Thanks For Sharing Our Journey

On June 14,2009, I started this blog. I didn't know if anyone would be interested in reading about a family they would probably never meet. All I knew,I had to write it. I had to talk about what was going on. At first,it was mostly to clear my head about the struggles with Rick's issues. I knew I was not the only military wife dealing with their loved one coming home a stranger,or with cognitive issues and all that involves. So I wrote. It was a release for me,and helped me feel better. I hoped that someone would find my little blog and maybe find comfort that they were not alone. The blog was also about our path on being more self reliant-how and way we decided to do more things for ourselves. I remember by excitement at the first comment I had on one of my posts,and when I started getting followers.

Now,a year and half later,I have folks from 35 countries who pop in and read my blog. Our little blog has had 7,065 hits. Some folks may have found it by typing in specific words and only reading one post. Some follow silently,some publicly follow me ( I encourage more public followers! I love seeing that follower number go up!) I would like to thank all of you,whether you follow me daily or read  the random post. Thank you to those in :

Australia
Bangladesh
Bosnia/Herzegovina
Brazil
Canada
China
Croatia
Denmark
Ecuador
France
Germany
Hungary
India
Indonesia
Ireland
Israel
Italy
Latvia
Mauritius
Netherlands
New Zealand
Pakistan
Philippines
Poland
Qatar
Romania
Russia
Singapore
Slovenia
South Korea
Sweden
Taiwan
Ukraine
United Kingdom
United States

Thank you for finding my blog,and for sharing our life here in New Hampshire!

Lest We Forget The 1%

Yesterday I was watching Oprah,as usual. On this show was Tom Brokaw,Bob Woodward,and First Lady Michelle Obama. They were there to talk about veterans and military families.

Tom Brokaw had called Oprah to ask here when she was going to do a show about  veterans, those who gave the ultimate sacrifice and their families. She replied that she had just done a show about female veterans. He asked her if she personally knew anyone who was serving or who had served. She replied that she didn't.He responded that was because only 1% of folks here in the US serve in the military,so chances are,because she didn't know any veterans,she probably didn't think a lot about it.

She realized that he was right.It wasn't in her consciousness.This is true of many Americans. It's not that they don't support the troops, but,if you don't know someone who served,the war is far away. Since we don't see much of it on TV,it falls to back burner.



When Rick was wounded back in 2005,I told folks what happened. He was in an RPG attack.People would look at me blankly,and the first question they would ask is,"What's an RPG?"

I was shocked. Now,this was when things were bad in Iraq and it was all over the news. RPGs and IED's where common lingo,I thought. Yet people didn't know what RPG stood for. ( It stands for Rocket Propelled Grenade,by the way).

The first Oprah story was about a solider who,in 2005,was in Iraq and his vehicle hit an IED. He wound up blind,and had to learn how speak and walk again. Part of his skull had been removed. The second story was about a Mom who visits her son 3-4 times a year.She brings his favorite music,and reads to him.Her son is buried in Arlington National Cemetery. He was killed in Ramadi in January 2005,just a few months before Rick arrived .In 2005, Ramadi was the worst place on earth. Rick still cannot talk about everything he did and saw over there.

It is going on 6 years since Rick was wounded. However,sometimes I still have a big problem watching wounded veterans,especially ones with severe brain injuries or stories about those who gave their lives. I started crying during the first segment,and when the second segment came on,I cried even harder. Especially since this particular solider was killed in Ramadi.It's a mixture of feelings. First,you feel bad for the soldier and their family.Then you put yourself in their place.If one of the three RPG's had landed closer,or if Rick had run in the wrong direction,he could've been blinded,incapacitated,or worse. Then comes the overwhelming feeling of gratitude that your loved one only has the injury that he has. It can always be much worse.

I am grateful to First Lady Obama and Dr Jill Biden for working to help military families. It seems the less we hear about the wars,the less interested people are in it. Don't get me wrong,we have had lovely people come up to Rick,shake his hand,and thank him for his service. It makes us feel good.Actions,however,speak louder than words. If you don't know someone who is serving,there are many organizations that you can contact to see how you can help an active duty member or a disabled vet.I think the First Lady has some links on her website. Some groups I am aware of are the Veterans Administration,the Wounded Warriors Project,the American Legion,or the VFW.

We cannot forget our 1%.They are bearing the burden for the remaining 99% so we can live in freedom.Bless all those who have served.Without them,we wouldn't be who we are.

All Creatures Great And Small

Not just humans make up our home. We have a mix of animals. Some are pets,some provide us with food. May I present the fellow creatures that are part of life here at The Little Yellow Farm:

Our Narragansett turkeys. They provide us and others with food. Since this photo was taken,our flock has diminished a bit. Just today,we sold one.

This is our cat, Molly Bruce. I must explain his name. When we got him,7 years ago, he was too young to have...well...obvious parts. Zach named him Molly. Then we discovered a bit later that he was a male. So instead of changing it to Bruce,Zach called him Molly Bruce. We also call him Molly The Bruce (after watching Braveheart where they call the leader of Scotland "The Bruce"),Battlecat,and Bubbaloo.He is our outdoor cat.

This is our Chocolate Lab,Sasha.She will be 7 on St.Patrick's Day. We also call her Sasha Girl,and Pretty Girl

Our chickens and Runt,the Rooster. I always talk to them when I go to gather eggs. The cackle at me like they understand. Chickens are cool.

This is Moxie. He is the cat we found staying in our log pile. He has grown quite a bit,and enjoys eating cough drops,cookies,butter,and just about anything else he can get his furry little paws on.He loves carrying kleenex,pencils,and assorted other things around. We also call him Puss and Purr Puss.

This is my baby. Her official name is Omar. Again,Zach named her before we could tell what sex she was. So to make it sound a bit more feminine,we call her Little O. She is very laid back and likes to lay on feet at night.
Last,but certainly not least,we have Rick's baby:

This is our Bull Mastiff/Black Lab cross,Samson. Samson Sunny D Shaw,to be precise. We got him when we first moved here in Dec of 2003. We adopted him from the Straham Humane Society. He came from Maine,where his owners moved and just left him behind,tied up outside. A kind neighbor took him in and brought him to the pound. When I first saw him online,he looked mean,but when we went to the Humane Society,we went into a room with him and he went and sat right next to Zach,so we knew it was a good fit. He's a really good dog,who is getting quite old,as you can see by the white on his face. He has several names:Samsonite,Seamus,Shamoose,Moose,Lummox,and Tank.

There you are,the other than human creatures that make up our home.