Potty Like a Rock Star

I've been hesitant to post any updates and therefore cause a jinx, but I actually think we might be in the clear (knock on wood! Just in case!) so here's an update on Sophia's potty training progress...


We started two Mondays ago where we had a few accidents the first day followed by one or no accidents the following days. By Thursday of that week she was accident free. By Friday she was taking herself to the potty and declaring that she could do it herself, thank you very much. By Tuesday of this week she was napping in her panties totally accident free. She is still wearing a pull up to bed at night. Some mornings she wakes up dry, others a little wet, and still others... a lot wet. I'm not worried about overnight so much, it's actually going in a much better direction than I expected. So, basically, I have a potty trained child. She knows when she has to go (which is surprisingly not very often) and just goes. She loves wearing panties and has showed them to everyone, appropriate or not, whatever, it's just exciting! ;) We're really proud of her and I feel good that I waited until the time was right for her and she just caught on and rolled with it, no tears or bribery. Before the panties, I was worried that it would be a lot harder than diapers, but really, I think we both appreciate the freedom!

Almost There!

Leo is 11 months old today...hard to believe! Even though I've been longing for this time, I am a little vehclempt thinking about his birthday which is right around the corner. He's so grown up and just gets bigger every day (literally! LOL!). We look forward to this last month of "baby"! My baby.

Here Leo and Luca are adoring little Francesca...so cute! Big Brother might be a little protective of a potential suitor! ;)

And my furry baby...

Okay, since my last Walter post was a bit wrought with frustration I thought I would take this chance to brag about him a little. There are times I appreciate him, just not when he's sitting on the table! ;) Anyway, as you all know, Walt is a herding dog by nature and since he's been a puppy he has always herded us, especially when walking down the stairs. He also likes to sit in a central location so he can see all of us at once, he does not appreciate it when the sheep separate! One of Leo's absolute favorite pastimes is playing in his water bowl (along with splashing in toilet and eating toilet paper. He will go into the bathroom just to accomplish these tasks. He will even try and push Sophia's buns out of the way whilst atop the potty, so he can splash below her...sigh) and even though we tell him "no" about 500 times/day it still hasn't sunk in..at least to Leo. Walter now understands that this a no-no activity and although he is not aggressive with Leo being near his stuff in the slightest, he knows mom and dad said it's not okay, so if Walter sees him going for it, he will rush over towards him, leap in front and lather him with kisses until he either turns around to go the other way or is retrieved by someone else! He also does this when he gets too near to stairs as well. It's kind of a sight to see! Sometimes Walter will even leap directly over the baby so that he can block his path! It is too cute. Maybe he's a good dog after all!

Bama Time

cuddles with Uncle Stacy

French toast for lunch...YUM-O

ice cream...? Of course!

playtime!

I tried to get a picture of them actually sharing the toy...amazing!

We hung out at mom's the other day for good old fashioned grandmotherly fun. Sophia has been anti-everyone, except her mother, lately, so it was nice to see her so excited to go to Bama's. I chuckle to myself though, because I remembered the reasons we usually leave the kids with Grandma (any one of them) and then leave...because they get spoiled rotten! ;) I know it's a grandmother's prerogative so I try not to get too bent out of shape about it, but there was chocolate, french toast, and ice cream all before noon! I'm thankful for all our special grandmas though, and I know the kids are too!

Old Friends and New Friends

A friend of mine from college, Sarah, and her family were passing through town last week and we had the chance to meet up! She has two boys, Islwyn (4) and Amund (16? months), so it was a perfect play date and a chance for Sophia to show off one of her favorite places, Deanna Rose.

Sarah was the boy magnet...all three of them just honed in on her!

Islwyn and Sophia enjoyed the goats...of course!

You can see Leo wasn't too into pictures today...it was hard to get him to look at the camera!

Brian's Turkey Coop is in memory of my friend Julie's brother so we were excited to see it's new look this summer!

Amund and Leo do some catching up in the shade! You can tell by their pink cheeks that it was a hot one that day!

It was fun to catch up and a little bit weird to think college was so long ago and now we both have kids! We remembered some fun times and enjoyed catching up ourselves! Hopefully we'll be able to do it again!

When Did It Happen?

I'm not sure when it happened, but I used to enjoy reading quality novels and watching good movies. Now my life revolves around crappy reality television (okay, and some good reality television!;) romantic comedies, and books written by Tori Spelling. The other night Charlie and I just wanted to kick back, make some popcorn and watch a flick. After surveying the movies a few times and deciding (for the 15th time) that we both really wanted to see Crazy Heart, we settled on something far less stimulating...Date Night. We just can't seem to force ourselves to watch anything that isn't mindless. I've always enjoyed a nice action flick and I am certainly no stranger to romantic comedies, but I also used to watch Oscar winners, read Pulitzer Prize winners, and every new season of The Bachelor I have vowed to be my last, but well, you see how well that's worked! Is it just the stresses of real life with kids and a house that are too much and I have to find solace in other people's misery? There are days I miss my old brain, but for now, you'll have to excuse me...I need to make sure Bachelor Pad is set up to record on the DVR.

Dog For Sale

A picture says a thousand words...

...yup, that sounds about right. I probably threw about a thousand muffled expletives Walter's direction tonight. I came downstairs after taking Sophia to the bathroom and this is what I find in the kitchen. Well, no, actually he was laying across the table and didn't even flinch when I yelled at him. He finally decided to get up and then when I caused a ruckus he tried to get down and couldn't. Leo was freaking out, Sophia was yelling "Walter Anastas (yes, that is her middle name, not his) get down right now, and I managed to lift him off the table after he tipped it over and pretty much everything went flying. Honestly, this dog is so naughty. Today is a day when I think my life would be easier without him. Harrumph.

P-Day

Sigh.

Monday was Panty Day in our house. Yes, that's right, friends, the potty training has begun. I've been putting it off for a while now for various reasons. Foremost, probably because I'm lazy, and then maybe because we're so active and I really just didn't want to give up my freedom of leaving the house to run errands, play, explore, and work out. I know it won't be forever, but I don't like being caged! ;) We went cold turkey on the diapers because she absolutely wouldn't sit on the potty while wearing diapers, so we ditched them and so far it's gone pretty well. Monday we went through 4 pairs of panties, which honestly, I didn't think was too bad, considering. Yesterday she only had 1 accident the whole day...sadly Leo was the victim in that accident. She peed on her brother. Yup, tried to step over him and ended up just drenching him. Poor little guy, good thing he didn't really understand what was happening. Today just started out on the wrong foot when Leo woke up with (and still has) a fever. They are both a bit out of sorts today and it's hard to keep up with 2 extremely needy kiddos, but only one accident, not involving her brother, today for Sophia so that's good news. Hopefully we can keep it that way. I will resort to bribery and the like if necessary but I sort of feel that she's past that. She is pretty aware of her body and it's functions and she just needs to step up to being a Big Girl and get it done. And, hopefully it will be done sooner rather than later! Wishful thinking? Maybe, but a mom can dream!

Photo Shoot Rejects

Thanks for that, Mom...it is possibly the most boring thing I'll do all week. Oh wait...you mean it's sister's turn now?!

gee, I wonder why this one didn't make the cut?

It's that time of year again....birthday time! Woo Hoo! I needed to get some pictures of the kids for their invites so I could get them designed, ordered and ready to mail. We have no princess dresses at our house, so we trekked over to Jodie's to raid Emma and Isabelle's stash of dress-up attire! Leo had a great time exploring the yard and playing with every ball we threw at him. He also enjoyed watching Sophia play on the tire swing. Charlie and I are getting Sophia a full-on Disney Princess dress for her birthday, so at least she'll have one--it's all she's been asking for for about 3 months, literally. We haven't settled on which one although there is a nice Belle one at the store that I've been eyeing.

Cheese! (grilled cheese that is!)

Making the same thing for lunch rocks my world. It is oh so nice that Leo is now eating finger foods regularly. I will admit that I had a minor anxiety attack when he didn't catch on as quickly as Sophia and was still eating baby food on our Wisconsin trip, but now he's feeding himself in full force. The only problem with this scenario is the freezer full of purees that I spent time, money, and precious freezer space on! Booo! Actually, I did add some of the puree to store bought tomato sauce for dinner last night, and Charlie and I agreed that we think it made it better! Of course Sophia had no idea and my plan worked perfectly! I'm going to have to try more of those tricks before it spoils, but I have of a ton of it.

Leo is also drinking his formula from a sippy cup all day long. He still gets his bottle at night, but honestly, I think we could take that away too and he wouldn't bat an eye. It took him a while to catch on to this concept as well, but one day he just did it and the rest is history. I think it's going to be much easier (fingers crossed) than I originally anticipated to wean him from formula and onto milk. We are going to try regular cow's milk (as opposed to soy) and see how he does. He eats cheese regularly, and a little yogurt, but that's about it in terms of dairy, so I still have my reservations. Worst case scenario, we put him on soy milk. I'm not too worried, especially since he'll already be used to the taste! I will probably start mixing in the milk to his formula in the next 2-3 weeks, so we'll see how it goes.

It's nice to sit down for family dinner and eat as a family. It's nice that Leo can now be a bit more flexible with his schedule and go longer between feedings. It's nice that some of those tiny baby habits are behind us and we can move on to bigger things....like walking! ;) Part of me will absolutely miss those baby days but for the most part, I look forward to the growing up!

Indoor Fun

Julie and Francesca

Sophia and Luca exploring their firefighter side

driving the big rig

It has been sooooo hot here this last week that we've been trying to keep ourselves busy indoors during the heat of the day. We hit the Great Mall last week and it was great times (all up until we lost Belinda that is, but luckily that's behind us!) Inside the mall are a few play areas and it's usually pretty dead so the kids have plenty of room to run around. Plus they have a fire museum with a vintage truck the kids can climb on and that is always a good time.

I also tried to find theme clothing for the kids upcoming parties, but my go-to place, Carter's, failed to deliver this time. :( Actually I found a few super cute things, but they were all long sleeved and I'm just not sure it's going to be that cool in another month! (hard to believe it's only a month away, but that's another story!) I did buy the shirt for Leo that I really liked, figuring he had another week into September and maybe, just maybe he could wear it on his birthday, but I'm not holding my breath and I am holding onto the receipt!

The First 48...

...or maybe I should say the first 4 - 8 (hours that is!). Kathleen was correct, these first hours and days are critical and luckily, we caught a break! Belinda is home and safely in bed with her mommy tonight. Thank God for small miracles! As I was running on the treadmill tonight, after giving up more hope, I got the call. A security guard had spotted a mysterious object on the top of the claw machine and went to investigate. Upon arrival he realized it was our girl. A little dirtier, but mostly no worse for the wear, Belinda was rescued. So, we made the long haul back out to the mall in rush hour traffic to reunite with our loved one. Sophia was beside herself with joy. We celebrated (thank goodness for Daddy's forethought to pick up dinner while I was in gridlock) with some sandwiches. I also read her Belinda Goes to Paris before bed. We're going to try and keep a much closer eye on that little one from here on out!

Amber Alert

Belinda

(the baby in the middle)

has gone missing...

It's possible I may be more traumatized than Sophia, but we seem to have lost her beloved Belinda. We have "lost" her before but it was always a situation where we knew exactly where she was when we left her, in this case, not so much. We have it narrowed down to somewhere in the mall. Lovely, huh? Yes, I have already called mall security and every store we entered, but no-go. This is not good. Sophia had a total meltdown about it and even I got teary eyed! Seriously, you ask...but yes it's true. All the places took our number and will call us if she turns up, but I don't have a lot of hope. We went back to the mall and scoured all the other places we could think of, and again, no luck. She was visibly shaken by the time we left the mall without her and after some water and snuggles, she did get to sleep while cuddling another of her babies, but she keeps telling me she wants Belinda. It's very heartbreaking. So Belinda, if you're out there and can hear our pleas...please come home, Baby...Mommy Sophia misses you so much!

Contrary Mary and her Sidekick Destructo

So, I'm hoping that this is just a phase and not a personality trait, but I'm not so sure. Sophia is in a very contrary stage right now and it's all I've got to not loose it! EVERYTHING that we say is incorrect, wrong, ridiculous, and not even a little bit true. For example, we were driving yesterday and Sophia asked if I had seen the kid on the bike I replied no, because in fact I hadn't seen it. Very adamantly from the backseat came her insisting that I did see it...no I didn't...yes you did..! You get the idea. Most of the time I just give up and let her roll with it but inside I'm annoyed. Please tell me this will stop??! Or is she me?? ;) Other than that, we are really happy with her creativity and outgoingness lately. She is really getting good at being silly and understanding jokes. She loves to play games and she is becoming even better at keeping herself entertained (she's always been pretty good at that, though). She is still a great big sister and always concerned about Leo. She's not a great sharer of toys, but that will come in time (or else!) and she loves to play with him and snuggle him.




Leo on the other hand has entered the destruct-o phase of life. He has now discovered how toilet paper unrolls, tissue endlessly pops up and the grand allure of the bathroom cabinets. If he's in a room for a few minutes it looks as if a tornado has hit it with play food, puzzle pieces, books, and toys everywhere! I still continue to be worried (paranoid or not, I'm truly not sure) that he isn't hitting his developmental milestones. I mean he's very happy and his gross motor skills are good, but his fine motor skills aren't that great and he is not interested in reading books at all. He literally just wants to crawl around, take stuff out and put stuff in his mouth. I try and sit with him and play games, but he's not into it. Charlie tells me it's just him "being a boy" but it doesn't ease my mind. He doesn't really wave, I don't think he has any clue on pointing and I feel like with only a little over a month left until his 1st birthday he has so much yet to accomplish. On the up side, he does seem to be pretty verbal. He babbles constantly and enjoys hearing himself talk! He uses lots of different sounds and says Mama all the time, but only says Dada occasionally. Sometimes it sounds as if he's trying to repeat words we tell him but he does things so inconsistently that I never know if he's "learning" or if it's just a fluke. I know I'm a worrier and you all probably think I'm nuts, but I do worry about him.




We're getting so close to both their birthdays and I just can't believe that another year has gone by so quickly! It's both exciting and worrisome, (as I mentioned!! ;) but I do love the time I get to spend with them!

Double Double

everyone loved to play Elefun!

safari vogue

present time!

Lauren gets ready to blow out her candle!

Now it's Aubrey's turn!

Sophia enjoys the cake too!

lovely ladies!

Two cuties turning two! Hurrah! Their actual birthday is tomorrow, but we helped them celebrate this past weekend with an elephant themed party. It was fun had by all playing games and eating cake! Happy birthday, Girls...we all hope that this year is filled with more joy, laughs, and learning!

Clogs!

Here we are in our fabulous clogs, we had to break them out of the box as soon as we were home! Aren't we cute?! Sophia has a gay old time dancing around in her shiny shoes and has had many compliments already!