"Lets Read" - Lengthy Scary Stories Podcast - Sharing My Own Scary Stories - Part 3

This post is going to be another that several "hoax" or debunking sites have said is a fake story, however I am going to share my situation and thoughts on this as this happened to me before I ever saw the email telling women to beware of this situation. 

Years ago, I was doing some grocery shopping. The store where I was shopping is in a small town in the west and was located less than a mile off a major interstate that travels from near coast to coast. 

I was by myself. It was daytime. The parking lot was not very full as this store was the smaller of the two stores in town and was a home town operated grocery store, where as the other store more downtown was a chain store, so mostly locals living at the edge of town and people exiting the highway would visit this store. It has since closed down due to not enough customers and later after many unused years, became a chain to a large Farming supply store. 

While I was coming out to my car, there was a woman and a man watching me go to my car, when I had just about reached my car, they approached me quickly and asked something about perfume and the woman was really nervous, but almost seemed to me like the man behind her was pushing her to approach me. 

What was distressing to me, was how persistent they were trying to get me to SMELL the perfume sample. Like they were trying to get really close to me. I wouldn't stop or give them eye contact and repeated several times I didn't wear perfume. I actually do wear perfume and have several scents that I LOVE. My sweet daughters get it for me almost every year for my birthday or Christmas, and I still have a few bottles of some other favorites over the years I wear when I am going out but maybe to the store just to use them up. 

I was really uncomfortable with them and noticed another man sitting in a car nearby. The feeling I had was almost like the girl was being forced into this and the man was there to keep her in line or maybe to keep her from asking someone for help or something as he was like glue on her. It was SUPER weird and awkward, but I hate being approached by sales people at home or in public places where there shouldn't be sales people. I expect it at the mall and don't mind it there because I am there shopping and may be looking for an item, but when I am at home, I find it invasive and really disruptive. 

I think if they had acted normal, or it was just a girl, it may have been fine and who knows if I would have tried smelling the perfume, but to me, it was just OFF! It didn't feel like they were just going to sell me the perfume. The man was close enough that if I had passed out, he would have caught me, or if I fought, he could have held me. There is that personal space distance that a sales person usually won't come into, but it was too close for comfort for me. 

It wasn't until later that I read the email warning women to be careful and not smell anything in parking lots. 

Once again, similar to yesterdays post, I think there has to be some foundation for the story or a person wouldn't spend that much time making something like that up. I would take an hour of my time to warn someone about a possible threat as it happened to me. However, I would not spend an hour of my time trying to come up with a story I could share on social media to scare women, especially saying something like don't smell perfume in a parking lot! Because, it doesn't even make sense that I would think that someone may approach someone in a parking lot to sell perfume! 

It would be like warning someone to wear a life jacket while driving their car! It isn't a logical thing to warn someone about as it isn't a normal progression of a situation! Maybe if you warned them not to smell perfume at the sales counter in a department store, that would be logical. 

I went online again tonight to see what I could find on a few of the regular debunking sites and most of them said it was a hoax or untrue. I linked one below. However, there was one that said there were cases and they sited cities and police departments where there had been cases of people being sprayed with perfume by a woman selling it in a parking lot. 

You can believe what you will. but being a fairly intuitive person, I believe I was in harms way that day and did NOT feel safe in that parking lot and got out of there as quickly as I could. 

Here is a link to Hoax-Slayer.net where they say that this story is untrue and has never been verified.

The site "Truth or Fiction" linked below related that they found several cases where people were sprayed with perfume in a parking lot where someone approached them to sell them perfume and they did have reactions and one even did pass out after walking into the building after smelling the perfume.

Also, the original post from a woman in Mobile, AL that started the email rally situation regarding this, said she was approached by a woman selling perfume and woke later to have her car and herself in a different place with a much lighter purse having been robbed and had a headache.  

You can read about those cases sited with the police departments named in this link here. 

I will never know what may have happened, or if they were really just selling perfume, but either way, it could not be the best approach to find people to buy them. Even if they had a little table with samples on it, or even having a small sign, they could sell them with people approaching them, but to me, it seemed like they weren't legit and this way they could have a quick get-a-way.  

I don't know if anyone finds these situations scary or not but I do have others that have haunted me for years I will share next week. 

Have a Blessed Day!

Getting Eye Glasses Frames For Cheap - Cleaning Out the Stash Of Frames

When my children were young, I had two that wore glasses. They would get glasses each year. Our insurance had a dollar amount to be used for the exam and the glasses, lenses, and / or contacts. 

By the time we had the exams, the glasses frames, lenses etc, we would end up having to pay out of pocket. It got very expensive to purchase new glasses as they grew. Several times, their glasses got damaged and we had to purchase new ones with no insurance as we had used all the funds for the year. 

I started searching second hand stores looking for cute frames that would fit my daughters. When I would find one, I would purchase it for a dollar or two and then we could use the money for the eye exam and purchase new lenses for the frames that I purchased used. 

I was able to find frames that the girls liked and were similar to the ones they picked from the eye Dr. but for fractions of the cost. 

Now that my kids are grown, I am going to donate these frames / glasses to charity. It feels good to get things out of my house.

Have a blessed day! 

When Helping Isn't Helping - Even Older Moms Can Learn New Things

Many years ago, I would stay at a family members home when traveling to family events. I would take my five children in tow. We would usually stay for a weekend. 

When visiting someone, I always want to do as much as I can for myself and always clean up after by changing sheets, cleaning the bathroom etc. My mother always taught me to leave a place cleaner than when I entered. 

I would often stay up late in the night cleaning rooms, doing dishes, organizing things, etc. To this day, I still do that, because I don't like to sit down during the day, because I fall asleep when sitting. I have even named the situation "Sit-itus" because it happens all the time when I sit. I have several blog posts on the situation. Here is a link to the first one about it. 

I just keep pushing through the day so I can sleep better at night. I am also someone that likes to organize things. I have the type of mind that wants to "connect" things, so when I was helping my dad this summer with his knee surgery gone wrong, I helped his wife do some jobs that were a bit hard for a petite older person. I took down the arbor which was one of the dirtiest jobs I have ever done. I helped her organize her food storage room, and I collected all my fathers history from around the house and garage and organized it by date / event and went and scanned all of it. 

I have to say that I haven't taken the time to put it all back in order in the scans as I had to do it all on different scanners, but it is fairly organized and just needs a few days of hard time to get it so that it is a fully organized picture of his life, including schooling, mission, family, work, service, travel, and family history. I love that I was able to help him heal, and at the same time, use my time there wisely helping my step-mom (name only as I love her like a mother) and my dad in several areas of their lives. As a side note, I got the cutest text from my "mom" today saying "I miss you everyday!" Just sharing why I LOVE this woman! 

Anyway, I learned something over the years. Certain people do NOT like help. Their home is the way it is for a reason. It took me years to figure out why my family member had a little melt down with me staying there at times. 

When I would do all the dishes in the sink each night, her children LOVED it. I was saving them from having to do their chores. I am the type of person who likes the sink empty and clean at the end of the night, so I assumed that others did as well. 

Each time I would get the dishes done, she would start pulling out baking pans and make huge amounts of dishes. It didn't matter what time of day or night I finished all the dishes, she would FILL the sink and counters with dishes before going to bed. 

I am actually surprised at how long it took me to figure out what the issue was. It was almost like it was a frenzy to fill the sink. The more I did the dishes, the more irritated and stressed she would become. 

Years later, after some other things happening, I realized that to her, if people came in and saw all sorts of dishes in the sink and pans on the counter, she was a good mom! She was cooking home cooked meals and interesting things and she wanted people to know it. If I did the dishes, she wouldn't have a visual proof for people visiting that she cooked or baked. She LIKED and felt COMFORTABLE with a sink full of dishes! It was a badge of honor for her. 

I stopped doing the dishes and helping out as much around the house. Her kids started to make comments about how when we used to come, the liked it because I would do the dishes and clean the house. If I did the chores, she didn't have a reason to get after the kids. I think she LIKED having a reason to connect with the kids, even if it was in that way. I finally had to explain to some of the children why I stopped doing their chores. They understood that and my relative really calmed down about us staying when I stopped doing her dishes. I did feel sad for the children as we brought and made lots of dirty dishes and work for them. Where as they used to enjoy the visits, they then became burdensome to the kids, so we stopped going much as that became more of an issue for the children. 

Fast forward to when my eldest started having children. I figured it is a mom's job to help out. I didn't have a mother that would do anything to help when she came to visit, I would have to wait on her. So, I decided I was going to be a "helpful" mother. I would clean the house each time I went. I would fix broken things, work in the yard, scour the bathroom, and do laundry. I would always make sure that there were NO pans in the sink. Over several visits, I could tell things were not going well. I don't sit, and so I was always looking for something to do. 

I have a friend I go walking with and I was sharing the situation I am sharing on this post. She said, "When I was a young mom, my mother would always come and clean my house. It made me feel like she was saying I wasn't a good house keeper, or a good mother. But, I got over myself after a few kids and LOVED it when she would come help me clean and take care of the kids!" It finally clicked in my head what may be the problem when visiting Princess One. 

I asked Princess One on my next visit, and she shared that she didn't like it when I cleaned her house. She just wanted me there to help and play with the kids! I used to cook most of the meals, do the dishes, fix things, etc. keeping busy the entire day, as well as playing with the kids, WHICH I LOVE. I ENJOY working! The last two times I have visited Princess One's family, I didn't clean anything. I didn't do the dishes, or cook the meals unless asked. If the kids were busy, I would sit down and usually fall asleep, which I didn't like, but at least I wasn't upsetting the situation. 

I always take several boxes of activities to play with the kids. I try to make it fun for them by pulling something new out to play with every few hours so they don't get board of the same things. I have about 12 boxes now of different aged activities that I can take and do with them. They love it, and I enjoy getting to spend time with them and even though I am sometimes looking for something to keep me busy, I just sit and play a game on my phone, which isn't something I do very often. 

Lesson and moral, ASK first before "helping" as what you think is helping, may actually be really offensive to the host! 

Have an organized and joyously blessed day! 

Working Hard IN the Yard and Rashes For My Hard Work

I have been working on a project to try and get rid of the cat situation in my yard. I didn't have time last summer to finish the project in the backyard as I had all the fence posts, pruning, yard sales, and trips going on. 

I have been working hard regularly in the yard, both front and back, trying to get things looking good again. I shared that I pruned three trees in the back, weeded the entire yard, and am putting down barrier and boxes and still have a few other projects in mind for the yard. 

I finished weeding the back play area this week but am super frustrated with the amount of cat stool in my yard. The neighbors don't care about having a litter box or a place for the cats to sleep and many neighbors have problems with the cats clawing the trees etc. 


I have posted about this and talked with the neighbors many times, but I am to the point where I know it isn't going to make a difference so I am doing what I can. My hope is that if I can put down many layers of cardboard and then a barrier and then the black bark, then I can put cinnamon and cayenne pepper all over the area, then perhaps the cats will stop going in that area. 

This week I purchased liquid pesticide and granule pesticide of a different chemical and before putting down the cardboard and barriers, I am going to spray and put down the granules in hopes of killing any nematodes that are in the "litter box" area before finishing the project. 

Last time I was kneeling in the yard, I got a rash started on my knees where they got wet from the grass. 

This week, even thought I was kneeling on cardboard, I got two rashes that spread up my right leg in two spots and really believe it is from the cat feces. It was everywhere and I won't garden in my yard anymore. Within two days of the rash showing up, I had the burning in my left lung when the parasites burrow from the heart into the left lung (Loefflers syndrome) which happens when you get hook or strongyloidiasis worms from soil. The rashes are also something you get in the area that the nematodes burrow into. 

My leg has felt like it is on fire and I couldn't sleep with the sheet touching the leg. I have found the best thing for these rashes is Lugol's Iodine and Diatomaceous earth put on the spot after the iodine dries. It took a few days of hell and pain before I could work in the yard again as even walking in shorts caused so much pain. I kept taking Benadryl and Sudafed trying to deal with the itching and fire like pain in the area. 

At a few points, I just wanted to sit and cry due to the burning, but I just started giving gratitude for what I do have and got through the difficult moments but I truly hope that I can get the parasites and cats out of my yard. 

Tomorrow, I am going to spray and work in the yard. I still need more boxes and am working on that, but hope that I can finish up the play area tomorrow. I may need to go buy more bark to fill that area but I want to do everything I can to discourage the cats from coming back into my yard. 

I bought a battery operated motion sensor that puts out a high pitched signal and placed it in my front yard hoping that if the cats come to the yard, it will drive them away. I haven't seen them next to the front of the house recently but they do take a wide circle to get to the back of the house. But oddly enough, they have no problem walking directly from the back of my house to their house with no wide circle. They aren't afraid to leave the yard, just to get to the back yard. 

Anyway, I hope I can finish that project and start on the many other projects I have going on. 

Have a Blessed and nematode free day! 

Someone She Can Count On - Time With A Princess

It is interesting to me how days sometimes take on a life of their own. I have one of my girls home for the next few days. She came home to help me in the yard and do a few things before she starts her summer semester at school. 

It has rained for two days on and off and we haven't done a thing in the yard, but we have gotten a few things she needed to get done before heading back to school. Tonight, we were planning on heading to bed early to get more things done tomorrow and the night just kinda took on a life and things didn't go as we planned.

I LOVE that sometimes God has a different plan than we do and makes sure that what HE needs us to do happens. And, if we are paying attention, HE can guide us in what needs to be done, rather than what WE think needs to be done. 

When I was a parent of young children, sometimes this would be just putting the cleaning supplies down and listening to a young child express the concerns of their heart. 

Sometimes even our grown children need us to put down the cleaning supplies and just listen to their concerns. I have a list several pages long of things I need to get done, but instead, I helped my adorable daughter find some costumes for one of her "Teams" at work at the college and we got her signed up for some health insurance as she has been without for a year now. I was able to sit and rub her feet as she talked about boys, choices she needs to make for school, some life concerns, funny stories about life situations and the minutes turned into hours and it is now nearly six a.m. and she just went to bed with a huge smile on her face. 

She also listened to me after I listened to her talk, and we visited about things I would like in my future and stories from my past that she didn't know. It was a day that I think God had planned for us both. I didn't get anything on "my list" done, but I wouldn't trade our night for anything. It was just what we both needed. 

She sent me a link to this song I had never heard of before called "Someone He Can Count On" with a note saying "I love you cute mom!" 

I often wonder why I am so blessed!? I LOVE YOU TOO CUTE PRINCESS! 

Have a Blessed and God filled Day! 

Having Gifts Ready Ahead of Time - Saving Money Buying On Sale

I wanted to share something with you today that I thought was something everyone does for many years and then realized that I was different by doing this.

When I was growing up, my mother always had a closet full of presents. She had 8 children and if she had to run to the store every time one of us got invited to a birthday party or needed a gift for a teacher, she would have continually been running to the store. 

If we needed an item, she would just pull an item out of her closet. She had wrapping paper and we were able to wrap the items and be on our way to the party. Until the day she died, she had gifts in her closets. When I was cleaning out her estate, I took two large boxes of new presents to the funeral and let people take what they wanted from the new items and whatever was left, (I don't know how much as I was doing other things) was donated to a girls camp yard sale. 

Having grown up that way, I have always had  totes full of gifts. If my girls needed a present for a "secret sister" for drill or girls camp, or a birthday present, we could pull out the tote and they could pick a present. I would buy gift bags at the local dollar store or if I see bags of assorted giftbags at second hand stores, I will purchase those. I have many packages of new gift boxes and bags unopened that I have gotten for a few dollars that way. 

When I am shopping and I find a good deal on an item that is generic for babies or weddings, I will purchase bulk. For example, last month I was shopping at Walmart, and ran across a display in the back of the store near the little jewelry bags I purchase for my jewelry sorting videos etc. On the display, were all licensed baby Onesie baby outfits in a two pack. Each two pack was $2. That is $1 per name brand licensed Onesie! 

They had all sizes from newborn up and had lots of boys and girls sets. I made a video sharing that I have 7 siblings and between us, we have over 50 children. Many are newlyweds and are starting to have children. I have a shower a month or more for either weddings or babies and it costs me near $100 to drive to the event buying gas and food etc. I have a brother that lives far from family, but his wife has 10 siblings so with his seven, they have 17 siblings between the two. They budget $500 a month in gas due to family events.

With car issues / sliding on the ice / Migraines etc, I decided that I would make the ones I could make, but wasn't going to stress about driving up for an open house shower each time. I started taking up bulk presents for weddings and showers and leaving them with family members so that I would be able to give a gift at the event, but not have to drive 6 hours for the event. Of course I go for the wedding itself but for showers I am going less and less. I think it was before, it was an "event" where we would quilt a blanket for the bride or baby, but now they are all open house, snack food, in and out events. 

I have stopped using gift bags on many gifts now due to the fact they get so beat up in the car with luggage or sitting in someone's closet waiting to be given at the shower. 

I use tulle that I get at second hand stores new on the role for about $1 and bunch up two or three colors and tie ribbons around the gifts and stick a hole in a card and slide the card onto the tulle ribbon. That way, I can stack them, and before they give them the gift, she can fluff the tulle. I am covered on the gift but not spend $100 and 6 hours driving back and forth. They also stack on a closet shelf and don't take up as much space as the gift bags. 

I share in the video, how I do the same with wedding gifts. My "go to" wedding gifts are frames, photo albums, games, puzzles and puzzle keepers because they are square and stackable putting two or three items for each gift. If I know the couple well, I get them something specific to them. I also have lots of the girls friends getting married, and the girls are not around, so I don't really want to go to every shower or reception. So, I will drop off a gift as soon as I get the invitation except for close friends that I actually know well. We get so many invitations for class mates and the girls haven't seen them in years. 

I know things are different in different parts of the country as weddings were a much bigger deal when we lived near Boston. Just different cultures. 

I am glad I can find cute gifts that are fun and in my price range and am grateful to have such a large family. I am truly blessed. Have a Blessed and Family Filled Day! 

Forgotten Parasite Update Videos - Leg Rashes - Lung Damage - Fainting When Laughing - Hiccup - Fatigue

I was super busy during the holiday and true to form, during busy times in my life, I will take pictures and videos and then in the crazy, it gets transferred off my sd cards and then I forget to post it.

I made this parasite update video during the holidays and uploaded it but never put the information on it and posted it. I didn't realize that until I made an update video yesterday and while I was talking during the video, I remembered that I probably hadn't posted this update.

It is a good video and has quite a bit of information so I am posting it here. I found an herb when researching some things and found a place in Ecuador that sells Oje` Resin which is from a vine that takes over large trees and kills the tree but becomes stronger by being a vine parasite.


I don't suggest taking this but wanted to documents that I did try this just for science sake so I researched this for a long time reading everything I could find about it. I read studies and all the reactions and felt it was worth trying.

I tested myself on it to make sure I wasn't going to have any type of allergic reaction and after a few tests, I increased a bit more just to make sure it wasn't going to cause any problems and then I went ahead and took full recommended doses for the full four days.

I didn't notice anything that I could pinpoint for sure that it did do. About a week after taking it, I did have new hatching parasites which is what happens when I take walnut tincture or other anti-parasite herbs, oils etc. So, it is an anti-parasite but like those, it just seems to kill what parasites are in the gut and not those in other areas.

So, if you have intestinal parasites, this resin pronounced "oh hey" resin, may help you, however, it isn't any better than black walnut, oils, silver etc so I wouldn't suggest using it for parasites. It also isn't as well documented so I wouldn't suggest you taking it at all. ALSO, THIS IS RELATED TO THE RUBBER TREE SO, IF YOU HAVE A LATEX ALLERGY, DO NOT TRY THIS! I would stick with things that have been tested. I am just sharing so when they do study this, they can check that off when researching anti-parasitic. It does come up as an anti-parasite treatment so just know, it has been tried.

I did many hours of research on "fainting when laughing" as I almost faint when laughing or straining hard for the past three years or so but it has gotten worse. I have a niece who came home early from serving as a missionary as she keeps fainting when laughing and they keep calling ambulances and then they run tests and can't find anything. Since I have that same issue, I studied about it and looked at many medical pages and many forums and what I came up with are two thoughts that people shared in the forums that their Dr.s came up with.

The first, is that two of the people who have this symptom have lung damage, so perhaps it is as their Dr. said, and that because they can't exchange air well in the lungs, when they laugh, they become depleted of oxygen and pass out until they can catch up. The other I studied, and think it could be, is that it could be a goiter problem due to it blocking off air getting to the brain so laughing keeps you from getting as much air maybe not from the lung issue but the amount of blood going to the brain, or the last option is it is people who have this parasite or strongyloides who have thyroid calcification and lung damage and laughing hard makes them not get enough oxygen from both problems. It is probably the combo of both that makes it that way as I do have both problems. I black out to the point of not seeing anything for a few seconds and have to stop myself from laughing and breathe deeply but I can see myself going down if I was laughing hard standing up.

I realized also that the weird hiccup thing I do, and my other family members do has only gotten worse as I get more parasites and that I believe it is when the parasites burrow quickly into the gut or out of the gut causing a little air release from all the burrow holes and thus a vacuum is created causing the quick intake of air I have mentioned before. It seems to be when I drink water or eat something they don't like so them burrowing in for the water, and burrowing out away from the herbs or medication.

Watch the video as I share lots about different things. If you have any questions, please feel free to ask them. It takes me some time to get to everything. Just today, I spent over an hour answering questions from people on youtube and I answer them daily so depending on the day, I can spend a few hours replying to comments. I haven't checked my blog and youtube email yet, but this thing can eat up lots of time.

Thanks for all your support and prayers on this and continue praying that we can find a cure soon. I would LOVE to be done with all this. I feel like my gratitude blog has turned into an information on everything but gratitude blog. SO, with that feeling, I am putting together a new webpage where I can post everything on the parasite and not have to post so much on my blog about it. I really miss the gratitude posts. I have been working on pulling things off SD cards today and realized that I have only posted about 1/4 of the video and pictures I have taken on the blog or youtube as things are so crazy, I just move on with the new stuff. I didn't post about most of my summer. I hope to be able to get better internet soon and maybe it won't take me four or more hours to post a short video.

Have a Blessed and parasite free day!

Safety at Night - Wasp Spray - Fire Extinguisher - Cranking Flashlight

I bought two new beds for a few of the girls rooms. I have been upgrading to full sized beds in all the girls rooms so that when they are all married, they will have a place to sleep. I now have three full sized beds in the girls rooms and have bought a frame for the next room but it has bunk beds in it currently and is storing all of Princess Fours stuff that she packed up before her mission. She left right to head to work for the summer so she hasn't had time to sort through all the stuff and try on clothes, sort what is now out of style after a few years etc. 

I am planning a yard sale and want to get rid of the old beds, night stands, and anything else that may not work now and really want to have the rooms guest ready for anyone that may visit. I have a dresser for each of the girls and really don't want much else in the rooms except a bench where they can put their bags. I have had so much stuff in all the rooms due to my mothers estate and all the girls living in student housing that I really am overwhelmed with the amount of stuff. I find myself wanting to buy stuff I like to fill the space, maybe in a way to "push" the girls out? I am not sure but it is weird. 

I love the girls and they are super about organizing and sorting it but with all I still have to do in the yard and on my mom's history etc. I just want some organized spaces and there aren't many in my life currently. I have so many areas I want to clean up but can't seem to get to them all but today I looked at my counter and I had a "to do" list on it and the only thing left was to call and thank my Uncle so I guess I am getting things done but not at the rate I would like to get them done! I did finish digging up and setting three more fence posts this week and the fence is finished at the moment as I have replaced every post in the past few years but two and those are anchored onto a shed so I think I am finished with that project! 

Anyway, lots of talk for what I wanted to actually share today..... A few years ago I read an article about firearms and how many times people can't get to them fast enough and it isn't something you can leave about with kids so they suggested using wasp and hornet spray if you have an intruder! It shoots almost 30 feet so you don't have to get near your attacker and it shoots a constant spray so if your aim is initially off, you just sweep it the direction of the attacker. If getting hit in the face with a pesticide doesn't send them running, I don't know what will. If they go to the ER, they are admitting they were breaking and entering so my guess is they won't be headed to any ER. 

I dated a fireman and he told me that I should have a fire extinguisher by my bed so I could get to my kids. I decided it couldn't hurt to have one by their beds and they are not that expensive, so I put one in the rooms furthest from the doors and in my room by my bed.  I literally have a can of wasp spray right next to my bed on the end table. I also have a gun near as well but to see the attacker in the night with sleep eyes, I think my odds are better with the wasp spray! 

The last thing I gave all the girls was a hand cranking flashlight with a charger cord as well. They each have one in their night stands. I told them all to take the wasp spray to college but can see that I still have one under her bed but I think she may have ended up with Princess Fours from College so there is an extra. I also give them bear pepper spray keychains when they head to college and tell them to have it in "on" position when walking across campus at night. Thank heavens they are in a small college town and they always call and talk to me or one of their sisters when they are walking alone at night just in case so we are always aware of our surroundings and taking precautions. They say that is one of the biggest deterrents from being attacked.  

They also know how to get out of several "holds" which I have shown them their entire lives... Having girls, I have tried to give them all the tools to be safe.... 

As I was pulling down her old bed which hasn't been moved in years, I saw those items and thought I would share them with you as they couldn't hurt anything having them at the ready. I did take the hornet repellant spray out of the room as the grandbabies sleep in there and I don't want them getting to it now that we have a higher bed in that room. I don't have people in that room much so I think we are ok not having it in there. 

You can see from the pictures that I have them where they can be reached easily while sleeping and also, I pulled back and allowed you to see the huge window she has in there as well. If she needed to break the window, either of these would be heavy enough for her to do that safely to get out. The window opens well so I doubt that would be needed but you never know.... 

I hope we never need any of those items but I do like being prepared for whatever may happen. The other good advice I have heard is to keep a pair of shoes by the bed in case of earth quake as people cut their feet running to get outside but I know I would probably just trip over them daily. ;-) 

Have a Blessed and Prepared Day! 

Living Life To the Fullest - Working on Adventure

As a parent, one of my biggest fears was losing a child. I think most parents feel this way. I would say I am a "Hyper Vigilant" parent when it comes to dangers that could befall my children. I warn them of all the dangers that come from choices and made them wear their "safety equipment" when roller blading or riding bikes. 

To this day, my kids hate riding bikes because I would always make them wear helmets and tell me they look stupid. I personally wear a helmet when I ride a bike as well. Being a nurse, I see the results of people NOT taking precautions. I personally know of two kids who died riding skate boards, not to mention broken bones due to not wearing helmets. I know of people paralyzed by trampolines and have seen many broken bones from people jumping on them. 

I am not afraid of them living life, but just want to make sure that they take all the precautions that would make the experience the safest possible! I have a trampoline... Here is a post about that. I have a net around the trampoline. I only allow two on the trampoline at a time. I want them to have fun and they have enjoyed many super experiences on the trampoline and I can "knock on wood"

 and say that no one has been hurt on the trampoline in the 16 years or so we have owned it. 

We did have one bike accident but she was wearing a helmet which probably saved her face and teeth as she did hit hard on her face but the helmet protected her and her teeth recovered with no permanent damage but we did take her to the dentist for an emergency visit just in case. 

The only break we had, was at a city playground when one fell off the monkey bars so considering all that, we have done well. 

I put my kids in swimming lessons and swim team as kids when possible as I wanted them to feel safe around water and be able to be confident swimmers. I shared a bit about this in yesterdays post. 

My girls had someone in their life that had a fear of many things. Trampolines, swimming, snorkeling, roller-skates, roller blades, and hiking overlooks etc. Due to this, the girls ended up with many unrealistic fears for some things. One day when I was doing clinical hours, one daughter was put in her room for many hours without dinner at about age 5 for jumping on a trampoline at a birthday party while I wasn't home. The girls weren't allowed roller skates or roller blades and other things. I tried to balance the realistic fears with realistic caution yet have them be excited to try new things.

I think the fact that Four of the five girls all served in other continents as missionaries by themselves and all did a few South America service missions with me, shows that they have confidence in new things and I myself LOVE trying new things. I also taught them to try new foods and thought this was a good thing until Princess One tried "pork poop soup" in the Philippines when serving as a missionary. There are some lines that shouldn't be crossed! 

I think at some point, all the girls have some fears that they are all overcoming at their own pace due to the situations as children, but I am so proud of them facing those fears head on and moving forward in a healthy way and being able to enjoy new things.... 

This past week, Princess Three went repelling on several cliffs of 300 feet and the guys that took her asked her a few times if her "mom would be "OK" with this?" She replied, "She's probably really proud because I'm trying something new and scary and she always says I could just die walking down the street, so why not?" She then added,  "Ha ha. They thought that was pretty cool! And I did it and I didn't even cry!!"  

I am proud of her and jealous as I LOVE doing things like that. So, as you can see, I do want them to do cool things but be safe in how they do them. She also has flown a plane, gone to Thailand with a friend, petted lions, ridden elephants, gone to Africa with a service missionary group not knowing anyone before hand, gone paragliding, purchased a car and is leaving for Iceland to camp in two vans for 10 days with a group of friends. I am SO proud of her for doing that! 

The other girls are also learning and doing new things and I am so proud of the way one of them has taken on some harassing situations at work and stood up for coworkers in tough situation bringing the situation to those higher up in the company and even if it affects her job, she knows she has done the right thing by standing up for the right.

I laugh in understanding as Princess One breaks the way of parenting and is setting a wonderful example of a healthy marriage and Princess One researches everything and finds cool and new things for parenting that weren't around in my day and I am continually learning new things from her... I know the other girls have a good resource in her as things have changed so much since I raised them. 

Princess Five is getting herself ready to serve as a missionary in the next few months and I am excited to see where she will be able to serve others. I know wherever she ends up going, it will be a wonderful experience for her! I am proud of Princess Four surviving for 18 months in Japan not knowing any of the language before hand and she is now sad to leave those people she has learned to love through service....

I have always said, "I wouldn't wish my divorce on anyone" as it lasted so many years and we even recently have had issues, but I know that without that experience in their lives, my girls wouldn't have the strong dispositions they do and love how they can stand up for what is right no matter the consequences. They do branch out and do hard and amazing things being wonderful leaders in the community and every boss I have ever met of my girls has told me what hard workers they are and that they had no hesitation leaving them alone or in charge due to their work ethic. Princess Four arrives home on a Friday and starts work on Monday morning in another town as her old boss loves her and wanted her back for the summer! 

I am so blessed with wonderful and somewhat adventurous girls. I am happy they are getting even more adventurous. I know that they all have the ability to change the world by changing the corner where they are!

Have a Blessed Day!