Finally Some Ups and a BIG Down!

Sorry I haven't been here lately, but if you've read the posts about my daughter, Chelsey, being in the hospital then you'd know why.  Well, yesterday we finally got some wonderful news.  The doctors decided to let Chelsey come home, since she can do bed rest just as well at home.  They did warn her that if she had anymore problems  she would be back in the hospital for the duration of her pregnancy.  I think that was a big enough scare for her to stay grounded!  She made out meal plans for her gestational diabetes, and the dogs are so close to her bed that she couldn't get up more often if she wanted to!  She is now at week 25, so please continue to keep her and the baby in your prayers.  We want to thank you again for all of your support and prayers during this trying time. 

Now, for my problems.  My computer crashed last week, and I still don't know if I'll be able to recover anything yet.  I'm on SSI, so needless to say a new computer isn't in the budget for quite a while even though this one was six years old!  My SIL has a buddy that fixes computers, so he said he would look at mine sometime next week.  Until then I've been going over to my DD's house and trying to use theirs when I can.  Their computer is older and doesn't have all of the ports for cameras, so there's no uploading any pictures for now.  I know people say it all of the time, but if you're like me you didn't do it.  So, now I'm saying it and want everyone to not only listen, but do it.  What, you say?  BACKUP EVERYTHING ON YOUR COMPUTER!!!!!!!!!!  Yep, you guessed it!  I didn't and now my pictures and digis and all kinds of files may be lost forever.  Please, don't make the same mistake that I did!  Back your stuff up!

~~~  Lee  ~~~ 

A Different Kind of Fight This 9-11

Where were you when you first heard about the attack on the World Trade Center?  Most people can tell you exactly where they were and who was with them during this memorable event.  So many of us took so much for granted until the horrible events of this day came to pass.  Unless you lived on Pearl Harbor, we couldn't imagine this country ever being attacked.  The reality of this day has changed the world as we knew it.

I was in a hospital bed on this eventful day.  I called to the nurses to show them the first and then second plane hitting the towers.  Before long, the TVs went dead.  Was this some mass attack on our communication towers?  No.  It was just the doctors pulling the plug on TV, so they could be ever so cautious for their patients' health while they were under their care.  I missed out on a lot of things in the news the next few weeks while I was in the hospital, but my kids didn't.  My youngest daughter was only 16 years old when this happened, but it helped guide her into one of the biggest decisions in her life. 

That following summer, my daughter, Chelsey, enlisted in the Army National Guard as an MP between her junior and senior year of high school.  She went to basic training in the summer and came back to finish high school.  Chelsey has been to many places that many men couldn't begin to handle.  Her first "deployment" was to help maintain order in St. Bernard's Parish immediately after Hurricane Katrina.  A few years later when she returned from her deployment to Iraq, she told me that nothing she saw in Iraq would ever compare to the horrors she saw after Katrina. 

During Chelsey's deployment to Iraq, she was involved in the biggest overseas reenlistment ceremony on July 4th, 2008 in one of Sadam's former palaces in Iraq.  Even after all she had seen and done, she still decided to reenlist.  She is pictured above with General David Petreaus just after this ceremony.  I couldn't have been prouder of my daughter for her service and for signing up for another four years of duty.

Today, Chelsey is the one in the hospital.  This time, she is fighting for her unborn son's life.  She has been on complete bed rest for the past three weeks after having surgery to stitch her cervix together.  Many of you have already been praying for her, and we can't thank you enough for all you have already done.  We were hoping she would be able to come home this weekend, but the doctors want her to stay in the hospital because her cervix isn't thickening up and is showing signs of spasms.  The prednisone shots were started today to help develop the baby's lungs quicker, and her diet for her gestational diabetes is still helping to maintain her sugar levels without insulin.  Considering the fact that they have tried to get pregnant for over five years, Chelsey is going to do everything necessary to be able to give birth to this precious little boy.  He weighs just over 1 pound 15 ounces today, and has reached the magic 24 weeks on the gestational charts giving him much better chances of survival.  I know that this may not seem like the right time to ask for prayers for Chelsey and the baby during this solemn day, but since she has given so much in order to serve her country, I thought asking for prayers would be appropriate even now.  Many people wouldn't try this hard to save a life.  This is another reason why I couldn't be any prouder of her!

We can never give back to the families that lost so much following the 9-11 tragedy, but we can do what we can to make sure this event never happens again.  Please honor all of the people who have and will continue to serve our country.  One of the ways to help our service member's when they are stationed overseas is to make cards and/or send donations for postage to Operation Write Home.  The cards are sent to the soldiers free of charge, so they have something nice to send home to their families.  I know all too well what these cards mean to the soldiers and their families.  I should.  I started making cards for the troops when Chelsey's unit was stationed in Iraq, and the comments and requests from these soldiers was all that I needed to know that I was doing something that meant so much to them.  Why not try this out for yourself...you'll be glad that you helped!

My Hero!

I wasn't able to post yesterday, but wanted to make sure I saluted all of the veteran's. Since we live so close to numerous military facilities, every day is like Veteran's Day for us. You can't help but say thanks to a complete stranger in uniform when you see them in line at a grocery store or gas station.

If you don't already know, my daughter is a Sgt. in the Colorado Army National Guard 220th MP unit. She reenlisted in 2008 at the largest overseas reenlistment ceremony while she was in Iraq. This is a picture of her at one of Saddam's former palaces where the ceremony was held. I can't help but be VERY proud of her!

I went through a very tramatic divorce in 2001 along with becoming totally disabled. Chelsey was just starting her junior year in high school, & I had her staying with friends because of my circumstances. She had completed two years of JROTC classes at her school, and she decided to continue with this program for another two years. Thanks to her teacher, Sgt. Frank Liesten, she not only decided to enlist, but she attended basic training in the summer between her junior & senior years in high school. She graduated from high school and finished her military training, is an Animal Welfare Officer, owns her own dog training business and has a college degree in criminal justice. She could have taken a very different path, but I couldn't be prouder of the direction she took. She'll always be my hero!

Don't forget to stop back on Saturday, the 14th, for my post on the Operation Write Home Veteran's Day Blog Hop. You can click on their link on my sidebar for more information about this wonderful organization. I'll be offering some awesome blog candy to one of my followers that leaves a comment that day, so make sure you don't forget to stop back! There's over 75 blogs involved in the hop, so you won't be disappointed. ~ Lee