Australian Blogger's Son Dies- Sparkling Adventures

[FJSharkJump]

Let's put this into perspective. The parents and infant rode in the front seat of the horse truck. The children were in the back of the truck with no seats. There was a plastic viewing port installed so that the parents could see the kids in the back but basically the kids did what they pleased when the vehicle was on the road.

Is there perhaps a cultural gap for me? Is that sort of set up not considered really dangerous in Australia? Even in a minor car accident, those kids could suffer serious injury and/or die.

[Witsec7]

Is there perhaps a cultural gap for me? Is that sort of set up not considered really dangerous in Australia? Even in a minor car accident, those kids could suffer serious injury and/or die.

I've no clue as to what the laws are in OZ. When I had my bus, we installed two rated seats that we purchased from an RV dealership. they were complete with lap and shoulder harnesses. I do know that passengers could not ride in the truck camper unless there was a direct means of communication with the driver (OR law).

[Wolfie]

I'm going to take the risk of being flamed and say that letting the children handle very recently dead animals doesn't bother me all that much. Children are natural scientists, and this sort of (supervised) exploration seems like a very valuable experience. I actually thought the examination of the dead bird was really interesting. I also think it gives a lot of context to death and the cycles of life and nature. I think it's actually a better educational moment than waiting until middle school to dissect already dead animals reeking of formaldehyde. And it isn't as though the children were handling animals that were already rotting or covered in maggots or anything like that. There really is very little risk of disease transmission from a recently dead animal (Who would shoot and then field dress a deer if there was?), especially if thorough hand washing is a mandatory part of ending this kind of investigation.

For me, this isn't evidence of careless parenting. It sounds like there is much more concrete evidence for careless, or really, outright dangerous parenting in other actions the parents have taken. The whole vehicle transportation sans car seats situation alone would have me calling CPS on this family.

My issue with it is that you don't know what caused that animal to die. It could be an illness that could easily transfer to humans. It has nothing to do with "eww, dead animal" but more to do with public health.

[FJSharkJump]

I know she wrote the bird crashed into a window of their house. Don't know about the mouse.

And, yeah, I didn't include that aspect in my post. I wouldn't have my child handling just any old dead animal, recently deceased or not. It would have to be a sitch where I know it had an untimely death due to accident/injury.

[FJSharkJump]

I've no clue as to what the laws are in OZ. When I had my bus, we installed two rated seats that we purchased from an RV dealership. they were complete with lap and shoulder harnesses. I do know that passengers could not ride in the truck camper unless there was a direct means of communication with the driver (OR law).

Even completely unrestrained children?

[theologygeek]

I know she wrote the bird crashed into a window of their house. Don't know about the mouse.

And, yeah, I didn't include that aspect in my post. I wouldn't have my child handling just any old dead animal, recently deceased or not. It would have to be a sitch where I know it had an untimely death due to accident/injury.

Sometimes birds crash into windows because they are sick acting loopy.

[Witsec7]

Even completely unrestrained children?

I never investigated that part of the law since we were mature adults and had no intention of having children accompany us. At the time I did the school bus conversion (circa '92), there were no laws for restraints for passengers. We did what we thought was safe and prudent by purchasing rated seats and ensuring that restraints were installed properly. Our rule of thumb was no one got out of their seat while the vehicle was moving.

[Sumeri]

I'm going to take the risk of being flamed and say that letting the children handle very recently dead animals doesn't bother me all that much. Children are natural scientists, and this sort of (supervised) exploration seems like a very valuable experience. I actually thought the examination of the dead bird was really interesting. I also think it gives a lot of context to death and the cycles of life and nature. I think it's actually a better educational moment than waiting until middle school to dissect already dead animals reeking of formaldehyde. And it isn't as though the children were handling animals that were already rotting or covered in maggots or anything like that. There really is very little risk of disease transmission from a recently dead animal (Who would shoot and then field dress a deer if there was?), especially if thorough hand washing is a mandatory part of ending this kind of investigation.

For me, this isn't evidence of careless parenting. It sounds like there is much more concrete evidence for careless, or really, outright dangerous parenting in other actions the parents have taken. The whole vehicle transportation sans car seats situation alone would have me calling CPS on this family.

I wasn't at all bothered by the possible health risks of handling dead animals. For me the upsetting part was the very casual acceptance that this creature was gone now, go ahead and play with the body, kids, and then toss it because it doesn't matter anyway. It read to me like a very callous view of life and death. I'm a pretty matter of fact mom when it comes to dead creatures, but when my kids were small they were upset by dead bids, mice, etc. And I certainly wouldn't have encouraged them to haul around a little suffering creature like that mouse. The weirdness of her words is what gets me, especially now. Her blog reads like, "well, good thing that's over now, let's go have some fun!" I know she has to be suffering greatly. It just all sounds so disjointed and matter of fact.

[sassyNoz47]

after spending a day reading the blog and only getting to March...

idk WHAT to think. Maybe possibly he did intend on killing himself and the baby, it seems like he was main care taker although of the girls because she mommyfed the baby. She said one day she was mad because David MADE her take the girls with her on a errand. That seemed odd and the fact they both took off alone at times but she took the baby when she took off. Maybe like her he felt the girls would be able to fend for themselfs a term she used a couple times. Maybe he couldn't handle the life style anymore but didn't think the baby could care for himself? The man they met in the woods who they left the baby with (I can't think of his name now) told them right away that he didn't agree with the way they parented and since he had worked with troubled youth and was a father of 4 they did listen but didn't think they would change anything, seemed very telling of this family. This stranger only was around them a short time and was troubled enough to call them out. I don't think I can keep reading it its so so sad and depressing then again I don't think I can stop :(

[FJSharkJump]

Sometimes birds crash into windows because they are sick acting loopy.

That's always a possibility. I mean, it's not like I'm going to hand my kid any injured/dead animal we see and be all Sid the Science Kid, "Investigate! Explore! Discover!" For me, it's just a calculated risk I might take if the circumstances were right. Even with the chance of the animal being diseased, with proper supervision and hygiene considered, it doesn't seem all that dangerous to me. In the end, it doesn't really matter since, in all likelihood, such a scenario will probably never even come up in our family. My point really was that the dead animal thing didn't scream, "BAD PARENT!!" to me.

The risk of driving kids around without car seats is something that is well-known. It is high risk. I'm pretty sure motor vehicle accidents are the #1 or 2 cause of death for children under fifteen. (This is in the U.S. of course; I acknowledge my cultural bias may play a role in my judgment.) Not that car seats are a sure thing and will always protect a child, but it sure does help. For me anyway, there is no 'calculated risk' that can be taken when it comes to whether or not you are going to prevent your child from flying through the windshield in case of a collision.

So, the dead animal thing is meh. The total disregard for their children's safety while in a vehicle, I judge. That sort of risk-taking with your child's life says "BAD PARENT" loud and clear IMO.

[tropaka]

FWIW Australian child restraint laws appear similar to the US/Can, so they were definitely doing something illegal by not having the kids in seats/boosters

http://www.babycenter.com.au/baby/buyin ... seat_laws/

After reading her blog, I have my doubts she'll be getting unsupervised access to her kids soon.

[Witsec7]

FWIW Australian child restraint laws appear similar to the US/Can, so they were definitely doing something illegal by not having the kids in seats/boosters

http://www.babycenter.com.au/baby/buyin ... seat_laws/

After reading her blog, I have my doubts she'll be getting unsupervised access to her kids soon.

She was talking about taking a road trip after the funeral. I suspect since she was a scofflaw prior to the child's death she will just pick up and leave with them.

[OkToBeTakei]

scofflaw??

[Witsec7]

scofflaw??

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/scofflaw

A person who habitually violates or flaunts the law.

[Hane]

What the hell?

Look when she made this blog post:

This present moment Sunday, June 24, 2012 8:27 AM http://www.sparklingadventures.com/inde ... on=article

This is what she put in the blog post:

It’s been over twenty-four hours since I last fed Elijah. My breasts are hard bags of marbles, sore to the touch and constantly leaking. I have folded up a small towel and placed it inside my shirt to absorb the moisture.

This is when David took the baby for a walk on June 23:

Reaching the pedestrian bridge at the Logan River Parklands, Mr Fisher took Baby Elijah in his arms and fell 15 metres into the river at around 6:45pm.

What breast fed baby goes over 10 hours without eating??? During the day.

I interpreted that to mean that she was referring to time that had elapsed after the baby's death.

[OkToBeTakei]

http://www.thefreedictionary.com/scofflaw

A person who habitually violates or flaunts the law.

Ahh ok. Was not familiar with term. I read she was 'boarding school' She alluded to that in a recent post. 'Issues' does not even describe this girl. 'Tragic' does :(

[Witsec7]

Ahh ok. Was not familiar with term. I read she was 'boarding school' She alluded to that in a recent post. 'Issues' does not even describe this girl. 'Tragic' does :(

Her parents were missionaries in Africa and she went to boarding school in Africa.

[OkToBeTakei]

Her parents were missionaries in Africa and she went to boarding school in Africa.

I need to read more...but I really could not read after the Wee boy's birth..the preceding posts I mean.

[Guest Anonymous]

Today's post frightens me. She seems to be in almost a manic state. I do hope someone will intervene to stop her disappearing with the girls. :(

[BoomerLynn]

She seems to be very deep in denial. I fear for those girls when reality finally sinks in. I just hope she doesn't have some sort of psychotic break while alone on the road with those girls. I have a feeling she is going to pack up and leave with them as soon as she can.

[Koala]

She seems to be very deep in denial. I fear for those girls when reality finally sinks in. I just hope she doesn't have some sort of psychotic break while alone on the road with those girls. I have a feeling she is going to pack up and leave with them as soon as she can.

Where on earth will she live? Surely she isn't planning for them to all live in a car. They can't fly under the radar forever. Someday, someone is going to want to know why those little girls aren't in school.

Also, money has got to be an issue. How will she afford to feed clothe them? I would rest a lot easier if she would drop the "sparkling adventure" bullshit and start looking for ways to establish some normalcy and roots for her daughters. I think it would be wonderful if they could maybe live near family and go to school. They probably need a therapist to talk to as well. Losing their father and brother has to have had a significant impact on them. :(

[Sumeri]

Today's post frightens me. She seems to be in almost a manic state. I do hope someone will intervene to stop her disappearing with the girls. :(

As someone who has had my fair share of not-so-sparkling mental adventures, I agree with you 100%. She and those girls need to be in therapy and process what has happened to them, and soon. You don't have something like this happen and then tra-la off to the next adventure.

Does anyone know what has happened to her husband? I know he is in police custody, but has he ever said what happened that day, or is he still saying he "fell"? I can't find any information by googling him.

[Guest Anonymous]

He is remanded in custody and has not yet made a plea. I think the next court date is 16 July? It could be a long time before the details get into the media, I would think, especially if he is for any reason unfit to attend court. I fear for the kids in the meantime. What do we know about lauren's and David's parents? Are any of them likely to step up and take charge of the children?

[Koala]

He is remanded in custody and has not yet made a plea. I think the next court date is 16 July? It could be a long time before the details get into the media, I would think, especially if he is for any reason unfit to attend court. I fear for the kids in the meantime. What do we know about lauren's and David's parents? Are any of them likely to step up and take charge of the children?

I was wondering the same thing. It seems like they would be there for the endurance trying to make sure that Lauren and the kids were okay. This is definitely not a typical situation, and I don't see how she can keep up this lifestyle on her own.

[Guest Anonymous]

I was wondering the same thing. It seems like they would be there for the endurance trying to make sure that Lauren and the kids were okay. This is definitely not a typical situation, and I don't see how she can keep up this lifestyle on her own.

Her twitter feed shows on the side of the blog but I guess she's made it private so you can't go to the source and read the older ones. A couple of days ago there was something about her wanting single parents who homeschool to message her because relatives were giving her a hard time about being able to handle it on her own. I hope that means involved family members are trying to stop the crazy train.