Potty Training Semi-Finals Round II

Well, I thought we would get at least a little bit of a break from all the trials of potty training, but apparently Z has other ideas.  His interest in the bathroom has been steadily increasing since Big Bro mastered (well, mostly) then fine art of using the loo. 

Z's interests started with turning the water on in the sink to see how wet he could get himself & our tiny bathroom before his personal policeman could get down the hall & rat him out.  His vandalism escalated to tossing the family's toothbrushes into the tub along with all his clothes & toys (his supervision obviously left him alone too long!!).  This was followed by his most recent fascination-unrolling the to into the potty.  We went through 3 rolls of toilet paper in 2 days!! 

However, his fascination must have produced potty vibes because he told me he needed to potty after his bath 2 nights ago & sat there straining until he put a few drips into the potty!  As shocked as I was, I still figured it was a fluke.  The surprised look on his face said he was shocked, too! :-)  The next day, he tried several times and managed to go twice.  We are still not to the training pants stage-he is still missing the opportune potty moment too many times.  But, I guess ready or not, potty training we come!!

He is waaay ready & has been telling me what pictures he wants on his big boy underpants.  I wonder how he is going to react to hand-me-down trainers with stars & dinos on them? 

The Stray Shoes

If you were to drive to the on ramp of the highway near my house and glace to your left, you would spy a men's (or abnormally large ladies) tan colored, canvas, slip on shoe.  If you were to go a little further up the ramp and glace to the right, you would spy its partner.  These shoes were abandoned a few months ago and are now faded and one has been run over a few times, but they are still there.  I have the habit of making the story as to how said shoes came to be abandoned along the side of the on ramp and some of them are funnier than others.  Today's story made this sleep deprived girl laugh so I thought I would share.

One day, a man named Ben and his attractive, but not so smart, girlfriend were driving along this same route.  Enjoying a warm spring day, Ben it the top down on his convertible.  While stopped at the light just before the ramp, Ben's girlfriend (who somehow made it through the story nameless) notices a spider crawling up the door.  After her initial scream, she demands for Ben to take of one of his shoes so she can squish the spider.  He looked at her like she was crazy, but then he remembered what "trophy girlfriend" meant and sighing, he slipped off his shoe-his brand new, tan colored, canvas slip on from Old Navy. 

Ben's girlfriend swatted at the spider, but she missed causing him to dart up the door toward the top.  She swatted again and a third time.  Now, the spider was on the edge of the door.  She knew she would get him this time.  She smashed the spider.  In her jubilant celebration, she accidentally tossed the shoe over Ben's head and onto the shoulder.

"Why did you do that????" His exasperation was impossible to mask. 

"Oops.  It was an accident.  I'm really sorry, Benny!  Here, I can fix this.  Give me the other one."

Everything in him told him not to do so, but he handed her the other shoe.  She tossed it out her window, smiled, and said, "See, I told you I would fix it."

Ben stared at her for a second before asking, "And just how did you fix anything?  Now I don't have either shoe!!"

"Well," she replied, "Now when someone finds them, they'll be a pair."

And I just wonder why poor old shoeless Ben didn't stop or at least stop the next time he drove through.  So, yes, these are the strange musings of a tired mama driving down the road.

Wedded Blitz

During the months of May-July, our family was invited to 6 weddings!  Unfortunately, we are unable to attend half of them since they are so far out of town.  We recently packed everyone in for a family wedding in Memphis, though.



Z had his wedding debut at the ring bearer in his Uncle Chris's wedding.  He was decked out in tux, black shades, and a briefcase (he was James Bond) and even swaggered down the aisle to the James Bond theme song.  After the crying debacle of 2012, this walk went off without a hitch!  (this was the best pic I could swipe off facebook)

The trip to Memphis was also fun because the kids got to reunite with lots of family and meet some new friends.  As usual, Gramma got all the kisses.  They were totally enamored with Baby Addie--even though this picture shows some other emotion. 


Cousins Emma Grace is now big enough to be a great playmate and kept up with my rowdy boys pretty well!  I was proud of her! :)  The kids loved playing with Emma and Great Aunt Jan & Uncle David. 

The trips to and from Memphis were actually rather uneventful.  Our potty trainer only stopped us once or twice and we made it all the way down without stopping at all--that is a record for our family! Thankfully, this was our only wedding to participate.

We have been handling the heat pretty well, too.  A few afternoons have been spent at McDonald's sharing an ice cream and playing, but with strategic fan placement, and middle-of-the-night laundry drying, we maintain a balmy 80 most of the time.  We'll see how that changes as the heat of the summer comes upon us.  The kids are looking forward to another trip to the splash park, and I must say, my tan is starting to fade...I'll have to remedy that!!