Two years ago today my first wife was killed in a car crash that wasn't her fault.  Those that know my history here know the story, others could look back at prior articles if they wanted.  The short story is that she was on a country road, not far from our home, having taken my daughter to a birthday party for one of her friends.  The daughter had been dropped off and my first wife was apparently going to visit some of her old school friends and perhaps buy some fruits/veggie...

I was brought to this website accidently.  I was searching for something, and stumbled upon an article that was written by my brother.  For privacy reasons, I will not disclose who he is.  My brother and I survived horrific child abuse growing up.  We lost 2 brothers because of the abuse....one beaten by HIS father.  There are things that were done to me that no little girl should ever experience.  I knew of some of the stuff that was done to my brother, but ...

With my schedule a lot less tight, I’ve finally had the opportunity to spend more time with my kids. Which, today, meant playing dolls with my 3 year old daughter.  Our first two kids were boys and when we had a girl, we encouraged her to play with the boy’s old toys (I’m a cheapskate) but she gravitated towards the remnants of my wife’s old dolls (i.e. the ones the boys hadn’t destroyed).  We still don’t have very many dolls and such but that’s her favorite thing to do.  My...

So I’m sitting here blogging, surfing, etc. from my cumfy chair in our bedroom and I hear the 3 year old singing from the bathtub. She makes up these songs as she goes along.  All 3 of our children have always loved taking long baths and playing with toys and singing.  Love the sound of it.

0 false 18 pt 18 pt 0 0 false false false Here's an exercise for you - Come up with the one definitive Christmas moment or day? Here's the problem - Is it possible? If you've gone through a large share of Christmas Days, you have one or two moments on each day that stands out in your mind. Some have sentimental value, others have the surprise factor and one or two are so surreal, there's no way you can forget it or downplay it. ...

  On Sunday, 29th November, at 9:45 my father died in Jerusalem Hospital in Hamburg; one week after heart surgery where the doctors couldn’t do anything any more. He was 70 years old. My father, Gerhard Brehm, was born on May 14th 1939 in Berlin. He spent most of the first ten years of his life with the cold and hunger caused by the situation during and shortly after World War II. Rheumatic fever led to heart disease and heart disease finally caught up with him last month. He und...

They lied.  That was ugly.  I got the call two days ago that I had another grandson.  I came here to OHIO expecting a girl and was kind of surprised to find out it was a boy when they called from the hospital.  They gave me very little information and now I know why.  When I called my husband with the first baby news, he said for me not to believe it until I changed that first diaper.  He knew how convinced I was when I left home even bringing the pink/whit...

Yep, another boy.  So, let's see.  That makes for me two brothers, three sons, one stepson, and three grandsons!  I don't have any sisters, daughters or granddaughters to date.  There's still time.  It ain't over yet.. The Pink/White Nikes are going home with me!  It's going to be a Blue Christmas!  The name is to be announced which is per usual for my son and his wife.  I heard one name passed around but I won't say until it's final.  They li...

These "Great Truths About Life" were collected from the experiences of real children.    1.  No matter how hard you try, you can't baptize cats. 2.  Never let your mom brush your hair when she's mad at your dad. 3. If your sister hits you, don't hit her back.  Parents always catch the second person. 4.  Never ask your three year old brother to hold a tomato. 5.  You can't trust dogs to guard your food. 6.  Don't sneeze wh...

My fiancee has been doing a lot of babysitting and I realized that some parents are very protective and selective with who can babysit their children. I guess it makes sense, but from what I remember my parents would take anyone they could get their hands on. Then on the opposite end of the spectrum are parents who won't settle for anyone short of a nurse . Families want a babysitter who will not only watch their children but will form relationships with them. They want babysitters who will s...

Just got home from IKEA . We were given pretty significant gift cards and decided to stock up on a few things we needed for the apartment. That store is crazy. It probably has one of the best business models of any business I have ever seen. They have anything and everything under the sun. I could go to pick up dowel pins and end up having a swedish meatball dinner in the cafeteria, while they watch my kids in the nursery. Every time IKEA thinks of a reason that people would not come to the s...

Going through the camera today and found this great shot of the kids.  My daughter is the little blond on the set and my son is the little boy. Around them are their cousins up at the cottage.  Ah, this is what summer was made for!

Aufgrund einer Nahrungsmittelunverträglichkeit kommt es zu analogen Immunantworten zum Beispiel bei einer Allergie. Sie kann sich grundlegenderweise in Juckreiz, Pickeln, Blähungen, Magenbeschwerden, Diarrhoe, Husten oder Migräne äußern. Der hauptsächliche Unterschied innerhalb Allergie und Nahrungsmittelunverträglichkeit (z.b. Glutenallergie ) kommt aus in den körpereigenen Vorgängen. Währenddessen bei einer Allergie das betroffene Gewebe vert...

With apologies to those that may have seen this information elsewhere, and with deep appreciation (even if it goes unstated over the next several busy days and weeks) for the well wishes that have been and may be sent my (and my family's) way, I'm posting this article to note the unexpected passing of my wife. She died in a car accident on the afternoon of July 19, 2009.  Her car was rear ended and apparently the car and she took enough damage to terminate her life. I've posted elsewh...

Everyone tells us "You're so lucky to be looking for a home, now!  It's a buyer's market!   No, it isn't.  Not where we are, at least.  San Diego, CA.   For nearly two months we've been looking for a good home to buy.  We pre-qualify for almost a half million dollars.  But homes out here are outrageous expensive, and every one we go see, the sharks are patrolling the waters.  Investors looking to buy, refurbish, and sell at a profit.   ...