She's Here!

Jenna Ramsey

born Friday, July 20 at 3:09 a.m.

6 lbs, 5 oz; 18 in.

Joanna's ballet camp

Joanna floated on a cloud all last week. Why? Because she got to take a week-long ballet camp. You should have seen how excited she was each day; even just putting on her new leotard and tutu made her giddy!! Joanna learned dances from various countries, like Japan, Germany, and Spain as well as standard ballet steps and positions.

On Friday they gave a short performance to show off their killer new moves.
The performance also included a 3 min. choreographed dance.

June

June has been one of the busiest months on record for our family. I've just been trying to keep my exhausted, 3rd trimester mush brain on top of it all.  ;-)

Joanna graduated from kindergarten.  (So do they 'graduate' from every single grade nowadays? Remember when the only time we graduated from anything in public school was the 12th grade?!)  It was fun to see how out of control excited she was to sing the songs they practiced and receive her diploma....from kindergarten.  I enjoyed her showing me a stack of projects they'd worked on over the year and seeing how much her writing and drawing have improved since last September. 

Jaclyn 'graduated' from preschool.  Yay! Big kid school here we come. Her teacher told me that Jaclyn has blossomed as a student this past year.  She gradually participated more and more in classroom activities and has become more outgoing and willing to try new things.  (We still have yet to see her get up in the front of the chapel at church and sing with the other primary kids whenever they perform, but hey. Baby steps.)

Jaclyn's preschool took a field trip to the Surf n Slide water park in Moses Lake.  Josh took the day off so we could go as a family...and also so we wouldn't lose any kids that day.  Heaven knows I needed an extra set of eyes to keep track of 3 kids. And if Jayden ran off (which he did many times) I wasn't about to waddle my fat butt all over the park to get him.  ;-)
I had a blast!! Kids did too.  I came back a lobster because guess who thought to put sunscreen on the kids but forgot to put it on herself. It's been nearly 2 weeks and I'm still peeling. We couldn't have asked for more beautifuler weather that day.

 

Joanna tried the surf simulator. 

She attempted to get up on her knees but she wasn't quite strong enough to pull herself up. Maybe next time! 

A few of us tried to convince Josh to try surfing but our peer pressure wasn't strong enough to get him on a board.

And the cherry on top of the month is...drum roll please...we bought our 1st house!!!!!!  Josh and I signed a 3" stack of paperwork last Thursday to make the deal official, a dozen saintly men from church helped us move Saturday, and now we are settling into our new digs one unpacked box at a time.  Packing up for a move has never been fun until this time. Honestly, as chaotic and stressful as this past month has been, it's been so awesome knowing that we were packing up to move to our very own house!  I feel incredibly blessed right now.  This house is wonderful in every way.

Why I choose to vaccinate

http://www.komonews.com/news/local/Whooping-cough-epidemic-declared-in-Wash-150984375.html


In light of the recent whooping cough epidemic in Washington state, and an apparantly touchy subject I unleashed in the wide wide world of facebook yesterday, here is my stance. This is why I choose to vaccinate.

I want to apologize if I offended with the word ‘idiot’. Obviously if you are an anti-vaccinationist because you have educated yourself and stand by your ethical convictions, that certainly does not make you the idiot in this scenario. I am referring to the thousands of people who don’t get vaccinated out of sheer negligence or indifference. Or to the “lemmings” out there who blindly follow the loudest voice in the crowd, telling them not to vaccinate because “I heard from my sister’s friend’s former roommate that shots cause “x” disease/contain “x” chemicals, etc.” 

My feet stand firmly and proudly in the pro-vaccine camp, and I don’t think any less about someone whose research and opinions has brought them into the anti-vaccine camp.  The research that I have done (and yes, I have done my fair share too) has led me to believe that vaccines are for the greater good of human civilization. Because our country has the infrastructure in place to vaccinate 100% of its citizens—if they so choose, of course—we can move forward as a society not worrying (as much) about major life threatening or debilitating diseases that have virtually been eradicated from the American population.  People in 3^rd world countries still worry about contracting things like cholera, small pox, diphtheria, measles, etc.  Why don’t we? Because 93% of all Americans get vaccinated. We (I know I do) tend to take for granted the fact that we can go to the store and not contract a disease that will wipe out our entire family.

Now I am completely on board with alternative healing, building natural immunities to certain illnesses (not the major diseases), and homeopathic remedies. But I also believe there needs to be a balance between these and western medicine.  The advent of vaccines in the 19^th century was a HUGE step forward for humankind.  And I truly believe that vaccination’s original intent was pure and good.  But of course as we know, evil corrupts every good thing in this world. Today pharmaceutical corporations push lobbyists and physicians alike to buy a product that will make them money. This is wrong on many levels. It’s pretty obvious that some big drug corporations (and may I go as far as to say the FDA and USDA as well) have illustrated blatantly that they care more about money, votes, and power than they do about bettering humankind.

I wish we could fully trust pharmaceutical companies to deliver medicines and vaccines that were 100% free from extraneous chemicals.  But then again, I wish I could trust the FDA to never allow harmful food additives, pesticide residues, growth hormones, etc. into our food supply.  One can choose not to vaccinate themselves or their children for the same reasons that one can choose not to purchase processed foods which may contain harmful ingredients. The same argument can be used in both cases.

We don’t know the long-term results of modern vaccines yet, but we also don’t know the long-term effects from ingesting artificial flavors, manmade sugars, nitrites, sulfates, etc. or using synthetic chemicals on farmer’s crops.  Logic suggests that these things are not good for us.  I suppose every time I eat cheetos, a non-organic apple, or drink a coke I am taking that risk.  So it is with vaccines.  I may not entirely understand the long-term effects they will have on me and my children, but the bottom line is, weighing the risks, I still feel that vaccines are the best choice for my family.

I wrote this so you all will know that I am NOT casting any ill judgment on those who intelligently choose not to get vaccinated. I figure if one is wise enough to “do your homework” and not vaccinate, then one is also wise enough to quarantine themselves when they are sick.  

Here’s an idea for the Dept. of Health’s new posters regarding the whooping cough epidemic: “Visit your healthcare provider today! Get vaccinated! And if you don’t, for hell’s bells, stay home when you are sick!” ;-)

Easter Sunday

Why do we do this to ourselves? I mean trying to get even more dressed up and fancy schmancy on Easter Sunday and having the entire crew ready for church 15 min. early to take Easter Sunday family pictures?? All while the children are tired from waking up extra early and cracked out on Easter candy????  It just isn't a winning combination.  But I remember my mom insisting on the same thing.  Such is the great circle of life. Here is our attempt at memorable Easter pics this year.

Josh: "Mornin' neighbor!"

Me: "Would you all just stand next to each other please? C'mon Jaclyn, get over here right now!  Yes, I want you to stand next to your sister, it's just for a minute and then you can go back inside...right now, please. We're all waiting...Ok now Jayden put your shirt down and come back over here. Everyone please stand next to me and look at the bloody camera!!!"

Something like that, if I remember right.

And then once the kids were corralled and standing in one place, then Jayden and Jaclyn commenced with the crab-itude.

C'mon Jayden, be a sport and look at the camera!

Okay now you're just overcompensating, Mr. Smartie Pants.

Yippee!! A keeper!!!

Right before this picture was taken, Josh says to Jayden, "put your arms around your sisters and say, 'I'm a pimp!'"  And while I give Josh "the look" for encouraging our son to repeat that phrase, guess what comes out of his mouth as clear as day. Uh huh.