there, we went to our favorite family restaurant: Giuseppe's. If you live in the Portland area and have never been there...GO NOW. The food is fantastic, the wait staff is beyond reproach and the portions are gigantic. We've never actually finished an entire meal there...no one does, from what I've observed. Everyone gets take-home boxes. We spent less than $60 for five people, left completely stuffed and had FOUR boxes of food to take home.

Anyway, we had a lovely meal. We had mozzarella sticks, antipasta and cheese bread for appetizers. The kids ordered their usual: pizza, one-half cheese (for my vegetarian daughter Wren) and one-half Pepperoni (for my carnivore son Phoenix). Jonathan ordered chicken parmageana with fettucini and a salad. I had speghetti and meatballs with garlic bread and salad, all of which I shared with the baby. Eden ate like a little piggy! We haven't been to Guiseppe's in nearly a year (thanks to my health problems), and had no idea she'd love it so much. She even ate salad, which she normally turns her nose up at with an "are you kidding?" look. I chose not to get my usual strawberry daiquiri, but I highly recommend them: they make the best daiquiris I've ever had, and being a former bartender (as well as a former club hopper), that's saying something. If you have a chance to eat there, get one. Even the virgin daiquiris they make are marvelous.

To top off the evening, Jonathan gave me a few surprise belated-Valentine's-Day gifts. He developed some of our backlog of film, and I was overjoyed looking through these photographs, some of which were four years old. He also bought me a lovely display box for pictures, a teddy bear and a HUGE, beautiful box of Godiva chocolates. Yes, this man is a keeper.

But the best gift of all was the same gift I get every year. It is my most prized and precious of all posessions. We call it "the Valentine's Book."

Ten years ago, Jonathan and I were struggling to make ends meet and raise our child with another on the way. Every penny was accounted for, and there was little extra money for frivilous things like Valentine's Day.

This did not deter my husband, however. He purchased a hardcover, blank journal. On the cover are Rubenesque angels. And inside, every year, he has written a love note to me on Valentine's Day.

I share those notes with no one. In fact, until now, few people were even aware of the book's existance. And while I am willing to talk about the book itself...the contents are mine alone.

Sometimes, when I am feeling the weight of my life or the world itself upon my shoulders, I'll read those entries and just feel...enveloped in love. I realize how blessed I am to have this man to love, and to love me. I would sooner sell my wedding ring than give up even one page from that book.

Romance isn't dead...at least, not in my house.

I hope everyone had a wonderful Valentine's Day.

Tin God Syndrome: The Siren

Today, Wren had her second appointment with her new neurologist.

For those of you who aren't up to speed, Wren is my 8-year-old daughter, and she has Tourette's Syndrome, PDD (a high-functioning autism) and Sensory Integration Dysfunction. Her TS is genetic; my husband and father-in-law have it as well. So as you can imagine, I know a great deal about TS.

In any event, I wasn't too impressed with Dr. M the first time we saw her. She didn't seem to know very much about TS, and after a few minutes admitted that she mainly treated kids with epilepsy. She was eager to help Wren, though, and as she managed to give us the one thing we wanted (an antidepressant to help her with the sudden, intense attacks of depression and sleeplessness), I considered her to be a good choice for our local neurologist. I say "local," because we are fortunate to have access to the country's foremost expert on TS, and we see him every year when we travel out East. He diagnosed and treated my husband, and he treats Wren as well. He is FANTASTIC. I cannot sing his praises highly enough (see, I don't hate ALL doctors, lol). Still, it's important to have a local specialist, too. If there is an emergency need, a doctor 2500 miles away isn't much immediate help. And Dr. M, while not very knowledgable, seemed capable enough of carrying out the expert's orders and dealing with any issues that might arise in between our yearly trips out East.

Or so I thought...until today.

The first sign that this appointment wasn't going well came when the nurse was taking Wren's blood pressure. Now, my daughter has never had a haircut in her life (where I come from, it's considered to be bad luck. I don't consider myself to be a particularly superstitious person, but I just can't bring myself to cut it. It doesn't hurt that she loves her hair and has no desire for a haircut...and that her hair is absolutely gorgeous. When down, it reaches to just behind her knees. Yes, it's THAT long). Naturally, people comment on it all the time, usually along the lines of "What beautiful hair you have!" or "Wow! That is some long hair! How long has she been growing it?" We're both used to those kinds of comments, and let's face it: we're both gals, and we both beam when we hear them.

The nurse, however, didn't ask how long Wren's hair had been growing. Instead, she said: "If you put a little feather in that braid, you'd look just like Pocahontas!"

Heaven help me.

I said nothing...maybe I should have said something, like "Excuse me? You do realize that I'm a Native American, don't you?" But mindful of my promise to Jonathan and to my own doctor to avoid stress...I kept my mouth shut. But man oh man...it wasn't easy.

Then came Dr. M. This was our first long appointment with her. She asked about Wren's tics: the frequency, the types, how they affect her day-to-day life. I answered as thoroughly and precisely as I could. Wren was actually ticcing pretty bad throughout the appointment, so the doctor got to see some of the tics herself.

After the game of Twenty Tic Questions, the doctor put down her pen and assumed the position doctors routinely use when they are about to dispense news that they fear the patient will not like. This is when I begin to realize that the neurologist suffers from a form of Tin God Syndrome I haven't come across in many years: the Siren.

The Siren is an alarmist. They are masters of transforming mild molehill maladies into mammoth medical mountains (try saying that five times fast). If you have a headache...it MUST be a migraine, or an aneurism! Quick...to the MRI! Feeling a little blue since you lost your job? Oh, no! You might be bipolar! Quick! Take some Paxil...STAT!

The Siren is relieved only when you become as intensely concerned and/or upset as she herself is. If you remain calm, or question the Siren...Siren always counters by questioning your knowledge. After all, if you knew as much as the Siren, you'd be as deeply worried as she is!

The conversation:

"All these tics, in a child so young...it's very disturbing, very disturbing."

"She's had most of these tics for years, doctor. They are well-documented by her pediatrician and therapists."

"It's just not...normal for a child to have so many tics at this young of an age."

"Her father manifested his tics very young, too."

(Irriated) "I am especially worried about the corporalia (this is uncontrollable cursing...while Wren does have it, it is rare that she experiences these sorts of tics). If it continues, we may have to re-evaluate the need to medicate her."

(I am now also irritated) "Doctor, it has always been our position that we will medicate Wren only when her quality of life is compromised by HER standards. Now that she is on the Zoloft, she is no longer upsetted by her tics. We see no need to medicate her now."

"Yes, but this is all VERY disturbing to see in so YOUNG a child! Medication may be necessary!" (Siren is getting revved up.)

"Her father and I are not unrealistic about this, doctor. We do realize that at some point, she will have to be medicated. We'd like that to be as small of a window as possible. That's why she takes so much therapy, and part of why we homeschool her. We're just not willing to medicate her when the tics are not affecting her quality of life."

"The corporalia could affect her socially! I cannot believe that it isn't already! And the Social Avoidance Syndrome is very advanced in Wren, which is VERY DISTURBING!"

"Her father also has Social Avoidance, and is a very happy person. We do not believe it is a condition which should be treated unless she wants to treat it. As long as she is happy, we're happy."

"I think you're failing to see how advanced her TS is! Unless you aren't sure what a tic really is, and perhaps you're over-reporting normal behavior as tics?"

(I am now getting pissed). "I know the difference between normal behavior and a tic. I've known my husband most of my life. When he was a teenager, his Tourette's was extremely advanced; one of the worst cases our expert had ever seen. If I cannot recognize a tic, her father certainly can. And we do realize that her Tourette's is advanced compared to the norm; it is, however, going along the normal course for her family. She is having the same sort of tics at the same ages as her father did. If you like, we can have the expert fax you over some information, as he treated my husband at this age as well."

(The Siren is nonplussed and very unhappy that I continue to bring up the expert to refute her statements). "I'd like to see you again in October, and we can re-evaluate Wren at that time."

"Fine. We'll be seeing the expert in September, and I'll have him fax over his report so you will have it when we meet."

I have no doubt that Siren has made some sort of asinine statement in Wren's chart about my "denial" of the "seriousness" of Wren's condition. Siren's love to do that when they fail to work up the parents to their level of paranoia. Luckily, I have the expert doctor on my side, and his word goes a lot further than someone whose expertise is epilepsy.

A situation that I have decided to remedy. Dr. M was ok when she was just the competant local; now that I realize she suffers from Siren Tin God Syndrome...it's time to move on. The fact that the Siren wouldn't tell me how many kids with TS she's treated in the past and/or is treating currently makes me uncomfortable...for all I know, Wren could be the only one. I'm now going to have to start the process of finding a new pediatric neurologist who has any experience with TS. That's not an easy task, and it's made harder by doctors who hedge about the truth: they'll tell you they have experience, but what they mean is that they studied it in med school. Not exactly what I'm looking for.

Anyone know where I could buy Tin God Repellant? Now that would be technology working for the common man....

Your Honor, The Nutbag Part II: Speak English or Get Out

I hate nutbags. The only thing worse than a nutbag is an idiot nutbag. And the only thing worse than an idiot nutbag is a nutbag in power. And the only thing worse than an idiot nutbag in power
is one holding the lives of children in his hands.

Meet Wilson County, Tennessee Family Court Judge Barry Tatum.

Apparently, His Honor the Nutbag is fond of telling immigrant mothers who appear in his court to "learn English or else."

Take a recent case involving a woman from Oaxaca, Mexico, who had been brought before Judge Tatum after she'd refused to immunize her kids or show
up for Children's Services appointments. At the custody hearing, Judge Tatum instructed the mother to learn English and use birth control.

And just last October, Tatum made another such order to a Mexican woman appearing before him on charges of child neglect. He set a court date for six months, denying her request for counseling and instructing the woman to learn
to "speak English at a fourth-grade level" by that time or lose custody of her daughter, according to the woman's attorney, Jerry Gonzalez. According to this article, he's made such orders at least five other times. Gonzalez said the judge was setting the mother up for failure. "She probably doesn't have a sixth-grade education. I daresay the judge himself, an educated man, could not learn to speak Spanish to a fourth-grade level in six months," Gonzalez said. "He gave her an impossible task."

Tatum explained that he gave the orders in hopes that the parents would make a greater effort to assimilate into American society, opening more opportunities to their children.

"If the mother is able to learn English, she will be able to speak with her daughter for the first time in a substantive manner and will show her that she loves her and is willing to do anything necessary to connect with her," the order read.

Although many have condemned Tatum's practices, he actually has supporters in Tennessee who cheer him on his nasty bigotted way.

Though the judge's order may have been a mistake, "the general sentiment is, if people are going to be in this country, we all have a moral obligation to learn to speak the language," said Bob Bright, 61, who runs an insurance agency in Lebanon.

"I know if I was in Mexico I would make an effort to learn Hispanic."

******************
OK, I have a few things to say about this (you knew I would):

*Is His Honor the Nutbag even aware that we don't HAVE an official language in this country, and NO ONE is required to speak English here "or else"?

*"Use birth control"? What the fuck? First of all, I know many people from Mexico (my sister is married to a Mexican as well), and nearly all are Catholic. This judge is basically giving them a court order to violate the tenents of their religion and completely desicrating the Constitutional right to free practice of religion at the same time. Secondly, HOW DARE HE presume to make orders on a woman's reproductive rights? He's a judge in a pissant town in Tennessee...not even the Supreme Court will tell a woman what she should or should not do with her uterus, buddy, so who the hell do you think YOU are? King Bohunk? And finally: not all birth control works 100% of the time. In fact, NONE of them do, including sterilization. Don't believe me? You should meet my son, the Pill Baby. You sexist moron.

*What the fuck does speaking English have to do with child neglect and custody issues? You're worrying about the speck and ignoring the log, Sir Dildo.

*This motherfucker must have balls the size of freakin' CLEVELAND to order a woman to learn a foreign language at a fourth-grade level in six months. And then refuse her counseling for the child neglect issues she was brought in to court for in the first damned place. Priorities out of whack? This fucker's the master of it.

*"Assimilate into American society." As a Native American whose people have been killed, tortured, kidnapped and made to suffer over and over again in efforts to "assimilate" us, I could have vomitted for hours after reading that. Does no one learn from history? The last boarding school closed in 1992....not long enough for everyone to forget already, surely? I bet His Honor the Nutbag would love to re-open the schools...and fill them with Mexican mothers. What an ass.

*Of course, you MUST learn English to show your child you love them. No other language has a version of the word "love," you know, and non-English-speaking people don't really love their kids anyway. (And yes, that's sarcasm.)

*He has supporters? Who actually cheer the bastard? A pox on all of them!

*"Learn Hispanic"? Eegads...but these are some stupid fucking hillbillies.

I am so sick to my stomach by this nutbag...even though the Second Annual Nutbag of the Year Awards are still months and months away (to read the first Awards, click here)...we may already have a winner.

Blech.

It Was Bound To Happen Sooner or Later: Driver's Ed Student Runs Over Teacher

In today's Murphy's Law moment:

Georgia Student Runs Over Driver's Ed Teacher

Apparently, the student not only ran her over...she kept her pinned under the car for 15 minutes. It appears to be an accident, and the teacher was hospitalized with multiple fractures.

It was bound to happen sooner or later.....

Arthur Miller Dies

The literary world has lost a legend:

Playwright Dies at 89.

My Summer Vacation

Yep, it's already planned and paid for.

I get the singular joy of vacationing in....Ohio. That's right, Ohio. Not exactly a top holiday destination.

We go, nearly every year, to visit my husband's parents, members of my family and my female best friend, Emma.

We take the train, which is usually the most enjoyable part of the trip. I LOVE travelling by train, particularly by first-class sleeper car. The view is fantastic, the motion of the train literally rocks me to sleep at night, and the food? Airlines should take notice...Amtrak knows how to feed a traveller. Last time, I had the most exquisite roast herb chicken and New York cheesecake. Fabulous. And they run circles around airlines in customer service...and they do it with a smile, not a smirk. Makes all the difference, in my opinion.

It's also a great opportunity to study US geography with the kids. We can talk about each state and major city as we go through it. I print out map outlines for them to color in as we reach each area. Then there's the scenery...once, while going through Glacier Mountain Park in Montana, we saw two bears playing in a small stream! The kids were thrilled.

The break from the usual is welcome as well: no computers, video games, cell phones or television. Just sightseeing, card games, reading and playing together. I once saw a family on the train: two adults, three kids. All of them spent the whole trip (at least what I saw) with their faces stuck in laptops...even in the dinner car! Maybe I'm old-fashioned that way, but isn't a family vacation supposed to be about reconnecting with your family? You can play the Sims at home.

I even like the layover in Chicago...although it seems like everyone and their mother sells "Chicago-style" pizza these days, you can only get the real deal in the Windy City itself. It's the same with Philly cheese steaks, I've found. Almost worth the extra side-trip to Philly to get one.

If only our destination wasn't a piss-ant town in Ohio...it would be perfect! Sigh.

My Apologies For Not Posting in So Long

My 16-month old, Eden, has decided that she's a night owl. Quite the pary animal, my daughter. She no longer wants to go to bed at any sane hour. I'm lucky if she's asleep at 1Am these days. I have no explanation for why a child who, up until this point, was quite content to be in bed, snuggled up with her Glo-Worm, at 9PM has suddenly started keeping Teddy Kennedy's hours. I do know that I am completely exhausted, and my home looks like a "before" image on "How Clean is Your House?" Not a pretty sight.

Update on my Dad

My father finally got in touch with me. He's in Kissimmee. He "needed time to be alone."

I hate it when he does this.

Thank you for all the prayers. They are much appreciated.