Morber High Life

The Champaign of Families---Crunchy. Conservative. Catholic. Consider yourself warned . . .

Tuesday, March 24, 2009

Sebastian Edward Morber--Born March 19




Sebastian Edward came quickly in the wee hours of the night, approximately 3:08 AM on March 19, 2009, after only 2.5 hours of labor. He weighed 8 lb., 5 oz, and was about 20 inches long.

Like all newborns, he sleeps, eats, defecates . . . and that's about it. Mom and baby are both feeling well and the rest of us are transitioning fairly smoothly. Thank you for your continued thoughts and prayers! More to come, of course . . .

Tuesday, March 17, 2009

Happy St. Patrick's Day, O'bama!!!

Heath recently sent me this article link, claiming Obama has some Irish heritage. Incredulous as it may sound, it appears to be true. While I am not certain yet if this will be a stain or triumph for my beloved ancestry, I could NOT pass up sharing this music video! I apologize for all the YouTube shares lately, but I enjoyed this one far too much . . . especially the pre-recorded dance moves they have for our President. ;)



Sunday, March 15, 2009

Women behind the wheel . . . yikes

For many years now, my father, brothers, and I have continually complained about females behind the wheel, much to the chagrin of my wife and mother. (It's all in good fun . . . mostly) This video is a wonderful, compelling example of our case. (I love how the problem is resolved!)

Sunday, March 08, 2009

ShamWow!

I don't usually watch much TV, especially on sleepless nights. Mainly because it is usually just filled with infomercials or Suzanne Sommers or Your Baby Can Read ads. (Don't get me started on that program.) However, a month or so back, Heath and I were both up while kiddos were actually staying asleep (praise Jesus!) and we happened upon a ShamWow commercial. I must admit, I was VERY impressed! You know it is awesome marketing when the commercial ends and I thought, "How have I lived my life up until now without a ShamWow?!" That really is saying alot when I don't even have those same thoughts about cell phones! ;)

I came across this today and had to share. It uses parts of the actual ShamWow ad, but the song is great. Hope you get a kick out of it too.

Saturday, March 07, 2009

"Tax the rich!"

From the "Letters to the Editor" section of the News-Gazette, 3-4-08:


I did not vote for Barack Obama and don't agree with him on anything. However, I came across a quote by Dr. Adrian Rogers (a Christian minister and three-term president of the Southern Baptist Convention) that I would like to share with your readers. It speaks for itself.

"You cannot legislate the poor into freedom by legislating the wealthy out of freedom. What one person receives without working for, another person must work for without receiving. The government cannot give to anybody anything that the government does not first take from somebody else.

"When half of the people get the idea that they do not have to work because the other half is going to take care of them, and when the other half gets the idea that it does no good to work because somebody else is going to get what they work for, that, my dear friend, is about the end of any nation. You cannot multiply wealth by dividing it."


Think about it.

MARSHALL LIPSCOMB

Champaign


Source: http://www.news-gazette.com/news/opinions/letters/2009/03/04/new_taxes_on_wealthy_wont_help_others

Friday, March 06, 2009

Pants on fire . . .

Well, that didn't take long . . .

Obama’s Top Five Broken Promises

By Phil Kerpen
Director of Policy, Americans for Prosperity

Promise #5: Sunlight Before Signing

What he said:

“Too often bills are rushed through Congress and to the president before the public has the opportunity to review them. As president, Obama will not sign any non-emergency bill without giving the American public an opportunity to review and comment on the White House website for five days.” (BarackObama.com campaign Web site)

What he did:

Obama signed the Lily Ledbetter bill, the SCHIP/cigarette tax hike, and the stimulus bill all with far less than a five-day waiting period that he promised–and continues to promise–on his campaign Web site.

Promise #4: Lobbyist Revolving Door

What he said:

“No political appointees in an Obama-Biden administration will be permitted to work on regulations or contracts directly and substantially related to their prior employer for two years. And no political appointee will be able to lobby the executive branch after leaving government service during the remainder of the administration.” (BarackObama.com campaign Web site)

What he did:

Obama appointed Goldman Sachs lobbyists Mark Patterson chief of staff at the Treasury Department, where he directly oversees his former employer, a recipient of $10 billion of taxpayer funds from the TARP. Obama also appointed Raytheon lobbyist William Lynn to be an undersecretary of Defense.

Promise #3: No Tax Hikes on the Poor

What he said first:

“I can make a firm pledge. Under my plan, no family making less than $250,000 a year will see any form of tax increase. Not your income tax, not your payroll tax, not your capital gains taxes, not any of your taxes.” (September 12, 2008, Dover, N.H.)

What he did first:

By signing H.R. 2 into law, Obama happily signed onto the idea that smokers should pay for a $35 billion expansion of the State Children’s Health Insurance Plan (SCHIP). Cigarette taxes are going up 61 cents a pack starting April 1. Obama signed this bill knowing that the majority of smokers in the United States are working poor, and one in four lives below the federal poverty line.

What he said next:

“If your family earns less than $250,000 a year, you will not see your taxes increased a single dime. I repeat: not one single dime.” (February 24th, 2009, Address to a Joint Session of Congress)

What he did next:

Ignored the already-hiked cigarette tax at the time of the statement and then this restated promise was broken just two days later, when the Obama’s budget proposal was released. His new budget raises 45 percent of its revenue from energy taxes that will be paid by everyone who fills a gas tank, pays an electric bill, or buys anything that was grown, shipped, or manufactured.

Promise #2: Pork Barrel Earmark Reform

What he said:

“The system is broken. We can no longer accept a process that doles out earmarks based on a member of Congress’ seniority, rather than the merit of the project. We can no longer accept an earmarks process that has become so complicated to navigate that a municipality or non-profit group has to hire high-priced D.C. lobbyists to do it. And we can no longer accept an earmarks process in which many of the projects being funded fail to address the real needs of our country.”

(Statement on Earmarks, March 10, 2008)

What he is expected to do:

The White House has signaled that it intends to sign the $410 billion Omnibus Appropriations bill, which according to Taxpayers for Common Sense, contains 8,570 earmarks totaling $7.7 billion, including dozens of wasteful pork-barrel projects. These earmarks were awarded based on seniority, not on merit, and were mostly the result of high-priced lobbying, precisely the process that Obama promised to end. When the omnibus reaches his desk later this week or next week, we’ll find out if this is one more broken promise.

Promise #1: Big Government

OK, so this one is more of a statement than a promise, but it’s the biggest whopper of all.

What he said:

“Not because I believe in bigger government — I don’t.” (February 24, 2009, Joint Address to Congress)

What he did:

Obama proposed a budget that is breathtaking in scope, a blueprint for the biggest permanent expansion of government in history right on the heels of a sweeping trillion dollar stimulus plan. The budget lays the foundation for a government takeover of the health care and energy sectors and dramatically increasing spending across the board, other than defense weapons programs. Spending as a percentage of the economy under this budget will reach the historic level of 27.7 percent this year. The deficit as a percent of the economy, at 12.3 percent, is set to be the biggest in the entire history of the country outside of the four peak years of World War II. Anyone who offers such a budget can only fairly be described as a believer in bigger government.

Phil Kerpen is director of policy for Americans for Prosperity.


Source: http://foxforum.blogs.foxnews.com/2009/03/03/kerpen_obama_budget/

Wednesday, March 04, 2009

Essentials?

I was reading a Yahoo! article today on the 12 worst etiquette mistakes people make in public. I agreed with much of what the authors were stating and it's nice to see writers who are unafraid to point out "bad habits" of the general public (not that I think it will actually CHANGE those bad habits). However, what struck me most about this article was the section on cell phones, AKA "Mobile Madness".

I can not begin to tell you how many times I have been annoyed by cell phones! Perhaps this is exacerbated by not having one myself. It was a pretty common sense blurb about how other people really don't want to know about your hot date last night or the latest family drama/dysfunction, etc. Completely agree! So, bottom line: save it for a more private atmosphere. What captured my attention the most was the statement "Mobile phones are essential". Ummm . . . not quite sure I would give them the same classification. I would describe them as convenient, handy, or useful but I would not say they are vital to life.

Humans have been living for thousands of years without many of our modern conveniences and while I do agree that cell phones can even be life-saving in the event of an emergency, I would NOT label it as essential. Air, food, water . . . yes, all of those are "essential" and necessary to our physiological functioning. But a cell phone???? I guess I may very well die soon as I am 29 and have never owned one. It may just be a matter of time for me, folks! I can feel life slipping away as I type this . . .

The above is a perfect illustration of how backwards our society has become. While I for one would NOT want to give up my indoor plumbing and ability to refrigerate foods, there are many, many cultures and people around the world who survive without them. Where there is a will, there is a way. I will admit we are very spoiled as Americans and yes, I enjoy many of those luxuries. So I am certainly not going to bash my friends who own cell phones (which I think is pretty much ALL of you! ;) ) for enjoying that modern convenience. I will, however, argue that you could live without them.

I think it's long past the time of getting "back to the basics" in our country. Family, friends, a good home life, community . . . these are the basics and what we all thrive on. I hope it does not take our country going completely down the toilet before the majority realizes this and makes appropriate changes. I hope we can all soon re-focus on what is truly essential in life: air, water, food and most importantly, love.

Tuesday, March 03, 2009

Knowing that all our readers will not agree with the Church's proscription towards the use of artificial birth control, I would hope, though, that all our readers would at least raise an eyebrow at the following:


Check-up, Wake-up
By Kristine L. Franklin
Copyright: Envoy Magazine

It’s the subtle stuff that often knocks me for a parental loop. Like when my good, conscientious, Christian family doctor offered birth control pills to my twelve-year-old daughter. I’m not making this up. Jody said I should write about it so other parents would be prepared. We were definitely unprepared.


It was time for Jody’s seventh grade check-up so I made an appointment with my own doctor we’ll call Dr. X. Dr. X is a Christian, someone I trusted to be sensitive with a twelve-year-old. I told Jody that everything would be fine even if it felt a little embarrassing. I explained about my own yearly physical, and that hers wouldn’t be nearly that extensive. It was just a school physical, but because of her age the “growing up” topics would probably come up.

And indeed they did. I went with Jody into the examination room. Doctor X was friendly and kind. When Dr. X asked if Jody had any questions about puberty, she smiled and said, “My mom has already told me everything I need to know.”

“That’s wonderful,” said the doctor and then proceeded to check Jody’s heart, lungs, ears, and throat. When Dr. X asked me to leave the room for a moment I didn’t think twice. I winked at Jody and left, honoring her privacy and modesty.

Not five minutes later the doctor called me back in. One look at Jody and I knew she was distressed. My motherly alarm system kicked in and I felt my heart speed up. Dr. X left the room and I said,

“What’s wrong?”

“The doctor asked me about birth control,” said Jody. “I don’t even know what it is.”

Stunned is an inadequate description. I felt my face turning red with rage. Dr. X returned and I literally bit the inside of my cheek to keep from spewing forth loud invective. I knew I needed the whole story before I did or said anything. When Jody and I got to the car she told me everything.

Here’s the gist. When they were alone the doctor asked Jody if she was drinking or using drugs. Jody said no and the doctor then told Jody in a firm way how important it was to keep drug- and alcohol-free. Then the doctor asked if Jody had a boyfriend. Jody said no. Then the doctor said, “If you ever get a boyfriend, and you’re having sexual relations, I can give you birth control pills.”


Pause a moment and let that sink in.

In the calmest voice I could muster I told Jody, “The doctor was totally out of line to say that to you. It was wrong, it was inappropriate, it embarrassed you and I am so sorry I left you alone.” I then explained very briefly what “birth control” means, to which Jody replied, “How stupid.”

I prayed and fumed. When we got home I phoned the doctor. In a calm, divinely-assisted tone of voice, I asked for the other side of the story. It squared exactly with what Jody had reported. Then I told Dr. X in no uncertain terms that both Jody and I were offended and that what had been said to my daughter violated the physician’s oath to “do no harm.” Dr. X apologized for offending, but told me that it was a routine conversation for girls Jody’s age. “It’s part of a community-wide effort to cut down on teen pregnancy.”

I told Dr. X that offering to prescribe dangerous hormonal drugs to a preadolescent child behind her parent’s back was a horrific practice (I really said “horrific”) and that the message on premarital sex should be as firm as the message against drugs and alcohol. “You passed up a perfect opportunity to help a child remain committed to chastity.” The doctor didn’t say much.

I don’t know if that conversation did any good. That doctor is a product of our culture and I’m just one of those ultra-brainwashed Catholic mothers who naively assumes that her children can and will abstain from sex before marriage. I can only hope that some of my words sunk in.

Jody wanted me to write this down so all Catholic parents would know to be careful. Even a good doctor with good intentions can point your child toward the path of destruction.

Consider yourself forewarned.

Monday, March 02, 2009

Quickie . . .

I wish it was Spring.