Anna, Josh, & the Ever Multiplying M Kids, Part 11: His Cheating Heart

[VelociRapture]

My mom was a stickler for helmets. It bothered us when we were little. Then, when I was around 13, a boy I had known since first grade fell off a scooter while playing with some friends after school. He hadn't been wearing a helmet. That was a very difficult wake and funeral for a lot of us.

My children will always be wearing helmets when using bikes or skates or scooters or anything like that. There will be no arguing about it. If I catch them riding without one there will be hell to pay. I've been to one funeral for a child killed due to injuries that could have been prevented by a helmet. 

(Before anyone jumps on his parents - they both worked and, at the time, he and his brother were old enough to be home on their own for a little bit. It wasn't his parents' fault - he was just a kid who made a dumb choice.)

[Glasgowghirl]

I never had a bike helmet and all the cars we owned didn't have seat belts in the back, never mind chIld car seats but that doesn't mean when I have kids I'm not going to follow these safety guidelines because I lived to tell the tale, that attitude annoys me. Most new safety regulations are introduced for good reason.

[justoneoftwo]

1 minute ago, Glasgowghirl said:

I never had a bike helmet and all the cars we owned didn't have seat belts in the back, never mind chIld car seats but that doesn't mean when I have kids I'm not going to follow these safety guidelines because I lived to tell the tale, that attitude annoys me. Most new safety regulations are introduced for good reason.

Oh this reminds me, new safety regulations exist for many reasons, some of which are that cars go faster now, there are more cars on the road, and so on.  Even if it was safe then (it wasn't) there are more accidents now, the changes reflect the other changes taking place in the world.

[PreciousPantsofDoom]

Nobody wore helmets when I was growing up, but my ahead-of-his time Dad made us wear the white hockey helmets we wore for skating. Except that we used to take them off and hang them from the handlebars as soon as we turned the corner.  

These days I don't ride a bike much, but when I do, the helmet stays on. 

[Gobsmacked]

#2 was wearing his helmet aged 7 when he fell off. Had concussion. I stayed up ironing all night to watch him while he slept on the settee, Doctors orders. The Doctor came back in the morning and declared him to be ok. If he hadn't been wearing his helmet things would have been so much worse. Sadly we found out some years later, that the accident had been caused by a wee besom who lived nearby. She was older, had been bullying him for sometime and had pushed a broom handle through his back wheel as he rode past her. I know it's not right to hate children but I made an exception for that wee madam.

[ThunderRolls]

My mom was always a stickler for helmets. When my brother grew up and secretly bought a motorcycle (to avoid the mom and grandma freak-out), he still had the best helmet he could buy. (We later saw him out on his motorcycle - since he had a helmet on we identified him by his legs!) I think getting those habits established when kids are very young definitely makes a huge difference. One thing that really wasn't around that thankfully is now are helmets for skiing/snowboarding. It wasn't a thing when I was a kid, and I remember my mom talking about making me wear my bike helmet when I went skiing haha. 

There really isn't a good excuse these days to not wear a helmet. There's too much research that shows that they protect people. 

[HarleyQuinn]

I wore my helmet until I got to the end of the street. Then it went to my handlebars.

I used to skate at a skate park that required them, that was about the only time I wore one.

I'm shocked my parents didn't beat me more. Whenever they tried to say my brains would be all over the sidewalk I was always like "don't play enya at my funeral"

[Jana814]

I went to school with someone who was hit by a car while riding his bike. It was 1986 he lived but 2 this day he has a terrible limp.  A year later another boy was hit & killed while riding his bike. His mother and the rest of the family became advocates for bike helmets. 

[Bad Wolf]

We didn't see any of thousands of people on the death ride without helmets.

[Coy Koi]

3 hours ago, Elvis Presby said:

In 2002 and 2008 when the boys were born, back sleeping was in.  However, because the youngest was a preemie and spent a short time in the NICU he would only sleep on his stomach.  They let him sleep that way there, because he was hooked up to all sorts of monitors and if he had a problem they could have helped him.  The problem is that once you bring a NICU baby home who is accustomed to sleeping that way there are only so many days you can go without sleep.  I had to let him sleep on his stomach because the alternative was that neither of us slept.  ever.

I can understand this. General safety precautions should be used...generally. There may be some situations where other factors take precedence. People who have common sense and critical thinking skills can weigh the pros and cons of the specific situation at hand. Unfortunately, with the Duggars and many other fundies, they completely lack those abilities.

There may be some case where it was better for a child to learn to ride a bike without wearing a helmet even though helmets were available (I don't know what circumstances could lead to this, but I don't know everything), but in this case, it's obvious that they were just being utterly careless.

[Mayluka]

I always find the "I never wore a helmet or wore a seatbelt and I'm alive" arguments ridiculous because dead people can't speak for their experiences. Obviously everyone talking about it on the internet survived not wearing helmets, but not everyone lived to tell that same tale.

[SamiKatz]

12 minutes ago, HarleyQuinn said:

I wore my helmet until I got to the end of the street. Then it went to my handlebars.

I used to skate at a skate park that required them, that was about the only time I wore one.

I'm shocked my parents didn't beat me more. Whenever they tried to say my brains would be all over the sidewalk I was always like "don't play enya at my funeral"

I'm not sure about your parents, but mine would have played Enya at my funeral, just to make a point.

[HarleyQuinn]

@SamiKatz mine would've have too. And probably would've buried me with her CDs.

[Karma]

I'm currently in Shanghai where I've been slightly freaked out by seeing not a single bike helmet on the thousands of bikes and motor scooters on the streets. Including families of three on motor scooters, and babies in shopping baskets on the front of bikes.  All weaving seemingly precariously through the traffic!

[Swamptribe]

22 hours ago, justoneoftwo said:

How did they respond?  My MIL and her boyfriend are not the kind of people who would take that well...

I said it, or something similar, several times.  Don't remember exact reactions but when somebody says something that stupid, I really don't care what their reaction is going to be.

[LiterallyBananas]

The name pool is killing me! I lost it at Methuselah and Morgan Freeman. 

[Carm_88]

M Kid Number 5 Birth Pool

Spoiler

 

Names:

Gabriel Matthew- shock928 (wildcard)

James Robert “Little Jim Bob”- Mela99

Maccabee Joshua- Lurker

Machiah- aprilx(2)

Machiavelli- onekidanddone

Maddox- ihaveanexamintwodays

Malachi- singsingsing, SapphireSlytherin, clueless, mango_fandango, bananabread, aprilx

Malachi Daniel- WiseGirl

Malachi Joshua- MayMay1123

Malachi Nathaniel- eveandadam

Malachi Robert- Dogalog

Malakai Joshua- Million Children for Jesus (1)

Malcolm- ihaveaneamintwodays, Gillyweed

Malcolm Garrett- Taylurker

Manuel Christopher- freshlemonade

Mark- TeamDeFraudinSquad

Mark Isaiah- tsukinokawa

Marshall Joshua- Berty K

Martin- singsingsing (wildcard), VelociRapture(3), albanuadh_1(2)

Martin James- Markie, Melissa1977

Martin Robert- Kelsey (2)

Marvin- Greendoor, MadeItOut

Mason- Markie(3), ihaveanexamintwodays, singsingsing, VelociRapture (1), nickelodeon, MayTheWilberforceBeWithYou

Mason Daniel- Rachel333

Mason Joshua- pook, Jatalie1996 JDuggs          

Mason Robert- Kelsey, HRM1216 (2)

Matthias- KelseyAnn

Matthias Daniel- tabitha2

Matthew- Markie(2), singsingsing, HarleyQuinn, albanuadh_1(1), JordynDarby5, Daisy0322, frugalitymom, AlwaysExcited, TeamDefraudinSquad(2)

Matthew Asher- Chewing Gum

Matthew Caleb- Million Children For Jesus(1)

Matthew David- VixenToast

Matthew Dobson- Dandruff

Matthew Hosea- The Wanderer

Matthew Isaiah- SorenaJ, anaandrade

Matthew James- sadiZ, VeryNikeSeamstress

Matthew John- NewSeasonOfLife

Matthew Joshua- JermajestyDuggar, anjulibai, Glasgowghirl, jerkit, viii, HRM1216. TuringMachine

Matthew Micah- ExposedKnees

Matthew Noah- Miggy

Matthew Paul- AlwaysExcited (1)

Matthew Robert- marmalade, VelociRapture, mango_fandango, adidas, season of life, AlwaysExcited(2)

Matthew Thomas- Fluffypaws

Matthew Zachary- Million Children For Jesus (3)

Maverick- Honeysuckle

Max- onekidanddone

Maxwell Robert- Glasgowghirl  

Melchizedek- Audrey2

Melvin Issac- itqitc

Mepibostheth- Audrey2

Merrick John- Quiver Full of Kittens

Messiah Joshua- Jane M.

Methuselah- Audrey2

Micah- KelseyAnn (2)

Micah Matthew- shock928

Miles- singsingsing (wildcard), JoyJoy

Miles Gabriel- Suz8710

Milo-  So-Virgin-It-Hurts

Mitchell Robert- Gobsmacked

Mobert Mame- Pasta

Morgan Clement- habert

Morgan Freeman- dpndetfarm

Mortimer Chance- Hortense Peyrac

Moses- Carm_88, VelociRapture (2)

Moshe Joshua- OyToTheVey

Nathaniel Daniel- MissKnowItAll

Robert- Bad Wolf

William Matthew- NeverBeenKissed

William Zachery- MissKnowItAll

 

Date:

July 19th- season of life

July 20th- AlwaysExcited

July 21st- Miggy

July 24th- NewSeasonOfLife

July 25th- eveandadam

July 27th- Fluffypaws

July 28th- Million Children For Jesus

July 29th- Taylurker

July 30th- Quiver Full of Kittens

July 31st- Vixen Toast

August 1st- The Wanderer, tabitha2

August 2nd- habert, adidas, Honeysuckle, ExposedKnees

August 3rd- Jatalie1996, MayMay112, OyToTheVey

August 4th- Kelsey

August 5th- sadiZ, Hortense Peyrac

Late Night August 5th/Early August 6th- VeryNikeSeamstress

Late Night August 6th/Early August 7th- MadeItOut

August 7th- Markie, freshlemonade, Daisy0322, WiseGirl

August 8th- JDuggs, Gobsmacked, viii, pook (2:11am), TuringMachine

August 9th- aprilx

August 10th- anaandrade, Lurker, TeamDefraudinSquad

August 11th- JordynDarby5, Gillyweed, TeamDefraudinSquad, Jane M.

August 13th- MissKnowItAll, Suz8710

August 14th- JermajestyDuggar

August 15th- itqitc, So-Virgin-It-Hurts, albanuadh_1

August 16th- HRM1216

August 17th- Bad Wolf

August 18th- dpndetfarm

August 19th- Rachel333/SorenaJ

August 21st at 2am- KelseyAnn

August 22nd- Carm_88

August 24th- MayTheWilberforceBeWithYou

August 27th- tsukinokawa

August 28th- anjulibai

September 3rd- Chewing Gum

September 5th- frugalitymom

 

Weight

7lbs 3oz- viii

7lbs 6oz- OyToTheVey

7lbs 7oz- MissKnowItAll

7lbs 8oz- MadeItOut, WiseGirl

7lbs 9oz- jerkit, pook

7lbs 12oz- Quiver Full of Kittens

7lbs 14oz- freshlemonade

8lbs- JermajestyDuggar, habert, anaandrade, So-Virgin-It-Hurts, albanuadh_1, AlwaysExcited, Jane M.

8lbs 1 oz- Rachel33, MayTheWilberforceBeWithYou, HRM1216

8lbs 2oz- adidas, Chewing Gum

8lbs 3oz- Daisy0322, Jatalie1996, Gillyweed, Bad Wolf, Gobsmacked, MayMay1123

8 lbs 4oz- Sorenaj, The Wanderer, anjulibai, itqitc, VeryNikeSeamstress

8lbs 5oz- Carm_88, aprilx

8lbs 6oz- NewSeasonOfLife, Suz8710

8lbs 7oz- dpndetfarm

8lbs 8oz- JDuggs, ExposedKnees, TuringMachine, Fluffypaws

8lbs 9oz- Taylurker, TeamDefraudinSquad

8lbs 10oz- Markie, Lurker, season of life

8lbs 11oz- Million Children For Jesus                

9lbs 1oz- VixenToast, tabitha2

8 pound range- KelseyAnn

 

Length

19 inches- MayTheWilberforceBeWithYou

20 inches- anaandrade, Jane M.

20.5 inches- AlwaysExcited, HRM1216

21 inches- The Wanderer, Gobsmacked, Lurker, itqitc, viii, Taylurker, pook, Fluffypaws

21.5 inches- Million Children For Jesus

22 inches- Daisy0322, Quiver Full of Kittens

 

Name pool because you know, new page!  

[CinnaJen]

In reference to the helmet/seatbelt talk: I work for Neurosurgeons and see many many patients with traumatic brain injuries that could've been avoided by wearing a helmet/seatbelt.  There's no excuse-just wear them! 

[Four is Enough]

The practice husband was in a horrible bike accident.. tore his arm nearly out of the socket, hit his head.. the helmet definitely prevented him from having a traumatic brain injury..

And yes, we had a car where my brother and I actually STOOD UP in the back because there was no seat! I remember the day we got the back seat... I was about six. 

Of course, top speed was probably 35 or so....

[sawasdee]

Years ago, a nurse friend said to me, "Know what we call bikers who ride without helmets? Organ donors."

Brutal, but an effective reminder.

[HarryPotterFan]

6 hours ago, Kleine Vampirin said:

@Georgiana very similar experience when I was little. Went head over handlebars when cycling down a hill. Broken wrist, concussion and temporary blindness, and smashed my front teeth. Thank Rufus I had my helmet on.

I also flew off a bike over the handlebars when I was six. I lost control of the bike and ended up going down my driveway, which is a long steep hill. Luckily I was wearing a helmet and landed in the dirt, rather than on concrete. My mom was outside gardening and quickly came to my rescue. No major injuries, just hurt and scared. And my parents never let me learn how to ride a bike. (That one had training wheels)

[ChunkyBarbie]

Matthew James

August 19

8 pounds 10 ounces

20"

I think James as a middle name as an attempt to suck up to Daddy. Cuz $$$ and fake repentance. 

 

 

[singsingsing]

James is Michael's middle name. I can't see them reusing it. Jed and Jer have the same middle name, but they're twins.

They could always use Robert, though.

[VeryNikeSeamstress]

44 minutes ago, singsingsing said:

James is Michael's middle name. I can't see them reusing it. Jed and Jer have the same middle name, but they're twins.

They could always use Robert, though.

Had they used Jackson as Michael's middle name it would've fit perfectly with the heathen music theme.

[VixenToast]

wow. I just realized that as a kid I don't think I really wore my helmet much after 7-8. Like, I just don't fully remember wearing one a lot. Maybe I did. I was born in 89 so I'm not that old, but old enough to have the memories a bit fuzzy lol. I do remember my sister and I having to be back home before or by the time the streetlights turned on. And walking home from school. And making movies with my barbies on our huge ass camcorder. It's a shame there's was no YouTube then... actually, maybe that's a good thing. Sigh.

I always make my kid wear his helmet. ALWAYS! 

And as for motorcyclists needing to wear helmets too, I definitely agree. Living right next to Iowa and traveling between IA and NE, they both have big electronic signs that admonish you into wearing your seat belts, and then tell you how many people have died in the current year so far due to auto accidents.... Iowa sometimes has double the fatalities of Nebraska, and I'm wondering if that's because in Iowa motorcyclists aren't required to wear a helmet, and in Nebraska they have to wear one by law. Idk.

Helmets are cool, mmmkay?!