cheeky little bugger!

I've been so sad for so long, I really need a laugh today. How about you?

So here we go:

first, if you haven't already, you need to read this hilarious post from The Bloggess

I SO wish she was MY neighbour. (sorry, Real-and-Actual Neighbour, you are very nice and all but I can't imagine having this conversation with you)

second, I read on Facebook today that my fave ever comedian, Danny Bhoy, is donating money from his warm-up shows in Sydney to the Qld Flood Relief Appeal. Tix are $10 so if you can, go along. He's the FUNNIEST bloke.

finally, THIS will make you giggle for sure. Here's the inestimable Danny Bhoy, talking about possums and the Fruit Police.

rain, rain, GO AWAY!

This is so bizarre.

I'm sitting at my computer, warm and dry in WA, chatting to people on-line who are digging trenches and laying sandbags in an effort to keep rising flood waters out of their homes. They've shopped and made sure they have food, candles, batteries, fresh water... they've made emergency plans should they have to evacuate.

I rang my mum, who's in Nth Qld, because I saw a flash flood warning for the area she lives in, and I thought immediately of the devastation in Toowoomba yesterday. She said it was only spitting but she's keeping a close eye on the weather maps and news, because she runs a caravan park on the coast. She'll go straight to my sisters' on a hill, if it looks like raining heavily.

We're glued to the 24 hour ABC news, watching massive amounts of water moving through my home state. And we're hoping that all my family and friends stay safe.

sad

I'm staring at this screen through a blur of tears tonight.

Most of my readers will have read about Lori and her husband, Tony. Their story is so sad and has touched the hearts of so many, and I've been crying all day on and off thinking of them.

Through comments left for Lori, I've been reading other stories, just as heart-breaking, just as unfair.
And I guess a little part of me remembers my own pain and grief, in the first few years after I lost Levi. It's had me thinking a lot today, about life, and love, and loss.

Someone once said that grief is the price we pay for love. The more we love someone, the more fiercely it hurts when we lose them. And, oh God, it's a high price. Grief breaks us apart, and changes us forever. We're overwhelmed by pain, drowned in it, taken over by it. Like the floods in Toowoomba today.
Our love for them never dies. Never.

It's only gradually, and with love from those who love us, that we're able to find our feet again, to begin to live instead of merely existing. It takes a long time for us to heal.
So be patient with us. Be gentle. We're living with pain you cannot imagine.

how much is one life worth?

I read an article this morning about a couple who aborted healthy twin boys, because they're so anxious to have a girl after losing a daughter soon after birth.
If you want the full story, go take a look at the article (but don't read the comments, some of them are pretty hideous.)

I've lost a child myself, a little boy. And did I want another? you bet your ass I did. I seriously understood how people could snatch a baby and run, or steal one from a hospital.
(I didn't really take one. Just saying.)

So I get that deep need for a child.

What I don't get is the logic here. They lost one child and miss her so much that they terminate two others? Nuh. Not seeing it.

I guess this is where the whole termination issue becomes so murky.
It's hard to make laws governing termination, because every person and every situation is different.
Fabio and I had to talk about this when we fell pregnant with The Princess.
I turned 40 that year, and there is already a history of spina bifida type problems in my family.
We talked about whether we could cope with a disabled child, and at what point would the disabilities become too great for us?
I have nothing but sympathy for parents having to decide what they can and can't cope with, because there is no win-win situation. Everyone loses, somehow.

But deciding on gender?

I don't know..... seems to me that this couple needs counselling before they make any more decisions.
Any grief counsellor would tell you that they've clearly not healed from their daughters' death.
Most experts recommend you don't make major decisions for at least a couple of years after a loss like a spouse or child, and having been there, I can say that I agree. (I'm sure there are people who need less time, and I'm equally sure there are those who need more.)

And what kind of message does this send to their sons? Kids have a way of applying family problems to themselves.

I'm all for people being allowed to make choices for themselves, without government interference every step of the way -- but maybe this is one area where we should just accept that life is a lottery?

Thoughts?

about Lori...

People who don't blog are often critical of social networking media. Especially "mummy-bloggers'.

They claim blogging is narcissistic, shallow, boring, stupid - etc etc....

They're so wrong.

Mummy-bloggers are a community. Sure, you get your problems, people who seem hell-bent on causing trouble, but they are few and far between, and on the whole, mummy-bloggers form supportive friendships on-line, just as they would IRL.

Take Lori, for example.

If you've ever read her blog, you'll know, she's funny, warm, and REAL -- a fabulous mum to two little kids, and wife to her husband, Tony, her soul-mate.

Right now, Tony is in ICU, fighting for his life. I don't know any more than that, and I can only imagine how terrified Lori must be. Hospitals are overwhelming places to be in, and you feel so lost and helpless, waiting by a loved ones' bedside.

She's asking for prayers, on her husbands' behalf, prayers for healing and health.

And we're asking, that on Loris' behalf, you read this post, pray, and join the FYBF hop, which is being hosted at Wanderlust.
If you can, consider making a small donation to help Lori right now. There is a link on Wanderlusts' post.

But above all, pray. Spread the word, and pray.

a cry for help.

Please read this post from the lovely Lori

and PRAY. If you aren't a believer, send positive thoughts or healing wishes or whatever you can. PLEASE.

in my front yard....

It's Wordless Wednesday at My Little Drummer Boys.




** Mr and Mrs. Blue Wren **




** bird(s) on a wire **




**flowers (obviously) (but the photos looked odd since the others had a caption) (oops-- words!) (see! I just CANT shut up!) **

party like it's 2011

Seems everyone is posting about resolutions just now.

I don't have any. (unless I pinch my sisters' idea, which she says is to drink more and exercise less. Can't fail.)

Instead, I'm going to tell you how we spent our razzle-dazzle, non-stop-excitement NYE.

First, we ate our dinner, with the kiddies dropping peas and arguing over elbows. Then we showered and dressed in our best PJs, tucked the kiddies into bed (with their own elbows) and settled down on the couch to watch SALT.

And the power went out.

For over an hour.

So we put on head-lamps, and read our books. (Fabio had a Stephen King, I'm re-re-re-re-reading Harry Potter).

Then we went to bed. Where the real celebrating may or may not have taken place.

(OK... not. It was late, and we were tired.)

Party animals. I know.

what do you do about a nibbled heart?

The Princess received a vet set for Christmas. She is currently 'vetting' her huge collection of cats and puppies.

"Oh, no!" she said. "This kitten swallowed a musical amp. It's nibbling at her heart. I don't know what to do."

I suggested perhaps she might ring a surgeon, and she agreed.

"It's fun to play vets, isn't it?" I asked.

She gave me A Look. "I'm not playing!" she said. "I'm a real vet."

Of course. My bad.