Katy Abram

According to the White House website, "This Friday, April 6th, the White House Council on  Women and Girls is hosting a Forum on Women and the Economy. President Obama  will deliver remarks at the Forum to highlight ways the Administration has  helped create economic security for women and recognizes that women are key to  economic growth and competitiveness."
 
My fellow conservative mommy Tweep and co-founder of Smart Girl Politics, @TeriChristoph, took to twitter and began a tsunami of tweets aimed at highjacking Obama's hashtag.  

        @TeriChristoph:  #WomenEconForum: Could you explain how destroying 
         the coal industry is giving me "economic stability"?
        
        @TeriChristoph: #WomenEconForum: Maybe Michelle could vacation 
        every other week instead of every week? That'd save taxpayer money, right?

Thankfully a new tweet coming from Twitchy.com added fuel to the fire along with Tweeps to assist in the newly fronted attack on the Obama machine.

Of course, I couldn't help myself so I partook in the festivities.  So let's talk about how much this administration has helped this mom of two shall we? 

This administration has helped me so much that I can no longer afford to fill my grocery cart like I once could. And by the looks of it no one else can either. I have yet to see anyone with a full cart every time I go to the grocery store.  Just a few years ago you would see cart after overflowing cart full of items. 

This administration has helped me so much that sometimes I don't fill my tank because it costs too much.  I still drive as much as I used to but I hope that at some point maybe, just maybe, the insanity will stop and prices will drop just a bit.

This administration has helped me and my family business so much that the EPA has forced the DEP to increase regulations in Pennsylvania which have effected our bottom line costing us money as a business.  Therefore, you have taken more money out of our pocket and we no longer spend as much as we once had. Yep! That helps the economy doesn't it?

But no worries ladies!  Forget the high gas prices, high food prices and Michelle Obama's luxurious trips because Obama will get you free contraception!  Isn't that all that we want really?

I am appalled right now.  I received a call from ABC News asking me about the Healthcare law.  Now you wouldn't think this was so bad, but when you see how this call transpired you see my affirmation as to why the lame stream media is grasping at straws as we are on the precipace of the Supreme Court hearing this historic case.

A producer from ABC News called and said they are planning on doing a story revisiting the Healthcare law and what has happened over the past three years.  He asked how I became involved, not really knowing my history but he still had my name from almost three years ago.  I rehashed the town hall story in simple detail.

Then he asked me this...

    ABC producer:  "Are you still against the healthcare law?"

    Me:  "Absolutely! In fact, I abhor it more now than I did before!"

Then there was an awkward silence for a few moments.

    ABC Producer:"Well, do you know anyone who was against it and is now for 
                        the healthcare law?"

    Me:  "Ummm. No, not a soul.  But I do know people who were for it and are 
             now against it."

Again, awkward silence.  Not a word coming from him.

    Me:  "Yeah, good luck with that. Have a great weekend!"

ABC News is obviously grasping at straws attempting to create a story which does not likely exist.  They cannot find ANYONE who was once against Obamacare and now for it.  The agenda is clear. They are looking for that one person to bring out into the spotlight to show that Obamacare is fantastic!  Like I said to him...good luck with that.

I was shocked to receive a phone call today from Fox News Channel that Megyn Kelly wanted me on her show today.  They wanted to revisit the healthcare town halls from 2009 and where we have gone since then.  It was a pleasure to be on her show.  I didn't realize that it was during her show when they aired our town hall live...for an entire hour.

It's always nerve racking to go on these shows. They put you in a tiny room with a giant camera glaring at you and the purple rainbow of love behind me was a little weird. But, hey, c'est la vie. Thanks for having me on again Megyn!

So here we go again.  Someone let Arlen out of the home today and put him on CNN with John King to discuss Rick Santorum's claim that Specter agreed to support President Bush's judicial nominees to the Supreme Court. 

Here is a bitter old man who is still clinging to his dwindled power.  This is a man who said he would not support judicial candidates who created law from the bench, yet he voted for Sonya Sotomayor. Remember her?

This is a man who voted for Obamacare after he railed Hillary Clinton for her mandated healthcare plan.

This is a man who was a Democrat when he first ran for Senate on the Republican ticket, then switched to actually become a Republican, and then switched back to Democrat when he realized he would lose the Republican primary against Pat Toomey.

This is a man who was for card check and against card check.

Do I need to continue?

So let me lay this out for you.  We have Rick Santorum who has stated he has made mistakes, owns them and apologizes for them.  Then we have Specter who has directly told me that the allegations above are wrong.  But little does he know there is something called video when we have him at his own words. 

You tell me...who do you believe?  To me it's clear...

Rick Santorum.

It ceases to amaze me how many times I am stopped by women who want to know how I get my hair to curl up so well.  In an effort to help my fellow curly haired friends who don't know how to get the perfect curl or bounce in their locks here is a step by step how to on how to achieve the loveliest locks.

As a curly haired girl you must, and I mean MUST, wash your hair every day.  Heaven forbid you attempt to copy our straight haired counterparts by waking up, running a comb through your hair and walking out the door.  This is an absolute no-no for curly hair ladies. Wash you must!

While in the shower you must shampoo and condition you hair...every single day.  My favorite is Wen. It is pricey but is a two in one solution and makes your hair soft like buttah.  I used to use Pantene shampoo and conditioner for curly hair.  It works well (but not as well as Wen.) If you can afford the expense go with Wen by Chaz Dean.

Before rinsing the conditioner out run a wide tooth comb through your hair. This is the only time you should ever comb or brush your hair.  Now typically most women will turn the shower off and wrap their hair in a towel. Refrain from doing this!  This is the most important step. You need to keep your hair product in the shower.  I use a curl creme which I run through my hair from roots to tips.  Before I exit the shower I blot my hair with a towel. Do not wrap your hair in a turbin!  It will destroy any chance for beautiful curls.

If you do not have a diffuser, now is the time to invest. Using a hairdryer without one will ruin your chance for any type of springy curl.  Lightly diffuse your hair holding the diffuser in place.  Don't swirl it around or it will cause frizz.

Allow it to air dry.  If it seems flat throughout the day just slide your fingers into the base of your hair at the roots and shake your hand a bit to provide lift at the roots. It always works like a charm!

I am convinced the establishment GOP was completely knocked off of their rockers last night when the man who dons the sweater vest won three states.  Can you say SWEEP?  The idea that Santorum is resonating with the Republican base is something that the establishment can't get their minds around.  McMittens is the annointed candidate and should be treated as such.  Now get in line little Republicans and do our bidding.  

But we aren't doing their bidding are we?  The grassroots of this party, many of which are Tea Party or freedom loving activists, no longer trust the machine.  When it comes to this new surge of support for Santorum it is clear why he cleaned the floor with McMittens and Newt last night:  Santorum speaks the language of conservatism fluidly and from the heart.

If you had the opportunity to listen to his speech last night you may have noticed as I did that he uses no teleprompter and speaks with the convinction of a conservative.  He eloquently said, "Ladies and gentlemen, I don't stand here to claim to be the alternative to Mitt Romney.  I stand here to be the conservative alternative to Barack Obama." 

He spent the majority of his time speaking about freedom and Obama's attempt to subvert Americans in their attempt to hold onto this God given right.  Nothing resonates more than the truth, and truth is what Santorum delivered last night.

I had travelled down to Florida in the fall for the CNN Tea Party Presidential Debate.  Something happened down there which I never could have imagined.  Below is the blog post which never made it off of my tablet.  I am posting it now even though it is dated.  This was the first step for me in becoming a Rick Santorum supporter...
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The guilt!
 
Last night as me and my crew exited the CNN Tea Party Presidential Debate, we were trailing behind my former Senator turned Presidential candidate Rick
Santorum.  My fellow mommy friend, Jennifer, said we needed to get our picture taken with him. No problem.  As we introduced ourselves, I wasn't sure if he would remember this stay are home mom who took down his fellow US Senator from Pennsylvania, Arlen Specter.
 
Well, I was painfully wrong. You see Santorum and I follow each other on Twitter.  And he pointed out to me as he recalled my name, "you don't tweet about me." Ouch! The guilt quickly settled in.  He was, in fact, correct. I have not.
 
So  why has this been?  I honestly have been pondering this since last evening. 
And now as I sit in the same plane as Rick Santorum, who happens to be sitting up in first class...no really, he is...I need to answer this question.
 
Whenever I'm asked who my current favorite candidate is, my response is as follows...
 
As long as we don't end up with Romney or Huntsman (after last nights debate add
Ron Paul and Perry to my list) we have won.  But what about Santorum? 
I agree with Rick (since I think I am on a first name basis with him we
will go informal here) 99% of the time. My two issues with Rick are tenuous
ones. Knowing my history with Senator Specter it has been difficult to support a candidate who chose Specter over conservative superhero Pat Toomey.  That is strike one. Strike two was his support of Medicare Part D. One  may ask why isn't that enough to support him?  99% agreement on the man's policies is a lot right?
 
As  my Pennsylvania state senator, Mike Folmer, says, "if you agree with me 50% of the time we've got something in common. If you agree with me 100% of the time you need your head checked."  This is coming from a staunch constitutional conservative state senator who happens to also be my dear friend.  Would Rick have voted the same for Medicare Part D or would he have supported Specter
again today? I don't know.  I'll have to ask when we get off of the  plane.
 
But  I realize that despite these two issues we have more that unites us then
divides.  The political environment of today is much different than that of a few years ago.  The power of conservatism has grown ten fold and our voices now carry
throughout the airwaves in opposition to government over reach.  With a candidate like Rick he would be on our side almost ALL of the time.  Now compare that to Romney or Perry.  So I have to ask myself again...can I support a man I can agree with 99% of the time?  
  
Yes. I. Can.
 
It  is simply because Rick Santorum is a conservative through and through. Two poor decisions does not a man make over years of policy making.  So I
can forgive knowing that if we agree on everything I certainly do need my head
checked.  So when Rick becomes President and I am appointed the official White House Twitter Czarina (as he promised last night) I will most certainly remind him when he attempts to stray the remaining 1% of the time.  Otherwise, there may need to be another Arlen Specter moment from this stay at home mom.  I can handle that.  I hope you can too.
 
Now who can hook me up with a Santorum for President bumper sticker?

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Updated:
So that was step one.  The story then continued when I walked off of that plane.  Rick was sitting up front and I all the way in the back.  Before takeoff I had tweeted a couple of times to see if he was in fact paying attention to his twitter feed.  Well, low and behold, Rick was waiting for me as I exited the plane.  "You tweeted about me," he chuckled.  Yes. I. Did.  And he was in fact paying attention.  But why did he wait for me?  It was flattering, but as we walked through the terminal I quickly realized he wanted my support.

"Why can't you support me?" he asked.  I stopped in the middle of the terminal foot traffic and laid it out to him.  "It's easy.  I don't agree with your vote to expand Medicare Part D and of course your endorsement of Arlen Specter when we had an amazing conservative in Pat Toomey," I exclaimed. 

You may have already heard the answers to these questions as I did.  Had we not had Arlen we would not have had Justice Alito.  And as to Medicare Part D he was trying to make it a better bill knowing it was going to pass. 

It has been a few months since that encounter.  A few candidates have fallen by the wayside.  Four now remain.  I can say with full certainty that I endorse Rick Santorum for President.  He has my blessing (and now some of my money too).  He is the first Presidential candidate whom I have donated money to, the first who's bumper sticker will reside on my rear window and the first candidate who I have obtained signatures for to get him on the Pennsyvlania ballot.  Rick has my support and I hope he has yours too.

Yes, I actually do have a conservative domestic diva side.  Today I tweeted out that I was making a batch of homemade laundry detergent, which during my last calculation saved my family about $500 per year. I'm sure now with the increased cost of everything I buy in the grocery store I'm sure this savings amount has increased.

You asked for it!  Here is the recipe a friend gave me.  Our clothes are softer, smell wonderfully and no one has any skin reactions (which in my family is typical with some detergents).

Ingredients:
    1/3 bar Fels Naptha Soap
    1/2 cup Arm and Hammer Washing Sode (yellow box)
    1/2 cup Borax Powder (white box)
    32 cups warm water
    2 cap fulls of Tide or your favorite liquid laundry detergent

First use a cheese grater (smallest grate on the grater) to grate the Fels Naptha Soap into a fine powder.  Heat 6 cups water in a saucepan (do not boil).  Add the Fels Naptha Soap and stir until the soap is melted.

Add washing soda and Borax to the sauce pan.  Stir until dissolved.

Put 26 cups of warm water in a bucket (I use a 5 gallon bucket I bought at the hardware store.)  Add the soap mixture and stir.  Add 2 caps of liquid laundry detergent.  Stir.  Then transfer to old laundry containers for storage and use.

Note:  I typically will double the recipe and will use a funnel to pour the laundry detergent into containers.  I store it in a few large plastic ice cream containers (they stack on top of eachother) or in old laudry detergent containers.  Once I empty my laundry container I refill it with what I have in the ice cream containers for easy dispensing.

While watching Senator Santorum's speech after the Iowa Caucus the other evening an amazing event occured:  the creation of McMittens.

Yes, it sounds like a cute little furry animal but alas...it is nothing of the sorts.  Why was it so very important for Senator John McCain to get his mug on television to formally endorse Governor Mitt Romney?  Why John, why? 

My instant reaction was this was a undoubtedly a shot across the bow by the establishment.  In my humble opinion, Mittens is the establishment choice.  They had no idea and were most likely dumbfounded by the rapid ascent of Rick Santorum in the Iowa Caucus.  What is better than attempting to steal the moment of sunshine Santorum was basking in during his speech?

So henceforth now we have the newest addition to the list of wonder twins like Bennifer and Brangelina: McMittens.  How ironic it is that a man who lost to Obama is now endorsing a man who lost to McCain?  I think we've finally hit the bottom of the barrel.  It can't get much worse than this.

***note to my fellow voters.  As much as this pains me, I am in this mindset when it comes down to whomever our GOP nominee will be.  ABO: Anybody But Obama.  So no worries if we end up with McMittens he will have my support, but boy will it hurt.