Potty potty potty...

Potty training time. No pictures. I thought it would be inappropriate.

The Method:

Naked bum- He is more aware of his bodily functions when there is nothing catching them (gross). He seems to keep it all in unless he runs and hides to do his business. So, I just don't let him hide anywhere.

Frequency on the john- The first few days, it was every half hour: on the hour, half past, etc. It has now been pushed to about an hour.

Potty Candy- To make him tolerate sitting on the pot so much, he gets a jelly belly every toilet visit, with or without the desired results. It makes the whole experience much happier for him.

Books- The candy and books help distract him so he sits on his throne long enough to allow something to happen. It usually takes a minute or two get anything out. (gross!)

Expecting Excrement (gross!!!)- As long as I expect mistakes during this learning process, the whole thing is much less stressful. So, I am constantly armed with a rag, carpet cleaner, extra underpants and jeans for when we go out, etc.

Shower- My friend Shiloh recommended using a shower as the consequence for accidents. Not a punishment, just the inevitable result of making a mess. He doesn't like the shower so I hope it helps motivate him to not have accidents. I may not continue this if it appears to be too traumatic. He keeps saying scary after the shower. I'll keep you updated.


Overall, the last week has proven hugely successful. He has caught on very quickly to the concept and, as I said before, generally holds it in well when he's naked. Hopefully, in the next little while, he will learn how to tell me he needs to go, and will hold it in well with clothes on. Unfortunately, our society does not accept bare bums all over the place.

note: five different words are used to reference the toilet. See if you can find them all.

Cleaning

The other day my friend made a comment online that she loves to clean. I know this to be true. She keeps a fabulously clean home and is a domestic goddess. But, her comment made me stop and think, "That is not me... and I am not ashamed."




So there it is world. I am a house wife who does NOT love to clean. I bare my true colors. That does not mean my house is a mess. I love having a clean house, and I do clean, I just don't love cleaning. I say this not for sympathy, but for all of you other cleaning-loving-deficient women out there to know that this does not make you a bad person.

What this really means for me is that I have a constant battle with myself to keep cleaning, keep picking up the toys, keep wiping down the kitchen, etc. I married a man who also appreciates clean. He has learned that commenting on anything concerning the cleanliness of the house results in me spewing all of my insecurities about how I need to do better and I'm so sorry and such. Luckily, he is not scared of a mop or a broom. So now, instead of commenting, he helps me clean which I appreciate very much.

I am glad to say that as time goes by, it does get easier. Things become more habitual, like making the bed as soon as I get up. Along with that, the general state of my home is becoming more and more clean. I know it's important, especially because I want to have the Spirit in my home. That is one of my greatest motivating factors.

One consolation I have includes my son, Baylub. He has recently become very obsessed with messy things. He is almost immobilized with worry over messy hands at dinner time or messy cars, meaning cars with snow on them. Here is almost a daily conversation we have in our car.

Baylub: Oh no! Car's all messy. (pointing out the window)
Me: Oh no! What should we do? Should we clean it up?
Baylub: Yeah, clean it up.
Me: You know what, we can't clean it up right now. Let's just say, 'It's ok car.'
Baylub: It's ok car!

And that solves the problem every time. This is a consolation to me because in today's world, mental illnesses seems to touch everyone's lives in one way or another. Now I'm not worried that Baylub will start washing his hands compulsively, but it does make me happy to know that he has seen the messy with the clean in his own home, and he knows that it is ok. Balance, if you will.

Now, some of you may not agree, and that's ok. We all have our own strengths. But, I gotta tell you, some days when I'm tired or down or just whatever, I say to my messy house, "It's ok house. It's ok to be messy for just a minute." It works on moms too.

Dinner Time!

Dinner time is a happy time

for eating food so yummy.

It's a time to talk, and smile and put some hot food in our tummies.

Messes do happen,

but we just keep laughin'

'Cause life is just too funny!

Are you scared?

Just passing this along. It is definitely food for thought. I admit that I am scared.

The day we went stir crazy and saw dinosaurs

Winter is upon us, still. Yes, I state the obvious.

I had plans, big plans on how I would effectively spend our winter days with little tv and quality time outside as much as possible. It has been said, the road to *beep* is paved with good intentions, but *beep* is a lot hotter than it is here right now. Maybe we could just warm up our piggies there and then get back to spending quality time up here.

Seriously though, we went a little stir crazy and decided we would shell out the $10 admission fee in order to see the Thanksgiving Point Dinosaur Museum.



It was worth it! I wish I could have stayed longer to read up on everything. They claim to be the largest dinosaur museum in the world, or something like that. It wasn't overwhelmingly huge, but it was big enough, very kid oriented and just amazing.



What an awesome reminder of how amazing these creatures were and that at some point, somehow, they dominated our planet.


(Caleb is getting a lot better at taking pictures. When he sees the camera, he runs up to it and says cheese. So, getting shots of him posed away from the camera are still a bit rare.)

Here's the triceratops for Adam, his favorite dinosaur. He was severely disappointed as a boy when the triceratops, Cera, in the film Land Before Time was a girl.

(Again, here, he was ready to have his picture taken when another kid distracted him. But he is making an effort.)

This shark head is even bigger than the picture gives credit. The only remains they have of these ancient sharks are the teeth, some up to 7 inches long. Experts dispute how big they were, but if the ratio of teeth size to body size is the same as current sharks, they were HUGE! I shudder just writing about it.

It was wonderful. Dinosaurs are amazing. And our cabin fever was relieved.

Humility and Parenting

Who would have thought the two were so connected. Of course, it's humbling to have the opportunity to be a parent, but little did I know how much I would have to learn about humbling myself below a two-year-old.


Pictures like these help put things in perspective. Talk about heart melting material!





For example, I'm learning on a daily basis is how much my own demeanor effects the demeanor of my family. You always hear how much a mom effects her household, but it is still amazing how true it is. If I let my frustrations show, Baylub feels the tension and mirrors what I feel. So that leads into a lovely downward spiral of negativity. Lu Lu, herself, tends to be a little more fussy when I am. Unless I humble myself, say a prayer for help, and focus on the positive, keep the happy vibe flowing.




Another example, it takes a lot of humility to not discipline just for discipline's sake, especially when I'm really frustrated. So he hit. Is it always the best course to punish after every punishable offense? Quite a conundrum, if you ask me. The purist would say yes, but in reality, two-year-olds are not science. They don't react the same to identical situations, every time. Sometimes, a time-out teaches a good lesson. Sometimes what they really need is a hug and a talk.



I'm finding that more often than not, a snuggle and talk is what is really needed, even if I really want to let him have it with a whopper of a time out. Like I said, it takes a lot more humility than I anticipated.



But, hands down, they are WORTH the effort!