[My] Life in Wisconsin

Animals. Bugs Ears. And Death.


A picture like this is never a good thing...
Stolen from WLUK FOX 11



Good Morning Everyone...
Last week I had blogged about Miss Polly. Polly and her husband Rich were our neighbors back when we all lived NE of Pulaski on Jaworski Road- They now live in Wyoming.
Miss Polly had come to Green Bay to visit last week
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507 Casey and Polly Hotel
Casey and Polly at the hotel.
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Before moving back to the homestead here, I'd raised my daughters on Jaworski Road near Pulaski.
While our neighbors AFTER Polly and Rich were nothing to write home about, this is still very awful and sickening news, and one would never wish for anything so terrible to happen to anyone.
CLICK HERE.
What news to wake up to.

I am not sure, (having had no reason to keep in touch), I do believe that the home is still owned by the same man who lived there after Rich and Polly moved.
I have heard that he has since remarried. (It was his previous "woman" that had been responsible for me obtaining a retraining order against the lot of them).
His new lady had moved in shortly before we had sold our home.
I never met her, nor knew her.

That house burned this morning- By the time the fire department got there, the entire back of the home was engulfed in flames.
The children ages, 11, 7, and 3, taking their pets, got out and went to the neighbors across the street.
Their mother died in the fire.
I pray that if she had to die, that she never woke to begin with.
But then what, or who, would have woken the children?
When we lived there, the man would go in to work very early, so he had probably already left for the day.

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514 Jaworski 2

Our
home, (1988-1998) is on the left.
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The farm was originally owned by Andrew Jaworski himself, and built in the early 1930's. The house (ours) is concrete, poured from silo staves.

In its day, this was a very productive and active farm. But there came a time for Andrew to retire and for the eldest son to take over running the family farm. At that point, Andrew Jaworski erected the modular home next door to his.
*This arrangement did not last past Andrews death. I believe he passed on shortly before we bought the home from his son. 1988.

In the shot above, with the reporter blocking the view, (& to the left of the driveway), is a row of maple trees that I had planted as teeny tiny saplings the summer we had moved in. All the girls carried many pails of water to these little trees those first two years. I also planted a row of red cedars along the north end of our property.

Also blocked from view is a privacy fence installed by my buyer- between the two houses. (I am thinking they may have also had problems with these neighbors as well).

Be that as it may, again, no one ever wishes this on anyone for any reason.
I am sure I will learn more about everything as the day goes on.


With respect to my back, I am still not moving well at all. I have made yet another appointment for tomorrow afternoon.
(If offered, I promise not to refuse xrays this time).   Grrr
In the meanwhile, it is quite painful to even take a shower and get dressed.
hehehe
(No worries, I shower and dress anyway).


In addition to my own vitamins and supplements, know that I am very tempted to begin taking Punks pills too!
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Punk meds
Hey!
...It helps Punks back, why not mine?

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I do not know what has happened to my robins nest. Casey and I checked it on Tuesday- and this is what we found...
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512 Baby Robin
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I shall recheck today or tomorrow,
but I know something awful must have happened

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Casey took my garbage out for me on Tuesday also.
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512 Casey Garbage
Still cute as a bugs ear!
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Kelli had also stopped by that evening, offering to roll my dumpster to the end of the driveway for me too. What on earth do people do without family and friends?
(Personally, I cannot think of a worse way to live than to choose to live without).

While unable to really 'help' me out, Punk has been the epitome of compassion. When I go outside she will bring me her toys; and instead of laying them at my feet, she lifts them up for me.
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512 Punk

Holy Bugs Ears!
She's kind of cute too!


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And what does Mr. Sputnik do???
Absolutely nothing!


But he does dream of catching the wren in the box outside the kitchen window.
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512 Spitnik

He would care less if I fell over and died.
(Methinks I know people like that too).
hehehe?
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Heck, he's probably waiting for me to keel over so he can have lunch.
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So... speaking of that dreaded shower, it is time for me to get in there.

Hope you all are having a good day; and that you always make a bit of time to pray for your families, your friends, and your neighbors too.

XOXO
Me


***
Special note to my main troublemakers, Casey and Jenné;
Take a close look...
Perhaps obscured, hmmm?... But it does seem as though the darn silo is gone?
I'm thinking Chris and Cheryl might not care to die of early and untimely heart failure.




Posted to my Y! 360, Thursday May 14, 2009 - 11:06am (CDT)

39 comments:

  1. Prayer that your back gets better, and that you learn to find help with those jobs that is going to take your back out.

    Awful news. Around here, we can't go a day without hearing about a fire. They aren't all tragic, but it's still awful. Then you get the baffling news, where a son(adult) had to call the cops becausehis mother was dumping gasoline all over the house, and managed to get it lit before emergency crews could get there. WTH?

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  2. I was going to say she's a cute as a blue speckled puppy!! That's what my Papa always to me anyway!!

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  3. So terribly sad! My thoughts and prayer are with the children!

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  4. From your lips to Gods ears Sweet Oka;
    Are you perhaps telling me that instead of mowing the lawn 3 days ago that I should have had someone else do it for me???
    (I checked, no one was knocking at my door to do it).
    hehehe

    WTH? is right!
    I am sure not laughing at the story of the lady with the gasoline. I am guessing she burned down her house, and herself in it?

    Fires around here "seem to be" more of a Fall type of thing... Where fireplaces and furnaces are getting fired up for the first time. Homeowners and landlords apparently never ever think of cleaning their chimneys, or getting their furnaces checked BEFORE they have to light them.

    And you wouldn't believe the # of people that still do not have smoke detectors.
    My own need to be replaced... They say if your detectors are older than about 5-10 years old to replace the whole thing.
    I believe I will do that the next time I am in town.

    XOXO
    Me

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  5. Awww...

    Sweet Thers;
    Your daddy was quite a charmer to say that!
    I think you still are!

    XOXO
    Me

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  6. They had begun the news with "a fire between Pulaski and Sobieski"
    And that caught my attention enough, as I know so many people that live between the two.

    I remember shaking my head as it showed what looked like my old home, then the awful realization that the shot had included my old home, and that it was the neighbors home that had burnt.
    This is only kinda "between Pulaski and Sobieski"... (We were about 3 miles from Pulaski, 7 from Sobieski- and not as the crow flies).

    And I don't remember, but I don't think there was a fireplace in there. If there was, it would have been in the front of the home. All the bedrooms and the bathroom were in the back.

    XOXO
    Me

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  7. It was a pre-fab house. I don't think they included a fireplace in those.
    The news at noon on channel 2 said that because it was prefab, modular, it burned so very fast.

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  8. This from the Press Gazette

    Fatal fire investigated in Oconto County

    May 14, 2009
    A state fire marshal is expected soon on the scene of a fatal house fire this morning in the town of Chase in Oconto County.

    Three children, ages 11, 7, and 3, got out safely with their pets and ran to a neighbor’s home.

    The children were taken by NEW Rescue to St. Vincent’s Hospital for treatment, said Randy Wichlacz of the Pulaski Tri-County Fire Department.

    The fire was reported at 4:57 a.m. at 740 Jaworski Road. Pulaski firefighters arrived at 5:02 a.m. and found the home engulfed in flames.

    “There was heavy fire coming from the back bedrooms,” Wichlacz said. The fire was contained within a half hour, he said.

    Little Suamico and Howard fire departments assisted.

    The victim has not been identified, although there were indications it was the mother of the children, he said.

    The Oconto County Sheriff’s Department is investigating along with the fire marshal.

    -- Press-Gazette

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  9. I am so sorry to hear about this fire/death. You are so right, noone deserves such a terrible event.
    I'm sure this was odd to see so close to your previous home.

    I did write a reply to your last blog yesterday morning but when I returned last night it was not there. I probably forgot to hit the submit button as I made my dash to get TJ ready for preschool.
    Anyway, I wanted to tell you that Miss Casey looks great after being through the wringer and then some. Her dimples are the bees knees :)
    I am terribly sorry about your back. Wasn't it this time last year you had similar issues?
    Please do get the x-rays, I'd hate to have you suffering recurrances on something that can be fixed in a reasonable fashion.

    Also, I think of Punk every time I see the Cottonelle commercial with the puppy in the bath with the purple flower petals :)

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  10. This story is better remembered by KC. I have blocked it from my memory.

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  11. I can imagine how devastating the news of your neighbors house fire must be to you, even though you moved away a long time ago it must make you feel like you're right back there. We don't even have fire hydrants were I live, only fire trucks with water tanks and hoses that don't reach very far, and volunteer firemen who work at the volunteer fire stations.

    What is in the robin's nest? I can't tell. Is it a dead baby robin?

    I'm so pleased to hear that Casey is helping you out, it doesn't seem very long ago that it was the other way around. I'm so glad you have each other.

    It's so considerate of Punk to lift her toys up to you. Isn't she the sweetest dog in the whole world?! Yes she is! (Hugs to Punk)

    Sputty sure is a beautiful cat! And I'm sure he's more devoted to you than you let on. He looks twice the size he was when you brought him home. All your pets certainly are well fed. All of my cats are picky eaters, except for Spike, who'll gladly finish any of the other cats food for them and still beg for more. The trainer who was working with Doc and I had me cut Doc's food back by half. A hungry dog trains better, especially if you train with treats. Doc is definitely food motivated, especially if it's anything that even remotely smells or tastes like cheese! I pretty much have him saying "Wuv Ooou" for Cheetos.

    I sure hope your doctor can figure out what's wrong with your back and fix it. I'm glad you're going to get the x-rays done. Now you're taking care of yourself the way you take care of others. You're a VIP so you need to take care of yourself. I don't mean for this to sound like a lecture, but If you don't start taking better care of yourself then I will start lecturing!! (Tough love ya' know!)

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  12. wow...how awful that the mother of the children died in the fire! It saddens me much..but thank goodness the kids were OK...I know you told me some time back..but I forgot...what type of camera do you use for your pictures...they are sooo clear!

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  13. I am so sorry to hear about the fire... I hope and pray that the kids will have a strong support system to help get them through this horrible time...

    As far as your back goes... If they offer x-rays TAKE them... If they don't offer x-rays, ASK for them! Ask about the steroid shot or ANY type of shot that might help ease your pain some... I do hope they can fix you...

    Casey is looking well! She IS as cute as a bugs ear! :)

    Hope your weather is warm and sunny!

    Love Ya!

    Slurkie :-)

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  14. I hate to read about home fires of this kind where someone died as a result of that fire. Those poor children now will go without their mom. Maybe she got them out and then collapsed from inhaling the smoke.

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  15. Here is another update...
    (Seems as though this is Randy Staeven second wife that died)


    But something about this story is not right...

    The smallest child, 3, sleeps in Christines bedroom.
    His hands were burned and he was screaming loudly enough to wake his 11 year old sister up, but Mom didn't wake up??? That doesn't jive.

    XOXO
    Me

    ************************************
    Here's that update...

    Fire kills woman in
    Oconto Co.

    Updated: Thursday, 14 May 2009, 5:03 PM CDT
    Published : Thursday, 14 May 2009, 6:55 AM CDT

    * Reporter: Laura Smith

    TOWN OF CHASE - Three young children escaped a house fire in rural Oconto County Thursday morning. But, family members say the mother didn't make it out alive.

    The fire happened around 5 a.m. on Jaworski Road in the Town of Chase.

    11-year-old Keshia Staeven, 7-year-old Wyatt Staeven and 3-year-old Brett Staeven all escaped the blaze with few injuries. But their mother 40-year-old Christy Staeven was killed.

    Jeff Muehlbauer says it's a miracle his niece and nephews escaped.

    "The little boy was in the same bedroom as the mom and woke up screaming so the sister got up went in there grabbed him from the crib and got the other boy out as well, she yelled for mom but couldn't find mom,” said Muehlbauer.

    Muehlbauer says 11-year-old Keshia told him there was so much smoke and flames she couldn't see her mom. Keshia helped her brothers to safety at a neighbor’s house.

    Fire officials say the kids and their mom were the only ones in the house when the fire started.

    An older brother was at a friend’s house and the father of the three kids lives in Pulaski.

    Muehlbauer says the children are now staying with an aunt and are doing okay.

    "Just minor burns on their... one has minor burns on his fingers, Keshia, she had singed hair, but nothing serious,” said Muehlbauer.

    Muehlbauer says the family has many unanswered questions right now, but the top priority is taking care of the children.

    "Just pull tighter together, that's all we can do, just keep those kids together, that's number one, we don't want those kids separated we don't want them split up by any means so we'll do are best to keep them together and get them some clothes again,” said Muehlbauer.

    The state fire marshal, the medical examiner and other investigators have been on the scene for much of the day. The fire is being called suspicious, but officials say they usually do that when a death is involved.

    All four children are students in the Pulaski Community School District. Officials there are meeting with counselors and administrators. The superintendent says support will be offered to friends and staff who knew the Staeven kids.

    New Life Community Church of Pulaski has established a fund to support the Staeven family. Those wishing to contribute can send donations to:

    Staeven Family Fund
    c/o New Life Community Church
    PO Box 830
    Pulaski, Wisconsin 54162

    Or they can be taken by the New Life Community Church office in Pulaski, located next to Subway on highway 32.

    You can also to the church's website at PulaskiNewLife.com , and click on the Staeven Family Fund button at the left side to donate online.

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  16. Sweet Beth;
    Casey got her dimples from the mailman. ;-)

    I promise I did not delete your reply. I would never do that... Unless you called me a really bad name.

    I think last years wretched back came earlier-
    March maybe, or maybe it just seemed earlier. (I will have to check).
    As far as getting it fixed, "reasonable" would be your key word.
    (Reasonable means the use of NO sharp metal instruments by the way).

    Good to know about the commercial too! I promise to watch for it now.

    XOXO
    Me

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  17. Sweet Instigator
    I hear that major trauma does that to a body.
    hehehe

    XOXO
    Me

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  18. The mother didn't hear the 3 year old screaming??? Hmmm....I would have to say this does sound suspicious. Or else she was heavily sedated and had just gotten to sleep. I hope they find out the facts.

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  19. What an awful tragedy ..

    I am sorry to hear that your back is still bothering you and I hope they can find out what's up tomorrow and give you something to get you on the mend ..

    I love seeing the pics you post along with your blogs

    Have a great evening and take care ..Hugs

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  20. Its always tough when something tragic like this happens regardless of who it happens to. If there is a good side to this.. the children lived and not the other way around, as a mother I do believe that might push me over the edge. As to why she didnt get out.. I believe that when its your time.. its your time and this was hers.

    It is always a wonderous thing to have family and friends to give a helping hand when needed. I know that many times I would be sunk had not someone stepped up.

    Now what the heck you mean.. you refused the xrays before? (Ok, Casey.. the beatings may begin) Say it isnt so! Oh and just soooo's you know.. they do make glucosa????whatever tablets and supplements for humans too! Maybe you need Boniva..hehe At least some extra calcuim..

    Hope you have a good sleep and wake feeling wonderful!

    Mucho hugs

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  21. Sweet RT;
    Thank you for not lecturing too badly...

    It was just a shock to see that it was Staeven's house is all.
    As I inferred above, we didn't get along. And yet this is so terrible for anyone to have to go through.
    I see that it says he lived IN Pulaski- They must be separated.
    The children are all taken in by their uncle. Hmmm... ?

    There are NO hydrants out there either.
    Stachuras (nice neighbors down/across the road), have a large pond that the trucks can pump from if they need to refill.

    Nor are there any hydrants out where I live now. About half a mile away, the river is accessible, otherwise the pond at Sam and Katies, (Valeries dad, and Katie~Angel).

    Like my dear sweet children, Sputnik is also a troublemaker. From time to time I catch him hanging off of Punks face. hehehe (Punk makes the strangest sounds when she finds herself in this predicament too).
    I think you just called my animals fat.

    I didn't recheck the Robins nest yet. But there was only one little bird, newly hatched at that point. Yes, it was alive.


    XOXO
    Me

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  22. Sweet Bobbie;
    They said on the news that the 2 older children know their mom is gone, but that they hadn't told the 2 youngest yet.

    I have a Sony camera. Thanks for the compliment.

    XOXO
    Me

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  23. Sweet SlurkieBaby!

    The children have a great support system- Even the grandmother was out there today.

    The weather is sunny and warm enough I guess. I don't think it got over 60-sh today either. And SO very windy!

    XOXO
    Me

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  24. Sweet PeachieBaby;
    I heard on one of the news at 5 here that they found her in her bedroom.

    Time will tell if this is accurate or not.

    I feel so badly for these children. There are no words.

    XOXO
    Me

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  25. The first 'woman' he had there was an awful person- Drinking and drugging all the time. And I cannot even think how many times we needed to call the Sheriff on her.
    I shall have to blog about that separately.

    If this gal was anything like her predecessor then being sedated might be an option. I can't even think of that right now-
    Too sickening if he moved out and left his children with such a woman.

    I am sure there will be something more by tomorrow. (Course it is Oconto County, and God knows how slow they are up there).

    XOXO
    me

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  26. Sweet Carolyn;
    I think that if I could manage to sleep more than an hour or two at a crack, I might be better by now. But that sleep just doesn't come when I can't get comfortable at all.
    It makes no, or very little difference if I wear the brace or not. Sometimes it helps for a while. Most times it just makes it hurt more. I woke last night with terrible pain in my stomach from it. (Had to remove it before I could even move.
    Tomorrow will tell.

    XOXO
    Me

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  27. Sweet Beep;
    The voice of reason has spoken and reminded me that it was her time.
    But such a ghastly way to have to leave too.
    You are right. I would not want to live through it the other way around either.

    About my lack of xrays...
    Sorry but I don't take them unless it is absolutely fookin' necessary. And I believe that 'now' they will be called for.
    I take glucosamine and condroitin, and calcium too. (Yes the HUMAN variety). hehehe

    Pray for sleep then.

    XOXO
    Me

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  28. I have not forgotten to comment... Nykquee' came over right after I was done showering after Greg left... So I am further delayed in responding to your blog... It will be done tomorrow no matter what, come hell or high water, I will get it done tomorrow...

    I love you MUCH MUCH!
    ~Casey

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  29. You worry too much Sweet BabyBobo;
    Hope you had fun!

    XOXO
    Me

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  30. Autopsy may confirm Oconto County fire victim was mother of 4

    Three children escape blaze

    Press-Gazette • May 15, 2009
    CHASE — An autopsy expected today may confirm that a body found in a house fire Thursday morning was that of a 40-year-old mother of four.
    Advertisement

    The fire was reported at 4:57 a.m. at 740 Jaworski Road in the Oconto County town of Chase. Pulaski firefighters arrived at 5:02 a.m. and found the home engulfed in flames.

    Three children, ages 11, 7, and 3, got out safely with their pets and ran to a neighbor's home. A fourth child and the children's father were not home.

    One of the children received minor burns; they were all taken to St. Vincent Hospital in Green Bay for treatment, authorities said.

    Emergency crews learned the children's mother was possibly still in the residence, and they later found a body.

    Acting Chief Randy Wichlacz of the Pulaski Tri-County Fire Department said the fire was coming from the back bedrooms, and it was contained within a half-hour.

    Little Suamico and Howard fire departments assisted.

    The Oconto County Sheriff's Department is investigating along with a state fire marshal.

    **********

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  31. I can just imagine seeing Punk with Sputnik hanging from her nose (poor Punk!)

    I was very careful not to use the "F" word - "well fed" was how I put it. (hehehe)

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  32. What mother wouldn't wake up when she heard her baby screaming? Even if she were sedated! Sounds like there's more to this story.

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  33. hehehe
    And there I went again, simplifying things!

    XOXO
    Me and the 2 Fatties.

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  34. I believe you are right about that.
    And that scares the crap out of me.

    The news reports that the fire marshal etc are investigating, but that is to be expected witha fire death.

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  35. Will blog shortly with an update...

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  36. While I was preparing for hell or high water, I forgot to prepare for getting hit with pain and nausea... Couldn't look at the screen anymore, but here's your comment!

    I can't believe the news about that fire... That really hits you when you KNOW the place that burned down and might have known the people inside. The article said that the 11-year-old girl was woken up when she heard her sibling crying loudly. She then acted fast to get them out of the house. What a BRAVE girl!!! I was so sad to hear that the woman died... Those poor children and poor Randy if that was his wife... My prayers go out to that family... I commented on that story...

    ****Brain Fart Moment: When I went to go comment on the story, I hit the login info and started to type my screen name and password. It didn't work. I knew I had registered to Green Bay Press Gazette only a little while ago, so I searched for their confirmation email in my inbox... I found it and the username was correct. So I clicked on the "Forgot Password?" button and entered in my email. A message came up saying "That email is not found"... I was really confused! I went back to my inbox and clicked again on the link to activate account. The Press Gazette website came up immediately saying I was signed in. I went back to the original news story to see if that registered my sign-in and I laughed out loud!!!! I felt really stupid at that point... I must need some more caffeine!!****

    I can't believe how different the old house looks! I could hardly recognize it because it got quite the makeover on the outside. I wonder what the inside looks like! I remember all the carpeting and the tile job you did in the kitchen with Ant Kris... It seems like just yesterday that we lived there, yet it has been almost 11 years! Time sure does fly...

    I'm glad you went and got that second appointment. You really should take his advice and be completely off your feet for almost all of the day... I know it gets mind-numbingly boring, but it could possibly ease that horrible pain... I'm glad Jenny and I could help out today... I don't feel as helpless then!

    I looked up glucosamine and got these two websites:
    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucosamine
    http://altmedicine.about.com/cs/herbsvitaminsek/a/Glucosamine.htm

    The first one is the wikipedia article and the second one was "What you need to know about Glucosamine"... Both were pretty informative...

    I can't believe those eggs are missing. I know we saw one egg on the gravel which that stupid cowbird probably kicked out. I wonder if they can remove other eggs when they sneak their eggs in... But to have two of them gone is just awful... I feel horrible for that Mama Robin... I can't tell if you captured two babies in that picture or not, and forgot to look today when we were out there... We'll have to look a bit later...

    How cute are a bug's ears? I giggle when I hear that expression... I even tried to look up the history of it and it seems that I'm not the only one! One person tried locating it but came up empty-handed... One source said that it dated back to Texas in the 1930s. However, most people say it is a variation on "cute as a button" and that expression can be dated back to the 1800s... Amazing to think that people from 200 years ago would recognize a simile that we use today even though the vernacular has changed so much...

    While searching I found a book that I would buy in a heartbeat. It is called The American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer. The description was: "The Dictionary of Idioms contains idiomatic words and phrases, slang terms, figures of speech, common proverbs and metaphors, each clearly defined and illustrated with at least one sample sentence or quotation. It is produced in consultation with the editors of The Ameri

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  37. That is EXACTLY what I said when I found this out. There is DEFINITELY something more going on:

    1.) The 3-year old was in her room screaming loud enough to wake the 11-year-old, and the 11yo also screamed for the mom when she was in the room... So what mother doesn't wake up to TWO of her children screaming?? Definitely have to me much more than sedated...

    2.) They can't find C.O.D. in the mother. IF it was smoke inhalation, they'd have seen that right away...

    3.) The children were said to be staying with an aunt/uncle rather than the father immediatly following the fire... Usually children who lose a parent go to their other parent...

    Makes me think something MUCH bigger was going on... Great minds think alike...

    I can't even imagine not waking up to TWO screaming children... Every time I was responsible for babies I woke up before they got to a full cry and they weren't even my children I just knew I was in charge of caring for them... NO ONE sleeps that soundly...

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