Encouraging endorsement

Rob and I wanted to share with you this great article about our race. It is an endorsement that really means a lot to both of us. Please check out the other terrific and thought provoking articles on his site. This is one Kansas blog you might want to add to your feedburner.

http://ksreaganite.blogtownhall.com

A Reagan Conservative for Kansas First District
Posted by KsReaganite on Sunday, January 31, 2010 5:01:17 PM

I am going to break precedent by backing out of a previous endorsement and, now that a new and better candidate is in the race, endorsing another. This weekend at the party’s confab in Topeka, I had a chance to observe closely several candidates for Kansas’ very GOP first Congressional District. My tremendous respect for Dr. Huelskamp remains intact; he was first out of the door to run when the seat became open and he remains the front runner.
Nonetheless, another candidate has joined since my last post on the issue. Harvard alum Rob Wasinger, the youngish former chief of staff to Senator Sam Brownback, is also running for the seat. Earlier in the week, at a coffee, I had asked Rob some tough questions. Some of his answers (like on the desirability to gut the current monstrosity of a tax code) I liked; some I did not. What impressed me subtly was his refusal to be condescending or use clichés like ‘to put it in perspective’ and ‘I have to study this further’. Nor did he appear to be slick like a regular politico; I guess having a growing family of nine kids and one on the way does not leave you much time to have false affectations. It was a privilege to meet rob’s wife Meghan as well; again I was impressed by the normal down to earth demeanor that is not common amongst the spouses of aspiring politicians.
Nobody but God knows what’s in the hearts of men. I cannot predict what kind of Congressman Rob will turn out to be. What I can say is that this guy seems thoughtful, down to earth, and beholden to no clique so far. Beyond that, the very outlook exuded by this candidate is one of optimism, hope, and growth which contrasts starkly with the gloom and doom of some his peers. In the party of Reagan, we need some of tat sunshine of the city on the hill!
Rob is definitely the underdog in a race with two sitting members of the state senate, both wealthy in their own right and both strongly supported by the usual players in the state’s Republican politics. It is without hesitation that KsReaganite is backing Rob Wasinger for Congress in Kansas Big First district. I have linked his webpage in the blogroll to the right for you to get more information and help him out. He needs the help of regular conservatives like you and me, because groups with nice offices and big staff salaries are backing his career politician opponents.

Francesca’s Birthday and March for Life

If you ever see a box like the one that my daughters castle came in , run far, far away! If I had bought the castle to be a puzzle.. a life size puzzle, that would be one thing. But I kindof  expected it to be just pop out of the box assembled. An hour and a half  later, we were still engaged in a massive  architectural nightmare. I mean the thing came in about 50 parts that all had to be put together. Shouldn’t they be required to disclose that on the box?! Fortunately, I have older sons who were up to the challenge ( see, some things do  get easier with older children:-) Francesca loved it though and she had a wonderful 3rd birthday. Special thanks to her Godmother, Polly and Auntie Laura for sending presents and to Paddy who helped me make the cake. She was so happy that all her present came in pink this year! We ended the day watching “Cloudy with a Chance of  Meatballs.”  

Rob is off at the March for Life this weekend in D.C. We spent the day trying to find him on T.V. Not an easy task when you you are watching a parade with over 200, 000 people! He called tonight  and said Kansas was very well represented at the March and he ran into many friends and supporters.

Dodge City Web Ad

New Dodge City Web Ad went live today.

Wasinger Slams Hays Daily News

Wasinger Slams Hays Daily over
Napolitano Op-Ed

In case you missed it, Rob demanded the resignation of Homeland Security Secretary Janet Napolitano, saying that she has “failed miserably” as secretary, spending her time waging war on Obama’s political opponents instead of protecting America from terrorists who seek to destroy our way of life.

This past weekend, Hays Daily Editor Patrick Lowry accused Rob of “partisan maneuvering” and “finger-pointing” in an op-ed titled, “Underwear isn’t always fun to wear.”

Below is Rob’s response, which was published in Tuesday’s paper.

If you support Rob’s position, letters to the editor are encouraged. They can be submitted to plowry@dailynews.net.

No Games
by Rob Wasinger

Patrick Lowry’s decision to misconstrue my statements was both unfortunate and irresponsible.  Rather than arguing as to why Secretary of Homeland Security Janet Napolitano should remain in office despite presiding over significant and disastrous failures, he chooses instead to accuse me of playing politics. On the contrary, it is his deliberate attempt to avoid having a frank discussion of Secretary Napolitano’s record that smacks of political gamesmanship.

Lowry’s other claim — that I have asserted as a credential for Congress my witnessing Flight 77 moments before it hit the Pentagon — strains credibility. I have never made such a claim, and for the editor of The Hays Daily News to assert that I did is a gross distortion, at best.  The attacks of 9/11, a small part of which I witnessed, are directly relevant to the critical and ongoing discussion of how to secure our homeland.   9/11 reminds all Americans of the stakes in this war against violent Islamic extremists who, as the attempted Christmas attack shows, continue to target us. Their gruesome obsession with taking innocent life has not diminished; nor should our resolve to secure for our children a safer and more peaceful world diminish.

In choosing to distort rather than to editorialize, the editor glossed over the key issue: that our security is too important to leave in the hands of a secretary who has failed in her duty to protect us. The American people should be able to demand account/ability of their officials without being accused of playing politics.

Paid for by Wasinger for

Baby #10, already making headlines!

http://www.hutchnews.com/Localregional/bidder

Of course, I’m  flattered  that the article was done and to know at least someone is reading my blog. I am also VERY relieved to know that tidbit at the end. Good thing Rob and I did not plan our family size based on popular political opinion ’cause that would’ve been a BIG , and I mean HUGE, mistake. Imagine if Rob and I were thinking  all along we were going to win this election by having babies, only to find out that all that planning , work  and sacrifice did not even win us any votes!. That would be a real  bummer! It is good thing we value each of our children as  unrepeatable gifts from God, all on their own! =-)

Baby on way for House bidder
By Mary Clarkin – The Hutchinson News – mclarkin@hutchnews.com Congressional candidate Rob Wasinger is expanding his home base.

Wasinger and his wife, Meghan Wasinger, are expecting their tenth child. The due date is May 28. She posted the announcement – accompanied by an ultrasound image – on a blog on the robwasinger.com campaign Web site.

Wasinger, Cottonwood Falls, is a 1st District Republican running in the Aug. 3 primary for U.S. Rep. Jerry Moran’s seat in Congress. Moran opted to pursue the open U.S. Senate seat in 2010, and seven Republicans are actively campaigning. Alan Jilka is the lone Democrat in the race. The general election is Nov. 2.

One Wasinger campaign Web commercial begins: “Rob Wasinger has nine good reasons why he wants to be in Congress: His nine kids.” The children have joined him on the campaign trail, and campaign literature features them: Stephen, 15; Sebastian, 12; Carolina, 10; August, 9; Maddy, 7; Basil, 6; Paddy, 4; Frankie, 2; and Anselm, 1.

The candidate said he and his wife are very excited about the tenth child.

“We don’t know whether we are expecting a girl or a boy; we always like to leave that a surprise,” he wrote in an e-mail.

Wasinger is the former chief of staff for U.S. Sen. Sam Brownback, R-Kan., and the family moved from Washington to Kansas after he launched his bid for Congress.

Joe Aistrup, political science professor and interim associate dean of Arts and Sciences at Kansas State University, did not know of any systematic evidence that suggests having a baby helps a candidate win votes.

10 little Wasingers in 2010!

It is official! There is a tiny, wiggly, thumb-sucking baby moving around inside my tummy (and yes, there is only one! ) Of course, we have known for weeks but I just had the ultrasound yesterday and baby number ten appears to be thriving in his/her aquatic environment.   No matter how many times I have been pregnant, there is still a great excitement and feeling of expectation with each new baby. The due date keeps changing but he or she should be making his/her arrival around the end of May or early June. 

 It has been a terrific pregnancy so far except for the usual loss of slenderness and energy.  I know I make it look easy to gain 15 pounds in 5 months. Believe me, it took a firm commitment to eat everything in sight for me to manage this HUGE undertaking.

My children (and brother Austin) all have  the equivalent of PHD’s  in pregnancy related things and were some of the first to pick up on my condition. Here is some of the evidence they were looking for:

unmistakable signs of pregnancy:

1. Spontaneous crying at strange things, especially while reading a picture book to the children or while watching commercials,
2. unexplainable desire to watch “Deliver Me” episodes. ( it is a show that follows ob patients)
3. Cravings: pickles, chicken nuggets and fries with hot mustard, ice cream, cottage cheese, rice pudding, cranberry juice with limes( this last one is a pregnancy dead-giveaway)
4. My superhero powers of smell. (I can guess what my neighbors are having for dinner. I am that good!)
5. Sending Rob out to store at midnight  with vague instructions like” I don’t know what I want exactly but, what I want has chocolate in it.”   Since he’s  no idiot, he buys half the store’s supply of chocolate; chocolate ice cream, chocolate cookies, chocolate candy, chocolate cake, chocolate milk, chocolate pudding etc.. The people at the checkout must think he is crazy and it would  be too weird and take too long to explain the truth.
6. Running the whole house from my bed or my “throne” as the children like to call it because I am too tired to get out.

Breakfast in bed

It is a well established tradition in my house that Rob brings me tea in bed every morning and usually a muffin or some sort of breakfast. (Traditions like that develop after 10 bouts of morning sickness and 9 babies happily snuggled in beside me nursing,while enjoying their own breakfast in bed!) My children,who are not allowed to have food in their bedrooms unless they are sick, have visions of eating all their meals in bed when they grow up and have a house of their own some day.

Well, this morning Maddalena was the first to wake up, so she tiptoed next to my bed and whispered “Can Carolina and I have breakfast in bed and can we borrow your tray?” Only slightly awake myself and wanting to get in a few more minutes of sleep , I agreed to let her do it. That is when the fun began. Unbeknownst to me, Maddalena had decided that she would be serving cereal for breakfast. This feat was made all the more difficult due to the fact that my children all sleep in bunk beds with the ladders removed( so toddlers don’t climb up ofcourse.) She loaded her tray up with bowls, amidst her shouts back upstairs that everybody should get back in bed, and proceeded to serve breakfast. She ran around like Florence Nightingale, visiting both girls and boys rooms, tending the hungry. I have not as of yet gone to survey the wreckage but based on Francesca’s demands for equal treatment and Anselm’s screams to have cereal in his crib, I am sure I have many sheets to wash. The older teenage boys, who value sleep more, did not participate but told me later about the annoying crunching and smacking sounds, that when multiplied by seven munching children had the same effect as Dolby digital surround sound.

Now you might think that because they had breakfast in bed, they would not need another breakfast when they came down to the kitchen, but you would be wrong. We still had the customary breakfast exhibition in the kitchen,  complete with the routine pilfering  of everybody’s leftovers thanks to Anselm’s new found skill of climbing on the table. We also had  the customary cocktail concoctions, courtesy of  Francesca. It usually consists of a mixture of orange juice,  mik and syrup. I think we may have a budding bartender on our hands!

I wish I were making all this stuff up but the truth is really a lot funnier than anything I could invent. Despite the mess, I love it and find the whole thing incredibly entertaining. In the words of Maddalena’s  little friend, Morgan , observing the goings- ons in my house is  ”better than cable!” High praise indeed!

Our Colorado Christmas vacation in slideshow

View slide show by clicking “Read More” below…
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Campaign Christmas dinner at Martinellis in Salina

We had a blast with some of our campaign team last night. Thank you Martinellis! I especially want to thank our wonderful waitress, Skyler,  and the Manager, Tony, for making it such a memorable night ..oh and for not kicking us out because we were so loud! Austin and Colm gave out some histerical awards that kept us all laughing.

Advent by candlelight dinner for women in Beloit

Over 270 women gathered On December 13th to hear a talk to inspire Christian women to help keep Christ in our hearts and families this Christmas. I was graciously invited to sit with Kathy Zigler and her daughter Heather. It was a gorgeous evening and I wanted to share this beautiful selection, read by Maria Niewald, who organized the event ( and did a fabulous job I might add!)

I Corinthians 13- a Christmas Version

By an unknown author

If I decorate my house perfectly with plaid bows, strands of twinkling lights and shiny balls, but do not show love, I’m just another decorator.

If I slave away in the kitchen, baking dozens of Christmas cookies, preparing gourmet meals and arranging a beautifully adorned table at mealtime, but do not show love, I’m just another cook.

If I work at the soup kitchen, carol in the nursing home and give all that I have to charity, but do not show love, it profits me nothing.

If I trim the spruce with shimmering angels and crocheted snowflakes, attend a myriad of holiday parties and sing in the choir’s cantata but do not focus on Christ, I have missed the point.

Love stops the cooking to hug the child.
Love sets aside the decorating to kiss the husband.
Love is kind, though harried and tired.

Love doesn’t envy another’s home that has coordinated Christmas china and table linens.

Love doesn’t yell at the kids to get out of the way, but is thankful they are there to be in the way.

Love doesn’t give only to those who are able to give in return but rejoices in giving to those who can’t.

Love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Love never fails.

Video games will break, pearl necklaces will be lost, golf clubs will rust, but giving the gift of love will endure.

Here are some pictures of my evening in Beloit as well as some  of my children getting ready for Christmas, including Anselm,  breaking the “unbreakable” ornaments and the boys writing their Santa letters.