Cinematic Warm Fuzzies

There are 2 movies coming that I simply cannot wait for. One, was a fave childhood book of both myself and Jeremy and the trailer makes the movie, as another blogger blogger put it, "look like how a warm Krispy Kreme tastes." The music alone is enough to induce warm fuzzies. Please to enjoy, Where the Wil Things Are.


The second is just so stunningly beautiful, it makes my warm fuzzies tingle. Melt into a blissful puddle of cinematic beauty: Astro Boy.

SIckle Cell Info

I know that some of my readers have questioned a statement made in my previous post about Sickle Cell being a curable disease here in the States. I should have clarified that statement in that post. I will do so now.

We did not step into this endeavor blindly or going on "my cousin's mother's 3rd aunt's boyfriend has it....." kind of info. We researched extensively: medical journals, consultations with doctors, etc. and found the same information. Sickle Cell is absolutely curable and there are 2 avenues that can be explored. Let me quote directly from the University of Maryland Medical Center: "the only true cure for sickle cell disease is bone marrow or stem cell transplantation. The bone marrow nurtures stem cells, which are early cells that mature into red and white blood cells and platelets. By destroying the sickle cell patient's diseased bone marrow and stem cells and transplanting healthy bone marrow from a genetically-matched donor, normal hemoglobin may be produced."

Now, a stem cell blood transfusion is obviously the more difficult option to work out. Though we don't have her stem cells or even a siblings, there is the possibility to find a close enough match from donated stem cells. This would obviously be the less painful route as this can be handled through a transfusion. The bone marrow transplant, on the other hand, can be quite risky because intense chemotherapy has to be done prior in order to facilitate the acceptance of the bone marrow. There is a new procedure however, that delivers a much less harsh, lower dose of chemo and is a lot less risky to the recipient. You can read about it here.

Once Saraphina comes to the States and can be evaluated by a doctor here, we will be able to come to a better conclusion about the severity of her particular case and whether or not these would be viable options for her. If you or a loved one has Sickle Cell, please research the options. Get educated. This disease does not have to cut lives short or painfully destroy each day you have. There are options and new treatments.

Bad Juju

Seriously, my juju must be off. In the last 2 weeks, I have broken my nose, gotten a really bad cold and burned the inside of my entire forearm. WTH? I mean, for reals? Now that all the swelling has gone down in my nose, you can feel a definite chip or dent on the right side of my upper bridge. Having a head cold has not helped the healing process as every time I have to blow my nose it feels like it rebreaks. There's a crunchy piece, near the dent that occasionally fills the dent and it still hurts like blerg whenever I touch that area.

Then, last night, well, let's just say, as a rule and warning, one should never cook whilst on cold medicine. I was making a delightful winter vegetable bisque to warm us on this blustery, wintery day. I transferred the soup to the blender, locked the lid down good and tight and pressed the low button. Except my drugged up fingers slipped off the low and pushed in the HIGH. Because I was holding the lid on, the scalding soup didn't shoot straight up, it shot straight out, onto my chest and the forearm of the arm holding the lid. Sunova OW! I ran it under cool water, for a couple minutes, but that wasn't working. Since Jeremy was still like an hour and a half from coming home and I was too nauseus form pain to drag myself and 4 children to the drugstore, I had to alternate between running it under cool water and holding cool, wet compresses on it. Finally, Jeremy came home with supplies and lemme tell you - BurnJel is the bomb! Numbed my arm to the point where it feels like how your lip feels when you get Novocaine! Awesome! It's still red and a little swollen this morning, but mch, much better.

If anyone has any ideas on how to get my juju back, I would really appreciate suggestions. Between broken noses and scalding soup (which turned out incredible, by the way), I don't know how much more I can take!

An open letter to Steak 'n Shake

First off, let me say that this is not a regular "Pihl Pastures" kind of post and that I may or may not say things that may or may not offend my typical readers. However, since I am a fairly rational, intelligent adult, I will try to refrain from at least excessive use of ignorant words.

We have a Steak and Shake across the street from us, here in Ocala. Usually, the parking lot is quite sparse, as are most restaurants around here lately. The economic downturn forces the majority of us to stay home and cook. A few weeks ago, we noticed a sign that had been put up on Steak and Shake's roof: "Kids eat free all weekend long!" WOW! Okay, so this is great! We can have a special treat on the weekend for the kids and eat out and it will only cost us for our meals. Oh, the naivety! To think that a business would actually conduct themselves in an ethical manner and use truth in advertising! This is where the utter frustration, betrayal and disgust comes in.

The first time we tried to go was at lunch. Because of the sign posted on the building advertising free kids meals, the parking lot was so packed that people were waiting outside in the cold in a 30 minute line. We chose not to wait and to come back later in the day. But, those poor people, those people that chose to wait, in the cold of the day with small children in excess of 30 minutes for a table were lied to, just as we were lied to. These people waited for that long and were never given the opportunity to learn the truth until after they had already been seated. After they had been roped in. After they were so hungry that going anywhere else would have been an endeavor in futility. And I say, how dare you Steak and Shake?

Here's the run down. Once you walk in, you wait and wait and wait to be seated. Why? Because this is a glorified McDonald's pretending to be something it's not - a real restaurant. So, you wait to be seated by a server who eventually serves you a burger patty so thin, it would actually take 3 patties stacked together to make the thickness of a McDonald's patty. But, I digress. While standing and waiting to be seated, One looks around and finds no written advertising regarding the Kids Meals and their freeness. So, one has to wait to actually be seated before one can ask their server about said offer. It is then, and only then, one learns that to get a single free kids meal (valued at $2.50 - because drinks are EXTRA and don't come with the kid's meal like most other fast food establishments), one must spend $9 per adult for one kid's meal. Now realize this: that's not even possible at Steak and Shake! For instance, Jeremy ordered the most expensive thing on the menu, which was the Steak and Shake meal consisting of a burger, 2 sides and a shake for $7.99. Yup - just under $9. So, for us to even earn 1 free kids meal, we either have to order more than we would otherwise eat, or get one free kids meal for every 2 adults.

Listen, I can understand that nothing is free. I could understand the offer being one free kids meal for every adult meal purchased. That would have at least been fair and in the general realm of truth in advertising. But there is not an ounce of truth in their advertising. Had Jeremy walked in there with even just one of our children, he would not have been able to take advantage of the free kids meal because what he ordered would not have equaled $9. So, in truth, there are very few families, very few people, that would qualify for this "Kids eat free all weekend" offer.

Lies! Complete and utter false advertising. And I say, how dare you Steak and Shake? Yes, I know I already said, it, but I say it again. How dare you flat out lie and take advantage of people during this economic time of uncertainty. People whom you know would not otherwise choose to eat out, save your ridiculous offer of lies? There is no asterisk on the signage. No fine print. How do you get away with this? Is there no code of ethics at all? My husband is an IT consultant. Let's say he offers a free iMac with every service. The catch is, your service has to equal $5000 before you qualify for that offer, but that detail is nowhere in writing, nor does he offer that information before he starts your service. You could then, sue him for false advertising. Explain to me the difference between this and that. You, Steak and Shake, are no less robbing people, no less stealing form them their hard earned money that you know they otherwise never would have spent at your establishment.

So, for all the people who read this blog, for all the people who see the Facebook post or the tweet on Twitter, I say boycott. Sure, one person's indignation does not amount to much. But a state, a region, a country of people standing up, speaking out against establishments that choose to lie to us and steal from us and take advantage of us during such a time as this, will surely do something. Leave a comment to this post, pledging your commitment to change - your commitment to stand up to those taking advantage. Join the Facebook group boycotting Steak and Shake. This is about truth, about justice, about ethics and most importantly, about change.

A Moment in History

Sitting down in front of the computer, explaining what Inauguration Day represented, what it meant and why this particular one is so very important, I didn't expect the tears that came. The more I told my natural born son and my Haitian son, who has just become a citizen of this wonderful country, about the great importance of this moment, the more choked up I became. To realize that for hundreds of years, black people of all nationalities have been disrespected, mistreated, made to live in a manner less than worthy....to witness this moment when equality has truly come. When a black man, has risen above, to now sit in the highest office in the land....That stirs emotions. It doesn't matter if you agree with his politics, or even if you personally like him. That one fact, the historicity of it all, is enough. As a mother now of black children, immigrated and now citizens, it is powerful. We watched the inauguration together, and though I doubt that either of them really "got" it, they will. Soon they will understand. Soon they will know that they lived in a time of change. They witnessed a historical turning point in our nation - one that will hopefully, prayerfully, bring about change for the good.

My perfect nose

I have a complex about my nose. When I was growing up, everyone admired my "perfect Precious Moments" nose. It was the perfect shape, slope, slant and size. When I was 13 (or 11 or somewhere around there), my head collided with someone else's at a pool party and my perfect nose ended up on the other side of my face. It was shattered so completely that the x-ray at the ER showed it as a whole and complete, unbroken nose. Never mind that anyone with 2 working eyes could see that it was swollen, in 2 pieces and on the other side of my face. Anyway, 3 days later at the doctor, they determined that yes, it was broken, but had begun healing back together. This was BAD. So, now reconstructive surgery was needed. I now have my perfect nose back and yes, I suppose you could say that I've had plastic surgery. Long story short: lightning struck again. I mean, HOW RANDOM IS THAT?

I was putting Phoenix down for a nap today. He had already been outta bed once and was not happy that I was putting him back in bed. (This was out of character for him, but this is how it went down. He's been "off" the last 2 days. We won't even mention the bruised bite mark on my hand courtesy of his little vampire teeth. That's a different story.) Anyway, I was readjusting his narrow little behind to put the covers on him. While doing so, he decided to rear up and clobber me with his giant cranium right on the perfectly reconstructed bone part of my perfect nose.

I fought blacking out, shed a few tears and fought the nausea all the way to my room. No blood, which was good. I think the swelling is only as minimal as it is because hubby rushed home form work with one of those old-fashioned ice bags and took care of me. It's broken, broken, broken! Though hubby begged me to go to the hospital, I didn't. I mean, seriously - it's in one piece, it's straight and it's still where it should be on my face. All the hospital will do is take an x-ray to confirm what I already know ( we know how well the x-ray turned out the last time!), give me pain meds and tell me to keep ice on it. See, I just saved us $3000!

Out of respect, let's have a moment of silence for my dearly departed and heretofor no longer, perfect nose.

Unicef Photo of 2008

The beauty in the juxtaposition of this photo is truly breath taking and so close to my heart as the adoptive mom of two kids from Haiti. This photo won first place as the Unicef photo of 2008 taken by 21-year-old Belgian photographer Alice Smeets, the youngest person ever to win the competition. The place: Cite Soliel, Haiti.If this image encourages you to get involved and help in relief efforts or even goes so far as to make you think about adoption, please visit For HIS Glory's website. They are a non-profit organization that has an orphanage in Port-au-Prince, Haiti and also helps fund and provide relief efforts for the surrounding area. If you have any questions about adoption, they currently have available children and I would be happy to answer any questions you might have.

An anti-climatic Flip Experience

I ordered the Flip HD Cam for Christmas, courtesy of my in-laws (Thank you very much!) and it just came today. It took a little while longer than normal because with the Flip, you can have them customized for your personal tastes. This is ours:
I was SOOOOO excited for this thing, until I realized I hadn't researched as well as I normally do and found out that Kodak makes a far superior "Flip killer" for nearly 1/2 the price. Plus, unlike the Flip, Kodak's comes with recahrgebale, replaceable batteries and an expansion slot for SDHC cards. So, I will be rigorously testing out the Flip during my 90 day return window, but will probably exchange it for the Kodak - which, oh by the way, is weather resistant too! Just smarter all the way around. I got suckered by the customization option of the Flip. Truly. I mean, how COULD one resist the panda? It really is the perfect size, but already I'm seeing that the back is a definite fingerprint magnet!
Below are 2 completely non-sense 30 second videos I took today to test the resolution in bright and low light situations. Both of these are indoor as I have yet to test outdoor. If you have either the Kodak version or the new FlipHD, chime in and let me know what you think of yours.

My OCD kicked in again....

Here are Remy and Gusteau. Yes, Gerbils. You can take the girl off the farm, but you take away her animals and she gets all shades of depressed....So, they're like my medicine. Lasst year at this time I was milking goats, cursing the freezing weather while I installed heat lamps into each stall in the barn. I was enjoying fresh eggs everyday and looking into the crystal blue eyes of my horse while I groomed her. Yeah, I miss my farm. I guess these'll do.

Geeky Goodness!

Rarely do I share glimpses into the true geek that I am, but I couldn't resist. The trailer for the new Wolverine movie was just released and I felt the need to share. Yeah, I'm a geek! So here it is, X-Men Origins: Wolverine

X-MEN ORIGINS: WOLVERINE HD

Just in Time for Christmas!

To all you wonderful peeps out there who keep up with the Pihl's here in blogland, I give to you a gift - the gift of awareness! There is this incredible little internet boutique you should all check out. It features knit couture apparel and accessories at fantastic prices - everything from shawls and wraps to hats, purses and scarves! All handmade and of the finest quality materials! This is the perfect time and the perfect gift for any friends or family you may have up north or in the colder parts of the country.

As an added bonus, the designer has agreed to donate a percentage of the profits until December 1 to the relief effort for hurricane devastated Haiti.

So, buy a gift for family and friends and do your part to help a devastated country.

Click here - BluMorfo Creations to check out the full website. Below is a slideshow of some of what the boutique has to offer. Some of the products are located on the boutique's website and some of the others are located at the sister boutique, blumorfo.etsy.com

Read my Blog?

I would LOVE to know who's reading, following or just stopping by once and a while. Hit the "Follow Me" button on the right sidebar and lemme know who you are! The more friends and family I have to write for, the more fun it is!

My house....

STIIIIIIIIIIIINKS! Who knew 4 boys could stink up a house so efficiently and thoroughly? ;0) It's like one long, never-ending fart! I'm looking for some sweet savior to send me a gas mask......

What's in a Name?

A lot....a definition of character, a legacy, a hope, an ideal. We have always taken the choosing of our children's names very seriously and with the 2 new additions coming home soon, we are again playing the name game. Though we've had their first names chosen for a long time, we've struggled for nearly 2 years with their middle names. Not only have we finally settled on middle names, but we have come to a monumental naming decision. Once we readopt the boys here in the States and officially have their names changed, we will also have a name change for Logan and Cai. We really want to honor our fathers and grandfathers in such a way that their relationships to us and the legacy they leave behind, will be forever etched into our children's minds - and names. So, without further adieu, here are the new Pihl children (with the new names in bold):

Logan Gabriel Robert Pihl
Micaiah Ramsay David Pihl
Moise Benjamin Joseph Pihl
Phoenix Jude Austin Pihl

Yes, I know - I hear you - 2 middle names? Whatever - it's very euro and very honoring to our patriarchs and so, it is what it is.

Thank you

We wanted to extend a special thank you to those of you who have donated to our efforts to bringing our children home. Your thoughts, prayers and donations have meant SO MUCH to us and have made a HUGE difference! THANK YOU, does not seem to be sufficient.....

For those of you lurking, reading and/or wondering what we're referencing, please click on the "adoption" label on the right hand sidebar and read the posts regarding our adoption process. God has definitely provided, but we've not reached the finish line yet. We implore you to pray/consider and ask how you can/if you can be of assistance.

Until they come home.....
Heather & Jeremy

IKEA=B*L*I*S*S

Since we had to go all the way into Orlando yesterday to get our fingerprints redone, we decided to make a day of it. Unlike the first fingerprinting (which took 1/2 the day even though we had an appointment), this time we were in and out in literally 15 minutes. It was a thing of beauty. So, off to the land of bliss we happily went. Keep in mind, neither of us have ever been to an Ikea store. We were Ikea virgins. I have to say, our first time was nothing short of pure, unadulterated BLISS! As we entered the store about 15 minutes before it actually opened, we were ushered upstairs to a land of brilliant colors and whimsical simplicity. The first "showroom" area we walk into was the children's area and our 2 boys immediately went bat**** crazy! And, since you are encouraged to touch, play with and try out everything in the store, the boys happily complied!

There really is a very special feeling that radiates throughout your entire being once you take your first step into an IKEA, like utter euphoria. It is difficult to put into words, but I will tell you that I had to fight the urge to sit down and cry in the middle of the store. (DO keep in mind how stressed we've been over the past 2 weeks with all of the adoption troubles and work situations that this was nothing short of a beautiful release.) After the children had sufficiently tried every toy and every bed, climbed through castle tunnels and hugged stuffed animals, we had the brilliant idea of checking them into Smaland, IKEA's supervised children's playroom. The boys were so delighted to swim in the enormous ballpit, climb the rock wall, slide down the slides and hide in forts to watch movies, that they were actually pretty pissed at us when we had to pick them up at the end of their allotted hour. During that one hour of glorious mommy/daddy alone time, we fell in love with the furniture, textiles and everything IKEA had to offer.

Once we picked up the boys, it was off to the in-store cafe and the moment mommy had been waiting for all week: swedish meatballs! IKEA certainly does not disappoint in the quality of their food, the beauty of their presentation and the ridiculous affordability of everything they have to offer. How can you beat a completely balanced and yummy kid's meal for 99 cents? CRAZY!

Before we left with a birthday present for Cai and a few essentials for mommy's kitchen, we made sure to hit the swedish food market for absolute essentials like rasperberry jam cookies, lingonberry jam, swedish meatball sauce mix and a few other confectionary treats.

4 hours! That is how long we reveled in the beauty, simplicity, whimsy and utter delight that is IKEA. Truthfully, it's my new Disney, my new mecca.

After the IKEA experience, we met up with a friend at the Millenia Mall (right behind IKEA) and chilled there for a while before grabbing some lunch at the Mellow Mushroom - an incredible all organic pizza joint. We shared a tremendous jerk chicken pizza that is not to be missed!

All in all, a full day spent in Orlando, tremendous fun and much needed stress relief. Hooray!

if it's weird, random or effed up...

...it happens to us. I mean, sometimes sovereignty just sucks.

To make a laughably long story short, there were providential signs and definite urgencies that precipitated this move. We found our dream
house, settled into our dream life, populated our farm, laughed, learned and waited...for the other shoe to drop because it inevitably always does. And it did! Our property manager turned out to be a psycho beyotch who essentially had us sign an entirely fraudulent lease for a property that she knew had neither been properly permitted for, nor was up to code. Kind and friendly requests from us for things to be taken care of were routinely ignored and we were forced to lay the smackdown of the law. Our attorney got involve and the situation escalated to ridiculous proportions. We were threatened, bullied and intimidated until we said ENOUGH and called code enforcemt on them. Now there is a formal report and investigation and our attorney finally advised us to break the lease and move out. So, we are packing up and moving for the second time in 5 friggin months. We had to liquidate our livestock and happy farm life because the only other farms for rent in this inbred, backwater town have trailers on them and I simply refuse... I'm sure I will soon see the divine providence in even this frustration, but for now, at this moment, sovereignty sucks.

Tuesday Friend

I have a friend. A friend who calls every Tuesday night, without fail. A friend who listens. A friend who loves. A friend who makes me laugh. A friend who gives me more credit than I deserve. A friend who is...a friend.
Yeah - you rock, babe.

Check out my new blog Reality Remixd
It's the darker side of Heather with random rants, ramblings and rememberies from my oddball childhood. It may not be pretty and you may not agree with it, but this is the world the way eye see it.

Countdown to 30!

This is the year. The year of dread. The year of anticipation. The year I say "Oh sh*t, I've accomplished nothing on my list......I better get a move on." This is the morning I woke up and realized all this, dyed my hair black, wore my eye make-up a little thicker than before and hugged one of my greatest accomplishments. Here's to 2008. May the goals I set out to achieve not be overshadowed by responsibility, duty, fear or laziness. May I suck it up, sweat it out and beat it down! Honestly, here's to me!