My Spunky Monkey

Where's Waldo Rayce?

2008-05-12T10:32:00.000-06:00

Little stinker destroyed his room not 10 minutes after I finished cleaning it. I cleaned his room and proceeded to clean other parts of the house and I noticed it got strangely quite. So I went in to investigate and this is what I found. Notice, the table up side down, chairs thrown about, Mickey face down. What is a mom to do? Apparently nothing because I’m told this is typical boy fashion.

I recently read some encouraging words on babycenter.com about tantrums and toddler hood. The article read: your toddler may be easily overwhelmed by life's challenges and respond to them by dissolving into tears and screams. Don't ask him to stop — he probably can't. Instead be patient, available, and willing to offer him comfort or just your presence, whatever he seems to need at the moment. He'll get over it and be good as new if you just let him storm.

Ok great! I’m thinking that would work great a home but what about in public? Am I supposed to just let the storm pass while everyone stares? Because we all know people love to stare when your child is throwing a fit in the middle of a restaurant. I mean come on people as if it’s not bad enough, I don’t need an audience as well.

And he’s not even 2 yet!

Mother's Day

2008-05-11T21:00:00.003-06:00

To all moms: I hope your day was filled with lots of love and fun memories. I can't wait to do it again next year! ;)

16 Months

2008-05-08T18:55:00.004-06:00

Where, oh where, has my baby gone? I now have a full-fledged toddler living with me. Walking and running still top the agenda, but now more complex movements have become the norm. When he crosses a room, he'll squat to pick up an interesting toy. Soon I fear he’ll be ambitious enough to figure out how to push a chair over to the kitchen counter so he can climb up for a better look — all the more reason to make sure my house is as childproof as it can be. Rayce is changing and growing at such a fast pace some days I feel, I just can’t keep up. It’s pure craziness. Lord help me get through toddler hood, I need you like never before!

Wordless Wednesday

2008-05-07T00:06:00.001-06:00

©My Spunky Monkey-A cereal mess!

Woody Woodpecker

2008-05-04T17:56:00.004-06:00

My son is a woodpecker! That little sinker chewed up his crib. I guess teething got the best of him, he must have needed something to gnaw on pretty bad. It’s funny but it’s not, you know what I mean? Speaking of teething, Rayce still only has 8 teeth. It kind of looks like he has some coming through on the top but so far nada. Poor little guy, teething is rough. If it’s anything like wisdom teeth I feel his pain.

In other Rayce news: we’re trying to conquer tantrums. :/ I know it comes with his age and where he is right now developmentally but lord help me on some days. Rayce is one of those kids that you stare at, at the grocery store. He throws fits anywhere and everywhere. Yesterday we went to Lowes and he would not sit in the cart. Not only did he wanted to get out at walk around (which was fine) but he also wanted to push the cart on his knees. Imagine the looks I got from that one. Then after that blew over, he wanted to stand in the back part of the cart, not sit but stand! Oy! I tell you it has been a challenge but we will make it through, one way or another.

Little Climber

2008-05-01T12:06:00.001-06:00

Keeping up with a spunky toddler is anything but boring. He challenges me everyday and always has something up his sleeve. His favorite thing to do is climb. He can now get on top of the couch, coffee table, and his chair, un-assisted. He loves to stand up on anything, I think it makes him feel big! I know what you’re thinking, omg Laura, that is dangerous. The good new is he knows how to get down safely and we haven’t had a fall yet. From an early age I taught Rayce how to get off of things backwards, you know, feet first. So now, whenever he tries to get off of something he turns around and plants his feet first. Works like a charm! I love my little guy. Isn’t he growing up quick? Too quick!

Wordless Wednesday

2008-04-30T00:08:00.001-06:00

©My Spunky Monkey-I love my boys!

We're still on Top Momma

2008-04-28T08:41:00.006-06:00

Just incase you were wondering, were stil there! A big thanks to everyone who clicked but the job isn't done yet! What are you waitng for? Get busy clicking here! The more clicks my blog gets the better. Thanks again!

More on Vaccines

2008-04-27T11:52:00.009-06:00

While doing some more reading on vaccines I ran across this blog, the beautiful Raney family. I was immediately drawn in and moved to tears by little Noah’s story. His mom, Cassandra wrote:

"Noah has been diagnosed with PDD (Pervasive Development Disorder) with the possibility of falling on the Autism spectrum. By 18 months old he had acquired approximately 20 words, however, all at once he lost the ability to speak. For the last 9 months we have worked with Early Childhood Intervention with speech and occupational therapy. His speech is increasing slowly. I am keeping a running record of his vocabulary, although not all of them are articulated correctly he says them to the best of his ability."

She is almost positive that Noah’s PDD was triggered by vaccinations. Then she went on to share this article and once again I was moved to tears. The article read:

Written by Dr. Mercola:

"The U.S. government has now gone on the record saying that childhood vaccines can contribute to the symptoms of autism. They have then backtracked and stated that there is no association.

So which is it?

Well, by the time your child starts school he or she will have received more than 36 injections, including four doses each of vaccines for Hemophilus influenzae type b infections, diphtheria, tetanus and pertussis -- all of them given during the first 12 months of life.

And by then it may be too late for the CDC to make up their mind about whether or not vaccines can be dangerous.

In 1976, children received 10 vaccines before attending school, and in the early 1980s, the incidence of autism was 1 in 10,000 births. Today it is 1 in 150 births and still climbing.

Is there a connection between autism and vaccines? I’d say so. And a pretty obvious one at that. If you are interested in the science behind this connection, Dr. Russell Blaylock has written an excellent paper that provides a connection between excessive vaccination and neurodevelopmental disorders like autism that is definitely worth reading.

The Blame Game (read on here)

I encourage you to read the entire article and to become more aware of the dangers of vaccinations. I am by no means saying you should not vaccinate your child I’m just saying do a little research first and decide what is best for your family. I wish I had done research prior to vaccinating Rayce. With your help we can help get the word out there about the dangers of vaccinations. One size does not fit all especially when you're talking about vaccines.

Who knew?

2008-04-26T15:14:00.006-06:00

Rayce would still be entertained by his bouncer at 15 months old! I had it tucked away in the back bedroom and he discovered it and had a grand time in it. He loved it so much I had to take a few photos. He looked so big in it. I remember when he would drown in this thing. Ah the memories!

Saturday Social

2008-04-26T10:12:00.003-06:00

What do you plan on doing with your tax rebate check (economic stimulus package)?

My husband and I decided to half ours so he could do what he wants with his half and I could do what I wanted with my half. I have no idea what he will do with his half but I sure do know what I'm doing with my half! I plan to do a few home improvements, pay a few things, and save the rest. I'm super excited to have this extra money...it's like Christmas in April!! It can't get any better then that right!

If you'd like to participate in Saturday Social click here for all the rules and details!

Today I'm tagging Sammi t Stop by her blog if you get a chance. She's a mother of five including 2 sets of twins. Amazing!

Top Momma Part Deux

2008-04-25T07:59:00.008-06:00

Apparently I made the cut for Top Momma again only this time it wasn't I who submitted the entry. So let's give the a whirl, again! Would you be so gracious to VOTE for me?

Visit TopMomma.com look for this adorable monkey image
(you can't miss him)and click it over and over and over!! The more clicks I get the longer I stay up! So whatcha waiting for get to clicking! Hopefully, this time I can last longer then one day. Thanks in advance ladies!

Friday's Feast!

2008-04-25T07:12:00.001-06:00

Appetizer

Name something you would categorize as weird. My in-laws lol!

Soup

What color was the last piece of food you ate? Yellow

Salad

On a scale of 1-10 with 10 being highest, how much do you enjoy being alone? 10! I love being alone. I'm a total loner!

Main Course

Fill in the blank: I will ______ vote for ___________ in _______.

I have yet to decide on this one. :/

Dessert

Describe your sleeping habits. I sleep a lot! Only because I have trouble falling and staying asleep, causing me to feel not rested. Typically I go to sleep around midnight and wake at 8 am with Rayce. Then usually I require a afternoon nap, if I'm lucky!

15 month check-up

2008-04-24T17:51:00.002-06:00

Before I got abruptly cut off from my internet I forgot to give an update on Rayce’s 15 month appointment. He weighed in at 24.6 pounds and is 32 inches long. He is still down 2 pounds from where he was prior to getting sick so that was a little disappointing. Also he is developmentally delayed in fine motor skills and in his speech. His pedi didn’t seem as concerned as I was. She just said we would have him evaluated and nothing would probably come out of it. WTH? I guess because he is doing some things on target but not others. That would be my guess. I’m not as concerned about his fine motor skills as I am his speech because he doesn’t really say anything, at all. For awhile there he was attempting to say hungry but now he can’t quite get that to come out. So in the meantime I decided to delay some of his vaccines. Rayce stays at home all day with me. He’s not in daycare around a bunch of other kids and so at this time I felt it was in his best interest to hold off on the controversial MMR. At least until we get to the bottom of what is going on with him developmentally. When we get things figured out we will re-evaluate. Until then I guess that makes me a non-vaccine mommy. Although you may not agree I feel like this is the best for my child at this time.

Away

2008-04-17T12:52:00.001-06:00

I'm out of commission! For the time being at least. Hopefully I will be back soon. Hugs to all!

Saturday Social

2008-04-12T16:22:00.002-06:00

What do you do to help the environment?

This is definitely an area our house needs some improvement. Currently we don’t do much to help the environment. I know, I know! As far as recycling or cutting down on trash we don’t do it. I need to find our local recycling place because we don't have curb side pick up here. I do try and conserve energy whenever possible. I do not use lights unless it’s necessary. We try to conserve water whenever possible. We don’t have grass so we save there. I only run the dishwasher, when it’s completely full, so we save there. This is a great question! It’s definitely something to think about.

To participate in Saturday Social click here !

Wordless Wednesday

2008-04-09T00:02:00.001-06:00

15 months

2008-04-08T14:21:00.003-06:00

Rayce is 15 months old today! He's a curious little guy. He likes getting into anything and everything. His favorite thing to do these days is to tear the house upside down right after mommy got done cleaning for 2 hours. I find myself constantly picking up after him because if I don't by the end of the night it looks like a tornado just got done blowing through here.

We have also been working on talking. Rayce has started to show more and more interest in talking so lately we have been working on that. So far he attempts to say hungry and bless you. He thinks it's the funniest thing when people sneeze and just the other day I caught him trying to say bless you after Ray sneezed. Too funny! Who thought their child’s first words would have been hungry and bless you?

On Thursday we are going for Rayce's 15-month checkup so stay tuned for that. For now enjoy a small slide show of some pictures from this weekend.

Mommy is sicky poo!

2008-04-05T21:20:00.002-06:00

So I caught whatever crud Rayce had. Please excuse my brief absence while I try to recover. Thanks for all the birthday wishes, I had a good birthday. Hope to be back soon.

It's My Birthday!

2008-04-03T00:06:00.001-06:00

On this 3rd day of April, 1979 I was born in to this world. Weighing in at a whopping 6 pounds. Little did I know what a chaotic life lie ahead. We all have our stories, I’m sure some worse then others but I can truly say my story has made me who I am today. I have been through so much and have yet to conquer it all but for now, I am content. I look forward to what tomorrow may bring. Live, Laugh, Love, and always remember everything happens for a reason.

Here are some pictures of me when I was younger. I use to be so cute! I'm sure you're wondering what happened? LOL! Kidding! A big thanks to my mom and Jay for providing these photos.

Happy Birthday to Me! Gasp! I can’t believe I’m 29! *tear*

I was tagged

2008-04-02T16:14:00.006-06:00

My list of 4's

I was tagged by my friend Vashonnte. She always has fun tags!

4 Jobs I've Had:
Cashier
Front Office Assistant
Accounts Recievable
Medical Receptionist

4 Shows on my TiVo/DVR:
Big Brother
Dancing with the Stars
Paradise Hotel 2
Oprah

4 Places I've Been:
Mexico
Colorado
Texas
California

4 Favorite Foods:
Tacos
Potatoes (of any kind)
Pecan Pie
Steak

4 CD's Recently Listened To:
Justin Timerlake
Chicago
Kelly Clarkson
Colbie Caillat

4 Things You Can Do to Make My Day:
Tell me you Love me
Buy me some shoes (LOL)
Take me to get a pedicure
Clean my house!

4 People I Tag:
Lisa, HolleAnn, Katie, Angie

Ten on Tuesday

2008-04-01T08:48:00.001-06:00

Ten Things I’d Fix in My Home (if I had the time and money)

1. More storage space
2. Re-do master bath
3. Get some new couches
4. Replace my entertainment center
5. New carpet throughout
6. Re-furnish the guest bedroom
7. New blinds
8. I need a new stove
9. Bigger refrigerator
10. Landscape my yard.

A girl can dream right!

Article by Dr Mercola

2008-04-01T07:45:00.000-06:00

It seems clear from watching the CNN video with Dr. Julie Gerberding, the CDC’s director, that they are looking to put the blame for rising autism rates on anything other than their overzealous vaccination schedule.

While they have admitted that vaccines can trigger autism, Dr. Gerberding is quick to say that it’s only in children with a “rare” mitochondrial disorder. Referring to the landmark Hannah Poling case, Dr. Gerberding claimed that Hannah's case was a rare incident with little relevance to the other autism cases pending in the federal “vaccine court.”

Since then, however, Dr. Gerberding and other CDC officials were made aware of a Portuguese study reporting that 7.2 percent of children with autism had confirmed mitochondrial disorders. Some now estimate the rate of mitochondrial dysfunction in autism to be 20 percent or more, and the rate among children with the regressive sub-type of autism is likely even higher.

If mitochondrial dysfunction can convert into autism in large numbers, then the connection between vaccines and autism could clearly be quite strong.

So much so that the CDC acknowledged they are aware of this situation and are “immediately taking measures to address the current national vaccine schedule.”

Yet, Dr. Gerberding made no mention of this on CNN.

She also did not mention that the current vaccination schedule has never been proven to be safe.

Health officials consider a vaccine to be safe if no bad reactions -- like seizures, intestinal obstruction or anaphylaxis -- occur acutely. The CDC has not done any studies to assess the long-term effects of its immunization schedule.

So no one knows whether injecting children with 14 vaccines in their first 24 months of life, plus the meningococcal vaccine, which is to be administered between the age of 2 and 6, is enough to overwhelm their systems and lead to neurological and immune system disorders. They don’t know, yet they are very adamant about keeping your children on this schedule -- and they make anyone who dares to question their logic out to be a quack.

Yet here’s something to chew on. One vaccine injected into a 13-pound, 2-month-old infant is equivalent to 10 doses of the same in a 130-pound adult.

This is an assault on your child’s nervous system and immune system, neither of which is fully developed. It’s no wonder, then, according to Dr. Russell Blaylock, that multiple vaccines given close together over-stimulate your brain's immune system and, via the mechanism of "bystander injury," destroy brain cells.

What else wasn’t mentioned in the interview?

Oh yes, that members of the CDC's Advisory Committee on Immunization Practices (ACIP) -- the one that promulgates a self-serving, one-size-fits-all vaccine policy -- are known to have ties to vaccine makers. And their compulsory vaccination schedule, that’s required of nearly every U.S. child who is entering public school, has made many of these vaccine makers rich beyond their wildest imaginations.

Vaccinating Your Children: How to Find Out the Truth

The CDC is clearly very confused about where they stand on this issue (or at least are pretending to be). So if it were me, I would not put the future health of my child in their hands, or the hands of a doctor who blindly accepts all of their recommendations.

Personally, I question the validity of most all vaccinations. But there is a middle ground, one that at least protects your child during the crucial time of their brain development. The most rapid period of brain development begins in the third trimester of pregnancy and continues over the first two years of life. By then, brain development is 80 percent complete, so it makes sense to wait until this time to give any vaccinations.

Dr. Donald Miller, a cardiac surgeon and professor of surgery at the University of Washington in Seattle, came up with this user-friendly vaccination schedule back in 2004, and it is leaps and bounds ahead of the CDC’s “one-size-fits-all” schedule:

1. No vaccinations until your child is two years old
2. No vaccines that contain thimerosal (mercury)
3. No live virus vaccines
4. The following vaccines should be given one at a time (not as a combination vaccine), every six months, beginning at age 2:

Pertussis (acellular, not whole cell)
Diphtheria
Tetanus
Polio (the Salk vaccine, cultured in human cells)
This schedule takes the best interests of the individual into consideration rather than what the government judges best for society. If your pediatrician does not like this schedule (and most won’t), I’d suggest finding a new one who does."

Sicky Poo

2008-03-31T15:25:00.002-06:00

Rayce has been sick yet again. It all started last week, he developed a fever on Thursday. His fever has been in the 102-103 ranges for 4 days now so I went ahead and took him in to the doctor again. Of course, as I suspected, she didn't find anything visibly wrong. She said to give it another few days and if he isn't better to start antibiotics. She's thinking that he might have drainage problems. If he keeps getting infections then we will probably have to look in to thing further. I'm hoping it all passes and I cannot wait for cold/flu season to be O-V-E-R! I'm sure you all know a sick toddler is not the finest thing on the block.

Just a swingin'

2008-03-30T22:03:00.003-06:00

It has been awhile since I posted a video of Rayce. This weekend we went to birthday party at the park and Rayce got some serious swingin' time in. I missed it because I was doing other things but daddy got it on video so, I thought I would share it with you all. He's such a big boy now, I can not believe how big he's getting. Enjoy!