All I can say is wow. When I left for work at 6am this morning, this story was still unfolding, and now it seems to have taken on legs that I don't think I could even begin to tackle if I wanted to. And for the record, I don't want to.
I am very excited to see through Twitter updates that both MckMama and Angie Smith look like they are going to comment on the story. They are both infinitely more credible than me, and both have a lot more blogging time available to them.
I apologize for anyone who was offended at my questions. I don't feel that I flamed "B" in any way, and I never speculated on any of the associations of other people affiliated with her blog. I sincerely had questions that raised red flags for me - questions that I thought were legitimate. I have received some very insightful answers to some of the questions that say that some of the things I was skeptical about were possible. For the record, I never claimed that any of the questions I asked PROVED anything. Simply that I wanted answers from people who at the time seemed to be running from the truth.
For me personally, I have nothing vested in getting to the bottom of it all. I know enough now to have formed my own opinion that this was all a scam, and that's all I personally need to know.
As soon as I get some time (I really DON'T have time to be a blogger), I will go through and delete any comments that accuse specific people of being associated with this scam, along with one that had a particular word I wasn't super thrilled with, and then I will disable future comments (if that's even possible). I will leave the blogging and investigating of this story to people who have time to do it justice and want to see it through further. As I already said, I have the answers I was looking for now.
By the way - someone's comment really touched me. And that was basically to step away from the computer as a forum to reach people and instead to reach out to the people who are around you every day. (Except the person said it in much more articulate way than I just did.) So just as soon as my internet adventure begins, it seems like it's ending.
To those of you who took the time to answer the questions I had - THANK YOU - regardless of what the answer was.
Tuesday, June 9, 2009
I need to say this!
I want to say this, and I will continue to change the date of this post to keep it on top permanently.
Up until TODAY, I was not a skeptic of this story. I believed every word of it. I religiously checked the website multiple times a day because this baby was on my mind. Last night (the night of April's birth), I neglected all my house work, my husband, and our dog so I could sit on my computer and refresh the story. I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom (gotta love pregnancy) and I couldn't go back to sleep - thinking about April. The first thing I did this morning when I woke up was checked the web. When I found out that April was still alive this morning, I praised God, and I cried.
This story has touched me personally and now I am hurt, and I truly do want answers.
Do I ever expect to get them? From an anonymous stranger who I never knew on the internet - No, I don't expect them.
But that is the honest truth for why I'm here with this blog and why I needed to put this up. Whoever "B" and "D" are - I do pray for them, they DESPERATELY need it. And Little April Rose - if you were ever out there, I truly did pray for you and I still do.
(Original Post Date: June 8, 2009)
Up until TODAY, I was not a skeptic of this story. I believed every word of it. I religiously checked the website multiple times a day because this baby was on my mind. Last night (the night of April's birth), I neglected all my house work, my husband, and our dog so I could sit on my computer and refresh the story. I woke up in the middle of the night to use the bathroom (gotta love pregnancy) and I couldn't go back to sleep - thinking about April. The first thing I did this morning when I woke up was checked the web. When I found out that April was still alive this morning, I praised God, and I cried.
This story has touched me personally and now I am hurt, and I truly do want answers.
Do I ever expect to get them? From an anonymous stranger who I never knew on the internet - No, I don't expect them.
But that is the honest truth for why I'm here with this blog and why I needed to put this up. Whoever "B" and "D" are - I do pray for them, they DESPERATELY need it. And Little April Rose - if you were ever out there, I truly did pray for you and I still do.
(Original Post Date: June 8, 2009)
Super Fast Morning Update
Well, I have no time to do this in the mornings, and I can't do it at work, so I have to keep this short for now . . .
As of this morning, Little April Rose's website and "B"s Twitter account are both GONE! Doesn't seem like people who have nothing to hide would vanish so quickly.
And, I'm super excited to see that MckMama has announced on her Twitter page that she will eventually comment about this story.
Once this story is exposed - or gains momentum in a forum that is better maintained than this one, I will probably stop posting, but I did want to give a quick morning update.
Sorry to any of you who may already have more info than I do . . . I'm in a hurry.
As of this morning, Little April Rose's website and "B"s Twitter account are both GONE! Doesn't seem like people who have nothing to hide would vanish so quickly.
And, I'm super excited to see that MckMama has announced on her Twitter page that she will eventually comment about this story.
Once this story is exposed - or gains momentum in a forum that is better maintained than this one, I will probably stop posting, but I did want to give a quick morning update.
Sorry to any of you who may already have more info than I do . . . I'm in a hurry.
Monday, June 8, 2009
New Developments
I would like to direct you to the Gibson Twins Blog for a development that was discovered tonight. I am unsure of the source of the information, but it does seem very suspicious.
Questions about the Doctor
By 6:48pm - The doctor had arrived to the house.
By 7:52pm - B&D were taking molds of April's feet???
I again question so many things here. A child that had so many medical problems that it's a miracle she was born alive, and after it took the doctor 4 hours to get there, he stayed for less than an hour - while the baby's heart rate was declining???
Of all the things I question about this story, this one to me is the most unbelievable. A doctor would NEVER leave a child with Trisomy 13, Holoprosencephaly, and a decreasing heart rate at home with it's parents after a 50 minute visit.
By 7:52pm - B&D were taking molds of April's feet???
I again question so many things here. A child that had so many medical problems that it's a miracle she was born alive, and after it took the doctor 4 hours to get there, he stayed for less than an hour - while the baby's heart rate was declining???
Of all the things I question about this story, this one to me is the most unbelievable. A doctor would NEVER leave a child with Trisomy 13, Holoprosencephaly, and a decreasing heart rate at home with it's parents after a 50 minute visit.
Green Eyes?
Yesterday's update at 7:52pm is that April Rose has green eyes.
Wow - 5 hours after birth, the baby has green eyes. I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't really happen that soon. Let me give you the answer of an expert though: http://thescienceexperts.com/answers/why-do-all-newborn-babies-have-blue-eyes
Wow - 5 hours after birth, the baby has green eyes. I'm no expert, but I'm pretty sure that doesn't really happen that soon. Let me give you the answer of an expert though: http://thescienceexperts.com/answers/why-do-all-newborn-babies-have-blue-eyes
The Pictures of Little April Rose
Oh goodness, where to begin with the pictures. First off, let me direct you to this blog: http://littleaprilroseisfake.blogspot.com/ There are tons of pictures that raise a million questions. I suppose the first point that people are raising is that they have identified the pictures that were posted of April Rose as a very well known doll. I know nothing of the doll, but I must say the pictures on the blog above are pretty compelling for that argument.
Let's hypothetically say that the pictures that were posted of April, really were her and she just had a beyond crazy resemblance to this doll . . . I still have lots of questions:
Do you know what Trisomy 13 looks like? I invite you to try google images: http://images.google.com/images?q=trisomy%2013
Do you know what Holoprosencephaly looks like? Again google images: http://images.google.com/images?q=Holoprosencephaly
And finally, you can also use google images to look at what a 4-5 pound baby looks like.
The pictures posted on the "Little April Rose" website could not possibly have been of a child suffering from the conditions her parents claim.
Let's hypothetically say that the pictures that were posted of April, really were her and she just had a beyond crazy resemblance to this doll . . . I still have lots of questions:
Do you know what Trisomy 13 looks like? I invite you to try google images: http://images.google.com/images?q=trisomy%2013
Do you know what Holoprosencephaly looks like? Again google images: http://images.google.com/images?q=Holoprosencephaly
And finally, you can also use google images to look at what a 4-5 pound baby looks like.
The pictures posted on the "Little April Rose" website could not possibly have been of a child suffering from the conditions her parents claim.
Breastfeeding?
As mentioned in my previous post, April was born at 2:48pm. Then according to the now missing blog post (I do have a screen shot, I'll make available soon), at 3:36pm - "Big happy news! After some discussion, the midwifes have decided that this girl needs to eat! They are teaching B how to do it right now. She gets to feed her baby girl!"
While not impossible - as many mothers try to breastfeed right away, I again am finding myself with a lot of questions about a child with such severe birth defects 1) latching on so quickly and 2) that the first 50 minutes of April's life wouldn't be spent doing lots of medical reviews and making sure she was stable.
What's even more perplexing to me is that the breastfeeding started at 3:36pm, then at 3:38pm they moved to the bed room to get more comfortable and then by 4:08 pm April had already eaten and Kelli (a friend) had already gotten to hold her for a bit.
Um . . . I've never had a child - but I have tons and tons of friends and family who have. And I have never seen even the hungriest of babies with well established breast feeding patterns eat in a grand total of 30 minutes. For a child that the parents claim is dying, and for a mother who has just been through a full day of labor and never breastfed before, the chances that this really occurred in a 30 minute period just seem virtually slim to none.
And by the way the 4:24pm update tells us all that April ate like a champ. Does a newborn baby actually eat colostrum like a champ (and in under 30 minutes)???
While not impossible - as many mothers try to breastfeed right away, I again am finding myself with a lot of questions about a child with such severe birth defects 1) latching on so quickly and 2) that the first 50 minutes of April's life wouldn't be spent doing lots of medical reviews and making sure she was stable.
What's even more perplexing to me is that the breastfeeding started at 3:36pm, then at 3:38pm they moved to the bed room to get more comfortable and then by 4:08 pm April had already eaten and Kelli (a friend) had already gotten to hold her for a bit.
Um . . . I've never had a child - but I have tons and tons of friends and family who have. And I have never seen even the hungriest of babies with well established breast feeding patterns eat in a grand total of 30 minutes. For a child that the parents claim is dying, and for a mother who has just been through a full day of labor and never breastfed before, the chances that this really occurred in a 30 minute period just seem virtually slim to none.
And by the way the 4:24pm update tells us all that April ate like a champ. Does a newborn baby actually eat colostrum like a champ (and in under 30 minutes)???
More Questions - About the Birth
Because I was so anxious to follow this story, and didn't want to miss an update, I kept it up on my computer at home. So, when I got home from work tonight, I still had up the birth story from yesterday. The power of putting something on the internet - just because you delete it, doesn't mean it's gone.
According to the story we've heard all along, Little April Rose was diagnosed via amniocentesis (as official as it gets) with Trisomy 13 and Holoprosencephaly.
First question: If "B" (April's mom) did indeed find a midwife who was willing to attempt to make a live birth of a child with these abnormalities in the privacy of B's residence, wouldn't they have had some sort of pediatric specialist or AT THE VERY LEAST a regular pediatrician on site for the birth?
All along, B was justifying her home birth by saying she was very close to the hospital if anything went wrong. As a pregnant woman myself, I have carefully researched both home birth and midwives, and think both are very good option for a lot of people. I do not judge the home birth or midwife option. (Although, based on all my personal research, I found that most midwives would not do home births under complex circumstances.)
But back to my original question: Why wasn't there a doctor at the home for Little April Rose? Let's argue that the answer is because labor is a long process and no one knew exactly when (or if) April was going to be born alive. Fair answer. So then, the next question is, why did it take almost 4 hours for a doctor to get to their home? (When the photographer arrived in 2 hours!!!)
Timeline:
2:48pm - April Rose is born alive
4:20pm - Photographer is at the house to take pictures
6:29pm - The doctor is on the way to the house to see April because "Her heart rate continues to decrease and her breathing is slowing."
Um, your child was diagnosed with Trisomy 13 and Holoprosencephaly in-utero. You do not wait for 4 hours after her birth to get a doctor to the home because of a slowing heart rate!!!
Read a little about Trisomy 13 from the National Institute of Health if you don't know what it involves: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001660.htm
And here for Holoprosencephaly: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/holoprosencephaly/holoprosencephaly.htm
If my child was diagnosed with either of those conditions in-utero, you can bet your life that a doctor would be with my child before the photographer.
So, why did it take 4 hours to get a doctor to the house that is so close to a medical facility?
According to the story we've heard all along, Little April Rose was diagnosed via amniocentesis (as official as it gets) with Trisomy 13 and Holoprosencephaly.
First question: If "B" (April's mom) did indeed find a midwife who was willing to attempt to make a live birth of a child with these abnormalities in the privacy of B's residence, wouldn't they have had some sort of pediatric specialist or AT THE VERY LEAST a regular pediatrician on site for the birth?
All along, B was justifying her home birth by saying she was very close to the hospital if anything went wrong. As a pregnant woman myself, I have carefully researched both home birth and midwives, and think both are very good option for a lot of people. I do not judge the home birth or midwife option. (Although, based on all my personal research, I found that most midwives would not do home births under complex circumstances.)
But back to my original question: Why wasn't there a doctor at the home for Little April Rose? Let's argue that the answer is because labor is a long process and no one knew exactly when (or if) April was going to be born alive. Fair answer. So then, the next question is, why did it take almost 4 hours for a doctor to get to their home? (When the photographer arrived in 2 hours!!!)
Timeline:
2:48pm - April Rose is born alive
4:20pm - Photographer is at the house to take pictures
6:29pm - The doctor is on the way to the house to see April because "Her heart rate continues to decrease and her breathing is slowing."
Um, your child was diagnosed with Trisomy 13 and Holoprosencephaly in-utero. You do not wait for 4 hours after her birth to get a doctor to the home because of a slowing heart rate!!!
Read a little about Trisomy 13 from the National Institute of Health if you don't know what it involves: http://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/001660.htm
And here for Holoprosencephaly: http://www.ninds.nih.gov/disorders/holoprosencephaly/holoprosencephaly.htm
If my child was diagnosed with either of those conditions in-utero, you can bet your life that a doctor would be with my child before the photographer.
So, why did it take 4 hours to get a doctor to the house that is so close to a medical facility?
The First Questions - About the Blog
Why did the blog vanish into thin air?
As I went to bed last night, I couldn't stop refreshing the blog - waiting for updates. When I woke up this morning, it was the first thing I checked. I checked it all morning at work. Then suddenly, because of hateful emails and comments, "D" (April's father) made the sudden decision to remove every post that had ever been up on the blog. HUH??? The blog is currently sitting with over 900,000 visitors in it's history - people who became attached to this story and became emotionally invested in April's story. But the story is gone now.
That leads me to my next question about the blog:
Why on Earth, if your girlfriend gave birth to a dying baby in your home less than 24 hours ago, would you be reading your emails and worrying about your blog???
As I went to bed last night, I couldn't stop refreshing the blog - waiting for updates. When I woke up this morning, it was the first thing I checked. I checked it all morning at work. Then suddenly, because of hateful emails and comments, "D" (April's father) made the sudden decision to remove every post that had ever been up on the blog. HUH??? The blog is currently sitting with over 900,000 visitors in it's history - people who became attached to this story and became emotionally invested in April's story. But the story is gone now.
That leads me to my next question about the blog:
Why on Earth, if your girlfriend gave birth to a dying baby in your home less than 24 hours ago, would you be reading your emails and worrying about your blog???
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