Son of Vikings' Adrian Peterson Dies

The 2-year-old son of Minnesota Vikings running back Adrian Peterson died Friday in Sioux Falls, S.D., from injuries sustained during an alleged aggravated assault Wednesday, police said.

Police are not releasing the boy's name out of respect for the family, but Peterson's father, Nelson Peterson, told the St. Paul Pioneer Press the child is Adrian Peterson's son.

Lincoln County State's Attorney Tom Wollman confirmed the death of the child, who had been in critical condition in a hospital with severe head injuries since Wednesday. The boy died at 11:43 a.m. at Sanford USD Medical Center in Sioux Falls after being removed from life support, Wollman said.

Joseph Patterson, 27, was charged with aggravated assault and aggravated battery in the child's death. He had a court appearance Friday and was ordered held on $750,000 cash bond.

Wollman said he'll review police and medical reports before making further decisions about criminal charges, possibly by early next week.

Peterson tweeted a series of messages Friday night, thanking his family, friends, fans and fellow NFL players -- whom he referred to as "a fraternity of brothers" -- for their support.

Peterson took to Twitter again on Saturday morning, confirming that the 2-year-old was not Adrian Peterson Jr.

The Vikings (1-3) host the Carolina Panthers (1-3) on Sunday.

Peterson, speaking to reporters at the Vikings' team facility Friday before an announcement about his son's death had been made, said he would play Sunday.

A Vikings source, however, told ESPN's Josina Anderson that that feeling "was the emotion of the moment. That could change."

Peterson left the team facility Friday evening.

"I think we should allow Adrian to grieve tonight," the source told Anderson. "The plan is to talk to him tomorrow for now."

The 2-year-old son of Adrian Peterson died Friday in Sioux Falls, S.D., police confirmed.
An additional source close to Peterson told Anderson he was certain the running back would play against the Panthers. Another source close to the player said he would tell Peterson to sleep on it.

Police and an emergency medical services crew were called Wednesday to a Sioux Falls home, where the child was found unresponsive and was rushed to the hospital, according to a police statement. The child was under Patterson's care at the time, and nobody else was at the home.

At the hospital, it was discovered that the child's injuries were consistent with abuse. Patterson, who police say is the boyfriend of the child's mother, was taken into custody and charged.

Peterson is second in the NFL with 421 yards rushing and first in the league with five touchdowns. He came back from reconstructive knee surgery to rush for 2,097 yards and win the league MVP award last season.

The Panthers, Sunday's opponent, were sympathetic.

"It's absolutely terrible. Our thoughts and prayers go out to him and his family, and hopefully things work out," coach Ron Rivera said.

Vikings coach Leslie Frazier said he thought Peterson practiced as well as he could Friday considering the circumstance.

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 GoesslingIn times of tragedy -- which have become all too common in his life -- Adrian Peterson has found refuge in football, writes Ben Goessling. Blog

"He seems like he was into it, engaged in what he had to get done," Frazier said. "Obviously, tough. He's human. But he was into it mentally, best as he could be."

Fellow running back Toby Gerhart said: "It's hard for any man to admit that he's hurting or he needs help or anything like that. For us to be around him and tell him we've got his back, if there's anything he needs that we're there for him, I think that goes a long way."

News of the boy's death spread throughout the sports world Friday.

LeBron James of the NBA's Miami Heat, who said he is close friends with Peterson, sent text messages and tweets to offer his support.

"He's a friend of mine, first of all," James said. "I've had a pretty good relationship [with] him for a long time. I respect him as a father and as a role model. And also having two boys of my own, it hit home. It sucks that this has happened. Like I said in my tweets, my family, our prayers go up to him and him and his family, his son.

"I'm absolutely angry, because it's an innocent kid that's taken away by someone's stupidity. I don't know the guy who did it. But there's nothing that a 2-year-old kid can say, can do, can harm to any grown-up that would make them do that. It's a lot of hurt. It's a lot of anger. It's messed up."

WHAT A MESSED UP WORLD WE LIVE IN..So Tragic :(

Letting Go 7 Days Clean & Sober

I once thought that life as I knew it was over, I was lost without you, I needed you, I talked to you as if you were still here. I asked your opinions about everything that pertained to my life. You were gone to me forever yet my heart still held on for dear life. As long as you were still in my life I was safe and nothing could ever harm me. As long as I held on to a us there could never be anyone else. I pushed people away and held them at bay. I was content to be together just you and I if only in the dreams of my heart. 

I am writing this since it has been a week since I let go of you out in that Georgia cemetery. I thought that I would just not think of you again, but we both know that is impossible. So just like a alcoholic or a junkie that counts down the days of there sobriety I too will count the days since I let go. That I let go of you so that I could live. 

I have to admit that I catch myself thinking of you, but then I quickly do something to keep my mind occupied and the thoughts soon cease. I haven't been on facebook that much since I am using this time for me to heal. Last week at work went well and I was able to completely focus on my task at hand. It is so good to be back to work and to feel as if I am needed and appreciated. The nights are not so long anymore and I am not checking the alarm every hour to see if it is time to get up yet. 

I FEEL AT PEACE  

The Rhythm Of Love

That place you get to and mutter “I've heard it all before” with a deep knowing look on your face. A look some would translate as wisdom, others pain and some arrogance. But you’re past caring.

All sorts of love proposals, all sorts of carefully composed words, and sophisticated sentences that aim to sound convincing. Portraying a goody bag of emotions, so deep, so real, so false, so obviously deceitful, so aggressive… so blunt.

And so you hear them so much that the words, whenever they are directed at you blur into a pile of nothingness… you’re no longer moved, you can’t wait for the theatrics of professing to end, so you can finish up painting your nails or staring into space and wondering what it’s like to pull out the hair sticking out the nose of the person sitting across from you, because sentences like “ so tell me about you” makes you want to haul your phone across the room, if only it’ll keep the voice away, but you don’t, because it’s your phone, bought with your money, and suffering the unwanted advances wouldn't pay for a new phone... well that’s unless you let those who try to buy your emotions do just that, only to reveal to them that the deal didn't go through, as you let them down via the expensive phone they bought for you. Life isn't fair is it?

You’re desperate to feel a stirring deep in your heart; you’re desperate for that string within to recognize a cord played in yet another voice, yet another mail or instant message with carefully thought out words… but nothing, the proverbial butterfly eludes your stomach.
And so the nice, fine, wealthy, enlightened, funny and almost born again one goes in the pile of blurring nothingness.

Till that one person comes along, with not a word of poetry, with not a silhouette of your dreams and fairytale imagination, with no enchanted love talk, bearing no gifts to hand over in exchange for your love.
With no desperate attempt to paint your heart with meaningless words, with no play act…
With no trying…
All he does is be your friend, your best friend.

And in that rhythmic walk in friendship, where pretense is thrown under the bus, where you‘re dared to be yourself, where beauty isn't blinding and making common sense redundant, you find yourself stumbling and eventually falling and opening a window for the love bug that’s been impatiently waiting on the ground to bite you, and the sting awakens your flat lined heart.

Your heart responds to the cord that plays a song you desperately want to dance to, even when you’re clueless as to how to move to the beat.
But you move all the same, because the sound is so good, you can’t afford not to move to the rhythm, not moving will drown you in that place of blurry oblivion… You move to the sound so good, even if you have no idea how, because it speaks of all things beautiful, a beauty that is beyond your face or his heart, one where you skip all the theatrics of declaring love, where you skip all the skipping around and going through the ritual of being coy and hiding feelings and not saying what you mean and playing games with emotions….
Then you do a tiptoe dance around this new beat, hoping the heels of your dancing shoes doesn't rip a hole in it, hoping it never stops playing, hoping you’re never numb again, and back to the place where every word of wooing is drained into a hole of blurry oblivion.

Is It Love Or Lust?

Poets and authors have tried to define love for centuries, whereas scientists have only recently started. Many of us know intuitively that love is a major purpose for living; that connection is inherent in all that we do, and without love, we cannot survive as a species.

But what is love, and how do we know when we're in it? First, let's start off with what love isn't.

What Is Love? It Definitely Isn't...

Manipulation. "If you loved me, then you would..." isn't love, but rather infatuation.

Compromising who you are. If someone asks you to do or say something that isn't in your nature, that isn't true love. Although love does involve compromises between partners, someone who is in love with you will never ask you to change who you are in order to be loved.

Violent. Passions can definitely become inflamed with someone you love, but a relationship with physical or emotional violence isn't true love

Question: What is Dating Violence?

Answer:

Dating violence is described by Health Canada (1995) as, "...any intentional sexual, physical or psychological attack on one partner by the other in a dating relationship".

Choking, slapping, hitting, kicking, biting, shoving, threatening with a weapon, confinement and hair pulling all constitute physical abuse, whereas sexual abuse takes place when one person has been forced to have sex or perform sexual acts or attempting to have sex or perform sexual acts with someone under the influence of drugs and/or alcohol.

Emotional dating violence is somewhat more challenging to define as there are no physical manifestations (i.e. bruises) when emotional abuse occurs. Some types of emotional abuse include insulting, swearing, terrorizing, uttering threats, destroying property, forcing isolation, or being extremely jealous or possessive to the point of where it negatively affects the other person involved in the relationship.

Just lust. Yes, chemistry and physical attraction are important, but true love also includes commitment, trust and respect. 

Trader Joe's???

I made a trip over to Raleigh NC. today to check out the surrounding cities. I was going into the North Carolina Mountain's , but we found out the the foliage was not at it's peak yet, so I hope I am off to try again before the leaves fall. 

While shopping I found this incredible store called 

Trader Joe's

playing charming music and packaging things in my favorite pastel stripes

Over the weekend I popped in for a gift for Mike

(my first time ever to a Trader Joe's)

and left with a little more than that

Mike may or may not be in town for his birthday

so I thought I would have a few early surprises for him

just in case...

Everything Was A Hit ...I mean what do you buy for a 

guy that has everything, but munchies ;)  

Trader Joe's I will defiantly be back again... YAY!!!

Coitus Interruptus

Sheldon: So are you and Leonard still not having coitus?

Penny: Do you have to say coitus? Can't you just say we aren't seeing each other?

Sheldon: No, because that wouldn't be true. You and Leonard still technically see each other all the time.

Penny: Still, I'd prefer if you wouldn't use that word.

Sheldon: "Well, all right. I'll just substitute intercourse."

Penny: "Great."

Sheldon: "...or fornication...but that has judgmental overtones so I'll hold that in reserve."

Penny: "Fine."

Sheldon: "Just to be clear, do I have to stop saying coitus with everyone or just you?"

Penny: "Ummmm...everyone."

Sheldon: "Harsh terms but all right."

Penny: "Naaah! I'm just coitusing with ya!"

(simulated dialog from the Big Bang Theory when I laughed my gluteus maximus off)

Optimism

When I graduated high school I was awarded the optimist award and the other day while at home I looked over the optimist creed and it really moved me so I'll share it with you!

Promise Yourself

To be so strong that nothing can disturb your peace of mind.

To talk health, happiness and prosperity to every person you meet.

To make all your friends feel that there is something in them.

To look at the sunny side of everything and make your optimism come true.

To think only of the best, to work only for the best, and to expect only the best.

To be just as enthusiastic about the success of others as you are about your own.

To forget the mistakes of the past and press on to the greater achievements of the future.