A Belated Friday 5

1. Norah has been starting the majority of her sentences this week with, "But Mommy, the thing is...."

2.  Audrey is convinced there is an invisible monster named "Sneaky" that lives in our house and moves things around while she is sleeping at night.  I have tried and tried and tried some more to convince her that I am Sneaky, and I do indeed pick up the house, put things away, and move some things around at night while she is sleeping.  She DOES. NOT. BELIEVE. ME.  Whenever she discovers something has changed, she gasps, and exclaims, "Sneaky did it!"

3.  Lately I've taken to carrying Justus around in my arms when we're out running errands instead of lugging around his carseat.  The dude is 20 pounds already, so he's quite a load to heft around.  It's funny when he's hungry, because he keeps one protective hand on my chest at all times.  Especially if I approach anyone else, or try to have a conversation.  He grips me tighter, and keeps his hand firmly placed, as if to say, "back off, she's mine!"

4.  Over the past 2 weeks the girls have been working diligently on creating an "alphabet train" in our kitchen.  We basically just took pieces of card stock paper, then drew giant letters on each one and turned the letter into a corresponding picture.  (A for alligator, a for apple, etc.)  We hung them up in a long line around the dining room, and the crowning feature was a hand-drawn engine to begin the chain, and a caboose to end it.  I told the girls when it was all finished we would invite some friends over to have an alphabet party to celebrate its completion.  I could not believe how motivated they were to finish it.  I think Audrey drew and colored at least 10 letters a day.  So last week I finally delivered on my promise, and we had a little gathering over to celebrate the alphabet.  A good time was had by all...except Norah.  About 30 minutes into the party I realized she was missing.  My little introvert was in her bedroom, sitting in her bed with her binky and her blanket.  Not one for crowds.  :)  About 15 minutes later she warmed up to the idea, and bravely ate a cookie on my lap in the dining room.  Then she ventured out to play with the kids.  Funny how different kids can be!

(Notice Norah's not even in this picture?  I hadn't realized she was missing yet.  Bad mama!!!)

The party was such a hit with all the other kids, though, (and moms too, I think!), that I'm considering throwing impromptu little parties more often.  What else could we randomly celebrate?  Numbers?  Flowers?  Elephants?  Maybe on a rainy day we could have a party celebrating worms...we have a few little boy friends who would be all over that.  

5. Both Audrey and Norah started keeping their Pull-Ups dry all night long within the same month.  We had sticker charts going for a looooooong time, hyped it way up, and incentivized the whole thing.  We bought 2 Beta fish.  They lasted about 3 weeks.  They didn't die, but they got "depressed."  Did you know it's possible for fish to get depressed?  Apparently, (reference:  Ask.com), Beta fish need much larger tanks than we have, more tropical greenery, and occasionally live food since they are naturally carnivores.  If these things are not provided, they will start acting lethargic, which is a sign of fish depression.  Ahem.  We weren't willing to spend a fortune upgrading our fish gear, so back to the pet store they went.  By the end of 3 weeks the novelty of having fish had pretty much worn off, so the girls weren't even sad to see them go.  It helped that I offered to let them each choose a new toy as their dry-diaper-at-night reward in place of the fish.  I figured we're saving a gagillion dollars on Pull-Ups, so they deserve it!

"Super duper ooper schmooper" excited when the Amazon package arrived.

Audrey chose.........a new train.

Norah?  A Repunzel dress.  It's the only thing she wanted.

I don't have a photo of her wearing it...because the day after it arrived she started having accidents again.  Wha!?!?!?  So frustrating.   I've been wondering if it's possible to potty train without experiencing any type of regression.  We went through it with Audrey.  Now we're going through it with Norah.  I waited WAY longer to potty train Norah, because I chalked Audrey's trouble up to being so young.  Norah was clearly ready, and fully trained within a week.  During the day, at naps, and all night long, without looking back.  Now suddenly it's like she can't figure out that she needs to go before at least a little starts coming out.  She's still doing fine at night and naps, I think she just gets so busy doing whatever it is she's doing during the day that she gets distracted.  So...the princess dresses are confiscated until she is "drip-free." ;)  I'll post a picture when I can, because she looks quite adorable in that long lavender dress!

There you have it.  It took me all weekend to get this "Friday" 5 up.  Such is the season of life, friends!  Hope your week is off to a great start!

Friday 5

1.  Did I tell you that a few weeks ago we finally figured out that Norah isn't lactose intolerant?  We've been trying to figure out for a year why she always seems to have diarrhea.  After Justus was born, it got way worse, and the only thing that had really changed about her diet was a steady increase in peanut butter and jelly sandwiches for lunch, because this mama didn't have time to make much else.  Well, lo and behold, we cut gluten out of her diet, and within a week she had NORMAL POOP.  And let me just tell you, after a year of changing diarrhea diapers, we have had many small celebrations in this house as we 'get' to change these new, beautiful, so-much-easier-to-clean-up, diapers.  Yeah, we're parents.  It's the little things. :)  So this means 1) no more pb and j for lunch, 2) Norah has been lovin' eating more cheese! and 3) I am embarking on adventures in meal-planning.  Because...

2.  Justus seems to be milk and soy protein intolerant (MSPI.)  So, yeah.  I'm cooking gluten, dairy and soy free...which makes life...interesting.  I think I've finally found about 15 recipes that most everyone in the family can (and will) eat, so I just put together a 3 week menu rotation.  Meal planning has been a bit of a drag, so it will be nice to have a go-to list!

3.  One thing that has saved me precious minutes in the kitchen:

Seriously, one of the best grocery store purchase I think I have ever made.  I am all about cooking from scratch, and using fresh stuff whenever available and practical, but I do not like peeling/chopping/pressing/crushing garlic.  So many methods...none of them I like.  But squeeze garlic?  Yes, please!

4.  Potty boot-camp around these here parts for Norah today!  She's been talking about it for weeks, she's SO excited to wear big girl undies.  The real motivation for starting is Veteran's Day.  Don't see the connection?  Tim's a city employee, which means he has the day off. :)  He also took next Monday off since he's been working 50+ hour weeks for the last 2 months.  4 day weekend with Daddy's extra hands around = doable potty training for this busy nursing mama!  Our method:

• talk talk talk it up!  We've been prepping Norah for months.  Every time she told me she was filling her diaper, I'd tell her "some day soon you're going to wear big girl undies and run to the potty instead!  Then we won't have to change your diaper and you'll get a jelly bean!"  And this week I've been counting down the days..."in 2 days we're going to potty train you!"  Last night at bedtime she smiled super big and told me, "tomorrow we're going to potty train me!"  Yeah!  She's ready.
• cold turkey no diapers; she's wearing training undies (they have extra absorbency so the messes aren't SO bad) and no pants for the first few days.
• block off all available carpet and hang out on the linoleum all day.
• check out a bunch of kids' books and DVDs about the potty from the library.  (Too Big for Diapers featuring Ernie is the biggest book hit so far, and Bear in the Big Blue House has some pretty stellar songs about the potty chair...if you're looking for recommendations!)
• move the potty chair to the kitchen linoleum, and spend a bunch of time just sitting on it.  (reading new library books, watching DVDs, etc.) 
• when she's not sitting on the potty chair, we set a timer for 10 minutes and she goes to sit and try that often. 
• talk up the rewards!  Norah gets a jelly bean for #1, and is SUPER excited to pick out a piece of Halloween candy for #2.  

So far, she's doing awesome.  

5.  I have so many deep thoughts running through my brain on parenting, motherhood, showing grace to both myself and my children, leading them by example, working hard at my job as a homemaker, etc etc etc, but it's overwhelming to me to think about trying to put into words all the work that God is doing in my heart right now.  For now I'll just say that things have been good with Him this week, refining, and encouraging.   All in all (I'm still exhausted!) but I've had a really good week this week.  I feel like we are settling into a new normal, and I'm figuring out how to juggle 3 kids without feeling like I'm spinning my wheels or barely keeping my head above water.  And that in and of itself is no small miracle.  So far the post-partum blues have been for the most part kept at bay, which I attribute primarily to the prayers of dear friends and family who know the hard times I've had with post-partum depression after my first 2 kids.  SO thankful for those prayers!  Please keep them coming.  And secondarily to simply having more realistic expectations this time around, and a stronger support network than ever before.  So all that rambling to say, maybe I'll carve out some time this week to share a few deeper thoughts.  But don't hold your breath.  We are potty training after all...

6.  Because I'm feeling generous today, I'll give you a #6.  Well, not really generous, just mildly guilty for not doing any milestone blog posts on the little man.  Justus turned 3 months old yesterday.  Can't believe it!  He was around the 95th% for everything at his 2 month appointment, and hasn't seemed to slow down at all.  Here's a smile to melt your heart for the weekend:

Love this guy!

A Logical Conclusion...

Last week we spent 7 wonderful days in beautiful Colorado (and 2 not-so-wonderful 12-hour days driving to and from, but that's another post for another day.)  Thus my lack of attention to the blog.  My apologies.

Noteworthy tonight, however, was Audrey's line of thinking yesterday after naptime.  She's been potty trained for a year now, but still has trouble staying dry at naptime and nighttime.  We've tried multiple 'methods' for working on this, but I've come to the conclusion that she'll get it when she's ready.  For now, she gets a small reward when she succeeds. 

After naptime, if her Pull-Up is dry, she gets a few chocolate chips.  Yesterday, success!   So I gave her 3 chocolate chips.  "Because you're 3!" I said.  Norah ran over and insisted (aka, grunted 'uh uh uh' while frantically signing 'please') that she get one too.  I handed her 1 chocolate chip.  "Because Norah's 1." 

Audrey thought about this for a minute, then asked me "Mommy, does that mean you get 30 chocolate chips?  Because you're 30?" 

Why yes, sweetie, I believe it does.  ;) 

And in case you're wondering, yes, we pull out all the stops if she makes it ALL NIGHT LONG with a dry diaper.  Which has only happened 2 or 3 times in the last year, and did indeed happen once last week.  (Likely because we were in the mountains and she was super dehydrated, but it was success, nonetheless, right?)

DONUTS FOR BREAKFAST!!!!

Going a little nuts...

I'm doing a trial of tree nuts in my diet this week. So far Norah has shown only mild signs of intolerance, which is GREAT! It gives me hope that these food reactions truly are just "sensitivities" vs. allergies, and that she will hopefully outgrow them. She actually slept from 8 p.m. until 3:30 a.m. in her crib last night, waking up for one feeding at 10. HUGE progress for her.

So I've been thoroughly enjoying pecans in my granola, peanut butter on my apple slices, and last night I made African Sweet Potato and Peanut Soup for dinner. (Click on the link for the recipe.) Yum. It tasted like Fall in a bowl. Tonight I'm making a family favorite, Alaska Salmon Bake with Pecan Crunch Coating. This recipe has been on my regular menu rotation for years, but lately I've had to leave out the pecans, though it was still good with just the honey-mustard glaze!

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And speaking of going a little nuts, this girl has been testing every boundary and limit of my patience today. Like her new shirt? I found it at a local consignment shop this week, and it couldn't be more appropriate for her. :)

All of a sudden, she woke up this morning and our current method of discipline didn't even phase her. So we had to ramp it up a bit today. I think it's working. We'll see if she's a little more compliant after naptime. :)

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Potty training continues to go well, I think. We're averaging about one accident a day. Is that normal? For awhile she was waking up in the middle of the night, screaming "My need to go potty!" and we would take her, and she would go. She'd also wake up super early in the morning to go, and sometimes it would be hard to get her to go back to bed. I was having a really hard time being patient with daytime accidents when she could keep her diaper dry during naptime and all night long! But thankfully the last few nights she's slept through "the urge" and used the nighttime diaper that we've had her in all along. Some might not think this is progress, but for me it is a relief. I'd rather have her sleeping 13 hours straight right now than waking me up once or twice a night, especially when I'm getting up that often (or more) with Norah!

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The low-light of my day so far was when I was just starting to get Norah ready for her nap when I heard Audrey screaming "go stinky in the undies!" (This was wierd, because she had just gone #2 on the potty a few minutes earlier!) I quickly deposited Norah in her crib and ran to check out the damages...she had gone, and it had rolled out her undies, down her leg, and onto the floor (linoleum, thank goodness). We ran to the bathroom and another nugget rolled onto the floor. Meanwhile, Norah commenced screaming. I never imagined I could clean up so much poop so fast...off Audrey's buns, thighs, calves, and feet, off the toilet seat, off the floor in the entryway, the floor in the bathroom...you should have seen me running around the house with diaper wipes and Chlorox! All while poor Norah kept screaming. When the house was finally safe for Audrey to roam about in, I rewarded Norah for her sisterly-self-sacrifice by rocking her to sleep and letting her sleep in her carseat.

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On a more positive note, the high-light of my day today was hearing Audrey say "nuzzle noses wif Norah," and seeing this:

She loves to give her sister love, and Norah loves to receive it! Audrey likes to "do tummy time wif Norah," and lately has been lying down next to her on the floor, waiting for Norah to "roll on Audrey." Which she usually does. She is really so sweet with her.

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And speaking of sweet, Norah Lou is 4 months old today. When Audrey turned 4 months old I was hit with major post-partum depression/anxiety, and was plagued with insomnia for months. Thankfully this time around I don't seem to be going completely nuts. It helps knowing that the baby-stage and sleepless nights are all temporary!

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Norah is now:

wearing 9 month clothes, size Medium Fuzzi Bunz (size 3 Huggies), eating every 2.5 to 3.5 hours during the day, usually giving me one 5-6 hour stretch at night, sleeping half in her carseat/half in her crib, rolling all over the room, sucking on her toes, spitting up less!, smiling all the time, laughing a little, blowing raspberries with her tongue, and sporting red hair.

That's all for now. Over and out.

Potty Time!

THANK YOU THANK YOU THANK YOU to all of you who gave us advice about potty training. I took many different suggestions and put them to work. I think the best advice was that I need to be consistent. Though wearing a diaper over the top of her undies was nice for me, (less clean-up), she clearly wasn't feeling her accidents as much, and it wasn't as effective. But seriously, who thinks potty-training can be done without cleaning up any accidents? Apparently I did. Can you tell I've never done this before? :) Also...who starts potty training when they don't even own carpet cleaner? Again...me! Duh. After loading up both children in the rain and running to Wal-mart for an emergency purchase, you can bet I won't be making that mistake again.

Anyway...yesterday afternoon, at the advice of my sister-in-law and a few others, I finally undressed Audrey from the waist down. She LOVES running around "nudie-buns" as we call it, so it wasn't traumatic at all. After just one accident on the floor, she started running to the bathroom to try and go potty every 5-10 minutes. (She hadn't gone #2 ALL DAY, which is highly irregular for her--pardon the pun--so I knew she needed to go.) She got a sticker each time for trying, even if nothing happened. Then...the baby got hungry, and needed my full attention. Enter problem. We've been using this potty chair:

I LOVE that it fits right on the toilet. I LOVE that there is NO MESS to clean-up after she's done. I LOVE that she stays put for awhile to keep trying. The problem? She's too small to climb up on the big toilet herself! So anytime she needs to go, I have to be available to help her. So...while I was feeding Norah, I pushed the step stool over close enough so she could use it if she absolutely had to go. She did, and successfully made it up on her first attempt. I helped her down. Second attempt? Foot inside the toilet. Not much fun for either one of us. But she really didn't want to go on the floor again, so after about 10 trips to the potty, she went #2, on the toilet!!! She was SO proud of herself. And I forgot to mention that I upped the incentive...1 Curious George fruit snack for going #1, 1 BITE OF ICE CREAM for going #2. And it worked. She is her mommy's girl; ice cream is a big motivator!! :)

But we still hadn't solved the problem of her being able to go all by herself. Luckily I still had an actual "potty chair" in the basement that I purchased at a garage sale last summer. I was a little grossed out to actually use it, but when Tim caught me online ready to order a brand new one and pay extra for next-day shipping, he got out the bleach and sanitized it all up last night. :) Let's just say...Audrey LOVES her new potty chair. Yesterday she sat on it all evening, and successfully used it after dinner. Today she's been running and sitting on it all day! During Norah's feeding I heard Audrey yelling "Mommy, potty!!" Then "potty on floor!" and "potty on carpet!" Uh-oh. But next I heard some glorious words..."big stinky in the little potty chair!" Could it be? Did she really? But what was that about the carpet? Finally Norah finished...and lo and behold...Audrey had felt the urge, and independently ran to sit on her potty and do her business. I wasn't there to clean her up right away, so she had indeed left a little trail "on the floor" and "on the carpet," but the mess was minor. And she got her bite of ice cream. :)

All day long today we've only had one accident, early this morning. Every other time she's gone on her own initiative. When we got home from Wal-mart she was dry, and she sat on her potty and went as soon as we walked in the door! Even MORE suprising was the dry diaper after her 2 hour nap!! I definitely didn't expect that.

So...that's probably way more information that you care about. But so many of you were kind enough to comment, maybe you do care about the little details. :) We also got new "puppy" panties at the store today, and those have been a huge hit. I think we're onto something.

To Potty Train...or not...yet...

That is my question. Technically today was potty training Day #4 in this household, but the hubby & I are at odds about whether or not we should continue. Here's the synopsis:

• 1 Curious George fruit snack awarded for going in the big potty. (2 awarded for going #2.)
• 1 sticker added to the "Keep 'em clean & dry!" chart for each time we go to the bathroom to try, if her undies are still clean and/or dry.
• Lots of praise when she goes! And lots of praise for clean & dry undies!
• We went to the library today and checked out a bunch of books about going potty, and a few kids' DVDs on the subject as well.

Day #1: All accidents, all day long. Zero success. After stepping in pee multiple times, I finally figured out to put a diaper on OVER her undies, so she could still feel her mess, but I didn't have to clean it up.

Day #2: Only 2 accidents all day long, multiple successful trips. We took her every 30 minutes to try; if she didn't go, we tried again 10 minutes later, and again 10 minutes later, etc, until she went. She only went for Daddy, all day long. Finally at bedtime she went for me, for the first time all day!

Day #3: Again only 2 accidents all day long, and Daddy wasn't even home!! Multiple successful trips with Mommy. Whew. I really thought we were on to something.

Day #4: Multiple accidents again. I don't think I was as rigorous about taking her as often. Norah only took one nap longer than 30 minutes all day long, so I was pretty busy. Audrey told me once, (in the car), "Mommy, potty!!!" As soon as we got home we went to the bathroom; her diaper was wet, but she still went when she sat down. Later this afternoon she told me again, but had already gone. These are the only 2 times she's actually told me.

I'm frustrated. I really thought she was ready. She's been telling me often when she's going/has gone in her diaper. And before we 'officially' started training, she'd sometimes go 2 or 3 times a day on the potty. But today seemed like regression. Is that normal? To have good days, then bad days? Do we stick it out? Will we lose ground if we quit for a few weeks, or months, then try again? Is she close? How long does this usually take? By the way, we've NEVER had a successful #2 trip. And I'm totally grossed out cleaning that out of her undies. I finally figured out I could kind-of use our cloth diaper liners in her underwear to help clean up some of that mess.

Anyways...I would LOVE some feedback from other moms (or dads!) who have been here and done this. We're all ears!