Pregnancy announcement with pets – what were we thinking?!

I’ve been waiting weeks to announce to the FaceBook world our amazing news – we’re gonna have a baby!  So I did what one does and turned to Pinterest for ideas.  I knew I wanted the announcement to come from our first babies, our two cats and dog.  Great idea, right?

So, I have to say that pet photographers must be the most patient breed of people on earth, especially any who work with cats.

I think it’s important to show the inspiration picture – had I been rational, I would have realized 1) the picture was taken by a professional 2) the only pet is a very cute golden retriever 3) Pinterest has no pictures of cats posing next to signs 4) Pinterest pins are meant to be admired, but really, who ever successfully imitates them?

Thank you Pinterest

First, we need to thank those who made this possible. Our good friend Jess for her AMAZING word art skillz, for providing the chalkboard paint, and editing our final pics. Our sweet British neighbours for lending us their blackboard easel, circa 1960. My bestie Kayla and her boys for lending us their little chalkboard. And finally the people who make Purina whisker lickin’s cat treats for getting my cats to sit still – albeit for only 5 seconds.

I think I will just let our pictures do the rest of the talking… but you can imagine 1 sign, 1 dog, 2 cats…

These are the “actors” we’re working with.  Can you sense their enthusiasm?

Piles of cat treats got them to sit in one spot, but not look up at the camera

This was the scene about 95% of the photoshoot

This was the other 5%

I attempted to take individual pictures of the pets… turns out you need patience for this too

And then this happened

So my husband really likes this picture that I’ve dubbed “the hanging cats”.  And I admit, it’s pretty funny.  It was the original picture in the upper right hand slot of our FB announcement… but it was bothering me.  I felt like a “bad mommy” for holding my cats in this way and all I could think about was Michael Jackson dangling his child over the hotel balcony.  So yeah, hanging cats was replaced with the only somewhat decent photo we were able to take of all three pets.  Behold our FB announcement:

Ovie, Jake & Kia have something they want to share with everyone

Note> No cats or dogs were harmed in the making of this post. A couple humans may have been scratched (but not the baby).

(Your) Helping Hands: Why they are appreciated!

An update from my friends, Jennica and Dave Whitfield with links to ways we can help… please continue to keep them in your thoughts and prayers. Little Ellie is finding everything very scary and getting her to take medicine is one of their greatest challenges.

Through Fields of Whit

Accepting help is not always an easy thing. I prefer to see myself as an independent man who can provide for himself and his family sufficiently on his own. My pride reminds me that I should be able to fend for myself, and saying yes to offers of assistance is kind of like admitting that you are lacking—in power, time, and resources.

So while that’s where I’m coming from, it was clear once we received this diagnosis that those insecurities needed to be cast aside. I don’t have the ability to make this wrong right. I can’t save my daughter with the warm touch of my hands. Instead, for Ellie’s sake, I must put my trust in others, especially our medical team, to ensure that she is receiving the most appropriate treatment possible for her leukemia.

But that is not enough. This is a devastating, exhausting experience that has only…

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Would Your Company Terminate Adria Richards?

I am just now catching up.  Not surprising, since I am working remotely as a tax accountant during busy season and pretty much spend all my time on the computer reviewing tax returns.  Yet, I have delayed my work today.  I hope that my clients and co-employees will understand that there are times in our lives when situations deserve immediate attention.

If you have not heard about the Adria Richards story, you can catch up here.  I will not go into a synopsis of what happened and I will not theorize about what she did right or wrong, but instead I wish to start a dialogue about SendGrid’s actions (her former employer):

It appears they let her go because they were receiving backlash and it was negatively impacting their business and the lives of their employees.  Although first, they state that the way she publicly handled the situation “crossed the line”.  {But HONESTLY, would anything have been done if she didn’t handle it with a public audience who would demand the men to be held responsible for their actions?}

If you read the PlayHaven’s statement on the man who was fired, it appears the company did a thorough investigation and it was NOT just this one instance that led to his termination. . Yet it is this ONE instance that led to Adria Richards’ termination.

I can sympathize with SendGrid.  The computer gaming community is not one to piss off.    Adria’s former employer has dealt with server and network issues from a cyber denial-of-service attack (DDoS).  It is said that Anonymous has SendGrid’s client list and its members are calling and harassing SendGrid’s customers.  I don’t blame SendGrid for thinking about their business and their other employees over just one person.  Would you or I do any different?  But if you think about it – are we really talking about just one person?  Especially given the national and social media attention this story has drawn. 

If haters can cause so much damage that a company folds under its pressures, what’s next? I wish that SendGrid would have kept her on and fought against the people illegally harassing them. What kind of message does it send to others who victims of hate crimes?  If you speak up and try to draw any attention to the problem, you risk death treats, loosing your job, negatively impacting you employer’s business and your co-workers’ livelihoods.   Wow.  Anyone want to speak up now?

Gluten-free and Allergen-free Baking Discussion by me :)

http://wp.me/p35rMy-28

Violence Against Women Act – Help Pass It Now

I don’t understand how the House could let the Violence Against Women Act Expire. The change from the prior years was to extend protection to more women living in the United States. This is appalling and unforgivable.

I’m very happy to say that Vermont’s own Patrick Leahy is leading the way to reintroduce the bill in the 113th Congress. They need 4 more co-sponsors to bring it to the Senate floor. Please, please call your Senator. Phone number and script can be found here: http://4vawa.org/

Once it passes the Senate, you can believe I’ll add additional posts to get it through the House and let you know what you can do.

Domestic violence impacts everyone – if you don’t think you know someone who’s been affected, you’re wrong. You’re reading my post and in college I was raped by a male acquaintance. Please ACT NOW!

Thank you again Abigail Collazo for bring to my attention such an important issue.

Mothers Bully Too

Yesterday, I was shocked to find out that a new friend of mine had received threatening emails. Not just one, but multiple emails from multiple people.  It was not a lone stalker or crazy mad man.  No, these emails were from people respected in our community and are mothers with small children.  Although my friend wouldn’t share the details of what was in the letters, everyone at our meeting was able to reason it out.

It wasn’t until this morning that I thought – I bet those emails are very similar to what a gay man or a bullied teen might receive.  Simply replace our group name with “fag”, “queer”, “flat chest”, or “lard butt”.  I wonder if the writers of the email would have found those messages acceptable to hit send.

Who Represents You?

I decided to take a quick look at the two Presidential Candidates’ websites and I was curious about what could be said about the candidates by just looking at their first page and their list of issues.  While I am deferring to you to draw your own conclusions based on what matters most to you, I have listed below the two items I looked at.

Count from Front Page of Campaign Websites	Barack Obama count / %	Mitt Romney count / %
Number of Non-White Persons (excluding candidates)	2  / 29%	0 / 0.0%
Number of Females (excluding candidates’ wives)	3 / 42%	2 / 29%
Number of White Males (excluding candidates and candidates’ families)	2 / 29%	5 / 71%
Total	7	7

Note 1> People shown in crowds were excluded because the imagines were not clear enough to give accurate counts
Note 2> In case you were wondering, the U.S. Census Bureau shows the following population statistics for the U.S. in 2011:

• Females: 50.8%
• Non-Whites: 21.9% (however, for the first time ever in 2012, non-white births counted for over 50% of total newborns)

Creeper Shots: Are You Unknowingly Exposed On The Web?

What’s Private – Depends: Are You A Nameless Victim Or A Perp Who Openly Shares His Identity.

Okay everyone, first thoughts?  Which individual in this case should society protect?

Creeper Shots

A creeper shot is a picture taken of another person without his or her knowledge.  The picture could be anything from “look who’s at Walmart” to “check out this woman’s tits”.  The picture could be a full body shot or an up-close shot of an extremely intimate nature (think of a woman bending over in skirt and a creeper snapping a picture that captures the thighs and flower-themed panties of the unknowing woman).

Creeper shots have made their appearance on the web through FaceBook posts, email forwards, and most infamously on Reddit (an online forum community where users vote on content).  The photos could be pictures of women riding the train, which are then shared as “look at this hot babe” or pictures of girl classmates bending over a table as they work on a group project, “look at that ass – yum!”.

Deadlines Now – Are You Registered To Vote?

The election may be a month away, but did you know many states have deadlines for voter registration?  Some are today – but it’s not too late.  Not in the age of internet and email!

“Wake The F*$% UP”

I just saw Samuel L Jackson in a  political ad and it’s exactly what I’m trying to shout out – but with the energy of a slap to the face.  Please watch this ad.  Share this ad. And comment on this post.  Which character do you most relate to?  I feel like the little girl, but I can’t find my parents and siblings and grandparents to wake up (aka the American people) – they’re hundreds of miles away and I’m in England.  I’m doing what I can with this blog and I’m going to keep looking for ways to spread the message.  I’m also going to imagine Samuel L is in my living room and get energized!