Happy Dahday

Two weeks ago, we celebrated Sarah Beth's second birthday. I cannot believe my little girl is two years old!

Due to a long, lingering case of the flu, we didn't plan a giant celebration complete with 20 toddlers. I wasn't honestly thrilled with that idea anyway. We just had family over for hamburgers and ca-cakes, with a few rounds of the birthday song thrown in for SB.

And I do mean a few. We had to sing the song about 4 times before SB was truly satisfied. She loved opening her presents, especially the markers and paint set from Uncle Philip and Aunt Corrie, which I promptly put into the top of her closet to remain until she is at least 6 years old. She got to keep the crayons. Her other favorite present seemed to be the play kitchen we got her. However, when we opened it up, we found a thousand tiny, flimsy little plastic pieces. They weren't joking about assembly required. That one went back to Wal Mart.

Poor SB. Sounds cruel, right? We will get her another one. Thankfully, Tom and Nat saved the day with a pair of shoes. Seriously, she has worn them almost every day since. She is female, through and through. Purses and shoes are two of her favorite things.

The shoes

I told her last week that we were going shopping. She sucked in a deep breath of joy and exclaimed, "I want clothes and shoes!"

Blogger isn't having a great day today, so here are just a few photos from the big day.

Birthday cacake

Having fun with Uncle Tom and Aunt Nat

Caroline and SB with birthday umbrella.

It's a dachshund!

And so it begins

Another year of football. Today we kick off our season against Jackson State. I hope we win! Look for me on TV. The game is on ESPNU.

Go Bulldogs!

Flu Shot Addendum

Thanks to an anonymous tipster, I did not clarify that the name of the live flu vaccine is FluMist. If you are like me and don't like getting shots of any kind, you might think this nasal spray is a great idea. It isn't.

And to clear up any possible confusion, this isn't a medical journal. It's a blog. My verbage isn't always technically correct. To clarify, technically, the words shot and vaccine are not interchangeable. I did use them in that way in my last post. My deepest and most sincere apologies. You can get a flu vaccine without getting an actual shot with a needle (FLUMIST nasal spray). But I wouldn't recommend either of them.

And next time I will proofread.

Swine Flu Update

We're not dead. As it turns out, the flu is not deadly after all. Thanks, mainstream media!

After a rough weekend, Jack and I both started feeling better, and Wednesday was our first day back on the job. We felt recovered by Tuesday, but took one extra day just in case. Nobody wants flu germs.

Just to be clear, we did not see a doctor, nor were we tested for the actual swine flu virus. However, I can assure you that what we suffered was indeed the flu, swine or otherwise. (I'm still relying heavily on the use of my asthma inhaler.) A lot of bad press has been given to the "swine flu." Let me clear things up: H1N1 is just another new strain of the flu virus. It causes the same symptoms, lasts the same amount of time and it is not the plague. The swine flu is just the flu with a piggy name.

I was told that the on campus health clinic at MSU has stopped testing for swine flu, due to the emergence of another brand new flu strain! Many swine flu cases were confirmed on the MSU campus within the last few weeks. All these sick kids kept coming in with the same symptoms, but only half of them tested positive for the pig virus. Doctors believe this is due to a newly mutated flu virus. I don't know which one we caught, but it was nasty for a few days.

Buyer Beware

On my way home yesterday, I saw a sign in front of Walgreens:

FLU SHOTS NOW AVAILABLE

How wonderful. Now you can go and get your flu shot at your local Walgreens. I bet what they won't tell you is that:

a. the flu shot is only made against a few strains of the flu virus. Every year, health officials travel south of the border to see which flu strains are wreaking havoc on our South American friends. Then they figure the same strains will probably hit us in a few months. So they make a vaccine against the few prevalent South American strains. If you catch one of the other strains, too bad too sad.

b. The current flu shots are completely ineffective against the newer flu strains (including the swine variety.)

c. The flu shots are loaded with mercury.

d. One of the flu shots is a live vaccine, so you might get a mild case of the flu afterwards. Too bad too sad. I'm told there is a no money back policy.

Still want one? Opt out while you still have a chance. Soon most of us won't even have the option.

Your best case of avoiding the flu? Wash your hands you dirty person! Keep alcohol based hand sanitizer handy, and use some every time before you touch your face. You shouldn't be touching your face anyway. That is how the flu is mostly spread. And if you do catch it, for heaven sakes, stay away from me!