Words that melt a mom's heart

Last night at bedtime Allison finally said "I Love You" to me. It was the sweetest thing ever. You think that their first words are going to be special, and they are. But hearing your child tell you they love you (even if they aren't quite sure yet what that means) is priceless.

Visit from the Godfather

Memorial day weekend brought rain in these parts. And a visit from Allison's Godfather, Mark. Mark has been friends with Mr. Brown since elementary school and now lives in Washington DC where he does something very mysterious for the Department of Energy.

The kids had an awesome time having him here. They got a new person to use as a jungle gym. We took a trip to the zoo, which never seems to get old for Allison. At the zoo we got to go on the carousel. Allison enjoyed it but Peter thought it was the best thing ever.
Mark & Mr. Brown took the kids to the swimming pool which I hear was fun (mom got a break).

Overall, it was pretty uneventful and a lot like our normal weekends but it was great fun to have Mark around to share it with. It's always nice to catch up with him and I know the kids really loved his visit.

Thanks for coming to see us Mark! We look forward to the day we can come visit you in DC.
Look for pictures tomorrow

A Shout Out for the Mamas

After almost two months of constant da-das. Mama finally got her due last night. Peter has finally uttered that one little syllable that makes every mom's heart leap for joy. Yes, that's right. Mamamama has become the latest refrain of the little man. It's about time.

Catching my breath

I wish I had some great stories to regale you with about my lack of posting the past few months. I don't. I've just been sucked in to every day life - dirty diapers, potty accidents, grocery shopping, playing at the park, laundry, dishes, finding lost socks, cleaning up spills, fetching sippys full of rancid milk from sitting too long in a hot car, searching for shirts without spit up stains plus of course, work and eating and not enough sleep. Just the usual stuff that fills up life with a toddler and soon-to-be toddler.

Speaking of soon-to-be toddlers... Peter has been pulling up on everything and is getting ready to cruise any day now. His two front (top) teeth finally cut through a week or so ago, sparing us all the agony of teething for a few weeks. And he got his first haircut last weekend. Wait until you see the pictures. He's looking less and less like a baby each day.

The toddler herself is quite active. Her vocabulary expands daily. She loves singing along with the Imagination Movers - both at home and in the car. Her 2nd birthday was fun and she is fully embracing her independence.

I hope to be back on top of posting soon.

3-Day Potty Training - Day 3

Day 3 update
EXHAUSTED
That is how both Allison & I felt at the end of the day today. This is very demanding on both the kid and the parent(s). Don't get me wrong... I'm glad we did it/are doing it but it is physically and emotionally draining for both of you.
Last night was strange. I woke her up again a few hours after bedtime and she successfully peed. I heard her rustling around 4:30 am and got her up and she peed again. Around 5:30 I heard her wimpering. I should have known better but I waited about 10 minutes until I heard another wimper. I went in and she must have just gone. As soon as I walked in she said "wet" and sure enough, her panties were soaked through.

After that, things seemed to be off to a decent start. We had a successful warning from her and trip to the bathroom. That was around 6:30 am. From then until, oh, 3ish it was a nightmare for all of us. It seemed like one accident after another. It really was only about 4 but after the great day we had on Day 2 I wasn't prepared for it. Every time it happened she went to "hide". She seemed to know that she shouldn't be going in her panties but she didn't really want to go on the potty. So she would go into another room and try to shut the door and immediately pee. One time she went into my bedroom closet. I was right there and got to her in about 3 seconds. It was already too late and she was soaked. She would go through this game of telling me "peepee", going into the bathroom with me and getting on the potty. But immediately she would want down. I would let her down (per the book - and to avoid a tantrum) and within 2-5 minutes she'd have an accident.

After one particularly frustrating incident I was at my wits end. I think DH could tell and he sent me upstairs to take a little me time. I really needed that. I went in the bathroom and cried. I just felt frustrated and I felt a little guilty that I was forcing this on her and I had a few doubts that maybe she really wasn't ready and I was just being mean. Basically anything and everything you can imagine thinking. It was definitely the low point for both of us.
After that we went in the backyard to play a bit. It was about 70 so I let her go out in her shirt, undies and shoes. We wrote with sidewalk chalk and then just wandered around the yard. Again she tried to hide to pee. She went by the fence and as I'm walking up behind her I see a full stream coming out of her undies. Ugh. Back instide to the potty and another pair of clean undies.
After that it was like a switch flipped. She didn't have a single accident between then and bedtime - about 4 hours. She went on the potty 5 or 6 times and never once complained. DH suggested a late-afternoon bath (him in charge, giving me a small break) instead of the usual bedtime and I think it refreshed us all. I noticed her bum and back of her thighs were a bit red and chapped. I have to assume it's from the vinyl on the potty seat. Probably not a problem on a normal day but she was probably on and off of it about 50 times this weekend. I lathered her up with some strong healing lotion after bath and it seemed to lighten up. Part of me wonders if that's why she was so off this morning. Watch out for that.

It was such a relief to get into a rhythym. I think the author was right on when she said that it really might take all.three.days for it to click. I think Allison had the concepts early but there is some breaking of the will that has to be done. Of course by that time I was so tired. I just wanted to lie down for a nap. And by 6:30 she was done. She normally isn't in bed until 7pm but at 6:20 we headed upstairs for bedtime routine and it was a fight to do everything (expect pee strangly enough). She didn't want to go upstairs, didn't want to brush her teeth, didn't want to be done brushing her teeth, didn't want to read stories, didn't want to put on pjs. She grabbed her nasty dirty shirt she'd been wearing all day from the hamper. This thing is filthy - covered in juice boxes and m&ms and mac&cheese and snot. But she INSISTED on wearing it to bed. So she's now soundly asleep in the nastiest shirt ever and her panties.

I did get her up about 2.5 hours after bed time when I heard a little rustle from her room. She was still dry and peed on the potty for me. We'll see how she does in the morning.

Hubby - he tried to participate a lot but she wasn't really having it. She just wanted mama, mama, mama all weekend. It was a nice boost to the ego but sure made it harder for me. I'm a little worried about that for daycare tomorrow.
Again, watch for vinyl-burn on the butt. Maybe that's just my kid/seat (sesame street seats with handles from Wal-mart)
Daycare - I'm planning to take her in tomorrow. Usually DH does drop off but I'm going to do it so I can get on the same page with DCP. luckily she's pretty flexible with us and follows our lead. I just want to make sure she knows what to look/listen for and follows the same basic idea. I'm planning on taking her plenty of extra pairs of pants and undies. I'm going to have her in easy on/off pants (elastic waist) or dresses all week. I'll let you know how that goes.

Wet undies count = 5 (including overnight from Day 2)

FINAL THOUGHTS/TIPS

Have plenty of undies on hand so you don't have to do laundry each night
Get DH involved if at all possible. Make sure he knows exactly how you are doing things
Stickers were a HUGE hit in the rewards department for us
Plan to be thoroughly exhausted at the end of 3 days
Wear clothes you don't mind getting peed on
If you are using the flushable kandoo wipes - get plenty. We went through an entire 50 pack + another half one this weekend. I'm sure we won't keep up that rate going forward but we used the potty A LOT.
Have a seat for every bathroom they might use. You don't want to worry about having to run to a farther bathroom.
Stay on their heels
Allison's warning signs (besides telling us): grabbing her crotch, stopping her activity, running to another room and shutting the door

3-Day Potty Training - Day 2

Day 2
I woke her up about 3 hours after putting her down. She was still dry. She went pee right away and right back to bed. But she still woke up wet this morning. We don't do a bedtime cup but I'm thinking that we may need to even cut back a little more for awhile just until she gets the hang of it.
So far today has been AWESOME! Just one accident. She had just gone for DH at 8:30 and at 8:40 she climbed upstairs and went on the carpet in her room. DH wasn't right behind her so he missed it. As soon as he got to her she told him "peepee" but it was already too late. He still put her on the potty just to reinforce that she needs to go there. She's gone pee 4x in the potty - told us first and made it to the bathroom. She also got a poop in today. Double stickers for that. She's still a little gunshy. She seems to know it's coming and tells us. And we get her there in plenty of time. But she wants to putz around a little in the bathroom and get on and off the toilet before actually going. But overall she's doing really really well.

I haven't felt like I've needed to be quite so vigilant today. I do still remind her every 10-15 minutes. But if she wanders into the other room a few steps ahead of me I'm not as worried. We've had lots of false alarms. But I figure better to get in there and have it be nothing then to have an accident.

Peter was getting a poopy diaper changed this morning and she was very emphatic with her "stinky"s and "yucky"s.

Nap time now. I put her down right after a pee. I'm going to a Pampered Chef thing this afternoon. I was going to skip it or have her stay home with DH but I'm going to chance it. She's been doing well and I'm really thinking she can handle it. I already talked to the hostess and she was fine with it - in fact, it was her suggestion. I think there are going to be other toddlers there. So I'm taking her potty seat, a bag of treats, kandoo wipes and her step stool. I want to make it as much like home as possible. I think as soon as we get there I'll show her the bathroom and remind her to tell me when she has to go. I know I probably should skip it but it's with a bunch of coworkers who haven't seen her since she was 3 months old so I want to do a little real-life AWing.

Today's words of caution... if your DH is going to help, make sure he really knows what to do or that you are with him in the beginning. DH didn't know that she needed to go on the potty after her accident. He was just going to change her panties. Also, one time she told him she had to go and he told her "let's go to the potty" but she just kept playing so he figured she didn't really have to go. I walked in the room and she was holding her crotch so I knew she did. He didn't realize he needed to physically pick her up and take her once she told him. Other than that, he's been doing great with her. Lots of praise and feel-good stuff.

End of Day 2

The afternoon went well. We went to the Pampered Chef party and she stayed dry until right before we got home. We had 2 false alarms at the party but she never actually went there. When we got home she had pooped a bit in her diaper. It wasn't a full poop but an accident. All afternoon after that she was having lots of really wet-sounding farts but nothing really coming out of it.

I reminded her a gazillion times at the party. People were asking if we were potty training and how old she is. Many of the older moms (kids are teens) were SHOCKED that she could actually go #1 and #2 on the potty before the age of 2. It was kind of funny to see their reactions.

She just had 1 pee-pee accident this afternoon. She went into the bathroom and was opening and closing the door. She never said she needed to go and DH should have known that was a sign but didn't (again on his watch, lol). When he finally noticed she had sat down on her potty chair (panties still on) and was wet. There was a puddle on the floor.

Wet undies count = 3 (still have overnight to go)

3-Day Potty Training - Day 1

Day 1 update
We're about 5 hours into day 1. W hen I got her out of bed I touched her diaper through her pjs to see if it was wet (it was) and she said "stinky". I didn't even mention the diaper, just touched it. After breakfast we got dressed into her t-shirt and big girl panties. I made a big deal about it and how she didn't need diapers because they are for babies like Peter. DH came in and made a big deal about how much of a big girl she looked like. Then we got a tote and gathered up all of the diapers in Allison's room. I made her put them in the tote. I told her how we needed to give these to Peter because he is a baby who needs to wear diapers. No - I didn't throw them away. Peter also wears a size 4 and I wasn't about to throw away $40 worth of diapers that I still need! So we carried the tote into Peter's room and put it in his crib. I

I kind of expected her to beg for the diaper back b/c when I had tried panties once before she did. But she didn't. She hasn't mentioned them at all today.

I've probably told her 100 times already to "tell mommy when you have to go peepee". She's been pretty consistent at telling me but it's pretty much been after the stream has already started. We then rush into the bathroom (I carry her) and get on the potty. Sometimes she has still had a little left to get out and sometimes not. Everytime even a few drops come out while she's actually on the toilet I make a HUGE deal about it. She gets a sticker for her board (just a big craft board I put in the bathroom with "Allison's Potty Ta-Da's" written on the top of it - she loves to say "ta-da"). And she gets a treat - m&ms or mini marshmallows. If she tells me and we get on the pot (even if nothing comes out there) I'm still giving her a small treat but no sticker. She always asks for more stickers and I always say "after you go on the potty again you'll get another sticker" and then we move on to something else.

A few thoughts...
*when she says get 20-30 pairs of undies, she means it. I think we've gone through about 15 already. I put a fresh pair on every time she gets one wet because I do not want her to get used to feeling wet.
*you really, really do have to be RIGHT next to them all the time. I had to make one 3-minute phone call to the doctor to reschedule an appt I had for today. By the time I realized she had wandered off, she had gone into the bathroom (yay) and started peeing on the floor (not so yay).
*it is exhausting being so constantly vigilant but so necessary. She's down for her nap and I am probably going to go take one too.
*our activities for the day... so far we have:
- watched Handy Manny, colored, blown bubbles, watched Imagination Movers, done a puzzle, danced to music, eaten lunch, watched Madagascar, read about 10 books, looked at the neighbors dogs out the window, "dusted" the furniture in our bedroom, wrestled/played on the floor

Normally I wouldn't let her watch so much t.v. but I have found it to be the easiest way to keep an eye on her. I have her sitting with me in the chair and if she forgets to tell me she needs to pee I can feel it.

Which leads me to another warning - DO NOT WEAR GOOD CLOTHES! I've already been peed on at least 3 times.

A few times she has said "peepee" and headed to the bathroom so I know she needs to go but when I put her up there she immediately wants to get down. Each time this has happened (2 or 3 - I can't remember!) she has had to go back 2 more times before she'll finally actually pee. And all but the last time (just before nap) she ended up wetting her panties. This last time a nice good stream came out so I'm hoping she's pretty empty for nap. I reminded her to call out if she needs to pee so we'll see what happens!

End of Day 1
We had some real successes this afternoon. Nap time was a success. She woke up dry. I went in as soon as I heard her awake. And within a few minutes of getting u I reminded her to tell me if she needed to go. She did immediately and she had a complete peepee in the potty. That was super exciting. I was expecting to have to change the sheets.
This afternoon, she told me 2 more times before she had to go and we had a full empty on the potty. Yay!! We did struggle a bit with bedtime. We let her try a few times. She said she had to go and sat there for like 3 minutes but never went. She finally wanted down and 1 minute later had an accident. I think she's at the point that she knows it's coming but when she actually gets up onto the potty she's having a bit of performance anxiety. I reminded her about 10 times before putting her down for the night to let us know if she needs to go. We'll see if it works. Since I didn't feel like we had a good empty before bed I'll probably wake her up before I go to bed in a few hours and have her try one more time.

Wet undies count = 12 (including 1 overnight)