Tuesday, April 23, 2013

The Potty Trainer



Potty Training.  The words make me cringe.  I am not a fan at all.  However, I do see the light at the end of the tunnel as Hadley is the last little person I am going to potty train.  Tanner was easy.  Actually what I think was easy was the lack of judgement I had when he went through this.  No one ever made little comments that hurt me or made me feel smaller than them. Carter was probably an easy potty trainer too however I felt so inefficient and small by others during this period.  It was an odd feeling for me.  My confidence in the whole thing was gone.  I will never forget sitting with another mother whose child was a few months younger than Carter. I mentioned that I was going to start potty training Carter and she got this looks like I was behind the times and said (in what I felt like was a very uppity and snide way) that their child was "almost totally potty trained" while I was still struggling with it. It's silly that I even allowed myself and my emotions to be controlled by others. But I did.  I sat there with a pit in my stomach feeling totally down, disliked, and not a very good mom at all. Where was the encouragement?  Where was the support? Aren't we all moms here just trying to do the best we can? It was all I could do not to just get up and walk out.  

I promised myself that with Hadley I would not allow myself to feel inadequate or judged from anyone. So, I tried for 3 days to potty train this little precious cutie of ours.  No luck.  No luck whatsoever.  I wasted 3 days and was mad the whole time.  Well, not really.  I did get the bathroom painted a very pretty color while I was trying to get her to be potty trained. It would have been some awesome multitasking if I had completed both the paint and the potty training, but alas, just the paint was complete.   At least no one was there to tell me their younger child was already almost totally potty trained, right?  So I stopped. I'm not doing it if she isn't ready.  She wasn't ready and I was totally done painting.  A few weeks later, she was ready.  She did it all by herself too.  She took off her diaper.  She climbed up on the potty by herself and she went.  And she continued to do this. Of course we still have an accident now and then but things are great.  I even went out this morning with her for 2 1/2 hours and she did wonderful!  She used the potty in Hobby Lobby too! Yay!  I am so proud of her and I am especially proud of me for not getting "down" during the whole process.  




This is what happens when you spend a considerable amount of time in the bathroom! You go a little crazy and wear swim caps! How could I ever allow myself to feel anything but a great mom when I look at this adorable face? She now yells as she is running to the potty "Potty Trainer in the house!" And she raises the roof with her hands as she says that.  Hilarious. 






 Everyone is proud of Hadley!  Because we can't seem to ever be apart.  Ever. if she is in the bathroom going potty, we all are.  Privacy has no meaning in this house. Of course the cutest thing is that Hadley wants to tell the brothers every time she goes potty in the potty and they are just as elated for her if not more about the whole thing.  I just love the encouragement we've got going on right now, it warms my heart and is just what we all need. I love seeing what my kids come up with when I give them the time and space to fill with whatever comes to their sweet souls. 


 In the midst of all this Tanner is playing T-ball.  He has yet to have a game but he has had a few practices and team pictures.  Its going to be great! 


Hadley and Carter at Team Pictures!


 Everyone in this picture has on undies! Hooray!! 






Thursday, April 18, 2013

Spring is here!



I'm happy to report that I'm figuring this Apple thing out.  It's getting easier and better for me!  Hooray!  I found my pictures, they all go into the cloud automatically.  I love it!  Easy no work back up for me! We've had a fun few weeks.  The weather is nice, Grandpa came to visit, and T-Ball started up. 


 The crew! I started a little thing where I make the kids dress up for school.  I know it might sound a little bit silly and I'm not sure how long I will be able to enforce this rule but the results have been incredibly positive.  No we are at the point where the boys do it themselves and are excited about looking handsome! They even put on Tyler's deodorant and aftershave too.  So cute! Melts my heart!

 4 kiddos in the bath! The conversation went like this; Tanner: "Mom, are cousins the same as brothers?" Me: "Aside from a few blaring differences, yes, cousins are the same as brothers." Tanner breathes a sigh of reliefs and says "Thank goodness because I want Chandler to be our brother." 

 Things get crazy, things get hectic, I get annoyed as much as I try hard not to. I've reinstated mandatory quiet time from 1-3 each afternoon and it has made a world of difference in my life. Thank God for Disney movies! We are watching them all! I have really been enjoying how NOT politically correct the oldies are, good for the soul and so refreshing! 

 Carter!

 Hadley

 We play a new game at night called Sardines in a can.  The kids have to lay on the rug and not move because they are all locked up in their sardine can.  They can only get up if we crack open the can (yes complete with hand motions and sound effects) It's been working like a champ too!  For some reason my calming lavender baths leave them crazy and ready to go running around like wild hyenas right before bedtime.  Sardines in a Can to rescue!  
 T-Ball is in full effect.  We have had one team practice so far, gotten all our gear and are ready to go!  First game will be April 22! tanner is excited beyond belief! The day of the first practice we had a little hiccup but it turned out to be such a great reminder for me.  Practice was at 6 Pm at Paramount which is across the street.  Easy. 6 p.m. is cutting it a little close but Tyler was going to be home by then so he would take Tanner.  Around 4:45 Tyler calls and is sitting on the side of the road by the fairgrounds because his truck just up and quit on him.  Now mind you it had just been in the shop for like a month with a repair bill the size of a mortgage.  I tried to stay cool and calm, but really it ticked me off.  There was no way he would be home in time to take Tanner.  I was doing it, and I was doing it with the two little guys in tow.  Easy. I get there and Hadley and Carter are being as good as two little kids can be at an elementary school playground and I am supposed to be helping Tanner warm up by playing catch with him.  I am trying to play catch with my 6 year old with a mitt in my hand.  I am not good at this at all.  I need Tyler.  I need Tyler and Tanner needs Tyler.  Boys need their dads.  For all intents and purposes girls need their dads too, but in this situation it really drove home to me how important Tyler's role is in the kids lives.  I am their mom and with them all day long so I feel like I'm super important.  I am important but I cannot even tell you how much I felt the importance of Tyler's role in the kids lives that night.  Thank God he showed up, not only because I am horrible at playing catch with a glove (not really any better without a glove) but because a fathers role is vital.  
 Lunch date with my boys at On the Border! This was right before we headed out to the airport to pick up Grandpa!

 Grandpa was here over the weekend and we played and ate and hung out.  We had a great time! 
 Tanner showed off his T-ball skills and Grandpa helped Tanner with his baseball!


....because everyone you meet is fighting some kind of battle.