Potty Tales, Part 2

I don’t think I have ever been so excited about toilets before. I have to admit, before I picked up Isabelle that day at daycare and her teacher told me she used the potty, I hadn’t thought seriously about potty training.

In fact, when we were coming home from NC several weeks ago, I ran into this older southern lady in the restroom, while changing Isabelle’s diaper. She asked me why my 18 month old daughter wasn’t yet potty trained. I told her the same thing, it hadn’t even crossed my mind yet…I understand it’s much easier when you wait till your kids are ready or at least giving you some indication of ready. Which she hasn’t yet. This lady responded, in her southern accent, “I had all boys, I guess boys are just easier to potty train.” Never heard THAT before.

I also questioned my sister-in-law’s in India about how they potty train children. I have read and heard rumors of how Asians potty train infants and that they are light years ahead of westerners. They couldn’t give me any insight, but I think it may have to do with the fact that disposable diapers are four or five times the price they are here, and in an economy that is a fraction of what we have in the states. You do the math. It also helps that nothing is upholstered or carpeted there. Say what you want, but my unpotty trained kid isn’t going to walk around diaper less on my wall to wall carpeting or sit on my $700 couch! It comes down to economics, people.

All of that to say, this weekend, Isabelle peed in her little potty at home every day! Whoo hoo! It plays music when the kid pees in it. The first time it did, she shot up off of the potty with a wild look in her eyes and came running as fast as she could to me! I was laughing so hard! But we celebrated with a jelly belly, compliments of Eli and Jayden from our Easter stash. We have found out JB’s are a huge motivator for peeing.


Isabelle getting her first pedicure...from Daddy!

It's My Potty....

Look who is using the potty...well...not exactly THIS potty. She's using it at daycare, with all of the other kids..but not so much at home. It's a start. Is it unrealistic that we'll have her out of diapers by the time Number Two comes along in October???

Little Miss Gabby

I truly seem to be feeling a bit better these days. What a miracle! At least, Conrad measures how well I feel by how much I cook. When I’m really nauseated the thought of cooking dinner makes me want to cry. Actually, I’m not beyond tears when I walk in the door at 5:30 and think about raw meat. Now the thought of raw chicken is more manageable and my family is officially getting a tad more than microwave meals.

We had a great relaxing weekend. Isabelle has been a complete angel since we arrived back from Vegas. I think she’s afraid we’ll up and leave her again Or it could be that the weather is getting better and she is loving getting outside more. And we love it too!

We are constantly amazed at how much she is learning and how quickly. She mimicks everything we say. On our way home from daycare, about half a mile from our house, she usually starts to get a bit ansy and whiny. So I usually begin distracting her at about the same location. I point out the local school, the ducks, our neighborhood, our street etc. by saying, “Look! There’s the school. Hi School!”

This morning we were driving to daycare, past the school, and she looked out the window and said, “Hi chool!” I took me a minute to realize what she was saying, then I laughed. She is so big some days!

On the other hand...

In our typical slacker parenting style, our kids still has a pacifier (among other vices we have yet to break her of). So we have been saying to her, “Binkies are for little girls, not for big girls. Are you a little girl?” To which she replies, “I a big girl.” And prompting wretches the pacifier out of my retreating grasp. I don’t think she’s getting the parallel.

Vegas in Review

We had a good weekend in Las Vegas last week. Not great…just good. We decided we had definitely been places we liked much better. So I thought I’d hit the highs and lows of the trip


Highs
• We had a nice Jacuzzi tub in our suite, and I LOVE taking baths, so I took the opportunity to properly mourn the tub that I never got in our “new house.”
• One night we went to a morrocan restaurant to celebrate our anniversary and it was so cool! It was like a big tent and the tables were low, and they served a wonderful six course meal. They even had belly dancers (slash seating hostesses)!
• We GOT OUT of Vegas to visit Red Rock Canyon and the Hoover Dam.
• 80 something degrees and sunshine…the entire trip!
• We tried our first In and Out Burger which has been on my “To Do “ list for many years! Yum!

Lows
• We missed Isabelle terribly! And it was worse when we heard that she would cry herself to sleep at night with, “Mamma.” The next trip will just have to include her (and my mom and dad to take care of her while we rest and vacation)
• Vegas in general was a little like a grown up Disney World. We were sick of it after a few hours. Not to mention every where you look are half naked pictures of women! And smoking…urgg…the smoking. I’m not sure if it was the smoke or the spiritual atmosphere, but it was down right sickening after just a little while.
• It should come as no surprise to you that we are budget travelers. So we went to vegas because of a good hotel deal. We got a good hotel deal because we agreed to sit through a two hour time share sales pitch. Ha! The sales guy couldn’t make it for two hours with us so he let us out early. Bottom line: HILTON wants to “sell” you a spot on the Vegas Strip for $60,000 that will entitle you to “approximately” seven nights hotel stay a year at any of their properties world wide for the next 30 years. Don’t have $60,000? No worries! Hilton will loan it to you for about a 15% interest rate for the next 5 years. Which comes down to $1600 a month for the next five years.

Oh ya…did I mention you also get to pay upkeep fees of $1900 a year for the rest of your life? Needless to say, I laughed at the guy when he told us this was a “legacy” we could leave for our children. We told him we would rather pay our mortgage and save for our children’s education. I kept thinking, do people REALLY do this? Do people really buy into this? Surely no one could be that dense??
Added High: We mocked the sales guy the rest of the trip and it provided much entertainment for the two of us!

Finally! I know someone on reality TV!

As I’ve mentioned in previous posts, when I’m pregnant, all ability for forethought or intelligent thinking seems to seep out of my pours. Conrad is working hard on getting a solid ebay business going (and doing really well, I might add!) and has been asking for my help. His reasoning? “Well, we are still paying for YOUR MBA” But I just can’t seem to get my head out of the fog in order to be of any help!!

But last night I found myself waxing philosophical while watching my new favorite tv show, Real Housewives of NYC. I find it fascinating that this group of women can make such federal cases out of nothing at all. And the sheer amount of money they can spend on clothes, “charity events”, and coaches and trainers….geeze. But since I am the one with the remote control, I can’t throw too many stones, now can I?

Since we are on the topic of television, I’m not a huge fan of Survivor, but I recently got wind of an old friend who is on Survivor Micronesia!? Natalie Bolton, who holds the record for any Maniac being on consecutive Teen Mania trips with me…we both were in Venezuala 90, Costa Rica 91, and then again Chile 92, and then again in Hong Kong 97 I think… She is now apparently the most boring cast member EVER on Survivor. Sorry Natalie….hope you win the million…with your integrity intact.

The Sun is Peeking Through

The temperature actually reached 70 degree’s here in Ohio! Praise the Lord! Conrad said, “Did you notice you are feeling better since the sun came out?” Really…I have been nearly fully functioning since!! It’s like I BELIEVE there is hope!

This weekend we drove north to see my sister and her new little girl, Abigail. She is so beautiful and perfect! Isabelle showed small signs of jealousy but it was probably a good introduction to her (and our) big life changes coming in October. I told her that Mommy was going to get a baby like Abigail, she crunched her eye brows together and shook her head a resounding, “No.” Funny girl.

Sunday was Conrad and I’s week to do Sunday School for the 1-6 graders. For starters, our big building is under construction, so we moved to a smaller room. Secondly, Isabelle wailed and wailed and refused to be comforted in her class, so we had to take her with us. And she continued to cry, so Conrad ended up having to take her out while I did the class. Eeshh. To say I was tired after the class was an understatement!

Today, I have been thinking about and praying for a family that is scheduled to give birth to their little daughter, Audrey Caroline. She isn’t expected to live, once outside of her mother’s body. Pray for Angie, Todd, and little Audrey. As Angie says in her blog, “One way or another Audrey will be healed today.”

A Few Pictures of Abigail

Welcome to the World Abigail!

My sister, Jona, and brother-in-law, Eric welcomed beautiful little Abigail Nichelle into the world yesterday around noon after nearly 20 hours of labor! She was 7 pounds 15.5 ounces and 21 inches long and practically perfect from the looks of things! We can't wait for the weekend to meet our new littl neice!

A Visit from Grandma

My Grandma Margie is with us this week “visiting.” In reality she should get paid for this kind of visiting. She has been watching Isabelle in the daytime and cooking for us at night…and everything else in between! We are definitely being spoiled!

I think she felt sorry for us from all of my whiny posts and decided to come help out. Isabelle is in a much better mood when she’s been home all day with Gram, and I LOVE not having to think about what to cook for dinner or even cook it for that matter!

Today I had my first real doctors appointment. As it turns out, my OB is pregnant and due in May! She assured me she would be back in plenty of time for our October arrival. Nothing revolutionary to report from this appointment except that I whined and complained to my doctor about feeling badly. She empathized…funny how a pregnant doctor seems so much more….well….empathetic! But didn’t do more than empathize.


Also, she couldn’t find the baby’s heartbeat, which didn’t seem to concern her too much since I am right under 12 weeks so she scheduled an ultrasound later this week just so that “I wouldn’t worry for a month.” I’m not a great worrier anyway, but any excuse to add an ultrasound!