Just for fun

You Are a Cappuccino

You're fun, outgoing, and you love to try anything new. However, you tend to have strong opinions on what you like. You are a total girly girly at heart - and prefer your coffee with good conversation. You're the type that seems complex to outsiders, but in reality, you are easy to please

What Kind of Coffee Girl Are You?

Tales from the Potty

Ok, first let me explain exactly why things happened the way they did.

Because we live in a 2 story house, I figured that bringing Ian's potty downstairs would be much easier than our racing upstairs each & every time he had to use it. But, I also wanted to not have said potty sitting on the carpet, so I put it in the most reasonable, tiled area in the house - the kitchen. In both cases, it was a smart decision on my part.

Now, the tale...

Ian was 4 for 8 today - not too bad for a first-timer. I have to admit that after the 3rd accident on the carpet, I was beginning to wonder if I'd made a mistake and was pushing too hard. But, when he finally (and I do mean finally) used the potty (and by used, I mean dripped accidentally into it), and the potty yelled "Hooray, you went potty!", I was beginning to feel like maybe he would eventually get the hang of this going potty thing if I could just stick it out for the day. And, I was right! The 2nd time the potty yelled "Hooray!", he looked up, smiled his little mischievous grin and let it rip - the boy almost filled up the bowl! At that moment, he & I started laughing in unison, and then began dancing around and high-fiving each other. We were a sight, I'm sure - him with absolutely no clothing on, and me spinning around with his naked self in my arms, smiling broadly.

The sticker chart worked like a charm - he loved picking out 1 smaller one for pee and 1 large one for the poop...oh yes, the poop. Hold onto your hats because that's the tale I wanted to share.

While eating dinner, Ian was the first to be 'finished', so we allowed him to dismiss himself from the table before the rest of us. But, I reminded him that he needed to sit down on his potty since he'd just eaten to see if he needed to go pee pee or poop. He immediately informed me that he needed to do both, and promptly dropped his drawers right there in the middle of the breakfast room - which is where his potty was so it made sense. So, while he sat making funny noises and laughing at himself, Michael proceeded with the conversation he had started earlier. Then the potty yelled, and Michael got a puzzled look on his face - he didn't know the potty spoke and could sense being filled. So, we all made a big deal about Ian again using the potty and keeping Thomas clean & dry, he picked out his sticker and put it on his chart, then we all went back about our business. But Ian then informed us that we were celebrating prematurely - he still needed to poop. So, I told him to just sit there to see if it would 'come out' - and you have to excuse the graphic details here, but they are important. Anyway, Michael started his story again, then abruptly stopped when Ian grunted loudly (and I do mean loudly) and said "Its stuck!". I giggled and told him to keep sitting and it would eventually come out, then turned my attention back to Michael who just sat there smirking about the whole situation. After another minute or so, Ian told me that he couldn't go and was done, so I told him to pull up his underwear and we would try again in a bit. When he stood up, I could tell that he had pooped and told him to quickly sit back down while I went to get the wipes. He was shocked and immediately turned around and checked his potty. While I was gone fetching the wipes, it was then that he yelled, "Look daddy! I pooped a bone!!!" When I returned with the wipe box, Michael simply looked at me and said "I think I'm gonna be sick", followed by "does it have to be here next to the table?"

And there you have it - tales from the potty, located in our breakfast room, right next to the kitchen table. Some things are just necessary, right?

Aren't you glad you kept reading :)

Becoming a Big Boy

Since today was the official last day of school for Alex, I am officially on-the-clock as a stay at home mommy - no more galavanting for me! I tend to try to stick closer to home when all 3 kiddos are in my care, so I figured this would be the perfect time to begin potty training!

This evening I took Ian to buy himself a new potty, which he promises to use beginning tomorrow. He picked it out himself and insisted on carrying it to the register (while sitting in the cart holding it in his lap since the box was almost as big as he is!)

We also purchase some new big boy underwear - Thomas the Tank Engine, of course!

And we purchased stickers to use on one of many FREE potty training charts I discovered online this evening.

And, when all else fails, I'm armed with lots of bleach and laundry detergent :)

And so begins my official summer vacation!

13 & Counting

Today, I celebrate 13 years of marriage to a wonderful man. I truly believe that God brought us together, then saw fit to bless us with 3 beautiful, healthy kiddos! And I know that God has a huge sense of humor when it comes to putting 2 different personalities together and expecting them to live in love & harmony.

Do you know why I would think this?

Because only Michael & I could find the humor in celebrating our 13th anniversary by eating, with our children, under the Golden Arches :) Me, the person that absolutely hated McD's and grimaced every time he took me there during our dating years - the things we do for love, right? Him, the man that always threatened to take me there for a special occasion, adding a table cloth & candles to make the venue a bit more romantic, but not breaking the bank or budget.

Well honey, you forgot the table cloth & candles, but I always knew you were a man of your word...I couldn't have asked for a better anniversary meal with the one man I love, and 3 children that steal my heart each & every day. OK, well maybe I could have, but it was special and fun, and oh so us!

I love you!! Happy 13th Anniversary to the love of my life!!!

Just Hangin' Around

Ok, so Tuesday is my day to be gone - I work away from the house on Tuesdays while Michael stays home and plays Mr. Mom to Ian when Grandma doesn't take him for the afternoon. It really is too bad that Grandma didn't take him today. The poor boy almost lost his head! But, let me explain the events that led to this almost-decapitation:

Today was a slower day for me, only working for a whole 1 1/2 hours this morning. So, because I left 'the office' a little earlier than planned, Michael & I decided to go have lunch, with Ian in tow. We made a visit to one of our favorite burger joints, had a pleasant lunch, then picked up Morgann from her 2nd-to-last-day of preschool and headed home. The plan was that I would drop my little three-some off, then head out to spend a few hours browsing a little homeschool store I discovered last weekend. At the suggestion of my friend Cori, I had decided to take Alex with me to browse around too, so I hurried out the door and grabbed him from school right before boarding the bus. So while Alex & I shopped unworried about the rest of the crew, Michael stayed home with Ian & Morgann - and the neighbors 4 kiddos who decided to come over to play for a while.

Now I've only heard this 2nd & 3rd hand, but this is how it was presented to me...

As soon as Alex & I returned home from our fun afternoon together, I was greeted by one "Hi Mommy!" and one very loud, wailing, "Mommy, my head got stuuuuuuck!" - sniff, sniff, sniff. You can imagine my (1) concern and (2) curiosity as to how such a thing might have occurred, so I pressed for details - from my crying 3 year old. The best I could understand...his head got stuck in his brother's bunk bed. So I pressed further..."Sweetie, how did you get your head stuck?" His response was garbled, but the gist was "It got stuck like this, and it huut wiwwy baaaaaad!" (it was at this juncture that he made a gesture that led me to believe that he had hung himself - sideways).

Ok, so now I'm really puzzled! "Honey, why don't you show mommy where your head got stuck". The response was classic, "Wite heuh mommy" (pointing directly at his neck). Well duh!

Ok, let me try again! "No, show me where on Alex's bed your head got stuck". At this, Ian jumped up from the couch, grabbed my hand and dragged me up the stairs as quickly as his little legs would take him. When we entered Alex's room, Ian ran to the side and pointed - directly to the space between the top bunk - and the wall! About a 6 inch opening, by the way.

It was later when I pointed out the huge scratches and bruise on the side of Ian's head to Michael that he says, matter of factly, "Oh yeah! Ian got himself stuck between the wall and the top bunk. His head was turned sideways and he was just dangling there. I had a hard time figuring out how he managed to get there, either by climbing up or falling down, so I just got underneath him and shoved him back up. He was really freaking out!"

Um, ya think????