If Larry is creeped out, then something is REALLY wrong

I know the world is pretty much falling apart and losing all sense of morals, but I think I have found a new low. Remember Casey Anthony? What person on planet earth cannot, right? Well, Hustler magazine has offered her half a million dollars in cash to do a shoot for their magazine. Yes, that's right. Someone is willing to pay this woman, who basically got away with murdering her child, to pose in her birthday suit for millions of Americans. If you don't believe me, read the article because I know I had to reread just to make sure my brain was comprehending correctly what my eyes were seeing:

Casey Anthony might be one of the most hated women in America, but Hustler magazine wants to give her a half-million dollars. If she'll pose naked.

But even he thinks it's a little weird.


After the verdict, Flynt said, "I just felt that people wouldn't want to see her with her clothes on or off, so I kind of forgot about the idea."


But book lovers made him change his mind.


"I just recently got off of a book tour where dozens of people would come up to me in Philadelphia, Austin, Houston, they'd say, 'Why haven't you made an offer to Casey Anthony?"' he said.


He said he became convinced that a good hair stylist and makeup artist could have her "looking really fabulous."
Anthony's representatives told CNN there have been no discussions.


But Flynt said in addition to the $500,000, he offered Anthony a percentage of whatever he earns from her pictures.


"You could make millions," he said.


But even he acknowledged he's a little skeezed out.


"You've got men who say, hey, I want to see her in her birthday suit," he said of the Anthony offer. "There may be some sick individuals ... but that's what life is all about."

Holy signs of the times Batman! What is wrong with this world when people want to give a child murderer celebrity status? Sheesh! I would puke, but my body is in such shock that it is unable to, frozen out of pure digust and unbelief. Now you can kill your kid and get offered millions. Brilliant.

Oh, but Larry Flint does find it disturbing so he should get points for that, seeing as how he is such a good judge of character. (Don't even get me started on that man and the millions he has made out of degrading women.) If the scum of the earth, ie. Larry Flint, thinks the idea is creepy, then something is really wrong here. The dude doesn't have a moral bone in his body. Of course, despite said "creepy" issues Larry isn't stopping the deal from being offered.

I think I may just go hug my children close to me and hide under the bed. Talk about "calling evil good and good evil". I really don't want to know what is next.

True to life!

This made me laugh.



Lagoon!

Jacob and Jimmy on the kiddie coaster. Jacob LOVED it!

Jimmy flying Jacob. Love that shot of Jacob!

The girls on Bombora. Another favorite coaster!

Jacob and I at the end of Rattle Snake Rapids.

One wet Anna and one dry Marshall. He didn't get wet, somehow.

Soaked Jimmy and Rachel after the Rapids.

While in Salt Lake we had the chance to go to Lagoon. The kids were all so excited to go to this amusement park. Some of the most favorite rides were Rattle Snake Rapids, where all of us, minus Marshall, got wet. We loved the roller coasters, especially Wicked, Wild Mouse, Bombora, and the White Coaster. Even Jacob could go on Bombora and had a blast. It was an awesome summer outing! The kids loved it so much that they keep talking about it, pretending to be on the rides, and even building their favorite coasters out of Legos. I love it! We are one amusement park loving family!

Limiting our men

In the day and age where stereotyping is a crime, there seems one group has escaped the protection of avoiding such cruelty. Men. Why is it acceptable to categorize men by their anatomy, but truly criminal to do the same for women? It's more than fine to bash men for their possessing their dangling participles, but try judging a woman based on her having a chest and you will be dragged out in to the street and stabbed with a stiletto. I recently heard someone comment, "God messed up when He gave men penises." What WAS He thinking?! Better yet is the statement, "The world would be so much better if there were only women in it." Are you kidding me? The world would be a very boring place without men. And talk about monthly cycles. It would be insanity without men. Sorry girls, but I like having someone around who can hold me in his strong arms when I am feeling blue, tell me to stop worrying over silly things, lift heavier things than I can, goes to work and slays dragons so I don't have to, and completes me. In other words, I like men. And I like my man a lot.

Have you ever noticed that women who make such hateful comments about men are always the ones who have been in failed relationships? Gee, I wonder why? These are the type of ladies who get upset when their boyfriends, husbands, lovers, etc. fail to be good girlfriends. Your man most likely doesn't want to sit around and talk about the benefits of getting a v-neck cut swim suit as opposed to a scoop cut. He doesn't want to spend long hours shopping. He will sympathize over your frustration with your period or latest decorating project, but don't expect him to understand it. When you open up to him and pour out all your emotions, his silence doesn't mean he doesn't care, he most likely is trying to think of the right words to say and feels your pain. You may have to ask him to take the trash out more than once. Again, not from a fault caused by what is between his legs, but more because he is wired to focus on one thing at a time while you, a woman, can multi-task to the extreme. Also as a result of these differences, you may be more detailed orientated than he is. All these things do not mean he is stupid or would be better off as a woman.  It just means he is different. And bless him for being so!

"The Circus" by Georges Seurat

What these women fail to understand when they define men by their anatomy is that they limit their men to such stereotypes. Like a self-fulfilling prophecy, if you expect you guy to only be good for sex and a jerk otherwise, then he will be only that. You'll gravitate towards those type of men or squash down any chance of a more meaningful relationship by limiting men. Have you ever looked at a painting by Georges Seurat? From far away it looks pretty amazing, but get closer and you discover it is made up entirely of dots. Incredible! If women never take the time to "get closer" to their men, get beyond stereotypes, they will miss out on the entire beautiful work that is man. Men will be jerks and cursed for having their anatomy if that is all women see and expect of them.

What women really need to do is let men be men and love them for it. Realize that male bashing and stereotyping doesn't do a single thing to help anyone. If you're crabby about men, you're not going to attract any good ones. They will be too busy being happy with women who cherish and love them for who they are . . .men.

Randomness

-I've been asked if Jacob is sleeping in his big boy bed. And the answer is "yes!" Some days he doesn't nap because he can get out of his bed, but most days he still does. And he goes to bed just fine, talking himself to sleep. I am so proud of how well he has adjusted. He still asks about his crib now and then, but he loves his bed and showing it off. I cannot believe how big my "baby" is!

- The last Harry Potter movie is coming out this week. I am SO excited to see it, but also sad at the end of an era. It was so fun to look forward to the release of each movie. Kind of how I felt once all "The Lord of the Rings" movies were out. I know this movie will be good and have me scared at parts. Eeek!

- Since I haven't been able to run in the past month, I have been biking more. I did 12.5 miles today, with a big hill involved. It was intense, but good. I am considering doing a race in the Tour de St. George in the Fall if the marathon isn't happening so me.

- I am reading Ron Chernow's "George Washington". It is AMAZING. I enjoy David McCullough, but I think Chernow might be even better. A non-fiction book that I cannot put down. It is 1200 pages and large print so I am working through it when I can. I wish I could just take a day and read.

- I am enjoying the fresh zucchini and tomatoes from our garden. I LOVE fresh tomatoes and cannot eat store bought. I need to start growing them year round because they are the only kind I like! And I have been making zucchini bread and zucchini chocolate chip cookies. Yum!

- Jacob has been asking me all day to go to Disneyland. I wish!

Sue-Hulk

It's hard to explain to normal mild mannered women what it is like to turn into a raging-beast-from-the-pit-of-doom-every-month. I'm not the kind of woman who is surprised every time her "monthly visitor" arrives. I'm not one of those women who is all sunshine and lollipops and barely notices her bodily changes. I am more like "Sue-Hulk" on steroids. Seriously, for that one week a month, I will eat you alive if you look at me the wrong way and you won't even know what hit you. Well, I do a good job of hiding the beast from the public eye, but watch out if you are in my family. I am sure there are some days when my husband would rather stay at work because he doesn't know who he is going to meet when he gets home, Sue-Hulk or regular Sue. It's a gamble.

Women who aren't enslaved by this beast just don't get it. They think you can just magically make it all go away. Not true! (and right now I really want to punch you for thinking it's that easy) Most of the time when Sue-Hulk goes on a rampage, I don't even realize it until she is already gone. I have no idea what is going to unleash that green beast of doom. It can be something as simple as a look or the tone of a voice that can trigger her.

I have learned and am continuing to work on keeping her in check. I have figured out a few signs to look for when she gets too close to the surface. I do my best to keep her at bay, but like Bruce Banner, I do have my bad days. Apologies work wonders, as do making light of my behavior. I've described my crabbiness using all sorts of words to my husband, which usually gets a good chuckle and sigh of relief from him. He knows if I am willing to laugh at the insanity of it all, then he is on safe ground again. And he can joke with me about it because he knows my description of my hoe-beast behavior is true. He was thinking the same thing about Sue-Hulk, but wouldn't dare ever say it out loud for fear she could return. The fact that I say it gets it out in the open and we can both feel relieved. And then we can move on.

I wish Sue-Hulk didn't exist at all. My life would be so much easier without her. But then I suppose I wouldn't have anything to work on. Plus I am really creative at describing her rampages and I love getting a chuckle out of my husband.

Jacob is free!

It was bound to happen, I just was in denial that it would be anytime in the near future. Jacob is finally free of the crib. Eeeeeek! Will he survive? Will we survive?!

Jacob was very excited to get sheets for his "big boy" bed. He decided to pick Toy Story sheets, which he affectionately calls "bad guys" because at Disneyland you shoot at Zerg, the bad guy, on Buzz's Astro Blasters. When he saw his bed in the place of his crib, Jacob was so excited. He was jumping and squealing on it. But after a little bit of time he asked me for his crib back. Awe. However, he was very hyper when Marshall came home and he got to show him his bed. And when we tucked him in tonight, Jacob had a big smile on his face.

My litte guy is growing up. I don't know how I feel about this. It's a first to have one child move up to the big bed and not have a baby on the way to use the crib. Who said my kids could grow so fast?

Happy 4th of July!

God bless America and all those who have sacrificed so much for our freedom! Happy 4th of July!

The call of sand, sun, and salt water

This morning on my bike ride I smelled the distinct scent of suntan oil mixed with heat. I don't know how else to describe it, but that smell immediately brought back memories of all the summers I spent at the beach. Growing up only two hours away from the New Jersey and Delaware shores and having beach loving parents, I was able to go to the beach frequently.

We'd spend two weeks every summer at a beach house on Long Beach Island, Beach Haven, New Jersey. Our house was only one house away from the beach. I remember spending days on the beach playing, going with my mom to the fish market for crabs for dinner (no, I never ate them), and hitting the amusement park at night for rides and token prizes. A few times my sister and I even dared to go crabbing at the bay, though we were never successful. I remember being pulled out by the undertow a few times and at least one shark sighting a summer. But I loved it all.

Almost every summer we'd also go to Stone Harbor, New Jersey with my dad and step-mother. I remember spraying lemon juice in my hair with my step-brother before we hit the sand to get that blonde beachy look. We'd rent bikes every year to ride along the island, hit the famous Springer's Ice Cream Parlor, and peruse all the fun shops that lined the quaint main street. We'd drive down to Cape May to eat at the fancy lobster house and climb the light house, which usually had me and my step-mother inching along the interior wall of the look-out. We were not a fan of heights!

As a young child, we'd hit Rehobeth Beach, Delaware every summer and rent a cute little white cottage. We'd go to the beach daily and at night go to the boardwalk for salt water taffy, funnel cake, and rides at the boardwalk amusement park. Throughout the years growing up, I'd get the chance to go back once in a while and visit Rehobeth. All the big old Victorian beach houses and the smooth beach that seemed to extend forever.

Needless to say, I love the beach! Since being land locked as long as I have been married, staying at the beach for a few days has yet to happen. I hope some day I can take my kids on beach vacations like we once did when I was younger. Until then, the smell of suntan lotion, salt water, and sand will always call to me each summer, reminding me of the beach and sweet memories.

Long Beach Island, Beach Haven, New Jersey

Stone Harbor, New Jersey

Rehobeth Beach, Delaware