Vaccinating seems to be a pretty hot area of debate for parents and non-parents alike. Everyone has an opinion on what is 'right' and what is 'wrong'. What I don't understand is why people can't just agree to disagree. I don't think there is an overall right or wrong choice but a right and wrong for each individual set of parents.
I was just reading some posts from parents regarding the topic of vaccinating versus not vaccinating and it amazes me how narrow-minded some people can be, even in this current day and age of instant information on the web.
There was one parent who said that any parent who doesn't vaccinate their child is allowing their child to be susceptible to numerous illnesses and risking their lives for a selfish choice.
A number of other parents wrote about how vaccinations have negatively affected at least one of their children compared to at least one other of their children they did not have vaccinated. One parent even wrote how her oldest has Autism but had been developing normally until about 18 months with a decline in health and development after each round of vaccinations.
A couple parents referenced books who are written in favor of one option or another. I'm sure some of the information could be helpful but I also wonder how much is just biased writing in favor of one choice or another. Then again I suppose that is a hazard of reading any book supporting one thing over another.
I think the idea behind vaccinating originally was fabulous but over the years, and with the advancement of medicine, I think it has gotten a little out of control. For instance, newborns are vaccinated for Hep B hours after birth. Why? I'm pretty sure my child wont be at risk of contracting Hep B until she's much older.
I also think that parents who choose not to vaccinate usually have a valid reason and their choice should be respected, not judged. I think the biggest argument I've heard as to why not vaccinating is so wrong is because of the risk of disease or illness an unvaccinated child is to vaccinated children. That would make sense except that vaccinated children are supposed to be immune (for the most part) from the diseases and illnesses that parents are most concerned about. Also, regardless of how many shots a child has had or has not had will not prevent them from getting sick in life. There are bigger health risks in life than an unvaccinated child. I know this because I was not vaccinated as a child and I never contracted nor passed on any deadly disease or illness. I played outside, in the dirt, just as much as any other child and I have lived a healthy life.
The whole point to my rant is that parents shouldn't be judged for their choice. There is a right and wrong only in the minds of the parents making the decision. Its either right for their child or it isn't. There is not a right and wrong for the collective whole. The decision surrounding vaccinations is like religion, its an individual choice, not something that should be forced on any parent.
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Today I had the best baby shower!
Thank you Misa for everything you did, cooked, cleaned, moved, painted, fixed and bought. You're the bestest big sister and even more bestest Auntie in the whole world!!
Thank you mom for spoiling me and baby A. You're amazing and it is easy to see where Misa gets it from. :)
The baby shower was fun but there didn't seem to be enough time to visit with everyone for as long as I wanted. I suppose thats a general complaint when you have a large group of people together but I'm hoping that everyone had as good a time as I did.
And don't get me started on the food. Soooo YUMMY! Too bad I was more busy talking than eating so I didn't eat as much as I wanted but then again thats probably a good thing. LOL.
Baby A has so many adorable new outfits and blankets. I seriously wish some of her blankets came in my size. Soooo soft and pretty!!
One of my favorite parts of today are the scrapbooking pages that people made for her baby book. Those are wonderful memories that no picture can capture and not quite the same when I write about them. I cannot wait to start putting her book together so that she can see how loved she's been from the start.
I really have been blessed with a wonderful set of family and friends and I'm so thankful that I was able to spend today with so many of them. Reading the kind words of the ones in my life has made me appreciate the specialness of having a strong support made of friends and family. Not very many people are as blessed as I am to know so many great people or be able to share these special times with so many but I am and I am extremely grateful.
Now that the baby shower is done I'm not sure what to do. I have a lot of stuff to put away, clothes to wash and diapers to unroll (I don't want to take the diaper cake apart though) but now I don't have anything to focus my attention on other than her arrival. It's so close yet so far away still.
I'm excited yet scared. I cannot wait to hold her, and dress her in all her cute clothes, but I'm not quite ready to share her with the world. But whenever she decides to make her grand entrance to this world I'll be as ready as I can be and will do my best for her.
Thank you to all my friends and family who shared today with me, have helped us with generous gifts, kept us in their prayers and who have loved us.
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Lately I can't help but wonder exactly when some people will stop making excuses, especially when they're lame excuses, and just do what needs to be done. I've made excuses, everyone has, but I don't make them constantly and when it gets down to the bottom line I don't bail on my responsibilities.
I wonder if parents teach their kids to suck it up and deal when life isn't exactly what they wanted or imagined. I know my mom taught us and I'm thankful for that. It made me stronger and I'm able to push through even when I don't necessarily want to. I'll be the first to admit that life can seriously suck but I'll also be the first to admit that life can be amazing and full of wonderful things if you can deal with and get past the bad. Its hard but I deal, one way or another and I'd like to think that in 20 years I wont have regrets about the way I've handled what life has thrown at me which makes me wonder if some people I know, or have known, will be able to say the same in 20 years.
More importantly I hope I'm able to teach my daughter how to push through the bad and enjoy the good.
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5 weeks from today and I will arrive at my due date.
I have no clue if I'll make it to Feb. 21st before going in to labor or not but I suppose that is part of the excitement of having a baby. At the same time the not knowing is scary.
The nursery is almost completely finished and ready to be shown off during the baby shower. The changing table needs to be painted and put back together and we're set. I'm going to start washing her clothes and getting those put away so they're all ready for her to wear them when we get home from the hospital. After that its all about the waiting for labor to start. Which I'm really more freaked out about than anything. LOL.
I have a hard time believing that I'm 35 weeks and that she could make her grand debut in a couple short weeks. I sometimes feel like I just found out that I'm pregnant a couple weeks ago and then I feel her kick or roll and I marvel at how strong she is and utterly stubborn already. She moves like crazy when I'm alone but as soon as I'm around any other person she stops. She's so still I wonder if she's figured out how to hold her breath. LOL. Then when I'm alone or people are a good distance away from me she starts moving again. But forget someone else even see my stomach jump around with her movements because the moment someone begins to pay attention to me she stops again. Its almost like she has a 6th sense that alerts her when she's the center of attention. I'm wondering how this is going to influence her personality as she grows. I'm a little worried actually. LOL.
As scared as I am of giving birth I'm a little sad that this phase has passed so quickly. It's just that much more of a reminder how fast time goes by and before I know it she'll be turning 1 and then 2 and so on. How quickly she'll go from being my baby to my toddler and then to my kid and on to my teenager. Ugh. I have to stop thinking about that. It's too much!
I have to go now and think of something other than how fast she's going to grow!
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I ordered a car seat and stroller traveling system in December and about a week after it arrived I got a notice from the store I bought it from that there was a voluntary recall due to a 'fall hazard'. Apparently the handle on the car seat had/has a tendency to come off while you're carrying your child.
Nice!
So now that the holidays are over and my focus is on preparing the nursery and getting things in order I looked up the recall notice on the manufacturers website where it said that the recall was for my model of car seat, however, the recall is for car seats manufactured before my car seat was manufactured.
Yay!
I am impressed how quickly the store notified me of the recall. I'm hoping that now that I've (finally) mailed in the child restraint registration card the manufacturer will be just as fast to notify me of any recalls, voluntary or otherwise, as fast as the store did.
I bought the system from Kohls, yay for Kohls! And the traveling system is a Cosco Brand manufactured by Dorel Juvenile Group. I must say that Dorel's website is very easy to navigate and I was impressed how easy it was to find the recall notice I was looking for. There is also a way to search by your product model number for any notices just to be sure you know if there are any updates or alerts for your particular product.
I'm happy that the recall doesn't affect my particular car seat and that is one less thing to worry about right now but I'm definitely comforted by how quickly I was notified and how easy it was to verify the info on Dorel's website.
Now when I bring her home from the hospital I wont have to worry about the car seat holding up and can enjoy the adorable print and how precious my little one is. :)
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I swear I understand people less and less as I get older. I try but it doesn't seem to do me any good.
As I get closer to welcoming my daughter in to the world I wonder about people more and more. I wonder why some people think their opinions and views are the only opinions and views that matter. Or why people you considered good friends become unreachable until they have news they want you to celebrate. Better yet, I wonder why people take family for granted.
I also don't understand when people complain about things and yet make no attempt to change anything. I, more than anyone, can appreciate how much life can suck sometimes but at some point things have to change. Don't they? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over but expecting different results each time. Maybe I know more insane people than I realized and that is why I feel as though I understand people less and less as the days go by.
Or maybe I'm the insane one and that is my problem.
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And by 7 weeks I mean that is assuming I make it to 40 weeks. If I go in to labor anytime after 4 weeks from today the doctor won't stop delivery. YIKES!
The closer her arrival date gets the more nervous I am. I finally got the registry completed for the baby shower today and my next task is collecting addresses to get the invites sent.
Then on to getting her room set up. I'm excited to see the final product but I'm not exactly looking forward to everything that needs to be done to get there. Thankfully my sister is helping me and she is a MUCH better decorator than I am.
I remember watching my friends go through their pregnancies and thinking that those 9 months took forever! Now that I'm doing it myself I feel like the months have flown by and I went from thinking I had plenty of time to gather necessities and get prepared to thinking there is hardly any time to get things finished and settled before I bring her home.
I feel like I'm in a race against time and I'm not sure who is going to win.
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