The Last Photo

 

This was the last photo I got before my camera took a giant dump. I was just clicking away and all of a sudden a piece from inside the body came loose and it was all over.

Really not the best shot to remember this camera by, but it reminds me of the days of film. In those days you took what you got...the good, the bad, the ugly.

Goodbye Camera...I will miss you while you're gone :(

Life lesson:

If you try to save money by getting a used or refurbished camera, make sure you get the warranty. Which we did, thank the Lord.

The warranty is already going to be coming in handy as our camera spontaneously broke 10 minutes ago. Just TWO DAYS after we got it. I am sad to see it go and I hope it doesn't take forever to get back. I just wish I would have gotten a great Christmas card picture first :(

Boo. Hiss.

A new gadget

After much deliberation, Bryan and I decided it was time to invest in a new camera. To pay a professional is quite pricey so we figured if we could learn a few tricks and take nice pictures, we'd really pay ourselves back over the years....plus have cool pictures every day rather than once a year or so (and I want to be able to take a million beautiful pictures of Baby Girl when she arrives).

So we ordered a refurbished one to save a couple hundred bucks and soon we got a tracking number for FedEx and it was on it's way! It went to a few FedEx locations first, then it was set to be delivered yesterday. Then it was delivered.

To our old house.

Needless to say I FREAKED. A whole variety of possibilities flew through my head, most of them resulting in us being out several hundred dollars with no new camera. Luckily my friend Jessi lives just a few blocks away and ran over there to see if it was still at the front door...it was not. While she was looking around waiting for me to get there, though, a guy happened to pull in the driveway and he had it! She was on the phone with me while she was talking to him and relief poured over me. Thank God for good friends and good people.

Phew.

Anyway, back to the camera. I realize that we are not professionals and that the pictures we take probably won't be AS good, but based on our practice shots last night without reading a thing about how the camera works and with the supposedly "crappy" lens it comes with, I'm pretty sure we'll be just fine :) Here's a few of our first shots with our new sidekick:

Getting ready to feed our third Beta fish...

...we'll see how long I can keep this one alive!

The first one was named "Fishy," the second, "Ellie Poochy," and this one is "Purpley."

I love his face, like a mother should.

He has grown tired of being photographed for the day.

Cool practice pic Bryan got.

My handsome grizzly bear.

Playing with all the plastic bowls and bottles we have in our cabinet.

I have no clue what he's going for here...I should probably intervene rather than document.

What a MESS all around his naughtiness!

A Few Good Moments

Over the summer whenever we would take Simon in water that was too deep for his feet to touch the bottom, he would hang onto you like a spider monkey. I remember him saying "this is making me nervous" at one point. I was laughing about hearing a 3 year old say he was nervous, but also worried he would never lose his fear of the water.

So for the past few months, Bryan has taken Simon to the pool at the Y every week or two to help him get more comfortable in the water and really just for something fun to do together. The time in the water has definitely paid off! We all went on Saturday night and for the first time ever, Simon swam around in the deep end with nothing but a noodle and a water belt. He was excited that he could "steer" so well and it was like he had been doing it forever. It was one giant step closer to being an independent swimmer and my proud mama cheeks were tired from smiling by the time we got out of there.

Who needs swim lessons when you have a dad? :)

___

Today was the Menomonee Falls Christmas Parade. It's great because it starts one house away from ours so we don't have to tow chairs and blankets very far, everyone can just park right in our driveway and a clean bathroom is about a minute's walk away. This year we remembered to bring plastic bags because of all the candy that is handed out (which is a much more efficient way to collect candy than at Halloween by the way), and dressed warmer than ever before so it was a tolerable hour of being outside in the cold. The kids had fun and the parade was short so everyone was happy :)

A RARE family pic!

My Aunt Monica was swarmed by little people because she was tossing marshmallows into their mouths.

After much bribing, we got a smile out of Simon. We couldn't get these two to smile at the same time, though!

This was Lily's good smile pic...Simon might have still be resisting here...can't be sure.

I don't know what he was promised to smile like this, but I'm glad he did it!

Nap Faker

Up until a couple of months after Simon's third birthday, he napped for about 3 hours every day. The closer he got to three and a half, the more he wised up to the fact that napping is for suckers. He would still nap a few times a week, but gradually that number shriveled to where it is today: a two hour nap once or twice a month. Maybe.

Today he had me fooled into thinking it would be one of those days....and it kind of was.

He was crying about nothing and everything today so come 1:30pm I decided to show him who was boss and demanded a nap (ha). He cried and thrashed for a while and then all of a sudden he pulled himself together and said he would lay down. I was skeptical, but wasn't about to argue. 

He was quiet so I turned on my iPod and picked up where I left off with The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks, took out the recycling, did some research for Run Like a Mother and tended to some laundry. I went upstairs with said laundry and was surprised to hear him jabbering away. I went back downstairs as quietly as possible, but the damage was done. My footsteps meant he was free to get up apparently.

It was an hour of rest for him and an hour of productivity for me, so in my book it was a win. I'll take a fake nap any day of the week...if only I could get him to want to fool me in such a way more often :)

Happy Thanksgiving!

My 24 Days of Thanksgiving is officially wrapping up today. I've been thankful for my son, husband, family, friends and co-workers among other things, but there is someone really important that I missed.

I don't know a thing about her, but I think about her all the time. Not a day passes that I don't wonder what she will look like or where she will come from or when she'll find her way home. It gives me a sense of peace and happiness knowing she's going to be here one day, but at the same time a sense of anxiety about all the unknowns ahead (reaching far beyond her appearance or birthday).

It's so hard to have the right amount of patience and faith, but I am always trying. And instead of feeling sad that another Thanksgiving is passing us by and we are no closer to having a second baby than we were the one before, I'm going to try be thankful that we actually are a little closer this year (and I'll pretend this statement doesn't actually depress me).

Baby girl, this is for you - it's seriously time to come home. No more Thanksgivings without you.

Thankful - 23

I'm thankful this thankful journey is nearing it's end! I think I've lost anyone who used to read this in the meantime haha :)

Anyway, tomorrow will be my last one. I'm really (REALLY) hoping I can be thankful that I can park in my driveway; today marks 3 weeks of having no driveway access. The road is done so I can at least park there, which is a wonderful improvement from having to park a block away. However, when they poured the new concrete driveway apron they took out a huge chunk of our gravel driveway and never filled it back in, rendering our driveway useless in the meantime. I called the village yesterday and was told it should have been done weeks ago and would try to get someone out by the end of today.

I'm not holding my breath, but what a nice Thanksgiving treat that would be...

Thankful - 22

I'm thankful for this facebook post for a variety of reasons: 

Only in WI! I was out for a run and I was followed by a goat...AGAIN!
-Andy Long

Thankful - 21

I have a new obsession. And I'm quite thankful for it.

I love Adele and I love Glee, so I had high hopes for this performance and I was not let down. I bought the song on iTunes and have listened to it about 100 times in the past week. I know I already shared this on Facebook, but I'm sharing it here too. Enjoy! And if you don't, I will enjoy it enough for both of us :)

Thankful - 20

I'm thankful for this story. Every time I think about it I literally laugh out loud and if I try to tell it to someone, I have a really hard time getting through it. I'm quite certain I won't be able to truly convey the hilarity via the written word, but I'm going to write it anyways so I can check in on a rainy day and have a good solid chuckle.

We were living at our old house at the time. We had two dogs and a very small yard, so come springtime there was a lot...I mean A LOT of dog poop in a very condensed area. Having the worker-bee husband that I do, I was cozy inside while he was taking on the task of spring poop clean up. He was using a little, handheld garden shovel to get the months old, thawing piles of dung into a plastic bag. I can't remember why, but I decided to go outside to talk to him about something towards the end of this chore. He looked beyond irritated that he was, once again, the one on poop duty and I was bugging him with something unrelated. I said whatever it was that I had to say while he was in mid scoop and the poop fell off the little shovel. I will never forget the way he looked at me with pure exasperation and then reached down to grab the fallen lump...with...his...bare...hand...and threw it in the bag. I asked him if I really just saw him do that and he said it didn't matter anymore because he was covered in poop splatter from head to toe anyways...including his mouth.

I lost all control and for some reason even just thinking about this story sends me into a laughing fit like no other (hence the aching stomach and tears right now). Seriously, trust me on this one...it was freaking HILARIOUS and in my head it just keeps getting funnier. If only there was a way to share the actual memory so you could see what I'm talking about here...JK Rowling had a great idea with the pensieve, but that's a discussion for a different day :)

Thankful - 19

I'm thankful for hot water.

I just finished up doing the dishes. So often while I have my hands in the hot, soapy water and the rest of my house has a bit of a chill to it, I think about how grateful I am for something as simple as hot water.

It's something we all grew up with and all have at the turn of a lever, every single day. It's hard to imagine that there are people out there who have no running water...and hot water? From a faucet? Never. It doesn't seem fair that we take for granted the things that other people might never even know exists, but that's the world for you. How I got lucky enough to be born into this life of luxury I'll never know. Again, that's the world for you.

I've been giving thanks to a variety of things for the past 19 days which has been a great way to acknowledge the many blessings in my life, but for some reason a little hot water today served as a great reminder to not only give thanks, but to give. Period.

People out there need help from people like you and me. So out of curiosity, what is your favorite charity to give to?

Thankful - 18

I'm thankful for the ladies I work with at Fleet Feet. We had our annual Diva Night at the store tonight and it was a huge success, largely to do a great staff working together and having fun.
:)

Thankful - 17

I'm thankful I got to share a good, hearty belly laugh with Simon today....and for the dog that made it all possible.

It should come as no big surprise that I have a love-hate relationship with my dog. She is so cute and playful and friendly, but she is so gross and naughty at the same time. I will say, though, that she provides us all with entertainment every day and Simon just cannot get enough of our furry friend...and vice versa.

Anyway, as I mentioned, Elliot is naughty. Her naughty business comes in a variety of shapes and sizes, but today it came in the form of just plain not listening. Simon and I were heading out while Bryan was still home for lunch. The plan was for us to let the dog out and in a minute Bryan would call her back in.

So we walked to the car (still on the street that is unfinished) and started to get in. Elliot trotted along with us and blatantly ignored Bryan when he called for her. I finished getting Simon buckled, got myself in and I could still hear Bryan calling for the dog who is pretending not to hear. We get the doors closed in the car and the next thing I know there is Elliot peeking in the passenger's side window. She is running all around the car trying to find a way in. Simon was finding this absolutely HILARIOUS and, frankly, so was I. Meanwhile, Bryan has to come all the way out to the car to try to get her. Elliot evades him a few times and he eventually has to pick her up and carry her. After she wriggled free the first time I got out my phone to take some video of all the fun being had. That laugh of his makes me melt...

Thankful - 16

I'm thankful that my street isn't done yet. It's great to be forced to walk a block every time I need to go somewhere, especially on days when it's cold and rainy.

I'm thankful for burrs. When they adhere to my dogs face in such an amount that I can see them from half an acre away, I know we're all in for a treat.

I'm thankful for free digital tv. Watching live tv that skips and jumps every 30 seconds is a great reminder of all the money we are saving by not having cable.

I'm thankful for the Packers, Brewers and political opinions, without which my facebook feed might look barren.

I'm thankful for my giant clock on daylight savings day. Resetting a clock that is bigger than a 5 year old is always an adventure.

I'm thankful for the internet. Without it I might actually do something productive with my day.....

I bet your night was better than this....

My sister and her husband have three kids. Clara is 6, Jackson is about 2 and a half and Max is about 1 and a half.

It all started in the car on Sunday. While on the way to my parent's house from Manitowoc to pick up her kids, my sister's back started to cramp. When she got out of the car, she started rocking back and forth and I would have sworn we had an "I didn't know I was pregnant" case on our hands...it looked like she was in labor. She said it felt that way too, only the pain was consistent and never came and went like it does in labor (my hopes of delivering a baby in my mother's kitchen was therefore dashed). She went home to rest/heal while my mom and I watched the kiddos for the afternoon.

Fast forward to Monday morning. Her back is still far from perfect, but she can get around okay thanks to Ibuprofen and heating pads.

Fast forward to Monday evening. Clara (6) gets home from school and pukes. In the frog potty. And all over her clothes. Jackson (2.5) is potty training and wants to use it but points out that his frog potty has puke and clothes in it. So he poops his pants. April hobbles around with her bum back trying to get everyone cleaned up.

Fast forward another hour or so. Clara pukes in a bucket, but in the heat of the moment decides to knock the bucket out of April's hands, dumping what would have been perfectly contained puke all over the floor.

Fast forward into the night. Jack is heard gagging on the monitor, but doesn't say anything. He gags again a little while later so April goes to check on him. He puked and proceeded to rub it on his jammies and all over his sheets. Meanwhile, Max (1.5) is standing in his crib and pukes over the side of it all over the floor.

It's Clara's turn to puke again and the pressure causes her to have diarrhea in her pants. Twice.

All of this was retold to me this morning and since there's nothing like good poop humor, we were laughing it up pretty good. I really think she would have preferred to be crying, but sometimes you just have to laugh at the insanity!

April, you are one hell of a woman. I love that you are able to laugh at things like this and try your best to roll with the punches. Your kids are lucky to have you. I am hoping and praying the flu chaos is behind you!!

Thankful - 15

Today I'm thankful that I am not pregnant.

If I were pregnant, I'm sure I'd be thankful for it but today I'm going to relish in the fact that I'm not. Why, you ask? Because I vomited at 2am last night and every time I get sick I'm reminded of how much being pregnant sucked.

There is just something inherently not fun about planning your meals based on how it's going to feel on it's way back up...or worrying about where the most secluded bathroom is wherever you are so nobody hears you gagging (because for some reason you are the loudest puker known to man)...or getting super fat because the only way you can find a second of nausea relief all day is to have unhealthy food traveling down your esophagus...etc.

But, alas, I'm a whiner. I know.

In any case, today I just have a stomach bug. It's probably going to be over by tomorrow and for that I am thankful :)

(To everyone I saw in the past couple of days, please accept my sincerest apology if this bug finds you or anyone in your family...)

Thankful - 14

I'm thankful for Book Club.

My friend's daughter Lily was a teeny tiny little baby when I first started with this book club. That means I've been meeting with these ladies about once a month for three years already...it's hard to believe it's been that long. Also, when I first started Simon and Lily were the only babies on the block. Since then we've added Nolan, Nathan, Eli, Abby, Connor, Henry, John, Lila, one bun in the oven and one bun that has hopefully started baking in someone's oven (hello adoption). Yes, book club can get a little chaotic sometimes!

Anyway, some books are better than others and some "meetings" are better than others, but it's something I always look forward to and hope we can do for years to come.

Thankful - 13

I'm thankful that my road is almost done!! We've been living in a construction zone for what feels like (and very well may be) months and we are finally on the home stretch. Wednesday will mark two weeks of not being able to park in our driveway or on our street. We can at least park on our street some of the time (like on weekends and evenings), but it will sure be nice when we have no restrictions.


Plus, Bryan has been working this afternoon on installing a new garage door opener for me so as soon as the road is done, I can park in my garage without having to manually open and close the door. Goodbye frosted windows every morning!! I know I expressed that I'm thankful for my husband already, but here is a great example why. He's easily the hardest working person I know and I'm the lucky one who gets to reap the benefits of his hard work. Thanks for all you do Bryan :)

Thankful - 12

I'm thankful for every last day that we hit 50 degrees or higher here in Wisconsin. Especially when they come in November. Oh and sunlight...I like that a whole bunch too.

Thankful - 11

I'm thankful for my alarm clock. No numbers and beeping for me....mine is in the form of a little boy.

He's always happy and excited when it gets "blue outside," he comes in our room and says "mommmmmyyyy" with a giant smile like he's been waiting forever just to see me again, and he snuggles with me until I'm ready to get up (or until he loses patience, whichever comes first).

What a welcome to the day, right? :)

I'm also thankful for everyone who serves our country! This week I got to visit with my cousin who is a marine serving in Afghanistan and it's amazing the conditions he deals with every day so we can have the conditions we enjoy every day. It sounds entirely miserable and terrifying over there, but there they are...day in and day out following orders and doing their part to protect us. It's quite amazing actually. 

Ever wonder what they do for fun in the middle of a sand pile? They find giant camel spiders (even worse than they sound) and have them fight each other; they might throw a scorpion in there too for added fun. I would not fare well...

Thankful - 10

I'm thankful for vegetarianism.

Super lame, I know, but I'm actually really thankful for it for a variety of reasons. Here are a few:

• My cholesterol has dropped pretty significantly in just a few months time
• I've tried tons of new amazing meals that I simply would have ignored in the past
• I can do all my shopping in one place because I don't have to worry about getting "good meat" from a nicer grocery (after finding tons of chopped up arteries in the ground beef at Aldi, I was done buying from just anywhere)
• I don't have to eat overcooked chicken out of fear that it will in turn be undercooked
• I feel good about having a smaller carbon footprint
• We are eating out much less because most vegetarian meals from a restaurant can either be easily duplicated at home or are ridiculously overpriced, which in turn saves us money and probably a lot of extra calories

I will never say that I will never eat meat again (never say never and all that), but right now there are just too many compelling reasons to continue this way of life. I'm also so thankful that my husband is on board and we're in this together. It makes it so much easier!

And this picture is just because I think my kid is cute (I'm allowed, right?):

Thankful - 9

I'm thankful for audiobooks.

I know some people love to curl up with a good book. It's relaxing for them, they like to physically see how far into the book they are, they love their fancy bookmarks (?) or it helps them wind down from a busy day. It all sounds good, but for some reason I have a hard time sitting down to read a book. My reasons are twofold: 1) It's either not engaging enough fast enough so I have a hard time choosing to avoid other responsibilities to sit down with it or 2) it's too engaging, too fast and I completely ignore all my other responsibilities until I've finished it.

So I listen. I listen while I run, do the dishes, fold laundry, sweep the floor, clean the bathrooms, make dinner....really anytime Simon is in school or having his own downtime. My house truly never looks as good as when I have a good book in my ears :)

Thankful - 8

I'm thankful for gum.

This little wonder substance has given my son the motivation he needs to go potty, get dressed, brush his teeth, etc. BY HIMSELF. I'm happy :)

Thankful - 7

Today after I picked Simon up from preschool, we went to visit Grandma Berta at work. I was chatting with Bryan while Simon was hitting his grandmother up for something out of the vending machine, and he asked me what my plans were for the rest of the day. With a smirk, he added "pretty hectic day ahead?" We both kind of laughed...

So I am thankful for balance in my life! I keep busy, but I wouldn't call my days "hectic." For that I am grateful and I will relish in this non-hectic way of living for as long as I can. I'm certain that adding a third job and a second baby will throw me for a loop so for now I'm just going to soak it up :)

Blog Happy

I know I've been a little blog happy lately, but I can't help myself. I just have to share this because it's not every day your 3.75 year old reaches a new milestone. When they are much smaller, it seems like they are doing something new every day. While it feels like Simon is expanding his vocabulary and story telling skills on a daily basis, these are not skills you can really write down as a milestone.

Today Simon proved that he is truly a child of the next generation. I opened a word document for him and without an ounce of help from me, he rather quickly typed the following:

simon

He seems years away from writing it, but he can type it! I was one seriously proud mama :)

--

He almost hit a second milestone today as well. We bought a high back booster that is supposed to be for kids over 3 years old, at least 30 pounds and 38 inches tall so technically it's safe for him. We brought it out to the car, set it up and buckled him in.

Then I stared to hyperventilate and my eyes started to water.

I'm not prone to panic attacks, but this was as close as I've ever gotten. It's absurd I know, but I am going to call it intense mother's intuition and I got him out of that thing and back to his regular seat before the car was even started. I think he is a hair too short still which is why I was having such issues. I am soooooo excited for the day when he is in that booster for real, though. I guess I'll try again in a few months...

--

And finally...I know the picture quality is not the greatest, but do you see a little striped arm under the bed?

He was supposed to be napping, but I heard him moving around upstairs so I went to check on him. As I'm opening the door to the future baby's room, I see him silently slipping under the bed. I said something like, "I don't see anyone in here so I guess I'll leave," and he stayed completely still and silent. I closed the door but left it open a slit. He waited about 30 seconds then started to make his way out, staring at the door the whole time. I was completely laughing (silently) so I couldn't go in. I turned to walk away and when he heard me he flew under the bed again. We played this game several more times and for whatever reason it was making me laugh uncontrollably. Eventually the game ended and he wound up winning the nap battle as usual. I know you had to be there, but it's something I will think about and laugh at for a long time I think :)

Thankful - 6

I'm doing two today so I can catch up and have my thankful number match the date.

The truth is I'm thankful every day for all the people in my life and I could have a separate post for each of them, but I think I'm going to do one right here and now and try to come up with other small things for the rest of the month.

So I'm thankful for that little boy washing his hands in the bathroom right now after going potty independently so he can have a little piece of gum. I just can't get over how much I love that kid. Even just saying I'm in love with him just doesn't come close...you moms know what I'm saying I suppose.

I'm thankful for my parents who help us out in our every day life to such a ridiculous extent...only my sisters can truly know what I'm talking about.

I'm thankful for my in-laws who love Simon so much and make such an effort to see him as often as they can, despite the drive.

I already said I'm thankful for my sisters a few days ago, but I'm also thankful for my sister-in-law. She keeps me young. She plays games with me. She's a busy college student, so naturally she is missed! :)

I'm thankful for my friends. I don't want to list anyone specifically for fear I will forget someone! I feel so incredibly lucky to have so many wonderful people in my life who listen to me, inspire me, support me and make me feel so important and loved. I hope I do the same for you.

Family, check. Friends, check. :)

Thankful - 5

I'm thankful I get to look at this every single day until it's summer once again. I'm also hoping I can one day be thankful that it's helping to keep our energy bill down...we'll see!

Thankful - 4

I'm thankful for my husband.

I've wanted to write this one since day 1 but have struggled with what to say along with it. What is the proper amount of gushing to do about your husband on a blog? I'm not really sure....so I'll just say I'm thankful for him and leave it at that :)

Thankful - 3

Today I'm thankful for an organization called Run Like a Mother. They are on a mission to get women out there exercising and are planning a 5K for Mother's Day in more than 10 different cities.


The one in the Milwaukee area will be directed by yours truly!!

I am so so so so excited about this opportunity. For those of you who may not know what a race director does, it's basically everything related to the execution of the race. Finding a venue, setting a course, securing sponsorship, finding volunteers, finding a timing company, stuffing goodie bags, etc., etc., etc.

I really hope I don't screw it up! :)

Thankful - 2

I'm thankful for friends/family who inspire me to try new things. There are so many things I do in my life that are inspired by others, but I'm just going to focus on one today.

I have some friends who are green, and I mean GREEN. If they can save energy somewhere, they save it. They compost. They unplug everything when not in use. They have a garden. They use special biodegradable shampoo. They never use their dryer in the summer. The list goes on. Call them crunchy, hippies, green, liberal or whatever you want, but they know how to save money and are doing their part to save the planet.


Anyway, I've known for a long time that they make their own laundry detergent with all natural ingredients. I guess I chalked it up to another one of their hippie antics (haha) and didn't think much about it. I'm not sure what snapped in me and made me want to try it, but I'm so glad I did! I calculated it out and it will cost us about $3-4 a year for laundry detergent from this point on; the website with the directions estimates that each load costs about a penny. Plus, it actually works better than or as good as any store bought detergent I've tried and you reuse the containers so it's one less thing to throw in your recycling bin. It took about 10 minutes or so to make and was super easy - if you know how to use a stove and measure water, you can do this.

All of the information can be found at http://www.thefamilyhomestead.com/laundrysoap.htm.

{Thanks ladies!}

Thankful - 1

A facebook friend has decided to post 1 thing she is thankful for every day, from now until Thanksgiving. I've decided to use my blog as a forum for this, but right now I'm finding it hard to decide on just one thing.

But here goes.

I'm thankful for my big sister. She's the big 3-3 today! I can't believe my sister is basically in her mid-thirties. What is happening?! :)

(I'm also thankful for my little sister, but her birthday isn't for a while so she gets the shaft here.)


UPDATE:

I called my older sister to wish her a happy birthday as I was getting ready to drop Simon off at Grandma's for a couple of hours. Her kids were already there. She said she was going to be going out to lunch by herself and I thought that wasn't right, I'd go with! We thought our younger sister was working but as I pulled into April's driveway Allison called and said she got off that day. Want to come for lunch? Yes! So somehow, a few hours after I posted about how I'm thankful for my sisters, we all wound up having a great lunch together as a complete surprise to each of us. Love it!

Potty Diaries

When Simon was 2 years, 1 month and 2 weeks old we kissed diapers goodbye and waved hello to big boy undies. A week or two and few soiled undies later, we were good to go.


Fast forward 1 year, 7 months and 2 weeks and I feel like we are no closer to him actually going potty by himself than we were on his very first day in undies. I realize I've created a monster, but now I don't know how to fix it.

He is perfectly capable of going potty independently. He can go like a man without making a huge mess. He can get on the toilet with or without a potty seat, with or without a stool. He can pull his pants up and down just fine.

He. just. won't. do. it.

If I bribe him he will do it sometimes, but I have to talk him through it every step of the way. It's like potty training all over again, only without the mess. I just need to refuse to help him and reward him with something (other than candy or stickers...I don't like the candy, he doesn't like the stickers), and hope that one day we will actually have a real live potty trained kid on our hands....

I thought this picture was appropriate for a post around Halloween about potty training :) HA!

As a side note, on his second and third day of potty training I created a document called "potty diaries" chronicling his (FREQUENT) urination throughout the day. I think I was trying to see how long he could actually hold it...clearly not long those first few days! I lasted at this for a day and a half. Oh, the things moms do sometimes :)

Day 2 of Potty Training!

Up at 6:45 with wet diaper

8:05 (1 hr 15 min)

8:14 (10 min)

9:32 (1 hr 15 min)

9:50 (20 min)

10:30 (40 min)

11:48 (1 hr 15 min)

11:57 (10 min) ACCIDENT

12:15 (15 min)

1:05 (50 min)

1:05 (Poop – started off potty, ended on potty)

4:45 still dry from nap!

5:30 pee

8:30 went to bed, no more pee

Day 3 of Potty Training!

Up at 7:00 with warm, wet diaper

8:50 ACCIDENT

11:00 (2 hours)

11:30 (30 min)

12:45

1:08