Letter on Imigration

I have had so many e-mails about the Robin Williams post I had to pass this one along too.. There is a bit of ironies to this post. First of all my Ma came through Ellis Island and her family shortened their name when they cam over from Poland. I played the dickens when I visited the Statue of Liberty and went in search of my family history. The second ironie is The newspaper that would not publish the letter. I know the assistant to the chief editor. Wow. ORANGE COUNTY ( CALIFORNIA ) NEWSPAPER This is a very good letter to the editor. This woman made some good points For some reason, people have difficulty structuring their arguments when arguing against supporting the currently proposed immigration revisions. This lady made the argument pretty simple. NOT printed in the Orange County Paper.................. Newspapers simply won't publish letters to the editor which they either deem politically incorrect (read below) or which does not agree with the philosophy they're pushing on the public. This woman wrote a great letter to the editor that should have been published; but, with your help it will get published via cyberspace! New Immigrants From: "David LaBonte" My wife, Rosemary, wrote a wonderful letter to the editor of the OC Register which, of course, was not printed. So, I decided to "print" it myself by sending it out on the Internet. Pass it along if you feel so inclined. Dave LaBonte (signed) Written in response to a series of letters to the editor in the Orange County Register : Dear Editor: So many letter writers have based their arguments on how this land is made up of immigrants. Ernie Lujan for one, suggests we should tear down the Statue of Liberty because the people now in question aren't being treated the same as those who passed through Ellis Island and other ports of entry. Maybe we should turn to our history books and point out to people like Mr. Lujan why today's American is not willing to accept this new kind of immigrant any longer. Back in 1900 when there was a rush from all areas of Europe to come to the United States , people had to get off a ship and stand in a long line in New York and be documented. Some would even get down on their hands and knees and kiss the ground. They made a pledge to uphold the laws and support their new country in good and bad times. They made learning English a primary rule in their new American households and some even changed their names to blend in with their new home. They had waved good bye to their birth place to give their children a new life and did everything in their power to help their children assimilate into one culture. Nothing was handed to them. No free lunches, no welfare, no labor laws to protect them. All they had were the skills and craftsmanship they had brought with them to trade for a future of prosperity. Most of their children came of age when World War II broke out. My father fought along side men whose parents had come straight over from Germany , Italy , France and Japan . None of these 1st generation Americans ever gave any thought about what country their parents had come from. They were Americans fighting Hitler, Mussolini and the Emperor of Japan. They were defending the United States of America as one people. When we liberated France , no one in those villages were looking for the French-American or the German American or the Irish American. The people of France saw only Americans And we carried one flag that represented one country. Not one of those immigrant sons would have thought about picking up another country's flag and waving it to represent who they were. It would have been a disgrace to their parents who had sacrificed so much to be here. These immigrants truly knew what it meant to be an American. They stirred the melting pot into one red, white and blue bowl. And here we are in 2006 with a new kind of immigrant who wants the same rights and privileges. Only they want to achieve it by playing with a different set of rules, one that includes the entitlement card and a guarantee of being faithful to their mother country. I'm sorry, that's not what being an American is all about. I believe that the immigrants who landed on Ellis Island in the early 1900's deserve better than that for all the toil, hard work and sacrifice in raising future generations to create a land that has become a beacon for those legally searching for a better life. I think they would be appalled that they are being used as an example by those waving foreign country flags. And for that suggestion about taking down the Statue of Liberty , it happens to mean a lot to the citizens who are voting on the immigration bill. I wouldn't start talking about dismantling the United States just yet. (signed) Rosemary LaBonte P. S. Pass this on to everyone you know!!! KEEP THIS LETTER MOVING!! I hope this letter gets read by millions of people all across the nation!! Ever onward

Growing Up

The girls and I have spent the last week going through tote after tote of shoes and clothes I have put up for them to grow into. Great end of season sales, Yard Sales, and Hand Me Downs are all there. Well as we're going through the totes trying things on, getting rid of some and laughing at others on how poorly they actually fit, I realize Genevieve is growing up. She is looking so old. Not old in a bad way just not the little girl I brought home from China almost 4 years ago now. I guess I always knew it would happen, but I wasn't expecting it yet for some reason.

Robin Williams Plan for the US

Robin Williams wearing a shirt that reads"I Love NY" in Arabic

I thought and thought about posting this to my blog, but then I thought this is MY blog. I can voice my opinion if I choose . I think this guy has the best plan I have yet to hear anywhere.

You gotta love Robin Williams...... Even if he's nuts! Leave it to Robin Williams to come up with the perfect plan. What we need now is for our UN Ambassador to stand up and repeat this message.

Robin Williams' plan...

(Hard to argue with this logic!) "I see a lot of people yelling for peace but I have not heard of a plan for peace. So, here's one plan."

1) "The US will apologize to the world for our "interference" in their affairs, past and present. You know, Hitler, Mussolini, Stalin, Tojo, Noriega, Milosevic, Hussein, and the rest of those "good ole boys", we will never "interfere" again.

2) We will withdraw our troops from all over the world, starting with Germany , South Korea , the Middle East , and the Philippines They don't want us there, anyway. We would station troops at our borders. No one allowed sneaking through holes in the fence.

3) All illegal aliens have 90 days to get their affairs together and leave. We'll give them a free trip home. After 90 days the remainder will be gathered up and deported immediately, regardless of whom or where they are. They're illegal!!! France will welcome them.

4) All future visitors will be thoroughly checked and limited to 90 days unless given a special permit!!!! No one from a terrorist nation will be allowed in. If you don't like it there, change it yourself and don't hide here. Asylum would never be available to anyone. We don't need any more cab drivers or 7-11 cashiers.

5) No foreign "students" over age 21. The older ones are the bombers. If they don't attend classes, they get a "D" and it's back home baby.

6) The US will make a strong effort to become self-sufficient energy wise. This will include developing nonpolluting sources of energy but will require a temporary drilling of oil in the Alaskan wilde rness. The caribou will have to cope for a while .

7) Offer Saudi Arabia and other oil producing countries $10 a barrel for their oil. If they don't like it, we go someplace else. They can go somewhere else to sell their production. (About a week of the wells filling up the storage sites would be enough.)

8) If there is a famine or other natural catastrophe in the world, we will not "interfere." They can pray to Allah or whomever, for seeds, rain, cement or whatever they need. Besides most of what we give them is stolen or given to the army. The people who need it most get very little, if anything.

9) Ship the UN Headquarters to an isolated island someplace. We don't need the spies and fair weather friends here. Besides, the building would make a good homeless shelter or lockup for illegal aliens.

10) All Americans must go to charm and beauty school. That way, no one can call us "Ugly Americans" any longer. The Language we speak is ENGLISH...learn it or LEAVE...

Now, isn't that a winner of a plan? "The Statue of Liberty is no longer saying "Give me your tired, your poor, your huddled masses." She's got a baseball bat and she's yelling, 'you want a piece of me?' "

Ill kiddos

What can make 2 little girls with fevers of 102+ feel better? Left over Lo Mien Noodles, Egg Drop Soup, Ibuprofen and Tylenol. Both girls started out last night with the fever and it just keeps hanging on. We went to dinner, unknown they were that ill until part way through dinner. It's a buffet but the owners think of our kiddos as theirs. So Jolin gives us take out boxes for the Genevieve's noodles and soup since she ate NOTHING at meal time. It made for a great lunch with a shot glass of Tylenol.

40 GREAT tips for Life - Enjoy

I got this in an e-mail and it was toooooo good not to share with everyone I knew. 40 Tips for an Exceptional, Superb & Powerful Life! 1. Take a 10-30 minute walk every day. And while you walk, smile. It is the ultimate anti-depressant 2. Sit in silence for at least 10 minutes each day. Buy a lock if you have to. 3. Buy a Tivo (DVR), tape your late night shows, and get more sleep 4. When you wake up in the morning complete the following statement, "My purpose is to___________ today." 5. Live with the 3 E's -- Energy, Enthusiasm,> Empathy 6. Watch more movies, play more games, and read more books than you did last year 7. Make time to practice meditation, and prayer. They provide us with daily fuel for our busy lives. 8. Spend more time with people over the age of 70 and under the age of 6 9. Dream more while you are awake 10. Eat more foods that grow on trees and plants and eat fewer foods that are manufactured in plants. 11. Drink green tea and plenty of water. Eat blueberries, wild Alaskan salmon, broccoli, almonds & walnuts. 12. Try to make at least three people smile each day 13. Clear your clutter from your house, your car, your desk and let new and flowing energy into your life. 14. Don't waste your precious energy on gossip, energy vampires, issues of the past, negative thoughts, or things you cannot control. Instead, invest your energy in the> positive present moment. 15. Realize that life is a school and you are here to learn. Problems are simply part of the curriculum that appear and fade away like algebra class, but the lessons you learn will last a lifetime. 16. Eat breakfast like a king, lunch like a prince, and dinner like a college kid with a maxed out charge card 17. Smile and laugh more. It will keep the energy vampires away. 18. Life isn't fair, but it's still good. 19. Life is too short to waste time hating anyone. 20. Don't take yourself so seriously. No one else does. 21. You don't have to win every argument. Agree to disagree. 22. Make peace with your past so that it won't screw up the present. 23. Don't compare your life to others' lives. You have no idea what their journey is all about. 24. Burn the candles, use the nice sheets, and wear the fancy lingerie (not you guys.) Don't save it for a special occasion. Today is special. 25. No one is in charge of your happiness except you. 26. Frame every so-called disaster with these words: "In five years, will this matter?" 27. Forgive everyone for everything. 28. What other people think of you is none of your business. 29. Time heals almost everything. Give time, time. 30. However good or bad a situation is, it will change. 31. Your job won't take care of you when you are sick. Your friends will. Stay in touch. 32. Get rid of anything that isn't useful, beautiful, or joyful 33. Envy is a waste of time. You already have all you need. 34. The best is yet to come. 35. No matter how you feel, get up, dress up, and show up. 36. Do the right thing! 37. Call your family often. 38. Each night before you go to bed, complete the following statements: "I am thankful for __________." Today I accomplished ________. 39. Remember that you are too blessed to be stressed. 40. Enjoy the ride. Remember that this is not Disney World and you certainly don't want a fast pass. You have only one ride through life, and so make the most of it and enjoy the ride.

Baby Lan Lan

Abigail commonly refers to this little darling as baby Lan Lan. It's kinda like thrid person. When we first got this picture in the mail from her orphanage last Dec. She saw it and told me how sad Baby Lan Lan is because she misses her mommy. Oh I just lost it.

Every so often she talks about Baby Lan Lan. I'm not sure why she won't acknowledge that it's her and the same person. Maybe in time. Well we are watching "Twelve Girls Band" video http://www.amazon.com/12-Girls-Band-Live-Shanghai/dp/B000PDZIZY and she starts talking about Baby Lan Lan.

She tells me she needs to go back to China. I ask her why, and she informs me that Baby Lan Lan needs to find her mommy. I explain for the umpteenth time that she is baby Lan Lan and I am her mommy. She then tells me she needs her Chinese Mommy. When I ask her why, she explains to me so she won't have to be sad any more. I tell her she does not have to sad, but she doesn't buy it.

Wow - she is only 3.8 where n the world does all this come from. I know she was 2 at the time of her adoption but who would think she could remember so much. I am going to ned help on this when it happens again. I'm not sure if I'm handling it the right way.

Gotta Love Target

$8.48 can buy allot of happiness in this house as long as it has Princess', lady bugs, pandas, or butterflies. This is what the dollar bin has now at Target. Wow the girls went nuts, lunch-bags, ice-packs, water-bottles and snack keepers. They just insisted they had to have them because they go to school this year. Never mind that it's only from 9-11 a couple days a week and I have to feed them lunch at home. They decided they will pack their lunch for play-dates in their own bags instead of mommy making it in the big cooler. OK, I'll buy that.

Wow how many times I've wondered if my girls have a bio sibling. Really great article. Enjoy http://www.adoption.com/includes/frame.php?url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/magazine/6897567.stm

Thunderstorms at our House

This is what you find when there's thunder. Gosh they're cute when they're sleeping and not terrorizing each other. As you can tell Bear Bear, Maggie, Andy , Da ping and Xiou Ping had to join in as well.

Kai-lan

Woooooo Hoooooo Kai-Lan is coming. The air date for the first show has now been set: October 22, 2007. I really, really, think this one will catch on like the Dora show. The girls loved playing the computer game when it was up and running. I'm really excited about all the merchandise that will come about from this. Just look at the Dora Line.

adoption and superman

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF9b92-T1jM Check this Out - Way Cute

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF9b92-T1jM This is Way Cute - Check it Out

This is Way Cute - Check it out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jF9b92-T1jM

Oscar Jr came Home

A while back I had posted to our group that my step-son was pulling it together. He had fallen into the wrong crowd when he turned 18. (Now 24). Growing up in Hyde Park (South-side of Chicago) didn't help the problem either. Well anyway God touched him through a stranger about 5 months ago and it has been uphill ever since.

Sunday night he surprised his Dad and I by showing up with his fiance and 2 children. Wow we have 2 more grandchildren and didn't know it. She seems like a great person and has stood by him during all of his troubles. She told me, she knew God would stand by her so she could stand by him until he could stand alone. he's almost ready to stand alone, but she likes standing by him. Wow. Anyway here is a pic of Oscar Jr and his family. I can't wait until the next family photo, he's excited to be a part of it.

He also got to meet his sisters for the first time in person. We sent him pictures regularly but they had never met. The girls took right to him and were excited to figure out they had another brother. Genevieve started counting all of her siblings and the response was a simple, "I have Allot of brothers and sisters, I'm lucky"..

God is Good

Our Kittys

As most of you know we began acquiring kittys the first week of May. It was hard considering it had only been about 6 m since having to put our diamond down after 16 yrs. Twylla came to us at 3 weeks and 8oz. Her siblings were all dead and mommy no where to be found. She was in an empty house She had to be bottle fed every 4 hours and stimulated to relieve herself. What an experience that was. Lao Hu came to us at 6 weeks and 3 times as big as Twylla. He had ear mites, but all in all healthy. He was with a family. We thought he was a girl at first until the garbonzos dropped. ooooops i hope he didn't get a complex from being called a she for so long. The kittys are doing great now as you can tell by the pictures. They have settled right into our home and routine. We have a great squirt bottle to teach them to stay off of counters and tables. They both are doing great in the kitty box. What a great day that was when Twylla got big enough to get down the basement steps so I could get the box out of my kitchen. Both kittys love to get in bed with Abigail and she wants NO, I mean NO part of that. So we have resorted to putting the gate up at night to keep the cats out of her room. It's amazing how much energy they have at night. As they run through the house on the hard wood floors it sounds as if they elephants have been turned loose in my house. The loudest part is when they crash into stuff and things go tumbling. I am amazed every day watching them grow, learn, and settle in. The cats not the kids but it really is the same process. Each day is an adventure. Twylla at about 5 weeks. She was still on the bottle back then. We put a scrunchy around her neck, it was the only thing that fit. She really likes sleeping on Da Ping.

Lao Hu at about 8 weeks. He was still in recovery from the ear mites, but doing well. I love this picture of him. His coloring is so beautiful

Lao Hu last week playing under the door with Twylla

Twylla and Lao Hu playing under the door .

This is one of their favorite games to play, I don't know what they'll do when winter comes and they don't have the back door anymore.

Genevieve and Twylla - She can do almost anything to that cat.. They sure are growing, the cat and the kid

July 11th

I guess time does help heal all wounds. I have been going through my day to day and family crisis' for the past month with out even realizing the date. Yesterday my Ma would have been 86 years old. It's been 8 yrs this Dec since she passed. Her passing day is kinda bitter sweet. You see it's the same day as Genevieve's Adoption day and the same Day I flew home with Abigail and she met her BaBa for the first time. So it's hard for me to grieve on that day with all the joy I have. Our Genevieve was named after her. I sure miss her more when times are heard. She had the best iced tea in the world. It was in this old glass that I really wonder how many times it was washed in between fillings. Perhaps that's what made the tea so good. I miss her stroking my hair and telling me "it will be OK" and "no matter what everything happens for a reason because God knows what he's doing." I also miss her fire temper. She stood all of 4'5" and could knew many words in polish. Most of them I really did not want to know what was being said. But I think mostly I just miss knowing she was there.

Today is one of the hottest days of the year so far. Our heat index reached 100 degrees. This is ho all the grass in our area is looking. It's hard even with watering. The farmers are losing parts of their crops daily. I'm a little worried the corn crops are are really going to suffer. That will really throw the price of food up across the country.

The laundry also needs to be done, as well as the dusting. Not to mention the kitchen floor needing mopped and the carpet needs to be vacuumed desperately.

Oh well. Off to the local kids water park for the day. Kennedy water park is designed for kids. The deepest part is only 1 1/2 feet. Pack a lunch and we're on our way

Don't pull the rope - oooooops here comes the water. That Smile makes it all worthwhile. It doesn't get much better than that

I'm so ready to play the day away

This was sent to me and needed to be passed on to everyone I know - From a nurse: I'll never forget the look in my patients' eyes when I had to tell them they had to go home with the drains, new exercises and no breast (s) . I remember begging the Doctors to keep these women in the hospital longer, only to hear that they would, but their hands were tied by the insurance companies. So there I sat with my patient giving them the instructions they needed to take care of themselves, knowing full well they didn't grasp half of what I was saying, because the glazed, hopeless, frightened look spoke louder than the quiet 'Thank you' they muttered. A mastectomy is when a woman's breast is removed in order to remove cancerous breast cells/tissue. If you know anyone who has had a mastectomy, you may know that there is a lot of discomfort and pain afterwards. Insurance companies are trying to make mastectomies an outpatient procedure. Let's give women the chance to recover properly in the hospital for 2 days after surgery. Mastectomy Bill in Congress It takes 2 seconds to do this and is very important... Please take the time and do it really quick! Breast Cancer Hospitalization Bill - Important legislation for all women. Please send this to everyone in your address book. If there was ever a time when our voices and choices should be heard, this is one of those times. If you're receiving this, it's because I think you will take the 30 seconds to go to vote on this issue and send it on to others you know who will do the same. There's a bill called the Breast Cancer Patient Protection Act which will require insurance companies to cover a minimum 48-hour hospital stay for patients undergoing a mastectomy. It's about eliminating the 'drive-through mastectomy' where women are forced to go home just a few hours after surgery, against the wishes of their doctor, still groggy from anesthesia and sometimes with drainage tubes still attached. Lifetime Television has put this bill on their web p age with a petition drive to show your support. Last year over half the House signed on. PLEASE!! Sign the petition by clicking on the web site below. You need not give more than your name and zip code number. http://www.lifetimetv.com/breastcancer/petition/signpetition.php <http://www.lifetimetv.com/breastcancer/petition/signpetition.php> This takes about 2 seconds. PLEASE PASS THIS ON to your friends and family, and on behalf of all women, THANKS.

There are such beautiful people in this great big world of ours, I just had to share this video of one. Get your tissue. http://mfile.akamai.com/21772/wmv/gannett.download.akamai.com/21772/streaming/wmv/hancockportraits.asx

100 good wishes quilt

I would still like to recieve squares if everyone is game. I am going to make the quilt and send it to Love Without Boundaries to raffle off. They do so much good for the kids still in the orphanges. So please send in the squares

Todays update

It is with a sad heart today that I inform our friends and family that we will not be adopting again. We have been going through a family crisis since June 15th and the stress levels of that and the fact that our SW is telling us she can not have our Home Study until the end of next week added to it. When I contacted Chicago they said they will not expedite our 171 unless there was a medical need. I contacted our agency and explained the entire circumstance and asked if they thought CCAA would allow us an extension because there was no way we could be DTC by Aug 15Th. That is what was needed to make this work. They were quite clear CCAA wouldn't do it. This made my heart go into my throat. Heather then told me that another family had contacted them the last part of last week and said if we backed out they would proceed. They are in the matching room already and it was just a matter of moving the file and she could be home by Thanksgiving. Without even discussing it with Oscar I told her to get ahold of the family. He was as sad as I am I think but he knows it's for the best right now. I sent a note toe Melissa and explained to her that any monies that were donated to help us could go to the orphan ministry at her church unless a family contacts me or her directly and wants a refund. They have a great program that helps kiddos still in orphanages. There were a few people that wrote larger checks and have asked her to disperse them a refund. I can't thank everyone enough for all the love and support we have had to help us. I will still update the blog with how the kiddos are doing, I kinda like it better than the family yahoo group. Please pray for our family until we get through our crisis.

The sparklers and one smart mommy

The girls are afraid for the sparks from the sparklers so being the smart mommy I am, I came up with an idea. I took 12" round cardboard and coated it with aluminum foil and poked a hole in it. They put the sparkler in the center and sparkle away. They had such a great time. The disks will go in the tote for 4th of July and used again next year.

July 3rd - Our first sparklers and fountains

I know how the girls are with loud things, especially Genevieve. Her low tones are amplified with her hearing impairment so some sounds send her through the roof. Abigail does fair with sounds but because of her impairment it's difficult to pinpoint sounds so she is not fond of them either. So we decided that just sparklers and fountains would be fine. Well, I bought a fountain that made a hissing sound and then booms thought out. These are the pics you get when they hear that stuff. Gotta love the way they dote and protect each other. They are so close, it's amazing to me sometimes.

Rainy 4th of July in Indiana

We are in desperate need of rain so it's kinda welcome here. This is how the girls are napping on this gloomy day. Yes Genevieve is under the davenport. Somedays she is more than a little bit of a nut.

SW and stress

I'm starting to feel the pressure. I just talked to my SW and she said she hopes to have our HS done by Friday. I have a call in to my agency for the final date i can get them a completed dossier and still make the cut off for our daughter not to be able to be adopted. I have an e-mail in to Chicago as well too see how long the 171's are running. I did explain to them our circumstances. I hope it helps. The other and more Major problem is because she has not gotten us a completed HS I can not apply for any grants. We were hoping to have some of that taken care of so we could buy a week or 2 if needed. Because as you all know that darn $$$$$$ tree out back is only visible to our children. When we need it it's not there. Say a prayer