No Joy in Potty Town

Apparently, last night's potty experience was a little more freaky than I thought. Today, Lala did not want to sit on the potty sans clothing. If there was in peeing while sitting on the potty, it went into the diaper. Also, we had yet another "accident".

This is not going to be easy. Actually, I'm pretty ready to pack it in on the whole thing. I wasn't exactly thrilled about starting now - she just seemed to be wanting to do it. Asking to sit on the toilet, etc. I guess, she just never figured on pee actually coming out. Oh well... maybe next month.

We did it!

Today I had my first mammogram. I had prepared myself for a long waiting room wait, as is usual in this town... but I was out of there in there in 30 minutes. So now that's done and I've hit another mark of the aged... later in the afternoon I got a new haircut that apparently makes me look ten years younger.

We also had another first tonight. Lala went peepee in the potty!!! She was a little freaked out about it to be honest. Is she ready? I think I've given up on finding a definitive sign. Suffice to say that she really likes sitting on the potty, wiping and flushing the toilet, so what the heck. If she doesn't really want to do it, she won't. Tonight she sat on the new pink potty for nearly an hour. Apparently, it's very comfortable, especially with mommy sitting next to you reading story after story. Anyways, I was about to give up - actually, I did give up because it was bed time - and was in the bathroom starting the good night routine when Lala suddenly stood up and say "ahhhh!" while peeing. She is still shocked by the construct of peeing. I sat her back down, trying to keep her calm and not get upset by the pool of pee surrounding her. She was really thirsty today and had several cups of water and milk, so when I say pool, I mean pool.

After we got everything cleaned up, I grabbed the camera. I wish I could post the photo of her proud "big girl" smile. Hopefully, tomorrow it will be just as cool to peepee in the potty.

We're into it, I guess...

Tonight I ordered a potty, a doll that wets and pull-ups. If anything, I'm hoping that Lala gets the connection between drinking and peeing or decides that pull-ups are cool, because diapers are NOT.

Yeah, I had to order them from Amazon because I don't actually have time to go to the store. How crazy does your life have to be when you can't find time to go to WalMart?

What she can do now

This morning, while putting Lala into her car seat, it suddenly dawned on me how much she's changed in just the few months she's been with me. It's kind of amazing, when I think about it.

• She now knows many animal names and can tell you what they sound like.
• She definitely knows "ABCD" and will join in at various points if someone is singing the ABC song.
• Knows to say "please" and "thank you"
• Can flush the potty and is not scare of it!
• Can identify body parts in English and French
• Can go down a slide by herself
• Knows the difference between "river", "harbor" and "ocean"
• Knows the difference between "bus" and "camper" (large RV)... yah, we live near a resort area.
• Knows what a hamper is and will put her dirty clothes in it.
• Will attempt to clean up anything she spills by herself.
• Can get undressed by herself.
• learned how to whisper when the baby is asleep
• knows that shoes have a right way and a wrong way - the wrong way feels yucky
• If the baby wanders too far down the hall during church, she will go find him and lead him back.
• Will fold her arms when told it's time for the prayer
• wants to brush her teeth every night

We're still working on vocabulary, coloring and few other things. It still stuns me on somethings she's apparently never heard of - that look of utter confusion. Like "cow" or "chicken" or "prayer" (didn't her bm tell the SW that they went to church twice a week?) And potty training is looming. She loves to flush the toilet. She likes to run around without a diaper on. She'll even sit on the toilet, purely at her own request. But she has yet to actually use the toilet for it's designated purpose. Yesterday we tried on a pair of "big girl panties" (just to see what it felt like) and she hated them. I don't know if it was because they hadn't been washed (fresh out of the package) or if she had to actually pee and decided that they weren't a diaper. Right after that She asked for a diaper to be put on.

I think the whole potty training conundrum on my part stems from a whole behavior conundrum. I spend a significant amount of time trying to figure out what is normal two year old behavior and what is adjustment behavior. We're averaging at least two temper tantrums a night... which is pretty typical for a two year old. One is always because the baby gets a bottle before going to bed, but she has to stop drinking at 6pm. Otherwise her diaper will leak in the middle of night... believe me, I've tried them all. I'm sure from her point of view, the baby is getting something she's not. However, in a regular family situation the siblings just have to get over it. Lala has only been the older sibling not even for two months. I can't get all logical with a two year old, but neither can I convince her that anything that big girls get is better at that moment. So is the tantrum stemming from a recent past where scarcity of food may have been an issue? Or is it due to usual two year old logic that "everything is mine and noone gets anything I don't get first, because it's all mine?" It's all a learning process, isn't it?

Ouchies

Tonight was not Lala's night. Somehow she snagged a cheap picture frame off of a shelf in the living, ran into the cuddler's room, hid under the crib and ripped it apart, injuring her index finger in the process. Then she discover thant mommy will not place an endless supply of band-aids on said injury after you pull it off repeatedly. An hour later she slipped and hit her mouth on the side of the tub. Luckily, the cuddler was nearly in bed, so she did get to sit on mommy's lap for about an hour afterwards, while occassionally holding a bag of frozen peas to her mouth.

Somehow I managed to get through 2008 without a single injury for Lala and now that 2009 is coming to a close she's decided to make up for lost time.

Home Visit and School Visit

Tomorrow is my final home visit for the home study. I'm predicting
that the homestudy report will be done just before my fingerprints to
expire. Hopefully, that means I will not have to do them again! It
will be such a relief to have everything done!

Last night was our school open house. My babysitter crapped out on me
at the last minute, and I could not find another. Every back up
already had plans - two were planning on actually attending said Open
House. So, as any good single mom, I brought them with me. All was
well until the third group of parents. By then Lala was comfortable
and the cuddler had run into his second wind. While I was trying
explain the class requirements to parent, I had a little boy sitting
in a stroller chattering away (or rather "bok-ing" away... he really
does sound like a chicken trying to lay an egg!) and a little girl
rolling on the floor under my feet saying "momma" over and over.
Luckily, the scene reminded all the parents of when their children
were young AND those were happy memories. I know it was certainly
memorable for me!

New Room

Over Labor Day weekend, my family installed a new laminate floor in the spare/storage room. It was completely cleaned out and made ready for a new occupant... the cuddler. It was easier to move the crib than the bed that Lala is in. Plus, if the cuddler goes home, it will be easier to turn that room into a playroom. Does anyone remember when children did not need a "playroom"? Well, I don't know how they did it - because I feel like I'm drowning in a tidal wave of toys! Lala only got a few new ones for her birthday and it's still overwhelming. Anyways, the room was completed and it is awesome to have the space. Now the kids can actually run around without crashing into anything else.

That weekend also meant trying to figure out what to do with the kids. The only safe space for them was a blocked off living room where they tripped over each other and got into hair-pulling fights. Not fun. Instead we went to the zoo, for the entire day. And when we got home, no new floor. Crap. Next day, church for three hours. No new floor. Double crap! Labor Day itself - thankyoujeasus! the children's museum is open! New floor done. I wonder if I can claim the $100 I spent keeping the kids occupied as part of total cost of the floor for tax purposes?

The next day, school started. I fell asleep about 10 minutes after getting the kids in bed every night. On Thursday we were running out of fresh food and I was dreaming of grocery shopping. I knew how exhausting the start of school is for me... but somehow I always think I'll do better.

Saturday we went to the parade for the local festival. Lala was very scared of the motorcycle drill team and I had to teacher how to cover her ears when there is a loud noise, but the kids really liked it. At least, the cuddler sat in his stroller the whole time without screaming to get out... which is a good sign. Luckily, he has experienced candy at my house because the frickin' clowns kept trying to give the cuddler tootsie rolls. Who gives a baby tootsie rolls? Lala won't take anything from a stranger, so all the candy ended up in the diaper bag for mommy to give away at school. Perhaps I should start thinking about plans for Halloween... Lala won't talk in front of strangers, so I'm think that saying "trick or treat" 10 to 15 times might be a bit difficult.