The Wall That Heals Visits Veteran's Hometown!

The Vietnam Veteran's Wall Arrives In Bakersfield, CA!

The 'Wall that Heals' has made its way to the hometown of  Vietnam Veteran Sgt. Jimmy D. McDaniel. After growing up in Bakersfield, my father graduated high school in 1963 and soon joined the US Army. Within a couple of years he met my mother who also grew up in the small town just a few blocks away and they married in 1966. On Valentine's Day of 1967 he received his orders to be deployed to Vietnam in March of 1968 and completed his tour returning with the Medal of Honor, hearing loss and had been exposed to Agent Orange while serving in Vietnam. He has a remarkable military career that he proudly looks back on with no regrets. Today he suffers from Parkinson's Disease, Neuropathy, PTSD & more from the exposure to Agent Orange. He and my mother are doing well and after retiring a decade ago have moved from the central California area to the Foothills of Northern California where they are surrounded by their children, grandchildren and great grandchildren. He was happy to hear that the wall is visiting his home town and still is very proud of his service and doing good.

On Wednesday, dozens of riders with the American Legion met up at the Grapevine to escort the wall. "That’s the scoreboard of freedom on the wall,” said Boomer Montgomery, President of American Legion Riders, Post 26. “You can see what the cost really is." The memorial is taking a road trip across the US and added Bakersfield to its stops. Inside the truck, is a half scale replica of the Vietnam Veterans Memorial in Washington, D.C. It stands 5 ft. tall and 125 ft. long. It's about $5,000 state to state.

“It’s our way of showing love for our veterans and what they’ve done for us,” Montgomery said. “It brings the Kern County names here to where their loved ones can see it. If they can’t make it to D.C. at least they can see their name on the wall and touch it, be with their spirit.”

He and the American Legion riders led the wall down the 99 Freeway, bringing it to the Beale Library. Bob Dobek and his wife have been driving the 'Wall the Heals' truck for three years. They are licensed truck drivers with more than a million miles under their belt. Dobek fought in Vietnam and says the memorial holds special meaning for him.

"I’ve got 14 buddies on that wall. It's very close and personal to me,” said Dobek. “I grew up with kids in grade school and junior high, and they’re no longer with me, so you really didn’t have an opportunity to say goodbye to a lot of your friends.”

He drove the wall to Bakersfield two years ago. It came back this time because three Kern County veterans will be riding bikes from Bakersfield to the full scale permanent memorial near the Lincoln Monument in Washington.

"It’s very symbolic because that is our goal to arrive to that wall in Washington D.C.,” said Wesley Barrientos, an Iraq War veteran. “To see it here and know that we'll be touching the real one, it means the world."

Barrientos lost both his legs in 2007 to a roadside bomb in Iraq. He, along with veterans Jeremy Staat and 65-year-old Dale Porter, plan to bike to the nation’s capital in 100 days. They want to raise awareness about education and health care for veterans.

Dozens of veterans carried pieces of the wall and set it up in the library's parking lot where it will be until Monday. The replica was built is 1996 and is made out of black powdered-coated aluminum.

The memorial lists the names of 58,272 soldiers who died or went missing in the Vietnam War. 156 soldiers from Kern County died in the Vietnam War. Dobek says the wall helps give soldiers closure. “If you’ve ever been wounded before, it hurts,” he said. “If you don’t clean that wound, it doesn’t heal properly, and 40 or 50 years later, there’s still a lot of guys suffering with a lot of anguish over it. Sometimes when they come out it reopens that wound, but it allows you to cleanse it because you’re with other guys who know exactly what you’ve gone through.”

There is a name locator near the 'Wall that Heals' where anyone can come from 9 a.m. until 6 p.m. to look up the name of a Vietnam soldier. The three veterans biking to the D.C memorial will head out on Sunday.

Source: Bakersfield News Channel 17 kget.com

http://www.kget.com/news/local/story/Wall-that-Heals-comes-to-Bakersfield/2VvrfTR5sEOiDyuRbfjRHw.cspx

How Do You Show Your Kids You Love Them?

Ten ways to show your children how much you love them!

1. Tell your child you love him. Nothing means more to a child than hearing those words from you and hearing them repeatedly. Even if you believe that your child already knows that you love him, your child needs to hear it. Knowing it and hearing it said are two completely different things.

2. Listen to your child. You can give your child a sense of being important and valuable to you just by the simple act of listening to what she has to say. And you will be amazed by what you can learn from your child when you listen.

3. Play with your child. At the end of a hard day at work, sometimes the last thing you feel like doing is running around with your child or getting out a board game, but your child has just spent a whole day at school without you and spending that tiny bit of “fun time” with you will mean the world to him.

4. Help your child with homework. Your child may not appreciate it at the time, but you are doing something worthwhile for your child by helping her with her homework. In years to come, she will look back on the time you spent helping and learn to appreciate it. Plus, it gives your child the added benefit of seeing you place importance on the act of learning.

5. Prepare healthy, nutritious meals for your child. Eating well is important for your child’s health and well-being, and it is important that your child learn early how to eat healthily. You will be saving your child from future health problems or eating disorders by teaching him through your example and with good, wholesome food, how to take care of his body.

6. Exercise with your child. Take your child for a run around the local park or a nice nature walk. Go for a family bike ride. Doing physical activities that involve healthy and fun forms of exercise are a great way to help your child stay fit and healthy. You will be teaching your child that it is important and fun to maintain an active lifestyle.

7. Hug your child. Physical cuddling is important for children. Hugs are simply the best way for a child to feel safe and loved and special to you all at once. A hug can comfort and lift your child’s mood when she is feeling down or just let a child know that she is loved and appreciated.

8. Tell your child you are proud of him, and mean it. Every child has an ability or a personality trait or something else about him to be proud of. One child may have a sweet and generous nature. Another child may do really well at multiplication. Another child may be really creative at drawing or writing stories. One child might be good at making friends. Maybe your child is willing to stick up for others. Maybe your child is good at making others feel special. There are numerous things you can find to be proud of your child. So tell him.

9. Be patient with your child. Children don’t always learn as quickly as we might want them to, and sometimes they do things more slowly than we would like. But that’s okay. Let your child learn things and do things at her own pace.

10. Believe in your child. No matter what, you have to believe that your child is capable of great and wonderful things and that someday he will achieve them. Your belief in your child is one of the most important ways you can help him to believe in himself.

10 Ways To Show You Love Your Kids

Ways Your Child Shows You Love!

Seven signs that your child loves you!

We love our children unconditionally with all our hearts. How can we tell if the love we are giving to our children is received by them in the way we hope? Children have a way of making you feel like you have no idea what you are doing as a parent. From newborns to toddlers to teenagers, raising children is a wonderful experience that can be a bit confusing at times as well as frustrating and don't forget, a very loving and surprising experience. Since our children can be so confusing how can we know for sure they love us? Below are seven signs that your child loves you, and believe it or not your children do love you.

1. Your newborn stares into your eyes.

He's actually working hard to memorize your face. He doesn't understand anything else about the world, but he knows you're important.

2. Your baby thinks about you even when you're not around.
Between 8 and 12 months old, she'll start to scrunch her face and look around when you leave the room and she'll smile when you return.

3. Your toddler throws wicked tantrums.
Nope, those screaming fits don't mean he's stopped loving you. He wouldn't be so hurt and angry if he didn't trust you so deeply.

4. Your toddler runs to you for comfort when she falls down or feels sad.
Kids this age may not truly understand the meaning of "I love you," but their actions speak louder than words.

5. Your preschooler gives you a gift.
A flower picked from a garden, a finger-painted heart, a sparkly rock, or another small token is his way of saying you're special.

6. Your preschooler wants your approval.
She'll start to be more cooperative around the house, and she'll look for chances to impress. "Look at me!" will become a catchphrase.

7. Your grade-schooler trusts you with secrets.

His first crush or his most embarrassing moment. You're his confidante, even if he shies away from your hugs in public.

See the complete article on how love blossoms between you and your child.

February 12 Birthday Horoscope!

If Today is Your Birthday: February 12

The Year Ahead

Forecast for February 2012 to February 2013

If You Were Born Today, February 12:

You are a strong-minded person who is not always tactful, even though you are gifted with expression, but generally very straightforward. You love a good competition, particularly on a mental level. Success is important to you, and you usually achieve what you set out to do. Impatience can be a problem that you gradually manage better as you mature in life. Your visual memory is excellent and artistic taste quite refined. Famous people born today: Abraham Lincoln, Charles Darwin, Christina Ricci, Judy Blume, Joanna Kerns, Arsenio Hall.

Your Birthday Year Forecast:

A trine between the Sun and the Moon in your Solar Return chart this year is a fortunate aspect. It suggests that your domestic and career needs are not in competition with one another in the year ahead. Your inner needs tend to be mirrored by external events, and vice versa. This aspect is very powerful and rewarding. It suggests that you will be on top of your game this year, for the most part, and positive connections with others can be made fairly easily. A comfortable level of personal popularity helps to keep conflict to a minimum. With the ability to handle your emotions successfully, there is less stress on both your mind and body. Your self-confidence and positive attitude will reward you!

Your intuition runs especially high this year, and that you are able to apply this increased sensitivity to your pursuits in practical ways. You are more sensitive artistically, your imagination is stirred, and you have an increased appreciation for subtleties. You are inspired and could even inspire others with your words. Some of your hunches could be prophetic. You are thinking more creatively, and you express yourself with increased sensitivity, compassion, and warmth. At the same time, you come across with more authority and responsibility. You may be more deliberate in how you approach communicating with others, choosing your words more carefully and successfully. Improved communications is the end result, and you might be surprised at how this can improve your success in general. A trip to somewhere exotic could figure prominently this year. Bonds with important younger people in your life may be strengthened, as you tend to be more compassionate and understanding with them. As well, younger people are likely to respect you more. Advances in intellectual and mental pursuits are likely, as you make steady progress that has long-lasting results.

Again this year, when it comes to romance and your social life, you might experience compulsive attractions and attachments, or attraction to complicated love relationships. The need for deeper intimacy is present, but fear of this closeness may be just as strong. Something tiny can trigger all sorts of buried emotions, and this can be very revealing! If you find yourself bringing up old hurts, examine the emotional "slush" you've been carrying around with you. Avoid taking it out on your partner or on yourself. Major new insights into love and relationships can occur. Whirlwind changes in your love life and/or financial state are likely this year. It may be that you experience sudden changes or breakups with a friend or lover. However, the chance of a sudden new friendship is just as likely. At the root of this is a stronger taste for the unusual. What is familiar is less exciting to you than what is new and different. If a relationship seems to threaten your sense of freedom, you may have an easy time separating from it. Some fireworks in both your social and financial lives are to be expected.

You may experience some tension over your personal finances, and/or need to make a large payment that necessitates changes in your spending habits. Finances may be complicated, but creative solutions can be found.

Freedom is sought in your relationships, and your willingness to grant others the same kind and amount of freedom that you desire will be the key to success.

You are especially "tuned in" to current trends and your ability to embrace the new while honoring the tried and true can be a significant key to your success this year. A cooperative attitude also contributes to success. Your love life is likely to be very stimulating and sometimes rocky; your social life is expected to be exciting, as you are ready to try new things.

2012 is a Number One year for you. Ruled by the Sun. This is a year of action. The seeds you plant now, you will reap later. Others might find you less sociable, as you are busier than ever and you focus on your activities and your needs. Still, you are outgoing and your initiative is stronger than ever. Advice - Stand alone, take action, start fresh, express independence.

2013 will be a Number Two year for you. Ruled by the Moon. This is a year of potential companionship. It is a quiet, gentle, and mostly harmonious year that is less active than other years. Instead, you are more responsive to the needs of others. If you are patient and open yourself up in a gentle manner, you will attract both things and people. This is an excellent year in which to build and develop for the future. Advice - be patient, be receptive, enjoy the peace, collect.

http://www.cafeastrology.com/birthday/february12_2012.html