It's On Again!

Tonight, Lala sat on the potty without a diaper on.... and pee'd!!!! I was so shocked!

Since the last attempt, there has been barely any potty sitting and none without diaper on. And while it makes for good lunch time conversation (hey, I work with a bunch of moms...), I really haven't even thought about it. Lala has enough going on to really be worrying about using the potty.

Her court case has been pushed back to Thanksgiving and lots of upheaval has been going on. Much clingyness has ensued and I am praying for all of this end soon.

The cuddler, not to be outdone, also sat on the potty. He thinks it's quite fun and I have high hopes that one day, I too, may brag at the lunch table that potty training was "soooo easy!" In the meantime, he is charming the pants off of everyone and getting cuter by the minute. He gets away with too much by turning on that thousand watt smile.

The Re-Open Window

Maggie is back! Well, for one post anyways... if you haven't visited The Open Window
to read about her journey in adoption, then you need to, especially if you are in the
midst of a long wait. It is inspiring, touching and funny.

In the meantime, please vote for her in the Good Mood Gig contest to get a job!
In this economy any job is worth it - and honestly it's a good way to find a good
blogger with a following. She got into the contest a little late, so she needs to
catch up! Please go vote and urge all your friend too!




Good Mood Gig from SAM-e

Feed the Dog

After telling Lala that she could not feed the dog french fries, she got down
from the bench, picked up the dog bowl and said "doggie hungry!" So cute!

Celebrating Everyday Life is having a giveaway! Check out the super cute
dress that is in the offing! If I only had time to sew... or money to purchase.
Too cute!

Upcoming...

Yesterday I had to attend a class to my teaching credential current.
It's the culimination of a class I took in 2006-2007. Everyone was supposed
to bring a photo that showed the changes in their life since we had last met...
my original photo was a copy of a christmas card I had made of me and my
dog wrapped up in Christmas lights and me with a wine glass in hand.
Contrast that to the one I'll sending out this year and it's quite a change in three years.

Have you noticed the recent backlash against holiday cards? I can't b
elieve the number of people who've told me that they really hate
them... how do you hate a holiday card? I realize that the annual
holiday letter was never a big favorite, but I liked them. Nowadays,
you can simply upload a photo to some site, choose a frame and order
away. They'll even send them out for you if you just upload your address
book. And yet, people seem to think they are this huge bothersome
task that no one appreciates, so why do it all?

Maybe it's just the people I know... Are you planning on sending out holiday
cards? Has the number of cards you received gone down over the years? Is
it just me?

**just wanted to add that this morning we had to stop at WalMart to pick up
mittens before heading out to the pumpkin patch. It was that cold this morning!
Winter is on it's way.

Cuteness Galore

The camera is charged up! We're headed out

to the pumpkin patch tomorrow morning.

I'm obviously more excited than the kids...

Lala doesn't remember going last year (although

she's seen the movies) and the cuddler has never

been. There will be hayrides and pumpkins. Maybe

even spicy cake donuts.

There's been a couple of developments in Lala's court case - not necessarily

positive ones. She'll start visits with BM next week... and I have no idea as to

how they will go over, but I'm worried for her. She's just starting to settle in and

all this chaos returns for her. It also meant that her court date was rescheduled

much later. In the meantime, nothing is going on with the cuddler's case. I

haven't heard from his cw since early in September. So, I guess no news is

good news for now.

Date Night

I left the kids tonight and headed out on a blind date. It lasted an hour.
I looked at my watch three times... yah, that great.

Actually, it wasn't horrible. Just no connection and slightly awkward.
At least I can say I did something without kids this weekend.

Pumpkin patch on Sunday!!!

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.

Moving Along

First, I talked myself out of the new car. I really do not need one and I may need that car payment money sooner than I thought.

This morning was the meeting with Lala's CW. TPR has been filed and has a court date in Nov. Her BM is MIA. No BF was ever identified. This means that the court notices have to be published for several weeks in a newspaper. For this means, I need to get cracking on that adoption homestudy (still haven't had 2nd meeting with AW) and probably find a lawyer. Having never been this far in the process I'm a little unsure as to what I need to do right now. Probably a good question for the AW.

In the meantime, I'm trying to clear out my "sewing"/storage room for the cuddler. Seriously, we are all happier when he has a lot room to run around in and it will start raining in a matter of weeks. One of the joys of this are is rain from October to May. Like, non-stop rain. While finding new homes for all the stuff is a challenge, the floors in that room are going to be even more so. They are wood, but not in good shape. In fact, I think one spot may actually have mildew in the wood... I'm waiting for the ONE wood floor guy in county to call me back about re-doing them. Hopefully, it's something I can actually afford. Prices in this area are kinda steep and since he's the ONLY guy in the entire county who does this, he's probably more than a little pricey. And if it is mildew issue, I can't just carpet over it.

In the meantime, I'll be working on finding more storage in a house that doesn't really have any. I think I'm going to try to create a faux built in the living room to store books and such. Or at least coral all the toys... I'm already wondering how I will be able to handle Christmas toys.

New Car

For our camping trip last weekend, I rented a small SUV. Man... it was so much more roomier than my current compact car. It felt open and breezy. I could fit the new double stroller in the back, and put other stuff there too! In the same back space! The only thing I didn't like about it was that the driver could (and did!) lock the keys in the car. Luckily, the rental company could unlock it remotely, but that's still a problem for me.

I lock myself out of tons of stuff all the time. My house, my classroom, etc. I would be really screwed if my car wasn't configured to make it nearly impossible to lock without keys being in your hand.

Anyhoo, I'm really loving the idea of having this small SUV. Enough that I actually looked it up on Costco and made an appointment to look for one (did you know that you can buy a car via Costco? It apparently knocks several thousands of dollars off the price... they wouldn't tell me how many, but rumor has it that it is a big number in car salesman speak), plus the sales people are desperate for a sale. I've been trying to talk myself out of it for the past three days. As someone who will soon be paying over $500/mo for daycare, it seems like a rather silly move to put myself in debt. Plus, who knows if I'll have a job next year? Please, help me pray for strength to resist. I really want a new car.

The Cuddler

He's still here... even if he's been slightly overshadowed by Lala on the blog. He's a firecracker, that one.

His favorite toy is plastic shape-sorter box. No, he can't put the shapes in, but he does like to carry it around shaking the shapes inside. So far in the past two weeks, he's fallen while dragging it around and hit his chin on it creating a rather nasty looking bruise and another one just above his belly button. Today, he shirt was removed at day care (super hot!) and when I picked him up, we discovered a block shaped bruise on his back. He is such a boy! I'm documenting all the falls, but my poor calendar is getting full.

I can picture him in another five years with permantely scabbed knees, surrounded by random mechanical parts as he tries to put his bike back together. He will, of course, still have that little elvish grin that melts even the hardest heart.

Sick Day

Yesterday, Lala threw up at day care. I picked her up and she seemed a little down, but otherwise fine. We all came home and had naps and then dinner. Lala did not eat, but then again, she hasn't eaten dinner for the last three days (breakfast, lunch and snack are all eaten)... so, was it because she was sick or because she just wasn't hungry?

This morning we dropped the baby off at daycare and took off to the beach. She has never been and I figured it would be something fun to do rather than sitting around the hot house all day. The waves on the beach scared her, but she had no problem in walking through the little streams or pointing out every fragment of sand dollar she saw. We also examined a small jellyfish and the difference between various animal tracks, including our own. It must have been exciting because she fell asleep on the way home. I wish I had taken photos, but I was so excited to show her the beach, I never got it out of the car. Plus, with a child and dog, I didn't really have a free hand. For those who are wondering, dry sand "hurt", but wet sand was just fine.

Change of Seasons

Since this area really only has two seasons... dry and wet, I figure I can set my own change dates. We returned from my family's annual reunion last night. Surprising, the cuddler made pretty good progress for sitting in the car all day. I think it's because Lala was in the back seat with him and could be entertaining when she wanted. Also, I rented a larger vehicle (a CR-V) for the trip, so they weren't so packed in. I'm really thinking about buying a CR-V. It was comfortable, did pretty good on gas milage and had tons of room.

Last week I had a meeting with some of Lala's people and it looked like they were planning on her being here permantly. I told my mother, who immediately got excited and asked why I wasn't... because we all know how this rollercoaster rides, don't we? This morning I heard a rumor that a wrench was thrown into the works. Does this mean a change in plans? Will we all soldier on with the first plan? Once again, I find myself in the unknown. Fun, fun.

Names

I've been thinking about Lala's real name. It's not a name I normally would have chosen... but is sort of a family name. It's definitely not a popular name with this generation (which isn't necessarily a bad thing) and does have somewhat ethnic connotation. Is that a good thing or bad? I'm not sure... names are tough. For the rest of her life, every application, resume and business card will introduce her with that name and all of it's baggage.

Which then leads to the whole thought process about changing a child's name after adoption. Is it the right thing to do? Is the child loosing something important or is a name just a name? If the child was named after a grandfather who was a child abuser/alcholic, is it still an important family tie? What if the name is crazy, like 'Formica' or 'baby boy'? Those are real names!

It's hard to know what is the right thing to do.

Long Weekend

Man, with two children under two (or just passed it), I am exhausted
by the time Sunday night rolls around. To much screaming, crying and
general toy fighting. I have to come up with a new plan or I may just
go insane.

Lala turned two on Friday and celebrated by saying over 400 times that
day. We also had cake with her older sisters. Or at least they did...
I was too bust trying to keep the cuddler from running behind the
counter and into the bread overs. That kid is so goal oriented!