Hunter S. Harrington

Sometimes they just open up, a bright smile to let
you know they are happy. It is incredible!

Just some stories that made it in my news today. Both of these stories have blown my mind.
The first is about 16 illegal immigrants who are suing an American farmer for violating their rights.
So really do they deserve the same rights as a US citizen? What about the legal immigrants who have struggled to become citizens? If they want to use the "system" they should have used it to legally come into our country. What do you think?

Oh no they didn't!


The second story is about a 15 year old chimp who attacked his owners friend. Do the same laws apply for an owner who gives her chimp a prescription that was not prescribed for him?
What the Hell?

Random

Just some random photos for fun!



Heather with her present from Dad and Mom.

Hunter asleep after a chocolate overload...bear planted by Dad

Now I know this picture is blurry but what i was trying to show was not Hunter's shooting skills but the growth spurt the kid is going through!

And yes with that growth spurt has come BAD teeth!

Huba Huba

The other night we walked to the book fair at the kid's school and on the way home we took the route they take each day. Heather and Hunter started talking about Huba Huba. Now at first all I caught was the name Huba Huba and he lived in the alley. As a parent my curiosity was peaked. Why would my kid's call someone who lived in the alley Huba Huba? The kids explained that Huba Huba was this old dog who was chained up in a yard near the alley. I asked why they called him Huba Huba and they said because he barks at them and when he does he sounds like he is saying Huba Huba. I asked the kids if they tease him when they walk by causing him to bark and they said no.
We came to the section of alley that met his backyard when we finally saw Huba Huba. He was an old dog laying in his yard and he looked completely oblivious to anyone. I started to wonder if the kids were being truthful. As we passed his yard Huba Huba jumped into life and came bardging towards us only stopping just short of the gravel because of the cable he was attached to. Huba Huba barked at us as if yelling at us the things he would do if he could get off that leash, the entire time though it did sound like Huba Huba Huba...Huba Huba Huba.
As we walked home we could still hear Huba Huba barking and I felt bad for the dog. The alley his yards faces is a big shortcut for the kids walking home and it keeps them off the streets but I am sure over the years that dog has been teased and taunted. My only fear would be what he would do once he was off that cable because they do not hold forever.

Taken By Heather Harrington
12/26

Snow Day

Since moving to Nebraska there has been several things we have had to get used to like hamburger on pizza instead sausage and cinnamon rolls covered in chilli. One thing that thing that we have had a hard time getting used to is Snow days.
In Alaska snow days just mean you put your car in four wheel drive, here it means you stay home from school. Oh well the kids are enjoying it because this will make it a four day weekend for them.
This last week has been beautiful with temps in the mid sixties and the sun shining but we knew deep down it would not last. This morning about 9 am it started to snow and it has not let up since. It is very pretty to watch but I miss the beautiful sunny days so I will post some pictures of them!

Eight Too Many?

I have had a rocky past for pregnancies and in the past ten years I have had several miscarriages. After our last miscarriage the doctor suggested fertility drugs which I knew I did not want to do because of the side effects. My hormones would be increased along with my ability to conceive multiples, both risks I am not willing to take and I am not looking just after myself here. I am looking out for my family who should not have to deal with an even more emotional me and realistically we do not need more than one.
This is a realistic approach.
What is an unrealistic approach?
A women and her doctor implanting her with six embryos after already having 6 healthy children. This story bugged me even before it blew wide open. I have a pet peeve against parents who use these fertility treatments and end up with multiples and then want to talk about how rough life is for them. I most definitely understand the desire to want to be pregnant but I can logically look at the risks not only to me and my family but the impact of carrying more than one fetus.
So here are some statistics.

1 out of 80 natural births will result in twins.
1 out of 4 IVF pregnancies will result in twins or triplets.
Risks to the babies of just twins and triplets, as the number of babies increase so does the chance of complications.
About 126 IVF children die each year as a consequence of being in a multiple birth.
51 deaths due to still birth
42 deaths in the first week of life
33 deaths in the first year of life
Low birth weight is 50% greater for twins and 90% greater with triplets.
Death in the first week is increased 5x higher for twins and 9x higher for triplets
Chances for the baby developing Cerebral Palsy 4x higher for twins and 18x higher for triplets
pre-eclampsia is then 3x higher in mothers expecting twins and 9x higher in mothers expecting triplets.
Those statistics are scary even just for twins and triplets, this lady had eight, granted they were only trying for six. I could fine no information on how the statistics would increase with eight fetuses.

So what will their life look like once all her children come home?
She had six children previously although I am not sure if they are all IVF babies.
She will have a total of 14 children in her home all under the age of 7.
Now I know most reading this post have been parents before and know the amount of time each child needs but I thought the math would paint the unrealistic picture more vividly.

So for this example I am admitting right off that it is hypothetical. My numbers are mostly all for the new 8 babies she will be bringing home so as you read remember she still has six other children to add to the equation two of which are disabled.

I broke it down in 24 hour days split between 14 children leaves her about 2 hours per child.
8 of the children will eat on average every one-two hours which will add up to about 96 feedings per 24 hour period which does not include the time it will take her to make food for the older 6 children in her home.
She is claiming she is going to breast feed these babies so she will have to breast feed about 96 times in a 24 hour period and lets say about a half an hour per baby, 15 per side. 30min * 96 feedings she will be doing in a 24 hour period will add up to 48 hours to feed all eight babies. Every child should eat about 1-2 ounces per feeding meaning 96-192 ounces per 24 hour period. That means she will have to make 12-24 cups or 6 pints to over a gallon of breast milk per 24 hour period. Over the next month she could have to produce about 30 gallons of breast milk.
Now what about waste? Again I am going on the average and a new born can poop every time it eats so based on the earlier math that would be about 96 diapers per 24 hour period. If you times 96 diapers by 30 for the month it would come up to 2880 diapers per month.
88 diapers sell for about 26 dollars. 2880/88=33 packages*26=858 dollars per month in diapers.
While the math is easy to add up it may be the division that is that hardest. How does a mother of 14 children divide her time fairly between them. While I believe single moms can be strong this is more than any one person should have to deal with. Normally in these situations at least there is two parents running around passing tasks onto each other to even out the burden. She talks of loving these children but even the largest amount of love will not create a way for her to spread herself out for these 14 children.
You must also look at the financial aspect of her situation. She does not have a job. She has admitted to bringing in 490 dollars per month plus food stamps. The amount of things she will have to buy is astronomical ranging from clothes to a way to transport that many children.
She had even made a complaint to the media that she was not receiving the gifts and donations that other families with multiples had.
Then we get onto a doctor who implanted her with those six eggs KNOWING she had six children at home all or some of which were conceived through the same procedure.
So really it comes down to a couple of questions after all that rambling.
Did this women do this for the attention and the money?
If she did is she in the right frame of mind considering the risks she took to purposefully have six kids and the lack of consideration into the burden of all her children?
Where did a mom on welfare with six kids get the money to do this procedure?
Why would a reputable doctor agree to this procedure and what consequences should he face?
Should strict requirements be in place for potential parents of IVF treatments eliminating parents who already have a set number of children or a poor financial situation?

Tonight our car quit on us.
We were on our way out of town to Beatrice when we noticed the car loosing power. Heath gave the car one last engine rev and as we crested a small hill and turned onto a side road the car's engine quit. It has blown two cylinders.
I write this and I think logically I should be angry or upset that the car has died but I am not.
I feel like that little car has served us well.
I bought it with almost 200 thousand miles on it but did not know about the oil leak until later. We tried to find the leak but we couldn't we could just smell the oil burning off the engine if we were driving for awhile.
I will not mention the price tag but I will say this we had that car paid off by October, it barely used any gas and it got me and my family to Colorado and back.
Out of all the cars we have owned this little Mitsubishi will hold a soft spot in my heart. That car was our second stepping stone when we moved south it was our independence. I also didn't want a CAR but I had to shop within my budget and this little fit it.
Even in this car's last moments it made sure that we were not far from home and it gave just enough to get us off the highway safely.
We were able to call the tow truck thanks to roadside assistance and a friend was able to pick us up and take us home. We were only thirteen miles from Lincoln.
So tonight I was looking at engines. Oh yes. After researching it I found that the rebuilt engines for my car were fairly cheap,
why not get an engine for it and put it in?
It would be a fun project for maybe the entire family!
I mean we really can't make it worse!