The contestants they have chosen are of all different fitness levels. Just yesterday, Tom DeLay has indicated that he has a “pre-stress fracture” in his foot. DeLay is currently rehearsing for the season opener of the show, which will begin on September 21st.

People should remember that it’s possible to get in great shape, but you have to pay attention to your body and go slowly. Talk to your doctor. Set reasonable goals. If you continue to work on getting healthy, you will.

Image: Zuma Press

Post from: Blisstree

Stressing Your Body Too Fast

 I cannot even start to imagine how the parents of the missing and dead children must be feeling. How would it feel to know that your child is trapped, possibly still alive, under the ruins of a school house? How excrutiating must it be, to not be allowed access to those ruins, in order to search for your child? Parents are standing by, looking on in desperate hope for their child to be pulled out from the rubble, still alive. Sadly, most of the bodies pulled out, are lifeless. My heart hurts for those people. I don’t care if you are a Communist or not, nobody deserves to suffer like the people of China are. Mother Nature can be so cruel, at times.

Even though we are not able to be physically present, there are still things that we can do to help. I will be praying for the people of China. I’m sure that the Red Crosswill be taking donations, on behalf of China. I implore you all to find a way in which you can help, even if it is just keeping those grief stricken people in your prayers. 

Photos: (Aly Song/Reuters; Getty Images)

Post from: Blisstree

There Are No Words…

1. Movie day! Rent your child’s favorite movies and have a couch fest. Pop some popcorn, make some cold drinks and just chill together.
2. Arts and crafts. Recovery is the perfect time to break out the quiet activities like painting, sculpting and creating works of art. My son loved this idea, since we cannot do this very much without is turning into a seven kid circus!
3. Cooking class. Let your child have a turn in the kitchen. The both of you can sit and plan a meal, then you and your child can make it together.
4. Video games. We do not have video games in our house, but if we did, I know that it would have kept him thoroughly entertained for at least an hour.
5. A walk down memory lane. I took out our huge box of old family photos and then let him look through it. It was a lot of fun to tell the stories that accompanied each picture.
6. Journal. If your child likes to write, have them start a journal of their injury and recovery time. Expressing their feelings in written form may prove to be very therapeutic. If they cannot write, have them cut out magazine pictures to illustrate their feelings.
7. Puzzles! My son is a whiz at putting together jig saw puzzles. This kept him busy for a lot longer than I expected.  Some kids may enjoy doing crosswords or word find puzzles. It keeps their mind fresh while the body is allowed to mend.
8. Computer games. My new laptop came in very handy when all of the above ideas got stale. We popped in Star Wars Math and the complaints of boredom immediately fizzled.
9. Phone time. My son loves to catch up with old friends. I allowed him to make a few calls to tell his friends about his injury and use up some time before dinner.
10. Story hour. My son loves to read. Now that he reads to himself, I do not get the chance to read to him, like I used to. I’m usually reading toddler books to the younger kids. I remembered reading Charlie And The Chocolate Factory to him, when we were waiting to start his surgery in the emergency room, and it helped to take his mind off of what was going to happen. Today, we picked out some poetry books, some of his old favorites and then took turns telling parts of a made up story. We passed a story stick back and forth as the story unfolded and created a wild adventure in our living room!

My son has had so much fun recovering, I’m afraid he’ll never want to return to school!

Post from: Blisstree

You Can’t Keep A Good Man Down

In light of the problems in our neighborhood, my husband brought up the subject of gun ownership. Guns make me nervous petrified, when I think about them being in our residence. When it comes to owning, operating and storage protocol, I will readily admit that I’m in the dark. I’ve never had to ponder the idea of having a gun in our house. We’ve never felt threatened enough to make it an issue.

 After moving to our current neighborhood, we realized the dangers of buying a brand new home. We had no idea who our neighbors would be. Since we purchased a cheaper home, for the sake of saving money, we have had to deal with a lower class of people. I know that sounds prejudiced, but it is fact. There are few exceptions to this rule, of course, but the majority of residents are from the rough parts of Los Angeles and Rialto, California. These are well known areas of widespread gang activity and drug problems. Had I known that this is what our neighborhood would be composed of, I never would have moved here. But until we can get out of here, gun ownership is going to have to be a topic with which we concern ourselves.

How many families, with children, own a gun?  According to the National Center For Health Statistics, 34% of homes with children, house a gun. Caucasian families represent the highest percentage of firearm ownership, than any other ethnicity. In fact, it is more than double the percentage of any other race. I was shocked to read this. No matter what purpose the firearms serve, the fact is, that they are still present in many homes in the US. The stories of children being injured or perishing because of gun accidents are ever increasing. This is what scares me most. Statistics show that 2.6 million children, who live in a home that contains a firearm, have access to them. Gun control is obviously an issue that needs to be better executed. Furthermore, the AACAP, claims that guns kept in the home are 22 times more likely to kill a family member or friend, than kill someone in self defense. That is a staggering statistic! 

What is your opinion on the subject? Do you think that we are foolishly letting our fear drive our decision regarding purchasing a gun? Would you keep a firearm in your  home? Do you think the possible safety a gun can offer, is worth the risk of hurting/killing a child? Sound off in the comments section.

Post from: Blisstree

Under The Gun