Potty Nightmares

It is no secret that potty training hasn't exactly gone like I had expected.  When Blaine was pooping on the potty at nearly 100% back at 5 months old, I thought "wow this potty stuff is easy" and figured he'd be trained by 18 months [the average age of potty training before disposable diapers were invented].  We started elimination communication at 2 weeks old and never let up, so he's known potty and sat on it muliple times daily for essentially his whole time.  

Where we are currently:  Blaine is naked potty trained but not clothing potty trained.

What's the difference?  If he is naked, he has no accidents all day.  He will go to the potty himself when he needs to go, do his business, and be on his way.  IT IS AWESOME.   I often walk by the potty and see pee in there and not even know when he did it.  Makes me so proud of my little guy!

HOWEVER, dun dun duhhhh.  That is where the happiness ends.  I'm so frustrated with him because if he is in underwear, he just thinks it is a diaper and pees / poops in there without telling anyone he had to go.  Obviously when we are out in public or when he is with a babysitter, we need underwear or a diaper and that is where I just am at a loss at what the issue is!  We talk until I'm blue in the face about how to "tell mommy when you have to go" and "these are underpants, you pull them down like this" and "DON'T POOP IN THE UNDERWEAR" but nada. 

I know tons of people who had success with "potty in three days" method of training, which has the kids being naked.  NEED ADVICE:  How did you transition naked potty trained to clothing potty trained?

2 More Weeks

Two weeks from today, I go to work for the first time since June 2010.   I hate feeling like Blaine's life will be turned upside down, but I can't help but think that.  He has been with Mommy all day everyday for just about his whole life [I've been away from him a few times, who are we kidding, but basically being with me on a daily basis is all he knows].   I'm sure he will adapt fine but it doesn't help the mommy guilt thing, and I can't ignore the fact I WANT to continue to be with him all day everday. 

So yeah, I'm nervous for us both. :)

In other news, the whole topic of "early to bed, early to rise" is getting better. He's in bed by 9 pm and up by 7:15 am everyday now.  That is AWESOME considering for the last two years we've been getting up between 9 and 11 am.  Still have a ways to go [I think we will both need to get up at 6 am to get ready and to the sitters by 6:40] but I'm feeling less anxious about the early wakeups now. 

He helped me take my boxes to school today that I've had in my basement all this time.  Made everything more real!

'Kins

Estimating about 500 lbs

Just in case you were wondering how things are going, here's my biggest pumpkin, growing off the 1818.5 Bryson seed [the current world record]. Crazy shape so let's hope it doesn't split!

Family Traditions: Summer Birthday Parties

I have soooooooooooo many happy memories of summer birthday parties as a kid.   My birthday was in June and my sister's in July so I have thousands of memories of swimming, fishing, jetskiing, paddleboating at my grandmas, and always consuming chocolate cat cake.

I love to watch the summer birthday party tradition come alive once again with a new generation.  All the cousins have birthays in boring months [winter and early spring blech], so seeing them on Sunday at Blaine's party having a blast on the slip-and-slide, tractor rides, paddleboat, kiddie pools, frog playing, etc, just warmed my heart and opened the gate of special memories.   Almost as if I planned for my child to have a summer birth just for the parties. :)

The frog was the biggest hit at the party! Giggles were contagious!

Headwaters Adventure Race [take 2]

I don't enter very many races.  We are talking 2 races in the last 10 years.  However, the idea of an adventure race really caught my eye last year and so I entered the Headwaters Adventure Race in an all-phase-team with my husband.   We both ran 2 miles, both biked 10 miles, and canoed 5 miles together.  We were under trained but still did OK but I had plans to improve for this year.

1) Train more.  Accomplished!  In the last 2 months, I have only had a handful of days "off" and have really enjoyed the variety of training.  Nick and I even went kayaking twice to prepare and it really paid off.  I dominated kayak, passing at least 10 men, some who had some pretty big muscles.  Great feeling. :)

2) Enter Solo.  Did it!  Right decision by a mile. 

3) Use a road bike.  I still don't own a road bike but I borrowed a "hybrid" bike that had road bike tires on it and completed the biking section of the course in 39 minutes, a whole 10 minutes faster than last year.  I was more prepared for the course and even had my friend George {THANKS} calculate the percent grade of each street so I knew what I was up against.  It is a VERY hilly course! 

Then I went into the race with two goals:  win my age group [so I could get a plaque] and not walk up any hills in the biking section [I believe I had to walk twice last year].  Our main race plan was to "keep MaMa Rosalie in sight"; but ends up this freaky fast lady who wins EVERY YEAR took the year off because, well, she is getting ready to head to London to watch her daughter compete in the Olympics.  [Could you imagine?!]    Just shaking her hand was like meeting a celebrity. :)   She definitely must think we are weird. LOL!

The race turned out great! Nick did AWESOME finishing in 1.51 [8th place overall including solos, relays and teams] and I finished in 1.54, winning 1st place for overall female!  Still hasn't really sunk in!  

I'm pretty excited because my hometown is having a similar race in September but it is longer run [5.5 miles] and longer bike [12 miles] so that will keep me motivated in my training for the remainder of the summer. 

Mama Rosalie

Can't believe it!

Summer Evenings

I know a lot of people [in real life and through blogs] who put their kids to bed early.  Even the sleep books advise you to put your kid to bed early.  Honestly though?  Moments like this always seem to happen after 8 pm.  :)   

My kid is never asleep before 10 and most days it makes me feel like a bad parent.  Then I get a photo like this and realize that my child simply gets to spend 3+ more hours outside with his dadda per day by going to bed at 10 versus 7.   Lucky kid!   August 14th  is going to come waaaaaaaaaaaaaaay too soon; early bedtimes will be inevitable with a wakeup time before 6 AM looming for us all.  *tear*

Bachelorette!

The Bachelor / Bachelorette is one of those shows that is so dumb but I get sucked in season after season [unless of course I can't stand that season's bachelor / bachelorette; it happens].   FOR THE FIRST TIME EVER, MY FAVORITE MADE FINAL 3.  I can normally pick my favorite the first night and it was no exception this year: when they showed Jef sitting in that stream in Utah, he was my pick for sure!  I'm definitely not a fan of his weird hair or skinny pants, but he is super cute and his smooth voice is to die for. 

TEAM JEF!

And in other news, my sister, you know the one I thought I wouldn't see again until Christmas, IS COMING HOME THIS WEEKEND! YIPEE!