Yesterday, Mark had his 18 month check up. He is very much on the small side, but his weight for his height is appropriate, so they aren't concerned about it. He is 31 1/2 inches tall and weights 22lb 11oz. I think that put him in the 5th percentile? I don't remember. As for the actual check up, I met a newer doctor, Dr. Dobbs. She seemed very sweet, and was very patient with Mark. Mark is normally very good at these things, but it was not his day. I had to get his iron checked a couple of weeks ago and he didn't even notice they had pricked his finger, he was just fascinated with with the band aid they put on him.

Anyways, as always, when Dr. Dobbs got to the vaccination sheet, she was very surprised. There are only two shots on there. The Hib shot and one follow up. Dr. Dobbs was very polite and asked me as to why that was, and I explained to her my reasonings. I am not opposed to vaccines. I have done my research for a long time, long before Mark was born, going down to even the specific ingredients of each vaccine. If you ever want to be grossed out, read the ingredients and find out what they really are. After praying about it and truly studying the effects and what not, I came down to the conclusion that for the most part overall, vaccinations are a good thing. However, I was finding many issues with how aggressively they are administered. Many of the shots have to be repeatedly administered, mainly due to the young age. They don't effectively take hold. Many times there have been children to get the chicken pox shot, only to still receive it later as an example. Waiting until a child is older seems to be the most efficient way to guarantee, to me, the best health and protection to my child. Mark doesn't have to get as many shots over all, they take better, and I don't feel like I am allowing a boat load of foreign stuff in his system all at one time.

The proposed scheduling(http://kidshealth.org/parent/growth/medical/immunization_chart.html) for shots calls for:

• 3 shots of Hep B before 18 months
• 5 shots of Dtap(Diphtheria, tetanus, and acellular pertussis vaccine) by the time the child is 6 yrs.
• 4 shots of Hib: Haemophilus influenzae type b vaccine by 15 months
• 4 shots of IPV: Inactivated poliovirus vaccine by 6 yrs.
• 4 shots of PCV: Pneumococcal conjugate vaccine by 15 months
• 3 shots of Rota: Rotavirus vaccine by 6 months
• 2 shots of MMR: Measles, mumps, and rubella (German measles) vaccine between ages 12 month to 6 yrs.
• 2 shots of Varicella (chickenpox) vaccine between 12 months and 6 yrs.
• 2 shots of Hep A: Hepatitis A vaccine; given as two shots at least 6 months apart between 12-23 months.
• 3 shots of HPV: Human papillomavirus (HPV) vaccine for girls, given as 3 shots over 6 months. Also recommended for girls ages 13 to 18 years if they have not yet been vaccinated. Suggested between 11-12 yrs old.
• 2 shots of MCV4: Meningitis vaccine; also recommended for younger children from certain high-risk groups, as well as 13- to 18-year-olds who have not yet been vaccinated. Suggested at 11-12 yrs and for college entrants.

There are many that would argue that the multiple shots are needed as extra protections for the younger the child is, due to their low immune systems. In some cases I agree, but I also know that breastfeeding also allows a lot of the same protections until the babe is about 6 months. They literally have Mommy's protection. But not all children are breastfed for various reasons.

There are so many different risk, and while many are extremely low and truly rare, I have had enough close family be seriously and permanently affected negatively by vaccines for me to know I need to be careful. Ethan himself ended up with a mild version of the measles after getting his MMR. I will not be talked into doing something I think can be willfully harmful to my child when waiting seems to be a better option. He is getting older and will slowly be getting them, one at a time, I don't care if I need to go ever other week for 4 months, I will deal with it. I think the next one will end up being Dtap, mainly because of the pertussis (whooping cough). Again, not against vaccines, just want him to be older to better be able to handle them.

Continuous remodeling

The last month or so there has been a weird smell in the bathroom and we haven't been able to pinpoint the source. At first we thought, maybe its the trash can, trash cans almost never share a pleasant order, but after repeated scrub down, we knew that wasn't it. Then the seepage from under the sink appeared. We kept looking for a leak, but weren't finding one. Yesterday, Ethan and Trevor took the vanity out, and there it was, the hot water connection has been leaking, but it was actually behind the vanity, therefore we weren't seeing it. It has been happening for awhile, and there is a little mold growing, but nothing that isn't repairable. As for the vanity, it is a goner, so we went looking on Craiglist and found someone in Gibsonia selling a bigger one for $45. Yeah!!!

I love finding a good deal

I love being a garage sale junkie. The money that is saved by going to these things have more than paid for the travel. Today I knew there were two nearby that I wanted to hit on Herman road.

The first one, a first timer finally cleaning out the attic, had clothes for both boys and girl from 0-3 months to size 16 and she was only asking 10 cent an item. I went to town with that deal and ended up suppling Mark for his entire 2T wardrobe. The lady seriously had 7 storage bins of just boys 2T stuff, not to mention all the other sizes. Plus the stuff was clean and organized amazingly well. No hint of a smoker in the house or animals. They had some sets of dishes out as well, plastic and rainbow colored. After this last move and my clumsiness, I am down to only a few actual glass glasses. Plus with people staying with us for Auby's wedding, we needed more than just 8 plates to get through the week. Also got Mark a life vest for swimming, clothes and shoes for the baby, and my lucky find for the day consisted of two large containers of Linkin' Logs. All in all I walked away with 7 walmart bags full of clothes and shoes, a complete set of dishes, and the boxes of Linkin' Logs.

The second one was a flea market deal with a church. I am not particularly fond of going to these. They usually ended up being junk that old people should have thrown out 20 years ago. But I did manage to find some canning jars for $1 a box and a couple of chapter books that I enjoyed as a preteen. For an hour's worth of looking and driving, and $20, I did well.

P.S. I have this random stray cat that has been living out my living room window for the last three days, anyone want it? It is black and white, looks like it is about 6 months, very sweet, gets along with Blackjack just fine. I just don't want another cat, but this one seems prefect for a family with kids.

When mommy is getting dress, I entertain myself...

I am just about to leave for work, and just finished showering, only to come downstairs to this lovable mess. No more leaving the cornstarch with the diaper stuff (cornstarch has been the fastest way for me to get rid of a diaper rash for him).

Remodeling again

The bedrooms are almost done with hanging of the drywall! The nursery is finished, and Mark's room just needs drywall on the chimney. The screws we have for that won't go through the brick, so we need to get special kind before that is finished. As annoying as the remodeling project usually are, I am please with the results. There was a lot more drywall than needed, so we are also going to get the hallway done while we are doing everything else. The rooms look a lot better, you can't see the previous water damage anymore, now it looks more like padded walls. Now onto mudding, then paint! I don't know what to paint the nursery, but we will come up with something soon. I doubt that will happen before the wedding, but I hope at least the nursery gets painted before the baby is born. I want to get the baby stuff put where it should go instead of staying in storage. Mark's room just isn't as much a priority since he is fine where he is.

Rather funny...

This morning everyone needed showers. I was done first and Mark had just finished with me. I go to get dressed and left Mark in the bathroom with Ethan in the shower. The door is open and as I am walking back to the bathroom with his diaper, I see Mark holding Blackjack. As I get closer, he throws Blackjack into the tub. Mind you the shower is still going. Poor thing got soaked instantly. Mark had the biggest grin on his face. I felt so bad for Blackjack. Ethan, still showering says to look at Blackjack. Blackjack can jump out of the tub if he has a running start, but seeing as everything was wet, it made it very differcult and he kept sliding back down into the tub. Again I felt horrible for Blackjack, but the site was absolutely hysterical. I couldn't stop laughing. Grabbing a towel and pulling Blackjack out quickly seemed to calm him down fast. Drying him off then letting him run around again, he headed back to the bathroom again. Mark is still there and tries to do it again. Luckily I caught him this time. Hopefully Blackjack will catch on soon that shower time is the time to avoid the bathroom, especially if Mark can grab him.

Winners!!!

Stanley Cup winner! What a year for Pittsburgh, Superbowl and Stanley Cup, has that ever happened in another town? And people make fun of us for the sport's pride in this town, well I think it has paid off. Can I just laugh at Hossa, stupid fool, he never did manage to score againg the Pens. giggles are all around....

I didn't think I was getting old quite yet...

I had a doctor's appt yesterday and all is going well. My doctor is actually a midwife and it has been very common to see someone shadowing her. Its been like that for the last 4 months. Well the guy that was with her yesterday, I recognized him. I knew I had seen him before, took me until I was setting up my next appt to realize where I recognized him from. High school, I remember him in high school, not only that, but he was a grade below me. Am I completel off base thinking that he is a little young to start internships or rotations whatever he was doing was called? Most people I know from my class have just finished their 4 year degrees as of this year. Him being a year younger, is making me think that he shouldn't be in Med school yet? He definitely wasn't training as a nurse. Oh well, maybe he was Doogie Howsering it a bit.

As for the doctor's appts, they are now being moved from once a month to every two weeks, meaning I am moving a long fine, weight gain has been okay, only 5 lbs over what my prepregancy weight was,(I dropped 10 lbs the first trimester) baby is active and kicking. I have another ultrasound set up, they had some concerns they just wanted to double check, and it is time for the rhogam shot. And last but not least, no more stupid glucose test, unless they find something later. I despise the glucose test, last pregnancy I had to do the three hour test twice, luckily this time I have only had to do the one hour twice. Babe is growing nicely, and I am finally showing enough that people aren't as embarrassed to ask me when the baby is due. I like this stage, I no longer look like I might be pregnant or just gained weight, they can't tell.

Lack of sleep...

Being 27 weeks preggers has started to make sleeping a little harder. It is to be expected, and I am doing what I can to stay asleep, you know, using the extra pillow, not drinking an hour or two before bed, stuff like that.

What I didn't count on being a problem was Blackjack. He has decided that our bed is his bed too. Despite the multiple toss off the bed, he still doesn't seem to catch on. I don't have a door for my room, due to really weird size doors that were in there originally, that had to be ripped out when we were doing dry wall. Plus that door didn't actually shut either. Baby gates he finds an amusing toy, and after seeing his height for jumping, it would take about two seconds for him to be done with a solid babygate.

I am a firm believer that animals do not share the beds with their owners. Plus I do have a small allergy to cats and where as I am getting more immune to him everyday, I don't really want him behind my head cuddling with my pillow, which he attempted to many a times last night. Plus with the new babe coming, I know she will spend a lot of time in my bed. New baby and cats don't always mix. Sometimes they do, but seeing as I don't know what he will be like with the baby, I don't want to take a chance. Grrr....

I have tried locking him into rooms for the night, and every room that has been tried with, Blackjack has successfully escaped from, how, I don't have a clue. I keep waking up during the night to find him on my bed. I love the cat, but sleeping is getting annoying.

Remodeling...

With the upcoming nuptial of Aubrey(sis-in-law) and Patrick, there will be lots of family in town 4th of July weekend. Since there is room to spare at my house, we will be housing some of them and I am excited about it. This is finally giving us the push in the pants that we need to get the other two bedrooms finished. The biggest thing that was stopping us was that we needed to put in a new window in each of the rooms before we can drywall the walls and ceiling. Well Ethan and Dad got that done last Saturday and tonight, assuming that the storage room/nursery is cleared out enough to work in, the ceilings will be worked on. Yeah, we are progressing!

I am excited to see Mark in his own room that I don't have to worry about waking him up at night when I am trying to finish the laundry! We had already picked out colors for Mark's room, but I am not sure what color to paint the baby's room. I know the baby is a girl, but I am not a paint the room pink or purple kind of person. I don't mind pink or purple, I just don't want it on my walls. I am thinking a pastel yellow or a peach color, but I am not sure. I had a bedroom that was a peach color before and I loved it. But I am really leaning towards a duck theme for the nursery. Oh well, time will tell.

I am looking for a couple of things for the bedrooms, a twin bed mattress and frame (frame optional), two dressers, and a toy box. If you see any and live close to me, let me know.

We decided on Blackjack for the kitten. Why? It loves to sit on your shoulder, and I mean loves too. This reminded us of Pirate of the Carribean with the monkey, Jack, and since it is black, Blackjack. We had every intention of blocking him into the kitchen at night until he is litter box trained, but about two seconds after I turned off the light, it is back on Ethan's lap trying to get to his dinner. I put him back in the kitchen then watched as he scaled the giant baby gates I have in place. This is going to make it little more differcult. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Destruction equals new life in my household...

When we moved into our house, we knew that we were going to encounter mice. That is what happens when you live in the country area. They had a nest in the kitchen ceiling that was discovered with when we pulled the ceiling out. That was a surprise, Ethan is standing there with the crowbar, ripping out plaster and suddenly, three squirmy things hit the floor and start running. Mice do not scare me, but I absolutely hate them. I do not scream or anything like that when I see them, but try to find the quickest way to be rid of them.

Having a child that is willing to get into anything makes it harder when choosing mouse traps. You don't want to leave poison, he could easily find it, you don't want the snap trap, then go to the emergency room explaining broken fingers, so we have been using the sticky traps. Not the most effective but they have caught 4 mice for us so far.

Today, I caught two, one was like almost dead and just sitting there on the dining room floor, and the other got stuck in the trap. I am not sympathic when it comes to rodents, especially in my house. Outside they can live, inside, they die.

Ethan and I have seriously considered getting a cat, but the biggest fight against that is my allergies. Yet, I have proved that I can become immune to certain cats. I adopted a cat when I left Colorado a couple of years and had no problems with her while I was living at home. We figured that if we got a young kitten, I would probably do better with it than a full grown one. Not as much hair, smaller, that sort of thing.

Well as luck would have it, my in-laws have have cats. Lots of cats, due in particular to one, named Agrippa. I don't think I have ever seen her during the spring and summer months not pregnant or nursing. Well she had four, a little before Easter, and now we have adopted the little black one. Alycia had named it Bageria, after the panther in Jungle book, but Ethan and I have not decided if that will be its name. We are pretty sure it is a boy though.