Ear Tubes & Adenoids, Oh My!

It's been awhile since I've blogged! We spent November & December sick, so blogging wasn't really a priority. Poor Sophie caught a cold in November, which morphed into a double ear infection by Thanksgiving Day. The fluid never drained, so every time she developed a runny nose, the consequence was an ear infection. She suffered through six between Thanksgiving and New Years before we could get her in to see an ENT. Luckily, he was able to operate two days later.

Even though ear tubes and the removal of adenoids is a simple procedure, with minimal risk, I was still nervous about the surgery. I didn't sleep very well the night before, and was up well before my alarm went off the day of surgery. Luckily, a friend of mine would be the anesthesiologist, and I knew she would treat Sophie as her own. We arrived at the hospital at 7am on January 10. I filled out all the paperwork and we were quickly brought back to prepare for surgery. Sophie has been through 4 rounds of antibiotic shots the last two weeks, so anytime she sees a nurse and has to lay on a bed, she freaks out. We could barely get her weight. I actually had to get her to stand on the "big girl" scale, which, fortunately, was similar to the one we have at home. They took us to a private room, and her nurse had placed a small pink teddy bear on her bed. I thought that was very sweet. Crystal, our pre-op nurse, took great care of Sophie, and put her at ease immediately. Sophie was pretty cooperative, allowing Crystal to take her vitals and she even put on the tiniest hospital gown I've ever seen. Steven and I documented everything with pictures and a few videos. God Bless Steve Jobs and apple! We had a TV in our room, complete with Direct TV, and Mickey Mouse Clubhouse happened to be on, so Sophie and I curled up in the hospital bed and watched Mickey. They brought in "silly juice", which is what they give children before surgery to relax them so they aren't dragged into the OR kicking and screaming. Of course, Sophie wouldn't take it, so Crystal and I were forced to hold her down. She didn't get the full dose, so she wasn't totally out of it when Dr. Higgins, our anesthesiologist, came to get her. Dr. Higgins and the OR nurse proceeded to get into a small argument over who had the privilege of carrying Sophie into the OR. They both wanted the honor! But since Jenny is a friend of mine, she won!

Sophie, in her hospital gown before surgery.

I cannot explain the feeling of handing over your baby to another person before surgery. It was the hardest thing I've ever done. I knew they'd be taking her into the OR. I knew she'd be getting gas and an IV. I knew she'd be getting SURGERY, and that for the next 30 minutes, I had absolutely no control over anything, except my own emotions. Even though the procedure is simple, it is still surgery. Sophie cried as I handed her over, but as soon as they rounded the corner she stopped. I held it together, and managed not to cry. I made it through the next 30 minutes by reading sweet and supportive texts and Facebook posts from my family & friends. The cool thing about Texas Health Presbyterian Hospital is they actually send you updates via text throughout the procedure. So we knew when she went under, when the surgery began, and when it was finished. Pretty neat!

Dr. Mock came out and told us she did great, and they were taking her to recovery. Dr, Higgins came in and told me Sophie was a little slow to wake up in the OR, which is why it was taking a little longer for them to bring her back to her room. My aunt had already warned me that kids come out of anaesthesia angry, and she was right. I could hear Sophie screaming once she fully woke up. Two post op nurses brought her out to us, and she was thrashing and crying uncontrollably. Surprisingly, this didn't really bother me because I was prepared for this reaction. It took me about 15 minutes to calm her down, and for her to realize that I was holding her. Then she snuggled up on my chest and went to sleep. The hardest part was seeing her little hand with an IV, and the little green bandage on her arm. She was totally out of it at first, but after about half an hour, she was more alert. Steven would ask her questions, and she would softly answer "yes" with her eyes closed and head on my shoulder. Precious. We were in recovery for about an hour, and then sent home! Sophie slept for about two hours, and then proceeded to eat pretty much the rest of the day. She was happy, active, and her old self again.

Passed out after surgery. Note the IV and green bandage.

Until Friday. When she woke up running a fever of 103.3. I lost it. I was sobbing. Steven had already left for work, and it was 7 am, so the surgeon's office wasn't open yet. I gave her Advil, changed her out of her fleece pajamas and into some lightweight cotton pj's. Sophie wouldn't eat or drink, and she wouldn't stop crying. Then she threw up. I called my mother crying, and I have never been so scared in my life.  I was convinced she had a horrible infection related to surgery. By 8am, her fever had lowered to about 101. I rushed her to the surgeon at 9am, only to find out she just had a viral infection and it wasn't connected to the surgery. He gave her ANOTHER shot of antibiotics just in case. Sophie ran fever for four days. She was checked for flu, which fortunately came back negative. She was scheduled for a chest X-ray today, but since she went 24 hours without fever, it wasn't necessary, and she was able to go to school! Hopefully we are in the clear, and can stay healthy until next cold & flu season. Sophie has her post op appointment on Friday, after which she will be cleared for swimming, as long as she wears ear plugs!

Sophie admiring the awesome balloon bouquet from her friend Barrett.

 I have to say that the most remarkable parts of this journey were first, the strength of my little girl, and second, how amazing our friends have been throughout this ordeal. Sophie never lost her spirit, and she only cried when she really hurt. She suffered through six painful infections, 5 rounds of shots, surgery, and a viral infection post op; and through it all, remained her loving self. I have also been amazed at how supportive our friends have been. Texting, calling, emailing to check on Sophie and myself. Some of these friends we have only know a short while. Barrett, who is in Sophie's class, and his mom Kristin, brought her a huge bouquet of balloons Friday. She is STILL carrying them around the house. I sent Kristin texts all weekend worrying over Sophie's fever, and she always responded. Jenny, Kacy, Adriane, Abby, Jessica, Danielle, Angel, Eva, my Aunt Tracy, our parents, and so many of my friends posting on Facebook, her dance teacher and my friend Kali, her teachers at school.... So many people who love and care for Sophie- too many to name individually. It meant so much to me. Thank You. From the bottom of my heart, thank you for caring about my little girl.

Sophie and I are ready for warmer weather, so we can go to the park! She has been sick for so long, and we are ready to play. We are so fortunate that none of her problems were life threatening, and for this we are infinitely grateful. I will take ear infections and surgery any day over anything more serious. My heart goes out to all of the parents out there who have very sick children. Stay healthy, everyone! XOXO

Toddler Bipolar Disorder

If you don't have a sense of humor, please don't read this blog entry. It's mom satire, people.

I think my daughter has toddler bipolar disorder. This is a recent development. She can be perfectly happy one second, and then, poof. Temporary insanity strikes. The most recent example of this behavior happened today. We actually had a lovely day. No tantrums, a fun Little Gym class, and even a three hour nap. The madness struck unexpectedly after bath time. We'd had a perfectly happy dinner, a fun bath, and then it came time to put on her diaper and pj's. It took twenty minutes, and the two of us, to get her diaper on and then her pajamas. I have never seen more contorting, wiggling and screaming in my life. It was kind of reminiscent of The Exorcist, minus the vomit and 360 degree head rotations. She threw such a fit, that she literally fell asleep in my arms as soon as we sat down in the rocking chair. Our last episode with TBP was all day Saturday, culminating with dinner at El Fenix. Sophie was happily coloring one minute, sorting the sweetener packets the next, and then she discovered if she ripped the packets open, sugar would go everywhere. So when we took the packets away, a fit ensued. I don't think I even ate my dinner. Steven, of course, was able to finish all of his. But I digress.....

I think it's safe to say we've hit the Terrible Twos at 17 months. My friend Danielle told me other moms have told her they calm down at age 5. My response was that they go off to Kindergarten at age 5, so of course it must get easier!!!! Now I understand why moms of older children would look at me with pity when I would ask them when Sophie was a little baby if motherhood got easier. NO. It does NOT get easier. But it does get more fun. See, even though there are moments when I completely run out of patience and have to walk away, Sophie is wonderful. She is sweet, affectionate, loving, and fun. Her newest thing is when I tell her that I love her as I'm rocking her before bed, she reaches up and hugs me tight. It's like she understands what I'm saying, and the feelings behind the words, so even though she can't verbalize that she loves me too, her hug is a way of telling me. It melts my heart every time. We generally have a pretty good time. Taking her to the park has become a blast, because she can climb on everything and go down the slides by herself. She is giggly and takes pure joy in everything.

I've found humor helps everything. I try really hard to laugh when she is hit with temporary TBP. Of course, I'm not always successful, but usually I laugh. I'm grateful for my friends, especially Adriane, Abby, Jenny, and Danielle. I can be myself around them, and they always make me feel like I'm not alone in this journey called motherhood. Because motherhood is a WILD ride. But it's also the best ride ever, one I never want to get off!

Steven and Megan Do Disney

A view from The Beach Club

Well, we finally had a vacation, just the two of us. Our last vacation, just "us two", was May 2010, two months before I got pregnant with Sophie. Disney World is one of our favorite places, and we figured this was the last time we'd go without kids. Kinda hard to leave your 5 year old with her grandparents while you go see Mickey. I'm pretty sure that's child abuse. So, Steven and I spent five magical nights at the "Happiest Place of Earth". We had a great time. I truly had no idea how badly I needed a break from 24/7 mommyhood. My head hit the pillow Sunday night, and I didn't wake up until 9:00am. Nine hours of uninterrupted sleep. See, those of you without kids have no clue how dramatically your sleep will change once you have kids. Sure, you get past the newborn stage, the sleep training, and they're finally sleeping through the night. But from the moment you become a mom, you will always sleep with one ear open. When you wake up in the middle of the night, you'll check out the video monitor, just to make sure they're ok. You will have irrational moments of panic when you wait to see if they'll move, just to make sure they're still breathing. Toddlers are also NOISY sleepers, and since our room is so close to the nursery, each sound Sophie makes goes right to my ears. When she wakes up momentarily at 5:30 am, so do I. So- for five nights at Disney, I slept. Hard. It was great. I also didn't worry about nap time, wake times, is she eating, has she pooped, what time should I put her to bed...... I knew she was in very capable hands with my parents, so I just let it go. And it was great. We rode rides, ate long leisurely meals at our favorite Disney restaurants, swam in the pool, enjoyed cocktails poolside, I finished a book I bought in 2011 (silly me, who buys a book the year they have a baby), and we just enjoyed being "us two" for the first time in 16 months. Of course I missed her every second, but it wasn't overwhelming. We had fun figuring out which rides she'd like, and one of us was always exclaiming "Oooh, Sophie would like that!" By the end of the trip, I think we were both really missing her, because we began planning our next visit... WITH Sophie. We actually went into great debate over which hotel would be best for her, which park had the most for her to do, which parks to avoid, and where we could take her to eat. We may try and take her in the Fall next year.

Sophie had a fabulous time while we were gone, in case you were wondering. She stayed with Grammy & Granddad at Casa de Sparks. They catered to her every want and need. She went to the park, swimming, the Children's Museum, learned how to garden with Granddad, helped make grilled cheese, and played outside in my parents' great backyard. She and Hayley the Golden Retriever became best friends. My dad picked Steven and I up from IAH on Friday, and he described Sophie as "absolutely spectacular". Pretty amazing to be adored so much. Lucky, lucky, oh so very, very lucky!

My parents were both a little depressed when we left for Dallas the next morning.

Sophie and her new best friends, Mickey and Minnie. 

These are a few of my favorite things.....

I thought I'd compile a list of some of my favorite services/people who provide such services/products.

Hair Stylist: Emma @ Osgood O'Neil on Knox. Best hair cut of my life. In fact, if we move back to Houston, I might come back here just to get my hair cut. She can also help you with clip in extensions.... super fun!

Personal Trainer: Amanda Martinez. Super sweet, and super tough. She is also VERY reasonable. Works out of Fit 180 Gym on Lovers. She also teaches at Beyond Pilates.

Favorite out of the box workout: BEYOND PILATES on Lovers. Just go. You'll be glad you did.

Best Airbrush Tan: McKenzie Merrill. Owner of Custom Bronze. Apparently, Dallas agrees with me, because D Magazine just named her business as the best airbrush tan in the city. Which I've been saying for two years. DUH.

Best Skin Care Product: Natura Bisse Glyco Exfoliating Peel. My skin glowed for four days. Amazeballs.

Favorite Lotion: Kiehl's Creme de Corps. Super moisturizing, not oily, no funky scent.

Best Makeup Artist: Kristin Daniel. If Kristin isn't doing your makeup, you are not looking your best!!!!! She is also super sweet and puts up with my annoying texts constantly asking her product questions.....

Vacay, a new Rose is born, & a sudden, tragic loss

The first two weeks of July have been filled with so many different emotions- excitement, fun, happiness, sadness, and many tears. First, the good news! We left July 3 for Sophie's first vacation. My parents were kind enough to treat us to a vacation at the Hyatt Lost Pines Resort. I was so nervous about how Sophie was going to sleep at the hotel, but she did great. We had a fantastic time. Her favorite parts of the vacation were walking up and down the long hallways, the splash pad at the pool, and being able to walk back and forth between our room and my parents.  She thought it was great that she just had to walk next door and see her Grammy and her Granddad anytime she wanted. We had adjoining rooms because Sophie slept in the bathroom....  Sophie sat on top of T-Bone the Longhorn, met Hoss the Dog, who is a Newfoundland and the mascot of the resort. We also took her on a wagon ride, and she was able to meet and pet a horse named Lady.  The resort has four horses, two longhorns, ponies, and donkeys. Sophie loves animals, and when she first saw the longhorns, she squealed DOG. We spent everyday at the pool, but much to my dismay the lazy river was Sophie's least favorite activity. Floating around on an inner tube relaxing is completely lost on my 15 month old! She much preferred the splash pad and wading pool. Luckily I was able to sneak back down to the pool while she was napping and float the river on the 4th with a banana daiquiri with my sister and her friend; and my mom and I snuck out Friday for two last floats, cocktails included! Thanks to my dad and Steven for napping with Sophie! I find myself falling more and more in love with my child everyday, and seeing the sheer joy on her face everyday was just perfect. Well, we were mostly joyful, as you'll see in the picture below!

We left the resort on Saturday. Steven had to head home, but Sophie and I went to Houston with my parents, to await the arrival of my niece, Caroline. My sister in law was already 6 days late, and went into labor Saturday morning. After 34 hours, sweet Caroline Rose was born on Sunday, July 8. I've been really excited about becoming an aunt, and I really hope Sophie and Caroline grow to be good playmates, since they are only 15 months apart. My mom, Sophie, and I went to the hospital Monday morning to meet Caroline, and hug the new parents. Caroline is perfect in every way, absolutely beautiful. My sister in law looked great, and the new dad was absolutely beaming. It made me so happy, and brought back many fond memories of when we became parents. It really is the most amazing experience one can have.

And now, the tears. Steven called me Saturday evening to tell me that our wonderful dog trainer, Carla Collins with Sit Means Sit Dallas, passed away unexpectedly at the young age of 48 on Friday. Hunter boarded with her while we were gone, and was so excited to be there when I dropped him off Tuesday. Carla was much more than a dog trainer, and that's all I can say about her right now. I've been crying off and on since Saturday night; I am heartbroken for her children, and her beloved search and rescue lab, Scooby. I'm going to write more about Carla in another blog, because she is such a special lady. However, I just can't do it right now. I've cried too much the past few days, even though we were not close friends. She greatly impacted our family by training Hunter. Below, I've posted a collage of photos of Carla doing what she loved most- training dogs, search and rescue, and just being with her beloved animals. One of her friends created this photo.

Skin....Skin.....Skin.....

Instead of writing about Sophie, which I'm sure drives some people nuts, I've decided to blog about one of my favorite topics- skincare. So important. Your skin is the first thing people see, and not taking proper care of your skin can lead to premature aging, breakouts, and worst of all, skin cancer. I have always been blessed with beautiful skin. I never had problems with acne as a teenager, and until my 20s I could use a basic cleanser and a moisturizer, and my skin looked great. I had a few bumps along the road, like when I moved to Austin and my normal skin suddenly went dry. Same thing happened when we moved to Dallas. The humidity in Houston is awful, but my skin loves it.

Anyway. Beautiful skin. And then I got pregnant. You know that pregnancy glow people talk about? The opposite happened to me. My once clear & glowing skin turned into a nightmare. I developed rosacea, my skin just looked dingy, and for the first time ever, it was oily. I had really bad morning sickness for nine months, and I think between Sophie and the constant vomiting, there just weren't any nutrients left for my skin. Plus you have to be really careful with what products you use during pregnancy. So I went the ultra expensive route out of desperation, and began using La Mer. Truthfully, it didn't help. I think La Mer is for the most part, overrated. However, if you have super dry skin, there is no better moisturizer than Creme de La Mer. I have some samples and I am greedily holding onto them, only using a tiny bit when my skin feels super dry.

Fast forward 9 months. I give birth, and think, surely I will get my beautiful skin back. Nope. The first 3 months I was so exhausted, I could barely wash my face, much less take care of my skin. And then I went on hormonal birth control. And it was an epic skin disaster. I started breaking out like a teenager. Acne everywhere. My rosacea went out of control. It was awful. So on top of being 20 pounds overweight, I had horrible skin. I finally got in to see a dermatologist, and she prescribed Solodyne, which is an antibiotic for acne. She also prescribed Metro Gel for my rosacea. I also discovered the Natura Bissea skin care line, out of Spain. Miracles do happen, people. Within a month my breakouts cleared up, the rosacea was under control, and my skin was glowing again. I was back. I was still 15 pounds overweight at this point, but my skin looked damn good. NB is expensive, but it is worth every penny. I had a facial on my 32nd birthday, and the esthetician thought I was 25. She told me I was so young to be a mom, and was shocked when I told her that I had just turned 32.

So, here are a few of my favorite products. The Natura Bissea Tolerance Enzyme Peel is one of the most amazing products I've ever used. If you have rosacea, or very sensitive skin, you can't use scrubs, microdermabrasion, or chemical peels. This enzyme peel is a weekly exfoliator, and leaves skin soft, exfoliated, and glowing. It isn't cheap at $150, but should last 6-12 months, since you really only need to use it once a week. They also have a glyco extreme peel, and the esthetician swears I can use it, but I'm scared. I have samples, but haven't tried it yet. I also love their NB Tolerance recovery eye balm. The circles caused by sleepless nights have begun to lessen. Their AHA cleanser is fantastic, and if your skin is really dry, the essential shock cream is a must. The only product which I haven't loved is the Oxygen cream. I use it as a day moisturizer; it's ok, but not a product I would buy again. I've tried a few samples of their Tolerance Cream, and it's fantastic. Definitely my next purchase.

I am on the hunt for an excellent anti aging serum, and will probably check out the Natura Bissea Vitamin C line.  So ladies, head to Neiman Marcus. The nice ladies behind the counter will hook you up with lots of samples! Oh, and now I not only have my skin back, I also weigh two pounds less than when I got pregnant. But that's another blog....... :)

My baby is now a toddler?!?!

The last two months have been interesting, and jam packed. We did three trips to Houston in five weeks. A trip for Easter, my birthday, and Ella's first birthday party. Sophie had her first plane ride on May 4. She was incredible. No crying, no screaming. Sat in her seat for the duration of the flight! My little baby is rapidly becoming a little person, with flashes of toddler. She says several words now- dog, Hunter (the name of her dog), duck, yes, yeah, ma ma, da da, and THANK YOU! Sophie has also starting "reading". She will hold the book and look at the pages. Reading to her is difficult, because she grabs the book after a few pages, and tries to eat it. So, it was refreshing to see her mimic reading. Any child of mine has to have a love of books.... It is genetically programmed into her DNA.

But every now and then the toddler rears its ugly head. We went to Jamba Juice yesterday after the zoo, and when Sophie realized I did not buy her an apple cinnamon pretzel to go with her smoothie like I usually do, she threw a huge fit and screamed all the way home. Seriously. But mostly my new toddler is fun. She is my constant companion, accompanying me everywhere. I definitely never feel lonely with my Sophie around. She started school today, and it was rough. We are transitioning to one nap, which is also rough. But both will get easier as she gets older.

Sophie and I stay busy with Little Gym, Play Wisely, and swim lessons. Her first swim lesson was last week, and she loved every second. I had to drag her out of the pool. My girl and I share a love of water. We are taking Sophie on her first vacation July 3, to the Lost Pines Resort outside of Austin. My wonderful parents are treating us to a four day trip, and we are beyond excited. We started planning it last Fourth of July, after Sophie spent the entire weekend sick with an ear infection. I am praying we have a healthy trip this year! Steven and I are going to Disney World in August, adults only! Our first real getaway in two years. We love Disney, and are looking forward to great meals, sleeping in, lounging by the pool, and great rides. Sophie will spend five days with my parents, who will then need a vacation of their own to recover from a week with Sophie!

My next blog will consist of vacation tidbits and details about my new niece. I can't wait to meet Caroline Rose!