Confessions of a DeafBlind Mother

OMG! Flashback!

2009-12-01T19:51:00.003-06:00

We all went to Miami, OK tonight to my college's Holiday "Children's Carnival" tonight. They had holiday crafts, songs, games, etc. While we were in line to get D's face painted, Randy teasingly said "She should get Santa and the sled with presents on one cheek and have all the reindeer flying over her nose to the other side". I laughed at the complexity of painting that. Sure enough, that's

Myths about "Blind" People

2009-11-10T23:48:00.001-06:00

Guiding a Person with Vision Loss

2009-10-21T11:40:00.001-05:00

That's Hilarious!!

2009-09-29T09:57:00.004-05:00

This past weekend, D. and I was walking up to Main Street to watch the "Pelican Festival" Parade.Earlier in the week the roads were painted with new paint. D. saw THIS on the ground and just about fell down laughing!Ain't that the funniest thing??!!

Vlog Bloopers

2009-09-24T13:42:00.001-05:00

I had so much trouble with just ONE vlog!!

Living with Low Vision - Part 2

2009-09-24T13:39:00.001-05:00

Our Smoker

2009-09-14T11:06:00.006-05:00

Last spring we got Randy a new smoker/bbq for an early 50th birthday present.On Labor Day weekend, Randy found a Turkey at the grocery store on sale! It was 48cents a pound!He decided he wanted to smoke it. So he put soaked hickory chips in the smoke box and the turkey on the rack in the BBQ. Underneath he had a foil pan of water with poultry seasoning it it. The turkey was smoked for 8

EEK!!!

2009-09-06T19:57:00.004-05:00

Randy and my daughter found THESE outside our kitchen window!! I researched online and found that they're a common Garden Spider or Orb Weaver Spider. They're HUGE!! They're not poisonous or anything but "beneficial" as they catch a lot of pests. (Does that count the Neighbor's dog?)Let the nightmares begin.

Living with Low Vision

2009-08-27T18:00:00.000-05:00

Our Hometown of Grove, Oklahoma

2009-08-26T08:32:00.024-05:00

Wow I can't believe that it's almost been 3 years since we moved down here from Ontario, Canada. I figured it was time to show y'all around.View Larger MapWelcome to Grove, Oklahoma. Located in the Northeast corner of the state.Grove is surrounded on 3 sides by lake (Grand Lake o' the Cherokees). So this is pretty much the view on way in or out of town.Our Cherokee Queen PaddleboatThe "Downtown"

Let Freedom Ring

2009-06-30T12:28:00.006-05:00

This posting is a "mixed bag" of my political ramblings, research, and emotional opinion. Let me start with a quote:"When the people fear the government...that's tyranny, when the government fears the people...that's liberty." - Thomas JeffersonToday (June 30/09) the U.S. handed over security responsibility to Iraqi forces. President of Iraq, Jalal Talabani, said this day could not have

Oral Deaf and Foreign Languages

2009-06-17T13:20:00.008-05:00

Transcript:I grew up orally in a French Canadian family. My grandparents and older relatives speak French. They tried teaching me some French."You have to rrrrroolll your r's""But that HURTS!"One time at a family gathering, my mom and aunts were making tort...tour....."tourtiere" or meat pies. My Papa was teasing them and they were yelling in French at him. I asked my mom,"What are you guys

My White Cane Stories

2009-06-17T11:05:00.005-05:00

Stories about having a White Cane.Select "CC" in the lower right corner for subtitles.Transcript:Hello, some of you know I use a white cane. This is my 2nd cane in 2 years. I moved to Oklahoma, 2 almost 3 years ago, it's a small town.One time my kids were acting up and I was yelling "Come here, come here". But they wouldn't listen, so I slammed my cane down on the sidewalk and snapped the end. I

Cub Scouts - Meeting & Cookout

2009-06-08T12:37:00.005-05:00

These are pictures from the Cub Scout Meeting. Hubby is the Scoutmaster.Here's a pic of me, and then a pic of son jumping in front of the camera (eyerolls).Now here are pics of the Cub Scout CookoutSon won several achievement pins!! Way to go boy!!

Researching Cell Phones/Pagers

2009-05-26T21:02:00.009-05:00

It never really bothered me that I was one of the very (emphasis on very) few Deaf without a pager/texter/cellphone/PDA, whatever y'all call it!That is, until this past weekend. Our Pastor from the Deaf Church invited us all to his place for a BBQ Cookout. He e-mailed me directions to his place, looked easy to understand and follow, except he used the old highway name instead of what it's called

Easy Money Saving Ideas in Tough Times

2009-05-26T11:30:00.010-05:00

In these tough economic times - with layoffs, bankruptcies, foreclosures, etc. - happening left and right of us, it's easy to get discouraged, frustrated, and down. What can we do to get through this? I've got several suggestions based on my personal experiences and what has worked for my family: Learn about your Finances:Start with a program called "Financial Peace University" offered by Dave

Pack 715 Pine Derby Races

2009-03-17T13:06:00.018-05:00

My son's Weblos pack had their annual Pine Derby Races last month.He and his father built this pine car together.My daughter wanted to pose too!What can you win in this derby??A NEEEEEWWWW CAAAAARRR!!Ok I'm just kidding!Randy (my hubby) was the announcer for the event as he's the new Scout Master.Here's a video of my son's race (I missed the first one as my daughter needed me elsewhere). Just

The Disabled are being left OUT of Simulus!

2009-03-06T09:15:00.006-06:00

I can't believe the various news stories I'm reading across the Internet.In my previous post I mentioned that:* $13 billion for special education programs* $4 billion dollar expansion of Supplemental Security Income (SSI)* $4.6 billion dollars for Job Training* $5 billion dollars in Community developmentThis will help people with disabilities, but I'm reading news stories that say otherwise.For

New Blind Character

2009-03-03T12:59:00.001-06:00

The British Soap Opera "Emmerdale" will have a new regular character.This will be the first UK soap with a regular blind character. Next month, "Lizzie Lakely" (Kitty McGreever) will arrive in Emmerdale to do Community Service after a conviction for petty crime.Kitty McGreever lost her sight at age 33 due to illness. She has previously been on "Beautiful People" and "London's Burning". She also

Who is Watching!

2009-02-26T08:39:00.004-06:00

There's an advertising company that has put cameras in their "digital billboards" to watch YOU looking at the ads. It's called "Reactive Advertising".The cameras are programmed with "face recognition" software so when you look at the billboard, the camera looks at you, determines if you are male, female, old, young, and then show an advertisement to match YOU.There is no "Disclaimer" on the Board

Capitol Hill - Pay Your Taxes!!

2009-02-02T18:49:00.017-06:00

What's with all the people in Washington forgetting to pay their taxes??Here's a partial list:* Jack Abramoff (Lobbyist) who didn't pay $1.7 Million Dollars from 2001 - 2003.* Charles Rangel, who leads the House Ways and Means Committee - which writes all of America's tax laws, "forgot" to report $75,000 of rental income on a Villa he owns in the Dominican Republic.* John McCain, forgot to pay

Stimulus Package for Who???

2009-01-29T11:49:00.010-06:00

The US House just passed a $819 Billion dollar Stimulus package, aimed at "reshaping policy on energy, education, health care, and social programs". The Senate hopes to pass a similar $900 Billion dollar package next week!Hidden inside these packages are:* $335 million dollars for programs preventing Sexually Transmitted Diseases* $50 million dollars for the National Endowment for the Arts*

The Quickest Shower I've ever had!

2008-12-05T15:53:00.004-06:00

I usually cherish my hot showers. They're a nice quiet (silent) retreat from everything going on. The hot water massaging my tense neck and shoulders and I usually take long showers, 10 - 20 minutes; but not today!As I lathered up with shampoo, I glanced down and saw THIS staring back at me!It's a freaking Mole Cricket!! Geez those buggers are Huge!Most days I do a "Cricket-Check" and then flush

It's a Small World eh?

2008-11-24T13:14:00.007-06:00

Last weekend, our van stalled at Sonic Restaurant. The truck next to us offered to give us a boost. As the men were doing that, one of the guys noticed our Ontario Licence plate (yes we still haven't changed it), and asked about it. We told him where we were from etc. It turns out he was a pitcher for the Toronto Blue Jays in the Minor League. Jared "Boomer" Potts #19 Pitcher, currently for

Veteran's Day Assembly

2008-11-11T12:19:00.005-06:00

My son was in his 4th grade Veteran's Day Assembly today. He was a lot better in rehearsal, but still pretty good for only playing 9 months.(He's playing "Star Spangled Banner")