9 posts tagged “potty”

We've been toying with the idea of taking the kids to a movie for a while.  We weren't quite sure it was a good idea, for many reasons, but since Jason is  on vacation for a few days, we decided to give it a whirl with Wall-E.  It looked pretty tame based on a review at www.kids-in-mind.com. 

We anticipated that the volume would be too much for Alanna, but outside of that, we weren't sure what to expect...though we knew to keep our expectations low.  We were well aware that we might end up walking out with all three of them after a short time....or that maybe one of us would wind up in Barnes and Noble waiting it out with one (or two) kids until the movie ended for anyone who might have been enjoying it. 

Everyone was excited...we had treats, blankets (in case it got cold or to serve as ear muffs), backup clothes for Emory, diapers just in case, and two large doses of patience.  We had planned to get there early, so the kids could get acclimated to the environment with the lights on and without the noise.  However, when they opened the doors, the lights were already down and the previews were already playing...loudly...even for me and Jason.  Alanna and Aidan were quite unhappy for a while, but Emory was just fine.  She sat in her own seat, while Aidan and Alanna curled up into Jason and me with their hands over their eyes just stressed as could be.  After a while, I took Alanna out for a short break, and by a nice stroke of luck, we returned during a nice quiet scene.  She was pretty happy from then on.  Aidan was still struggling, but he was hanging in there.  We took a little break, too, and when we returned he looked a little more relaxed for a while.  He made it through the movie, and he wanted to see what was happening, but he was not a very happy camper.  Emory was very happy...eating popcorn (a first for all of them)...always wondering where Wall-E was when he wasn't on-screen.  With about 30 minutes to go, she just needed to get down and move a little.  Understandable...she'd been sitting for about an hour straight.

When it was all said and done, Alanna decided she liked the movie experience, Emory was unphased but I doubt she understood much other than who the characters were.  She was entertained though.  Aidan said he didn't like anything about it at all...except the snuggling and the treats. 

And by the way, Emory made it 3 hours without hitting the potty during this adventure, despite our attempts to prompt her to go.  We were nervous (especially Jason, who was holding her in his lap at times, but we had a waterproof pad to protect the seat just in case.  She earned her first Lightning McQueen sticker today, which is reserved for accident-free days!  She knows when she needs to go and is very consistent.  She is very proud of herself (as she should be), and I am so proud of her!

Picking up from yesterday afternoon:  Emory woke up very grumpy from her "nap"...so I asked her if she wanted to put underwear back on, and she declined.  I knew if I pushed it we would have an all out screaming fit, so I decided to end the potty training on a positive note for the day. 

So we jumped back in this morning, and she told me every time she needed to go without any accidents, except for once when I made her mad, and while she was crying she had a little leak.  And still, she held the rest and made it to the potty.  She stayed dry all day and....   ****STOP READING HERE IF YOU AREN'T USED TO/INTERESTED IN DETAILS****  .....even asked to poop on the potty three times.  Not only that, but when we went to Maggie Moo's for a treat to celebrate vacation time with Daddy, she interrupted the festivities to let us know she needed to go.  THEN, on the way home she said she needed to go, and she held it 3 minutes until we got home!!!

Yay for Emory!!!

Emory practiced wearing underwear for a little while the last couple of days, and today we decided to jump in with both feet.  She has done fabulous so far, staying dry from 7:30 to 1:00.  She asked to go potty a couple of times, once she caught herself just in time to make it to the bathroom without having a major accident, and I only prompted her to go before I got in the shower and before lunch.  We'll see what the rest of the afternoon brings and how things progress over the next few days.  We may be a diaper-free family in a few days (with the exception of sleep times when we use pull-ups.)  Now that is excitement!  

Well Emory had her first trial run with Lightning McQueen underwear this morning.  We aren't jumping in with both feet, but I told her that I bought the last box of diapers, and then we'll start training officially after I finish working.  For some reason, Aidan is really pumped about Emory wearing underwear.  Emory keeps talking about it everyday, so we went ahead and gave her a little time to explore the concept this morning.  She lasted a little over an hour before having an accident, and I was too busy trying to catch up on chores to realize how much time had passed without putting her on the potty.  She goes pretty consistently before getting in the bath, and she asks to go sometimes during the day. 

We'll see what happens when we go full steam ahead...

Potty training is such a monumental task, and it is so great when your kids get to the point where you can just send them to the bathroom without accompanying them.  Aidan and Alanna have been trained for about a year now.  Unfortunately, they haven't been able to turn the water on without help in our bathrooms, so we are always running to the bathroom to turn on the water.  Last week, we all went to Lowe's to pick out faucets; the kids tested them out and helped me choose which ones to bring home.  They were   so excited; however, they thought the faucets would magically replace themselves and be available for immediate use.  Finally, we had someone come to replace the faucets two days ago.  They were THRILLED!!!  I was pretty anxious myself; the prospect of them being able to turn the water on and off themselves was very appealing to me, too! 

Since Alanna has been getting up shortly after bedtime to go to the bathroom, I was particularly anxious to not have to play a role in all of this.  This meant that we'd be removing the child-proof doorknob cover from the inside of their bedroom door...which allows so much more freedom.  They are discovering and pushing the limits of that freedom more with each passing night. 

The first night, both Aidan and Alanna had to "go" within about 30 minutes after I put them to bed.  I knew the novelty was exciting, and I was happy to be sitting comfortably in my recliner not helping them... at all.  The next night, I had Jason put a little Killer Whale doo-hickey on the faucet that can turn it into a water fountain...so no more need for cups!  Score another one for allowing me to be lazy!  Talk about excitement!  They love it!  Last night, I heard Alanna head to the bathroom while I was on the phone with my sister.  After I hung up, I peeked in on her, and she was just scrubbing away, proud as punch to be doing this all on her own...she had a huge grin on her face. 

This morning they realized they could also use their new-found freedom to go to the bathroom when they woke up...since I'm not a morning person, I don't get out of bed quickly enough, and they end up using their Pull-Ups.  They were so cute trying to be so quiet.  Alanna instructed Aidan in a loud whisper..."Tip-Toe!" when he came into my room to throw away his Pull-Up, which ended in a crash when the lid to the diaper pail slammed down.  This wasn't something I'd anticipated...just didn't think that far into it.  He kept peeking at me, hoping I might be awake, as I continued to pretend to be asleep.  It was so hard not to giggle!

Tonight, the novelty isn't wearing off.  They both had to "go" within 20-30 minutes of my turning out the lights.  They were in their bedroom giggling and talking, which I tried to ignore.  I had told them I wanted it quiet tonight, and if I had to come in there would be a consequence.  So, after a while I walked with heavy feet to their door to give them a heads up I was on my way.  I stopped just outside and heard them scrambling onto their beds and whispering to each other that I was coming and to be quiet.  I returned to my work without going on...but with a smile on my face.  They crack me up.  It was a little after eight when I heard the door open.  I waited a minute to see if they'd come down the hall to the office where I was working, but no one came.  So I walked to their room, and the door was ajar.  I opened the door, and I couldn't see figures lurking anywhere.  I flipped on the light, and they were both curled up on their beds in a heap, trying their best to look like they were sleeping.  Stinkers....   

So here's the latest...

Emory now has a fancy-schmancy Lightning McQueen sleeping bag that came in its very own backpack with a water bottle.  She also has LM underwear to entice her to potty train when "the time is right," and she chose some LM stickers for her reinforcer.  Part of me can't believe I just bought her boys' underwear, but then again, it will REALLY excite her and nobody will see her underwear anyway (I hope.)  I think this is the most any of my children has been caught up in a particular character.  They LOVED Blue's Clues for a while, but I guess they just didn't have the amount of retail items out there because my kids were all born after Blue had her HeyDay.  (???)  

Alanna is in a bit of a stage where everything is scary to her.  This can be a little challenging at times, but what can you do!  Other than that, she just loves to pretend she is rescuing animals like Diego and Alicia on Go, Diego, Go!  She has learned a lot about wild animals I never would have thought to talk to her about from this show.  (Diego is Emory's second favorite character)  Alanna and Emory would love to have some Diego clothing; they prefer him to Dora.  But the darn marketing people feel like Dora is for girls and Diego is for boys.  Hmmpphh.

Aidan...we were at Target yesterday, and I was picking out some cards for Mother's Day.  Aidan wanted to know who I was buying cards for, so I listed the people I had in mind.  Then he said something like "I want a card with a heart that says 'I love you" for Mommy!"  I stopped dead in my tracks.  It was so sweet, so I told him he and Daddy could come to Target to find the card he wanted to choose.  I love getting glimpses of his inner boyishness.  He's typically so serene and laid back, that it makes me smile to see some "rough and tumble" come out.  It's a fun change of pace.  We had some lizards in the front yard yesterday, and while Alanna kept her distance, he crouched down to get a good look and just watched quietly.  And of course, there are random times when he just throws something (like a sock) across the room just to be silly.  But today, we went to our friends' house for lunch, and their three boys are on the opposite end of the spectrum as Aidan, not to mention Aidan is surrounded by estrogen all day!  He loved getting into "the mix" with them.  He got a little overwhelmed at times, but he was still laughing and smiling if he stopped to watch.  He squealed with delight when he'd jump back in for a minute or two.   I didn't want to drag him home for nap time!
 

It's official.  Emory is absolutely obsessed with Lightning McQueen.  We have 4 different styles of Lightning McQueen cars...similar to matchboxes.  Every morning, she looks for the "Dark Red Lightning McQueen" (after he got his paint job in Radiator Springs) and has it in hand before breakfast.  If she can't find it, there is a crisis at hand.  Jason did a "google images" search for Lightning McQueen, and Emory was SO thrilled to see SO MANY pictures of LM.  We've talked a little bit about potty training, and she would REALLY like some LM underwear, which they don't make for girls.  But she was so excited at the prospect, it may be the perfect motivator when we decide to make the leap.  Does it really matter if she wears boys' underwear???  It's not something that had ever crossed my mind...but I'm thinking it just might be worth it!  She is so funny...our rough and tumble little tomboy, who loves all things stereotypically for boys! 

We were at the play area at the mall today, and Aidan and Alanna were making cautious attempts at jumping from one "structure" to another.  Then Emory decided to give it a shot, and with hardly a moment's thought, she just jumped.  She didn't make it, but she didn't care.  She just popped up, told us that was a "big jump" and did it again, and again, and again.  As Alanna and Aidan practiced, they got closer and closer to meeting their goal.  Only a few minor bumps!  Emory got one big bonk on the head, and I was expecting a wail, but she just looked up like nothing happened.  Aidan hit his nose once, and he got quite upset.  He recovered when I told him I'd take a look, so he leaned his head back, and I told him I saw a dinosaur in his nose.  He started to laugh and laugh, and off he went.

Aidan is officially a "stander"...if you know what I mean....

Sometimes we ask Emory if she wants to sit on the potty before she gets in the bathtub or if Aidan and Alanna are going.  Usually she says "done" as soon as you sit her down.  Tonight, she said she wanted to have a go, and for the very first time, she peed! Yippee!  We'll see if it leads anywhere...I'm not planning to take this and run with it.  She's a 21 month old firecracker, and I think I'll just follow her lead. 

On other fronts...we had our gym class today for Alanna and Aidan.  They are both in full swing now and loving it.  Last week the got to play with one of those gigantic parachutes, and today they had their first shot at kickball.  When Aidan got his first turn, he took off running before he even kicked the ball.  Once Coach Carlos redirected him, he figured it out pretty quickly.  It was so cute seeing them run around the bases as fast as their little feet could carry them. Our Little Twinkle Toes.  They also got to jump off a pretty high mat into "the pit"...which is filled with foam blocks.  That was a big hit.  It was funny seeing them drop off such a high surface and then disappear into a mass of purple, and then emerge a minute later after making their way to the side.  I'm just glad no one landed on anyone else. 

Over the weekend we had our second attempt at visiting Santa (the first being last year...it went over like a ton of bricks.  We have a hilarious picture to prove it.)  Everyone happily waited in line very patiently, and we talked about the special something they wanted to request from Santa.  I don't think 5 seconds passed from the time we crossed the threshold to take our turn and the time they were all screaming.  Emory wouldn't even think about sitting anywhere near Santa.  Alanna and Aidan sat there on his lap crying.  We have no idea if they took a picture or not.  We waited for a few minutes, but then the people in line behind us were having their pictures printed, so maybe they didn't bother taking a shot.  Part of me wanted a picture to look back at for fun. 

Coincidentally,  the woman behind us had a 4.5 year old and three year old twins.  They are 22 months apart (got 'er beat there!)  :)   and in the opposite order, but still...there aren't many of us out there in those shoes.  It was nice to chit chat with her.  Her twins are on the opposite end of the size spectrum from Aidan and Alanna.  They wear clothing in a 5T, where as Aidan is still in 18 months and Alanna is in 24 months.   She was pretty petite, but maybe her husband is a big guy.  Obviously, producing small children is no great shock coming from Jason and me.