1st 2010 Post!

Yes!! I'm getting the new year off to a great start - a blog post about 2010...in 2010!

This post is about potty training...Alex! Up to this point, Alex hasn't really shown much interest in eschewing diapers in favor of Cars undies. Normally a pretty easygoing kid, he's been surprisingly stubborn in his refusal of this very important step.

In July, Zach decided to try to take charge of this for us. One day, I discovered that he had randomly changed Alex into big boy underwear. Unfortunately, Alex wasn't willing to change his mind on the idea, even to impress Big Brother.

In early September, Zach came up with a ‘brilliant’ idea (and I quote): “Let’s just lock him in the bathroom and he can go potty when he needs to.” No one else really cottoned onto this idea. When the kids and I visited Iowa in September, Alex peed in the potty for the first time. Having done it once, and basked in the (probably over-)enthusiastic praise that followed, he decided he never had to repeat this performance again. And the life in diapers continued...

Finally, in mid-December, Alex asked me if he could wear big boy underwear. Then, he said, "Can I go in the bano?" In another language, no less! Progress!

Fast-forward through the holidays to the second week of January. We are, as I write this, heading into the *4th* day of big boy undies, with limited accidents. Do we dare dream of the reality of being a diaper-free household? Could it really be around the corner?

Random Bits of Cuteness

Here's a bunch of cute stuff the kids did/said over the past few months. I wish could follow them around with a video camera 24/7. Enjoy!
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6/18
• Earlier tonight, Zach was singing the story of "The 3 Billy Goats Gruff" and Alex was interjecting commentary. Example: Zach: "And, the littlest billy goat went walking across the bridge..." Alex: "Oh, he's so cute!"


7/17
• Alex: "Wa's dat?" Me: "My IPod." Alex: "Your youPod?"


7/28
• Alex: "Good job, Mama! It's so pretty. I so love you!" I was making him a cup of chocolate milk.


10/1
• Both boys woke up with seal-bark coughs. Zach said, "Maybe we swallowed a walrus."


9/29
• Alex is downstairs yelling, "Cheese! Ok, say it louder: Cheese!!" I looked down - he's playing 'photographer' with our tripod.


11/8
• Zach: "Alex, you need to listen to me, because I'm your big brother!" Alex: "I'm not the big brother; I'm the little brother!"


11/7
• Alex is running around in his pjs and new "wellies." (rain boots)
• Auntie Coley is teaching Zach how to play Lego Batman on her cell phone. Cute & slightly disturbing at the same time, since he's only 4.


11/24
• Alex: "I'm Firefighter Alex." Zach: "When you get big, can you change your name to something cool, like Firefighter Bob? And I'll be Cowboy Superhero!" Alex, excitedly: "And I'll be Firefighter Alex!"


11/15
• Zach just told me that the dinner I made was better than 5 of his "medium-favorite" things: sledding, Broncos, spaghetti & meatballs, buttered bread and building a snowman. Alex told me it made him happy. Pretty high praise! ♥


12/19
• Alex: "My book's upside down. Don't worry, Book; I'm coming to the rescue!"

 

Gobble, Gobble!

We hosted the Pickett Family Thanksgiving this year, and, for the first time in nearly a decade, all of the Pickett siblings were able to make it. Additionally, Seth’s friend from work, Ajay, spent the day with us, bringing a traditional Indian dessert that took him three hours to prepare. Carrot Pudding, delish!


The kids had a great time playing together, especially the boys. The next day, Zach asked me when the next Thanksgiving is, so he could play with his cousins. Awww….

We played Settlers of Catan, and Brandi and Dustin beat us all. We all ate way too much, and spent the next day in food comas.

On the following Saturday, we celebrated Thanksgiving with the Sippys. As usual, Mom made way too much food, so we ate all day; games were played, stories were told (mostly by Dad, and consisting of stories we'd all heard before...), and movies were watched. The boys played with Cider, Jake and Julie's dog, Joel, Jake and Julie's 1 year old little boy (who's a super-cutie pie), and Auntie Coley. 

As soon as all of the Thanksgiving celebrations were over, the boys had one question: is it Christmas yet?

Alex's Ear Tubes

Over the past year, Alex has had 6 ear infections. Once the 6th came and went, we decided it was time to sit down with an ENT doc to discuss tubes. Turns out, Alex had a bunch of sludgy fluid in his ear, leftover from one of the infections; this fluid was continuously becoming infected, and was probably causing a 20% hearing loss in the ear (I knew it wasn't totally selective hearing!). The doctor advised tubes, and we wholeheartedly agreed to the procedure.

The appointment took place on the Monday before Thanksgiving. Seth was officially on vacation for the week, and made a comment on the drive home from the doctor's office about how nice it would be if they could get the surgery done while he was still on break. No more than an hour later, the surgery center called and said they had an opening first thing on Wednesday morning. Great timing!

The surgery went very well - the surgery center staff and nurses were awesome with the kids, turning everything into a game, and letting the boys take over the televisions (sorry, other people who were having surgery that morning). Seth was able to carry Alex back to the OR, while Zach and I made our way to the waiting area. Seth had joined us, and we'd barely settled into the comfy chairs (I'd barely even updated my Facebook status to say Alex was in surgery), when the nurse came out and said the procedure was over. The doc came out a minute or two later; everything went smoothly (and quickly - 15 minutes!), and he was in recovery.

The rest of the day consisted of movies on the couch, and lots of get well presents from everyone. By the next day, you'd have never guessed he had just had surgery. It's been a couple of months, and his check-ups have been great. Thank you, Dr. Z!

Let's Bowl, Let's Bowl, Let's...Rock & Roll!

We took the boys bowling for the first time. Check out the final scoreboard:

In case you're wondering, his technique consists of setting the ball at the top of the little bowling ramp-thing, and stepping back, letting the ball roll at its own determined pace.

In a Cabin in the Woods

The kids have done such a great job camping and playing around in nature, we decided to take them up to the cabins at Hermit Park in Estes. Since HP sold the park to the county a couple of years ago, things have changed a little – no more flushing potties or showers, for example. The Parks Dept. does a great job of managing Hermit Park; there’s a port-a-potty outside every cabin, and they’re even clean. I know; it’s the little things. Since we were staying only one night, we decided to bring Jack, figuring the fresh air would do him good…and sort of hoping a bear or something would scare him into being a good dog. Fat chance, but hey, a girl can dream, can’t she?

The boys loved our “little house” in the woods, especially the bunk beds, which they climbed up and down incessantly. I guess, Zach climbed them – Alex, legs still a little too short to reach the slats, needed some help getting up and down, which required a lot of up-and-down from Seth and me. They also discovered the wonder of headlamps, and the joys of settling down with a good book in a cozy sleeping bag. All in all, it was a great mini-vacation…even for Jack!