Updates

So all is well in the Mer Show household.  I'm currently on a medical leave after having finally having the hysterectomy that's been on the horizon for the last four years!  I've been dreading this darn surgery for years now, but now it's finally over with!  I'm a little sore and it's been hard to get rest with 2 little monsters running around, but I'm gonna live.

For those of you wondering why on earth I had a hysterectomy at 36, it's because I was diagnosed with cervical adenocarcinoma in situ, stage zero (non-invasive cervical cancer), in 2007.  The oncologist wanted to remove my cervix back then, but I talked him into doing a lumpectomy to keep me healthy long enough to pop out a couple of babies. Thank heaven it all worked out ok!!!  I have 2 perfect (ahem), healthy little babies and am so grateful that I got the opportunity to have a family. Now that I don't need my baby maker any more, it was time to yank that sucker out.  Done and done!

People keep asking me how I feel about having the surgery, and I have a feeling that they want me to say that I feel sad about the loss of fertility.  Honestly, that bothers me none. More than anything, I'm just annoyed that I have to take time during the holidays to convalesce - I really don't have time for this!!  I worked my tail off to get work and home prepared for a 2.5 week break from my job, get all my Christmas shopping done by the 14th, get the house ready for visitors, etc. etc. etc. and I did pretty well, but there are indeed a few things that didn't get done. In the last few years, I've thankfully learned to let some things go.  :)  Right now none of my Christmas gifts are wrapped, but I have faith that it'll happen in time.  LOL  I almost didn't do Christmas cards, but threw one together quickly at hallmark.com - I LOVE LOVE LOVE the fact that they address, stamp and send cards for you.  <3 you Hallmark!

I've watched quite a few movies over the last few days, which is highly unusual for me. With that, allow me to jot down some reviews:

Country Strong - pretty good, I give it a B. Who's the guy that plays Beau??
12 Dates of Christmas - typical ABC Family fare, I was amused
Karate Kid (with Jaden Smith) - surprisingly entertaining
Dear John - cried, dangit
Eat Pray Love - why didn't I do that after my divorce? And I really have a hankering for homemade pasta right now!

In other news, Katie just started taking some steps!!



So those are the most important updates for now. I'll try to log back on soon with more.

Meanwhile, merry Christmas to all of you and your families and friends!

Love, Mer

HAPPY FIRST BIRTHDAY, KATIE!!

It's my sweet angel's first birthday. Where on earth did the time go?

Katie is currently wearing a size 3 shoe, and about to grow into a 4, and she wears size 12 months clothes.  She looks adorable in hair bows, but she ends up pulling them out and chewing on them... so no hairbows for more than like 20 seconds! She says dada, uh oh, doggie, and hi... and I just know that she's practicing on mama whenever I'm not around.  :)  Katie's not a big eater, like her big brother, but she does like Cheerios, cheese, oatmeal and fruit!  She's not quite walking yet, but cruises on EVERYTHING and is dying to run around with her big brother (who loves her very much).

We had one birthday party for her in NM over Thanksgiving with all her dad's family, tonight we're having an intimate family birthday, and this weekend we'll be heading to Houston to celebrate with my family in Kingwood. Her birthday will be properly celebrated!!

To my precious, sweet angelpie, Miss Katiebug, Sissybear... happy first birthday!  I love you so much.

Mommy

Thomas the Train

This past weekend we took K and P to Burnet to ride Thomas the Train!  The actual steam train came to Central TX and toddlers from all over the area brought their parents for a fun day in the 102 degree heat.  YAY!  ;)  P loved all the activities, music, and most of all - the choo choo.  How cute is my little conductor in his overalls and conductor hat?  As for Katie - she loved all the people watching...  I'm excited that baby girl is old enough that we can start doing this stuff as a family now.  I can't wait to take them to a football game someday!  It'll be a little longer... but soonish.

Summer 2011

Well, I wish I could say summer was really OVER, but the 100+ temperatures are still lingering, even though it's almost October.  I'm pretty sure this is the most brutal summer I've ever experienced in TX.  I mean, they're all brutal, but it's been like a frying pan for 5 full months now.  Fall - please hurry!!!!!

Meanwhile, we sure had some fun this summer.  Check out some of my favorite shots of our family time - http://www.flickr.com/photos/21262441@N03/sets/72157627638243473/

Enjoy!

Love, Mer

P Got a New Bed!

So after the chin gashing experience/ first stitches experience, the first thing Sheridan said was "so... new big boy bed for P"?  Ohhhhh, little did he know how much this would cost him.  ;)

New mattress - $400
New bed frame - $150
Slats and hardware for new frame - $50
New bedding (he got off lucky here; we found Cars bedding at Target) - $40
New decals and posters to match the new Cars 2 theme - $100
-----------------------------------
Little kid who LOVES his new double bed and Cars room AND sleeps later  and better these days... PRICELESS!!!

July 4th in Indy

Highlights include celebrating Fred's 70th, Matt's 40th, meeting baby Shannon (who's not so much of a baby anymore) and introducing our little princess to all her aunts/ uncles/cousins/ grandparents.  Carolyn's family has a sweet and historic cottage on Bass Lake, IN and we spent time there, and at Matt and Carolyn's new house in Indianapolis.  Awesome times!!!  I wish all my siblings in law lived closer...

Next stop: Edgewood, NM to see Sheridan's mom and stepdad's new place at Thanksgiving.  We can't wait to see the crew again and celebrate the holiday (and Katie's first birthday) together!

There are way too many great pics to post on this blog, so here's the Flickr link: http://www.flickr.com/photos/21262441@N03/sets/72157627149565280/

Enjoy!  Mer

Darbys Do Austin

OK, so I'm super behind on my blogging, so I'm going to paraphrase for the next few posts.  :)

We're super excited that the Darbys came to Austin to come us.  It was such a mad house with 4 little kiddos in the house, but so much fun.  Sweet Finn loved Baci and gave him TONS of attention; I loved getting the opportunity to get to know Griffin better - he is such a special little dude - so funny and playful!!  And P loved having the Darby boys in the house to play with, but Katie particularly loved all the attention... well, maybe not ALL the attention (see pic below).  LOL

Boys Will Be Boys

Is there a boy in the world that doesn't have a scar on his chin?  (Come to think of it, I have one too... from stitches).  SOMEONE (ahem) was playing on his bed before 'lights out' and when I was heading to the dresser to grab his sippy cup of water, I heard a plop/bam, and then.... AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!  And then the blood started gushing.  My poor baby boy fell and hit his face on the siderail of his bed, which is made of wood.

I had hesitation about buying the P'kolino Toddler Bed (http://www.pkolino.com/Toddler-Bed-Orange-p/pkffborg.htm) because it was made of wood, but bought it because it's just so darn cute!  It turns out that this bed is very dangerous, and not only did he bump his head on the wooden side rails as he was learning to sleep in it, he has now gashed open his chin.  And very deeply, as well.  FIVE stitches!  I really regret buying this bed and look forward to buying him a new big boy bed pronto that doesn't include death defying features.  :(

Anyway, any kid's first trip to the ER for stitches seems like a momentous moment, so why not document it here?  (I can't wait to show my kids these pages someday!)

Mer Show Update

Well, it sure is hard these days to find time to update the ole blog, but it's definitely important to me, so I need to get with the program.

So the kids are growing up so fast and are really a joy.  Patrick's tantrums seem to be subsiding now that he can use words to tell us what he wants and feels.  He's FULL of energy still though, and some of the things he says and does just crack me up!  This past weekend, he got mad at me because I wouldn't let him drive the car!  LOL  But he really loves his baby sissy and gives her lots of kisses and attention... although he's not a big fan of sharing his toys and blankets with her.  That, of course, makes his toys and blankets her most FAVORITE things...  :) 

Katie is doing great!  She's tall and skinny - at 8.5 months, she's only about 16 pounds, but is very long.  She's got these long skinny legs, which astounds me... how on earth did I have a long, leggy, skinny kid?  I mean, clearly both my children took about 90% after their dad. Some days I look at them and wonder what it might be like to have a kid that looked like me.  Given that I'm DONE with having kids, I guess I'll never know!

Yesterday, Katie crawled for the first time and I happened to get it on video.  I knew it was going to take something pretty motivating for her to put herself in motion, and she found it.  She crawled over to snake Patrick's car out of his hand.  LOL Check it out!



Otherwise, I found out recently that I have a deviated septum, hence all the sinus headaches, infections, and SNORING!  So I'm having surgery next month to fix it, including some sort of shot to the soft palate of my mouth to stop the vibrating (read: snoring); Sheridan's pretty jazzed about that part!  LOL  I'll keep y'all posted about that - should be tons of fun.

We went to Indianapolis in July to visit Sheridan's siblings and their wives/kids and his dad/ stepmom.  Will post pics soon - we had a blast!

So that it's it for now.  Hope you all are staying cool this HOT summer!

Love, Mer

Baby Immunizations

I'm pretty passionate about the topic of immunizations for babies.  There was a study a while back that indicated that shot injury could be the source of autism, which is my worst fear for my children!  That study has recently been confirmed as a big ole source of horse crap, BUT it still got me thinking and researching the topic, so that I feel educated to make the right decisions for my children.  You know, when I was young, we received like 15 immunizations and kids now receive like 50, and so many of them all at once; and really, a Hep B shot at birth?  It just doesn't FEEL right to me, and what does feel right to me is ensuring that my children do receive all their immunizations, yet spaced out a little bit.  It doesn't feel right to me to inject a 12 pound baby with 5/6 shots at a time, all including mercury and other preservatives that keep the medication for long periods in the doctors' cabinets.   So I found a pediatrician that respects my wishes, and we developed a shot schedule together that makes sense from a medical perspective, and that I'm comfortable with, as well.  It took a lot of research, time, and thought, so I thought I'd share it all of you, in case you ever embark on a similar project.  Let me know if you have feedback or insight.

Thanks!  Mer

Mer Show Babies' Immunization Schedule

2 months – DTaP, Hib, Rotateq (Rotateq isn’t a shot, it’s oral)

3 months – IPV, PCV

4 months – DTaP, Hib, Rotateq

5 months – IPV, PCV

6 months – DTaP, Hib, Rotateq

7 months – IPV, PCV

October (beginning of flu season) – flu

12 months – Hep B

15 months –Hep B

18 months –MMR

October – flu

24 months – IPV, Hep B

30 months – Varicella, Hep A

October – flu

36 months – Hep A

4 years – DTaP, IPV

October – flu

5 years – MMR booster

October – flu

6 – varicella booster

October – flu

12 years – Tdap, HPV

12.5 years – HPV

13 years – Meningococcal, HPV

Bubby Loves Sissy

Please ignore the broken slat on the blinds behind the kids. We recently had an 18 month old guest to the house that walked through the front door, straight to the back, and snapped the slat in half. :x I'll get to fixing it soon...

Meanwhile, Patrick loves Katie so much and these spontaneous kisses are frequent. I just happened to have my phone with me this time, and I caught the moment. Awwwwww...




Arent they sweet? <3

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Memorial Day at Lake Travis

Sheridan and I went out to the lake over Memorial Day weekend with some friends and had a blast!  See?

The Latest Ailment - Fifth's Disease

So a couple of weeks ago, our little dude came down with a nasty rash - he had welts all over this face, and although he seemed to feel pretty normal, he looked TERRIBLE.  We finally got nervous and took P to our fave urgent care (they know us well by now) on Monday of Memorial Day, because it was getting worse and worse.  They sent us home with some liquid steroids and said that they didn't know what it was, but thought it was food allergy related.

So the next day, we took P to school and upon looking at him, his teacher sent him home.  She said that one of the other kids in school had been diagnosed with something called Fifth's Disease, and wanted us to get a doctor's note confirming it wasn't this before sending him back to school . 


I immediately took P Diddy to the pediatrician, who said it was definitely not Fifth's Disease, and that's an often misdiagnosed rash.  He also thought it was a food allergy and told us to watch what he ate, and how he reacted (sheesh); he wrote up a doctor's note and sent him back to school.  The thing that just sat really wrong with me was that A) we had done blood testing for allergies and it had come back negative for everything and B) he went on a long diatribe about how I shouldn't send him to an allergist, because they're blood-sucking jerks who just perform expensive skin-testing, because they want cash, blah blah blah...

So of course, the next thing I did was schedule an appointment with a highly recommended allergist for the next day.  He got one look at Patrick's rash, and said "oh, this isn't allergies - this is VIRAL'.  WHAT?!  Three different opinions in 3 days from 3 different doctors.  Exasperation strikes!

So we went a few more days, and the rash moved from his face to his arms to his legs to his bottom... and would get worse when we went outside, or he'd play hard and get hot, or when he'd have tantrums (you know, like 5x/day, LOL).  It just wouldn't go away!!  By the next weekend, Sheridan was ready to take him to another urgent care for another opinion, and I said "you know what, let's google pics of Fifth's Disease".

And we ended up having a GOOD LAUGH, because the pictures we saw of Fifth's Disease were a dead on match for Patrick's rash.  And indeed, it flares with heat, stress, sunlight, and exercise, and once the rash shows up, apparently it's no longer contagious - thank goodness, since our pediatrician sent him back to school!!!

And fortunately, our little muffin Katie didn't pick this one up.  Whew!

Anywho, add it to the list.  Could this kid obtain anymore crazy childhood cooties?  He is such a magnet!!

Just in case your kid shows up with a weird rash, check this out and note - it's Fifth's Disease. (BTW, the name means that it's the fifth disease after Measles, Mumps, Rubella, and Chicken Pox.) 

Look Who's Sitting Up

Miss Katiebug is super close to sitting up on her own. Today, she's practicing against the couch. :)



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Hair Crisis

I'm so over my hair style.  I have no time in the mornings to do what I need to do to make it look pretty, which is blow dry it completely straight and then flat iron it.  My hair used to be pretty and curly, and then I went and had kids, and my hormones aren't the same anymore; henceforth, no curls.  It was so easy to come out of the bathroom, spritz it with curly stuff, and GO.  Darnit, I miss those days!

So I find myself putting it in a wet ponytail most days.  I have learned to spiff it up with a little braid or blingy barette/ ponytail holder, but that's getting old too.  I'm even getting sick of coloring it to hide those few grays that plague me.  I'm just over it all...

I'm about to pull a Brit Brit move and shave it all off!  Ugh. 

Maybe I just need to find a cute style that makes me want to *fix* it every day.  What could that be?  Any suggestions?  Anyone??  Anyone???

Love, Mer

How We Picked Her Name

So someone today asked me how we picked out Katie's name.  In my mind, I tried to envision what my little precious angel would look like, and I saw a dark headed, freckly, delicate little girl that looked a little bit like Patrick.  She just looked like a Katie to me, in my mind... the picture in my mind of how I envisioned our baby girl is still very clear - I hope I never forget.  She actually looks quite a bit different in reality, but still like a Katie to me.  :)  Anyway, we reverse engineered her nickname and decided on Kathryn/Katherine/Catherine.  I gave Sheridan the choice and he liked the first spelling the best.

Other names in contention were Juliet (I love Shakespeare) and Lexie/Alexandra.  However, Juliet H. just didn't sound right for some reason... and there's already a Lexie H. in daycare with P and K, so that ruined that option!  We thought and thought and thought about whether Katie was the right name, and no other name ever came close - she was just a Katie.

Of course, her middle name Genevieve is after her paternal grandmother, Mary Genevieve.  And it turns out - we had no idea until after Katie arrived - that Genny's grandmother was also named Genevieve, and she was named after her.  So our little muffin is named after her great, great grandmother Genevieve.  How cool is that?

Scenes From The Mer Show House

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