the Right Thumb

Mr. Mister has always sucked his right thumb when he's tired. Well, today he got a cut on that thumb and when he laid down for his nap with a band aid on it, he looked at it, not really knowing what to do. So I suggested he try to suck his other thumb. He put it in his mouth but quickly took it out and said, "It doesn't work!"

Potty Training

Maybe you remember this post with pictures of Mr. Mister in his new big boy underwear. Yes, that was in December, back when I thought he would be potty trained before the baby came. In fact, I'm fairly certain that we bought the froggy potty chair last summer.

So this week, with his 3rd birthday coming in a few weeks, I decided to finally do some intentional potty training. He has done wonderfully! I guess there really is value in waiting until they are ready, because it went so smoothly. I know we're only a week in, so we're not in the clear yet, but I'm so proud of him.

Yesterday, Daddy took him to Auto Zone and I forgot he was wearing underwear instead of a pull up, like he had done when we left the house before. They were gone for a good hour and a half with multiple stops. When they got home, Mr. Mister asked me, "Mom, do I have a pull up on?" Which made me remember that he had underwear on instead, so we rushed to the potty. He made it the whole time without an accident!

So today we ventured out again with underwear and he did great.

HOWEVER, with the excitement of no more day time diapers comes new challenges (of course, because every new stage in parenting has new challenges).

1. Getting out of bed at night. Even though he still wears diapers at night, he now says every night after we get him in bed that he needs to go to the potty. It had really made the whole bed time thing a lot longer. The other night he told Daddy, "After you close the door, I'm going to say, Daddy, I have to poop." As always, he never lacks in honesty.

2. Leaving the house. Now we have to go potty before we leave, which takes a long time. Adding that to an already chaotic time trying to get out the door with both boys, I feel like I need to start leaving an hour before we really need to.

3. Public bathrooms. As much as I say, "don't touch," it's nearly impossible to get a toddler on and off the toilet without him touching things I never would. This is a huge stretch for me and my issues with germs so I try not to think too much about it and then I make sure he scrubs his hands afterwards!

Cousin Love

I think these four pictures capture the four times the boys got along all week. Okay, that's a little exaggeration, but not too far from the truth. It was a little chaotic at times, but we know they really love each other. Someday when they're not 3 and they know how to actually play together instead of taking each other's toys, they'll really enjoy being together!

PS...we really missed our Colorado cousins!

We love Aunt K and Uncle N.

They are so patient and fun with our kids!

At least he's honest

Today when I was in the family room feeding the baby, I heard some rustle in the kitchen. I called out, "Hey Mr. Mister, what are you doing in there?" He answered, "What, Mom? I can't hear you. I'm eating marshmallows." I guess he wasn't trying to sneak anything past me!

Props to God...

...for some beautiful creation.

Coming soon...

...more pictures from the beach. This one will have to suffice for now as a preview of what's to come.

Get ready for some good pics because the beach is an amazingly beautiful place, my husband is an extremely talented photographer, and I happen to believe that my family is pretty good picture taking material.

Motivation

It's been another hard day.

But this awaits, so it's all okay.