VBS 2009

I am always the one behind the camera so it seems weird when I see a picture of myself. A good friend of mine snapped this one of me when I was doing a mission lesson with the kindergarten class during Vacation Bible School at our church a couple of weeks ago. We had great attendence & it went really great.

We were discussing some of the way's to teach the Aboriginal's about Jesus. They do some of it through pictures. Here is a picture I was using that I found on the internet.

Aboriginal art

My mom the volunteer...

Click on picture for larger view. My mother & step-dad make the paper. He is the first from the far left & my mom is the 3rd from the left holding the rake. "Go MOM"
No arrest, fighting or drug charges. haha. Trust me you will never see that on here with their name attached. The article explains it.

Here is what my cousin Opal Lewis Meek sent out looking for help.

"The Town of Hollywood has a Clean Up Day Scheduled for Saturday, March 7, 2009, and plans to have a Dumpster at the Hollywood Crossroads which will take old furniture, limbs, old flowers, stands,etc. but no tires, oil, paint, batteries, or household trash will be accepted.

The Old Baptist Cemetery located on County Road 42 in Hollywood, AL, will have Clean Up Day on Saturday, March 7, beginning at 9 a.m. For more information call Pat Harding Womack at 256 - 599-0519 or 256 - 575-2727. Bring your own work tools.

Please come out and support all this clean up effort and especially the Old Baptist Cemetery. This is the white cemetery which has no perpetual care. The Black Old Baptist Cemetery there has perpetual care. The Sheriff's Department recently did a tremendous amount of cleanup of the white portion as coordinated by Pat Harding Womack and the Town of Hollywood provided the food to feed the inmates. We will need to really work to keep the cemetery looking nice. The inmates have cleaned up before but the mimosa trees really take over fast and so does the sage grass.

All help and support is greatly appreciated. Looking forward to seeing you there."

Scouts this past Monday

This past Monday was a pack meeting for our Cub Scouts at church. My Tigers had been working hard to earn their Tiger Cub emblem/badge. If you know what it is you know what you have to do. If you don't... well being a new scout (Tiger rank) you have to start out learning the Scout Motto, the Scout Salute & Scout Sign. We also did our Cub Scout promise in front of everyone. It may seem so simple to the older scouts but this is a great accomplishment for 1st graders. My Tigers are so smart. Once they were shown the first time they had no problems. Just like little soldiers. We actually earned it a few weeks ago but really wanted to have the ceremony at the pack meet. It is a parent thing. Photo opportunity. Show off what we know to the older boys. Now that we have the badge we can start earning beads to attach to it. Working out of the book earns you those. Next pack meeting in January we will have several boys earning several beads. 8 of my 12 are in the ceremony. 4 couldn't make it that night.

My oldest son is already a Webelo II rank & it seems like it was forever ago he was a Tiger. He will cross over to an official Boy Scout at the end of the school year. It slips by quick. I have a really great group of boys. I have included some pics of my Tigers. No names for privacy reason's, except my sons though.

Chris (Webelo II (my son) receiving a pin for his uniform from his Scout leader.

Me showing the Tiger Emblem of what we had been working on.

My Tigers growling!!!!

My son Matthew is the 3rd scout from the left.

Cub Scout salute

Cub Scout sign

Something comes to mind. While selling Scout popcorn at Sam's one day some of our Tigers asked someone if they would like to buy some..... his answer was "He didn't recognize the Boy Scouts of America!"

What the...........?

What part could he not agree with.....

The 10 purposes of Cub Scouting are:
Character Development
Spiritual Growth
Good Citizenship
Sportsmanship and Fitness
Family Understanding
Respectful Relationships
Personal Achievement
Friendly Service
Fun and Adventure
Preparation for Boy Scouts

Cub Scouting's 12 Core Values
Citizenship
Compassion
Cooperation
Courage
Faith
Health and fitness
Honesty
Perseverance
Positive attitude
Resourcefulness
Respect
Responsibility

The Cub Scouting colors are blue and gold.

They have special meaning, which will help boys see beyond the fun of Cub Scouting to its ultimate goals.
The blue stands for truth and spirituality, steadfast loyalty, and the sky above.
The gold stands for warm sunlight, good cheer, and happiness.

Sorry I will get off my band wagon now. Just could never understand narrow minded people. Did it phase me? No. I am still the Tiger leader for now. I wished he had not said something like that but he did, it is over & life goes on. The boys never gave it a second thought.

Shoeboxes & Scouts & Dinner

Monday started off the Collection Center in Tupelo for Operation Christmas Child. We all have such a great time together talking, laughing & packing boxes. The table & floor is what 2 churches brought in. The boxes are starting to come in. Today was to be a slow day so a couple of us took it as an off day. I did go by to drop off some things (drinks & snacks for the rest of the week) & found out we are running low on cartons. Pat (regional coordinator) started calling around & a box company was gracious enough to donate some cartons to us to pack shoeboxes in. That will be a lifesaver. I ran & picked those up & headed to Wally World after to finish getting things for my dinner for the China guest. While out 3 people mentioned to me they seem us/me on the news. No--- no one was arrested, shot or drug deal gone bad stuff. It was OCChild getting the attention it deserves. I didn't get to watch the news so I didn't get to see it.

Monday night (last night) the Boy Scouts at church hosted the Cub Scouts at church to come outside & join them in activities. We had a nice camp fire but it was so cold outside. I am sitting here now clearing my throat because of it being sore. It was so cold. Did I mention that it was really cold? Jeff & Chris left earlier to go to a store & get some hunting stuff. Here is what Chris got. Minus the scout pants he still has on from earlier.

Well I am about to go to bed so I will finish it with a picture of hubby & myself with our dinner guest on their way to the door. We had such a great time. We talked about kids, husbands, wives, family, jobs, & cultures. Poor Jennifer sat & listened & did not understand a thing. I did have the guys translate some things but I believe they got sick of that after a bit. We had so much fun. Of all places to make a picture was a worst room in the house. The boys playroom.

Jeff, Ken, Toby, Jennifer, myself

Into the week

So much goes on in the week. Not just loading shoeboxes Monday but one of my son's had a check-up Monday with his Ear Nose & Throat doctor. Several weeks ago he had some tiny knots show up in his neck. A parents worst fear. Well after a good thorough exam the doctor seen no real concern. None of the things are present that made him all to concerned. As a parent we still question ourself but I had to trust the doctor & the Lord to watch over my son. Now for the family that follows my blog...Guess which child it is that has given me the concern?.........You have it! Matthew....he does not do anything simple. After all of this it seems to be allergies. He was constantly clearing his throat. We thought it to be habit but it seems to be something else now. He is on a nose spray & pill at night & it has made a big difference. Had to get from the appointment to school & pick up Chris from Chess Club, get home, take a breath, eat a bite & get out the door for scouts. Just a normal Monday.

I am in a bible study at the moment on Wednesday mornings. My SSClass teacher is leading something she has written. Forgiveness. We have done this in class but she has added some to it & put it as a Bible Study. I wish everyone could have the teacher I have. (Sorry K but it is the truth.) Next week is the last week of it & it seems to come to fast.
Chris had a science project due the next day & after church that night we had to hit it hard. It turned out pretty good. It should after buying a hundred dollars of supplies from Hobby Lobby. It is a Decidious Forest. Can't you just tell? Click on the picture & find the deer eating apples from the orchard.

Thursday came & this week my church has a ministry that we got involved in a couple of years ago. It is called Courthouse Ministry. We have the entire week from 9 am to noon each day that we serve coffee & cookies to the people that are waiting for the judge & their lawyers on the second floor. The cookie dough is donated & our kitchen staff cooks them up fresh each morning for us to pick up before we go. Me & another lady from church have to find at least 10 volunteers each time our week rolls around every 3 months. Most churches have stopped doing the ministry so our time rolls around alot more. If you have ever tried to fill volunteer positions then you know it is probably easier asking for a kidney than their time. Sorry but its the truth. So sad to see alot of the cases that come in. People waiting seem to have their nerves shot just a tad. Talking with them, giving them a cup of coffee & a cookie & sharing Christ with them seems to put them a bit more comfortable. Anyone who knows me knows I can talk. I once carried on a lenghty phone conversation with an information operator. She was quite nice. My husband was not shocked.
Speaking of talking- I talked to one of my sisters Thursday night for 134.02 minutes. That was a short conversation. She has taken a 2nd job so she works all the time now. Don't really know much we talked about, just life is all. Something special is shared between sisters. I have wanted to choke her sometimes & she me but in the end we are always sisters.
Friday---Had another date night. My church has once a month Parents Night Out. We take full advantage to have the time together. Couples need that. The boys had fun. They had scheduled a guy to come in & do little tricks & balloon art. Matthew loved the balloon dogs. It popped within an hour of being home. What a surprise!

Happy Anniversary

Boy this day to day stuff on a blog is alot of work. I hate so much I do not get to share my day to day things. In just one week I have been so busy with things. I really want to share the really important things.

The most important was one week ago. Jeff & I celebrated our 22nd wedding anniversary. The first picture of us is on our wedding rehearsal day. Alot thinner & alot younger. Hard to believe 22 years later. Alicia (our daughter) came over with her husband & our granddaughter & stayed with the boys while we went out to eat & to a movie. Felt nice not having to rush back to a sitter. Still though the wild & crazy couple we are....... made it back in by 10:30 pm.

Last Sunday at our church we had our Operation Christmas Child Shoebox dedication. It went really well. At last count we had up to 485. Boxes are still coming into church for the people that did not get to make dedication night. I believe our count should go over 5oo total. Our Minister of Music & his wife was over the program & ask if I would want to say anything. At first I said no but the more I thought about it I changed my mind. I guess I thought it may be rude not to at least thank people for all they did. I was so nervous I thought I would be sick. I am used to being behind the scenes & not right out in front of everyone. Monday I ran by the warehouse that we will be using as the Collection Center to be collecting all the boxes. I picked up some cartons to load all our boxes into. We have a great staff at church & they have already took all our full cartons to the warehouse.

Gotta go cook some dinner now......be right back.......I hope

Weekend is here

I had a busy week but tomorrow & Sunday will be really nice.
This morning I was thinking that I would never get everything done. Even if I had 5 more hours in the day I would still feel the same.
Before I took the boys to school a lady I do alot of projects with at church called & asked if I had done something I was suppose to 2 weeks ago. Remember my previous post: "I need to write these things down". Well that was one of those moments. I had to pick up some donated cookie dough for a Courthouse Ministry we do through our church. I got home to shower & dress. I had to e-mail my scout parents. We are working on several things from our scout book so I had to get them prepared what to bring for the meeting Monday. check! done!

Our church has a Christmas Traditions Brunch tomorrow. I had signed up to do a table. In other words to decorate it. I am what you could call a procrastinator here lately. I had not gotten my stuff out of the attic. My silk ponsettia looked ragged so I ran to Hobby Lobby to get a different one. Picked up some shiney fabric, new gold rope for the centerpiece wreath & grabbed a few teacher ornament gifts. Ran short on that time thing. Cut my trip short.

Here is a picture of what the table starts as.

A clean slate.

Then you have to come up with something fabulous. I am not a decorator so fabulous is not in my vocabulary. I did pretty good. You have to decorate with something you do in your home at Christmas. I love Nativity scenes so that is what I used. The church provides the china so that will be added tomorrow. Got my table done.

Check! Done!

After the table was done I had to be home for the school bus to run & get my last born off it. Chris gets off the bus next so I had to have his camping bag packed & have hime at the church by 4:30. Thank goodness it was only an overnight trip or I would not have gotten his bag packed. The Webelo 2's have a big day tomorrow so Chris was pretty excited to do all that guy stuff. The scout trailer & leaders pulled out of the parking lot on time & with all scouts accounted for. Matthew & I have been taking it easy tonight. Matthew has been playing with a hunk of play dough & is quite content. Since the time has changed it gets dark early so when my door bell rang tonight it sort of startled me. Jeff is, as I am typing this, driving from the airport in Memphis home. He had been gone on a business trip this week. Well Mormon's were at the door. I had seen them earlier riding their bikes up on Main Street. They really get around. Really good Christian guys but they can't convert a die hard Southern Baptist woman. Sorry! Check! Done!

Practiced for the Operation Christmas Child program at church Wednesday. Our dedication is Sunday night. Both Chris & Matthew will be singing in their choir groups. Both hate to sing. I guess I keep hoping they will just have a light bulb come on inside & fall in love with it. I think I am pushing it. Pray for everything to go great. I have butterflies in my belly. Before the kids come in to sing I will be introduced as the person who lead this years OCC collection. In front of the whole church plus some. I am always the one behind the scenes not right out in front in full view. That seems to make you a target.

Well my husband is expected in a few minutes so I better clear him a path to get through the house. After the brunch tomorrow we are going to be getting some stuff done to the house again. We keep wanting to get it sold but if it is not on the market it isn't going anywhere. Be sure & read my other blog & see what I did yesterday at the land.

Where does time go

It seems I just did a post. Time is my enemy. I get so tied up with........stuff. I hoped to have did a blog with my everyday stuff but that gets busy. The boys take alot of time so I pick them over my blog. I am sure everyone can say that.

Celebration Village went great. I never heard the final total of how much was sold. I seen people shopping but I think maybe not as much as they normally would. This picture was made on the last day, Saturday. Pictured below are myself (white OCC tee, black slacks, no jacket) & 3 other volunteers for the booth to promote Operation Christmas Child. Our regional Coordinator did a great job getting enough volunteers to come all 4 days. I popped in & out managing to make sure all was going good, everyone showed up that should & snapping a few pictures of the people helping & the things going on around. Most people passing by the booth thought we were selling something until I finally made the yellow sign you see in the picture below. ByTheWay---Do you do a shoebox yourself?

We are starting to see OCC come to an end soon. Yesterday I met our Regional Coordinator at the TV station to go on the noon show. She did a great job. She needed support. She wanted me at her side on camera but she has worked so hard on this on a complete volunteer basis. She puts in alot of hours. She deserved that time. We load ALL the boxes at the warehouse Nov 17th-24th that comes from all the surrounding areas of Tupelo. Last year apx 16,000 shoeboxes went out of Tupelo's Collection Center. Pray for more boxes this year.

Booth set-up

Well our booth at Celebration Village is finished. We hope to get some attention to Operation Christmas Child to get the word out how important this is.

Here is how Samaritians Purse describe's it.

"Sending a message of hope to children around the world"
"Operation Christmas Child brings joy and hope to children in different types of situations around the world through gift filled shoe boxes and the good news of God's love. This program provides an opportunity for people of all ages to be involved in a simple hands-on missions project while focusing on the true meaning of Christmas - Jesus Christ.
Operation Christmas Child is another way to reach out to local and global communities; just by filling a shoebox with age appropriate items, we can give hope to children in over 90 countries."

Jump back a day!

Well can I actually get two post in one night?

I posted about my day but now the weekend.

We still have Cub Scout popcorn sell going on & had another 3 hour shift at Sam's Club to sell. The boys actually did pretty good which was my two & one of my Tigers from my den. They stalked errr...waited outside the exit door for customers leaving & ask if they would like to help support the cub scouts by buying popcorn. Some people ignored them but some nice people actually stepped over & bought. One guy actually said "he did not recognize the Scouts". Don't even get me started. That's another post in itself. Well we were tired & cold & finally got home about 9:30 that night & we were T-I-R-E-D. The boys want to know can we do it again Saturday............NO NO NO. All my two did was fight & punch each other the whole time & run everywhere not paying attention. One of my sisters has two boys & I ask her ALL the time "please tell me it gets better." I miss baby dolls & doing nails! Boys are not wired that way. Thank God.

Hubby was home all weekend. Before the weather turns to cold we hoped to get the 4 wheelers out & take to the land. Chris' had been acting up for a bit. Hubby got it out early Saturday to do a quick thing to it but nothing here is simple. He was stumped so it is off to the repair people. Here we go again! He gave up, we got the other one loaded & headed to a friends house to pick up his big 4 wheeler. Wait, we need to switch the little one to the back of the truck because both will not fit on the trailer, get gas in a can, air in the tire, the boys are hungry, We are never going to get there. We are trying to find a place in Pontotoc to pull the trailer in safely to get gas & guess what blue lights behind us. Yes, a city cop. We must have attracted attention looking for a station. No my husband was speeding. He didn't argue. He was. Proof of insurance. Guess what not in the truck. It was our leased vehicle we were turning back in so all of it was removed from the glove box. We decided to buy it instead but none of the papers were put back in. I guess the officer thought we looked honest enough & let that part slip. I now have it at my side ready to go back in the truck tomorrow. Well we try to proceed onto the land. We get there & are met by some wild turkey crossing the driveway in. Pic attached. We are now at the spot we will call home hopefully soon. All is well in the Pa'tty World. All three guys got muddy. Chris even had muddy underwear from riding. That is some serious mud riding. I weed eated around some trees, cleaned off my cats grave who I still miss something fierce, played with my toy (Nikon camera), road a 4 wheeler through the woods & back out & took a deep breath because by that time the sun was going down. Turned out to be a good Saturday ticket & all.

At church the next morning with Operation Christmas Child in full swing I have had things I have had to do. We picked that day to give out the empty boxes that Samaritans Purse provides. Only about 250 were passed out. We had a really great time doing it. Pic attached. Hopefully they come back all full to send over seas.

Shelley Farmer (Director of Childhood Education)

(me) Katrina Potter Patty (OCC coordinator for HBC)

Dale Taylor (volunteer for OCC)

Kathryn Walden (volunteer for OCC)

Rev. David Langerfeld (Associate Pastor)

Rev. Tim Alexander (Minister of Education & Single Adults)

Our 2 boys both have b'days this month & their grandparents sent them some money that was burning a hole in their pockets. Sunday after church we went to Wally World to spend that hot money. The boys both got toys since you know they don't have any. The pitiful things. S-P-O-I-L-E-D to the bone. Man time is passing quick. The boys are 7 & 11 this month. Our daughter turned 22 this past summer. Different seasons of our lives. Changes come. We deal. Me not as much. I do deal with it but in some ways I look back & wish for the old times. People are what I miss the most. Father, mothers, sisters & nephews that have passed. Time heals wounds. A blogger friend is having to bury a nephew soon. What I read of him all says he was a great guy & you wonder why was it his time. But it is God's time not ours. God has plans for him & he needed him now. My heart breaks for the family having to say their goodbye's. Patty I will be thinking of you. Please keep this sweet family in your prayers.

Well it is getting late. I have bible study tomorrow. I still need to finish the booth tomorrow. My husband comes back from a quick business trip that he left early this morning on. My oldest son has a b'day & I need to get a fire lit under me to get some painting finished around here. Got to get this house sold. Now I will try to download some pics for you to view. Click on them for a larger view.

Kickoff for OCC

We had a kickoff for Operation Christmas Child at HBC tonight. Here is a cute little get up my friend made.

Have you started getting your shoebox together to send?

Wizard 106 Hosts Le Bonheur "Miracle Maker" Radiothon

Another great event I will be getting to help with. I helped last year & it was terrific. My Wednesday night Kindergarten class for the last 2 years have been Change Wizards & we are right now in the process of our 3rd year. Both years each class has collected around $250.

Wizard 106 Hosts Le Bonheur "Miracle Maker" Radiothon
Le Bonheur Children’s Medical Center and Wizard 106 will host the 8th Annual Radiothon at the Mall at Barnes Crossing in Tupelo, MS. All proceeds will benefit the children' s hospital.
The on-air Radiothon will run:
Wednesday, Sept. 10, 6 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Thursday, Sept. 11, 6 a.m. – 6 p.m.
Friday, Sept. 12, 6 a.m. – noon
We need your help! Call in during the Radiothon and be a Miracle Maker by pledging $15 a month for 12 months. Also, you can help the patients at Le Bonheur by participating in the Change Wizards program. Collect change from your co-workers, customers and friends. For more information about the Radiothon or Change Wizards, contact the Le Bonheur Regional Development Office at 662-348-5505.
Before, during or after the Radiothon, you can support Le Bonheur by visiting www.lebonheur.org/donatenow.

When you give, please direct your donation towards the Tupelo Radiothon.
Start Date and Time:
September 10, 2008 on 6:00 AM
End Date and Time:
September 12, 2008 on 12:00 PM
Address:
The Mall at Barnes Crossing1001 Barnes Crossing Rd # 106Tupelo, Mississippi MAP

For more information please contact: Connie Haygood

Please will you take us in & love us?

We are waiting on you...

Letter from Lilly

Let me introduce myself,
I have been called Lilly which comes from Lil’ Mom,
I have been in the foster system since April 28th of this year. I was fortunate enough to get a great foster family with kids. But now it is time I move on. My kittens & I are now ready to have permanent families of our own.
I first came into the Tupelo-Lee Humane Society as a pregnant female. I gave birth to 4 wonderful babies around the middle of April. Then about a week later someone dropped off a baby that was about my babies’ size so they put him in with me & I began feeding him. Well no more than 2 days later about 4 more babies were dropped off & guess what…I was given them. Now don’t get me wrong, I am a great mother but I was up to 9 babies. Well my foster mom volunteers there at the shelter & just felt so sorry for me so she took me home to give me a little rest & help feed my babies by bottle. It really gave me a break.
We all use the litter box. My foster mom can say yes to that because with 10 of us she changed litter a lot. Now that my babies are around 11 weeks old & they are ready for their new homes. 8 of my babies now need someone to take each of them in & make them a part of a family. One has found a great home already & I am so happy for him. I wish I could tell you which is the best one but that is too hard. Each has its own personality. 6 of my babies are male & 2 are female. Don’t worry about them having babies that can’t find homes because before they leave the shelter they will have had all their shots, be de-wormed & neutered &/or spayed. My foster family has 2 big dogs & a cat now & I just loved them. My babies were getting use to them. We played on the patio all the time & we all got along. I myself even napped with these 2 big dogs in the shade.
My babies’ lives have been documented along the way. Along with the adoption you will get a computer disk of when my babies were just brought into the home until now & of bottle feeding, playing outside & everything in between. Each of my babies & myself had names in the foster home but we are ready for more permanent ones. Please can you find it in your heart to help me find homes for each of my babies? If you can’t be the one maybe you know of someone that wants a nice baby kitten to give a home to.
Now to myself. I was dropped off at the shelter but the staff thinks it was because I was pregnant. I am a Siamese mix. I don’t know my actual birthday but I can’t be over a year old myself. I still love to play games & run & jump & most important be loved. My foster family thinks alot of me so they will be sponsoring me. My first shots will be given & I will be spayed before I go home with you. That means you get me to give me a loving home & I am already paid for. I will make a great addition to your family. If you have pets in your family just give me a few days & they will fall in love with me too. Well I better close for now my babies need some exercise & my foster mom is about to take us all in the front yard for some outside time before we head for the shelter to find homes.
Hope to see you at the shelter soon,

Lilly

MAJOR UPDATE----The shelter is extending the special BOGO (buy one get one)

During the month of July. If you adopt a cat you can get one free.

2 cats-spayed &/or neutered, first shots & de-wormed for $60.00.

Read how this started out.

http://daytodaylifeofasouthernmom.blogspot.com/2008/05/week-starting-out-busy.html

Click on the title to my page to take you to my homepage.

10 WAYS YOU CAN HELP FIGHT PUPPY MILLS

This information is from the ASPCA website. We feel it is valuable information that everyone should read.

1. Do Not Buy Your Puppy From a Pet Store That puppy who charmed you through the pet shop window has most likely come from a large-scale, substandard commercial breeding facility, commonly known as a puppy mill. In these facilities, parent dogs are caged and bred as often as possible, and give birth to puppies who could have costly medical problems you might not become aware of until after you bring your new pet home.
2. Make Adoption Your First Option If you’re looking to make a puppy part of your family, check your local shelters first. Not only will you be saving a life, but you will ensure that your money is not going to support a puppy mill. There are many dogs waiting for homes in shelters all across the country?and an estimated one in four is a purebred! Your second option is breed rescue. If your heart is set on a specific breed you haven’t been able to find in a shelter, you can do an Internet search for a breed-specific rescue organization.
3. Know How to Recognize a Responsible Breeder If you’ve exhausted your options for adopting and are choosing to buy from a breeder, remember that responsible breeders have their dogs’ interests in mind. They are not simply interested in making a sale, but in placing their pups in good homes. A responsible breeder should screen you as thoroughly as you screen them! Read the ASPCA’s responsible breeding statement to find out more about how a responsible breeder behaves.
4. See Where Your Puppy Was Born and Bred One sign that you are speaking to an unscrupulous breeder is that they will not let you see the facility in which your puppy was born. Always ask to see the breeding premises and to meet both parents (or at least the mother) of the puppy you want to take home. You should also ask for an adoption contract that explains?in terms you understand?the breeder’s responsibilities, health guarantee and return policy.
5. Internet Buyers, Beware! Buying a puppy from the Internet is as risky as buying from a pet store. If you buy a puppy based on a picture and a phone call, you have no way of seeing the puppy’s breeding premises or meeting his parents. And those who sell animals on the Internet are not held to the Animal Welfare Act regulations?and so are not inspected by the USDA.
6. Share Your Puppy Mill Story with the ASPCA If you have—or think you have—purchased a puppy-mill puppy, please tell us your story. Every bit of evidence gives us more power to get legislation passed that will ban puppy mills.
7. Speak Out! Inform your state and federal legislators that you are disturbed by the inhumane treatment of dogs in puppy mills, and would like to see legislation passed that ensures that all animals bred to be pets are raised in healthy conditions. You can keep up-to-date about current legislation to ban puppy mills by joining the ASPCA Advocacy Brigade.
8. Tell Your Friends If someone you know is planning on buying a puppy, please direct them to our puppy mill information at ASPCA.org. Let them know that there are perfectly healthy dogs in shelters waiting to be adopted.
9. Think Globally Have a webpage, a MySpace page or a blog? Use these powerful tools to inform people about puppy mill cruelty by adding a link to our puppy mill information at ASPCA.org.
10. Act Locally! When people are looking to buy or adopt a pet, they will often ask the advice of their veterinarian, groomer or pet supply store.

Download and print our flyers and ask to leave them in the offices of your local practitioners.

WCBI news

Click the WCBI logo to go to the video.




Look at 200 Dogs Rescued 5.21.08

Wow. I am famous. I am on the news in a good way & I always thought it would be for something bad. I am really kidding. Or....I am. Look for me around 1:56 minutes. I am in a white TLHS t-shirt on the phone. We were swamped with calls for people wanting to adopt a puppy mill puppy. Keep in mind we have dogs in the back also that need a home. Not just the puppy mill ones. Debbie Hood in the video talking is our great shelter Director. She is so dedicated.

Another Great weekend!

I had another great weekend. It was fun, sad, needed, & hectic. I volunteered at the Animal Shelter this past Friday & Saturday all day helping with a yard sale. The shelter takes donated items to be used for yard sales. We took in a bit of money but not what we needed. It is so sad to say but we wouldn't get the money needed even if we sold every single item we have/had. The shelter has been having fund raisers to try & get a new shelter built. They are doing really great now since getting a new director for the shelter but having a larger place would help tremendously.
This is my fantasy-----A kazillionaire will read this post & find the Tupelo-Lee Humane Society & write a big FAT check to built the shelter of the director's dream.
Fantasy over.
A bit of money was raised to add to the fund but they are a long way away from the goal. Most people think shelters are just for taking in unwanted & stray pets but they are also in the business of adoptions. If you ever think of adopting please try your local shelter first. It just breaks my heart to walk through to the cage areas. The sad barks just begging for homes.
When we were locking up we checked the 2 pregnant cats & one was delivering while we were there. New baby life making an appearance. Can't wait to get an update tomorrow to see how she did. The sad part is mom & babies do really bad in a shelter. Don't get me wrong they are taken really good care of but having a home & family is so different for them. Before the door was locked someone drove up to drop off a kitten in the cage outside. It couldn't have been but a couple of weeks old. They said the mother cat just left it behind in their yard & they couldn't keep it. The director took it inside to see if another of the mother cats would accept it. It just cried & cried because it was so hungry. Before we left the mother was letting it try & latch on. I hope it got fed. She had 4 kittens already near the same age. Poor little hungry baby.
Get that image in your mind when you refuse to spay or neuter.

Go team Go!

Chris had his first baseball game Tuesday. We have some really good hitters on the team. We did win! Chris does great in practice but once a game comes up he freezes at the plate. Should I share that with you? We cheered him on all the way though. It always takes a game or two to get over that nervous feeling. We hope to have a really good year. I was over talking at the side one day at practice & seen the group of boys huddled together tight. The coach had them in a prayer group. I love to have the coach prayer for the boys. That is a real coach.

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Matthew starts T-ball games soon. They start later than regular baseball. He just can't wait. They are so fun to watch play. Score is not kept. That makes it all the better. They are just learning. At practice they sort of just run all over the field. This is Matthew's 2nd year of T-ball. If you need a good laugh...watch a T-ball game!

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I had Wednesday night kindergarden mission's class last night at church. I love coming up with crafts for the kids. We worked on Mother's day cards. If you are one of my mom's "Do not read this or look at the picture". I had found a craft on an internet site I go to alot.You use your thumb to make thumb print cards. "Thumbbody says, Thumbody loves you & that Thumbody is me! Inie is a thumb print flower & butterfly. So cute! They have colored bookmarks that I will laminate at church & enclose in the card. Only 4 more Wednesday's left. The M&M's year is about over. (M & M stands for Music & Mission's)

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My neice is getting ready to graduate high school next month. Boy where did the time go? Her mail labels came in & guess what? They had moved & the address was WRONG for mailing. I got her some cute one's made up & got them in the mail yesterday. All is well in the graduation world today. Graduation will be special. She will receive her diploma with a National Honor Society sash around her neck. She has the world at her feet, the brains to be anything she wants & the choose of any college that tries to get her.

Well I need to get ready & go. The Humane Society here in town is having a yard sale Friday & Saturday & I need to go see what help they need.

53 died - 55 came in - Throw away pets

Here is a letter that a friend wrote. I am so sad that people let this happen. This is something that should make every single person think before they refuse to have their pet spayed or neutered. Please do your part to help.

What can I do to help reduce companion animal overpopulation? Get your animal spayed or neutered. Yes, even the males. After all, it takes two to tango.


"I think this is the worst day I have had in a long time. It started with pulling up at work looking at 12 pups that were dumped sometime in the middle of the night as if that wasn't bad enough I walked around the corner found 10 pups crammed in cages and 2 adult dogs. I shook my head went on in being off the past two days not knowing what all was inside what was inside was just as depressing 173 puppies and cats. Walking round and round in circles looking for just one cage to put all those outside in. Not a single cage open, dogs crammed in carriers (pet taxi's) geeze We are only able to really house 90 cats and dogs and have all these in pet taxis so unfair. I walk in circles more and more looking at each of the animals. Who will live, who will die. I think to myself, hmmm a whole litter of black pups and another litter of black pups. Oh great that one is part pit, Can't adopt that one out. By 12pm I have picked 53 puppies that had to die. Finally got some cages to move the ones outside in. People started bringing in animals left & right. By 4:30 we brought in the 55th animal for the day. 53 died and 55 came in. It's a circle that never ends. Tonight when I go to lay down and sleep I get to not think of what tomorrow holds but instead I will be thinking which ones will have to die tomorrow. Sorry for venting I'm just so disgusted at people."



Animal overpopulation statistics from the Humane Society of the United States
Number of cats and dogs entering shelters each year: 6-8 million (HSUS estimate)
Number of cats and dogs euthanized by shelters each year: 4-5 million (HSUS estimate)
Average number of litters a fertile cat can produce in one year: 3
Average number of kittens in a feline litter: 4-6
In seven years, one female cat and her offspring can theoretically produce 420,000 cats.