Sam is having a good day. He's cracked me up several times. The sad thing is he is usually being serious when he says this stuff, so I have to do my best not to laugh.
It is beautiful today. Last I checked, it was in the low 70s. For the first time this spring, the boys are in tee shirts. I decided they should all wear the shirts we bought them in Puerto Rico. TJ put his on and commented that he liked it (it's bright yellow with 3 frogs lined up across the middle). I put Nolan's on and he proudly informed me that his shirt had 3 blue monkeys (they ARE monkeys, but one is pink, one is green, and one is blue), and that monkeys say "Woof". It's been a few hours...he now has learned that monkeys say "Ooh, ooh, ooh".
Then, there's Sam. Sam's shirt is bright red with frogs hopping all over the front of it. I put it on him and he said, "Wow! I do NOT like this shirt!" His excited tone of voice did not match his words. I really struggled not to laugh. Now that he's been wearing it for half the day, and has had several people comment on how much they like his shirt, he's decided it's not so bad after all.
Sam is still making tiny steps of progress with 'potty training', although he still won't sit on the potty. Today, he wore Lightning McQueen underwear for an hour and a half! I leave it on him until he tells me it's time to take it off. He has not had an accident in his underwear, so I know he understands how to hold it. But at lunchtime today, he said, "Uh oh, Mom. I'm soaked." I asked him if he had wet his pants. He said, "No! I stuck my hands in my milk and they are all wet." Well, duh. Why didn't I think of that first?
Tomorrow, Nolan turns two (where has the time gone?!). He understands he has a birthday coming up and will proudly hold up two fingers when you ask him how old he's going to be. He's such a honey.
And I hope you all have appreciated the fact that Nolan has made it to age 2, and I am not pregnant as I was when TJ turned two, nor is there a newborn in the house, as there was when Sam turned two. I am definitely done with that stage, and am looking forward to watching my boys grow up.
Wednesday, March 31, 2010
Saturday, March 27, 2010
Poison Control
Up to this point, I have not needed to call Poison Control. I strongly suspect Nolan will be the child that causes that to change.
Nolan watches Bill and I very carefully, and he gets into EVERYTHING. He is still very short for his age, but has figured out that he can reach almost anything by crawling up on a chair. A few weeks ago, TJ caught him in the bathroom going through a drawer. He had found a bottle of Hyland's "Sniffles and Sneezes for Kids". They are small, homeopathic pills that I give the boys when they are catching colds. Nolan apparently thinks they are candy. He was finishing off the bottle when TJ found him. Since they are homeopathic, the bottle doesn't have a child-proof lid. Fortunately, there were only a couple pills left in the bottle when Nolan discovered it, so there was no harm done.
Shortly after that, Nolan got even more creative. I had JUST walked into the kitchen and started preparing the boys' lunch, and Nolan took advantage of the lack of parental supervision. Bill walked upstairs and found Nolan in the bathroom again. He had pushed a small chair up to the counter and was standing on it. He discovered a bottle of Children's Ibuprofen (the liquid kind) on the counter, removed the "childproof cap" and was in the process of trying to use a small syringe to draw up some medicine for himself. If he had decided to just take a swig out of the bottle, he probably would have gotten several swallows down before Bill found him. But he wanted to use the syringe just like Mommy and Daddy. So he didn't get a single drop in his mouth. Thank goodness!
He never ceases to amaze me. He's a problem solver and the only one of my three boys who has been a climber. I'm not sure how else I can child-proof the house...he seems to know his way around every barricade I put up.
I wonder if he will survive his childhood in one piece. Somehow, I don't think I will!
Nolan watches Bill and I very carefully, and he gets into EVERYTHING. He is still very short for his age, but has figured out that he can reach almost anything by crawling up on a chair. A few weeks ago, TJ caught him in the bathroom going through a drawer. He had found a bottle of Hyland's "Sniffles and Sneezes for Kids". They are small, homeopathic pills that I give the boys when they are catching colds. Nolan apparently thinks they are candy. He was finishing off the bottle when TJ found him. Since they are homeopathic, the bottle doesn't have a child-proof lid. Fortunately, there were only a couple pills left in the bottle when Nolan discovered it, so there was no harm done.
Shortly after that, Nolan got even more creative. I had JUST walked into the kitchen and started preparing the boys' lunch, and Nolan took advantage of the lack of parental supervision. Bill walked upstairs and found Nolan in the bathroom again. He had pushed a small chair up to the counter and was standing on it. He discovered a bottle of Children's Ibuprofen (the liquid kind) on the counter, removed the "childproof cap" and was in the process of trying to use a small syringe to draw up some medicine for himself. If he had decided to just take a swig out of the bottle, he probably would have gotten several swallows down before Bill found him. But he wanted to use the syringe just like Mommy and Daddy. So he didn't get a single drop in his mouth. Thank goodness!
He never ceases to amaze me. He's a problem solver and the only one of my three boys who has been a climber. I'm not sure how else I can child-proof the house...he seems to know his way around every barricade I put up.
I wonder if he will survive his childhood in one piece. Somehow, I don't think I will!
Tuesday, March 23, 2010
Potty Progress
Sam has still not used the toilet. Nor is he willing to sit on it. BUT, he is willing to wear big-boy underwear for brief amounts of time. He wore it for 30 minutes today, and my mom reported he hit 45 minutes yesterday. He definitely understands how to hold it, as he has not wet the underwear yet. Now, to take the next step...
Then there's Nolan. He sits on the potty at least twice a day. His motivating factor is definitely the one measly M&M I give him for sitting on the potty. Today, I gave him a blue one. He got blue smeared all over his lips and his hand. Then he somehow dropped it out of his mouth and got blue and chocolate on his leg and the edge of the potty. This was just ONE M&M! Can you imagine the disaster if I gave him two?
Nolan has the toilet thing figured out. Every time he sits on his little potty, he points at the regular toilet and reminds me of the fact that the big toilet is "TJ's. Sam's." I ask him if it's for Nolan and he says very firmly, "Nooooo." He's right. He'd fall right in.
Then there's Nolan. He sits on the potty at least twice a day. His motivating factor is definitely the one measly M&M I give him for sitting on the potty. Today, I gave him a blue one. He got blue smeared all over his lips and his hand. Then he somehow dropped it out of his mouth and got blue and chocolate on his leg and the edge of the potty. This was just ONE M&M! Can you imagine the disaster if I gave him two?
Nolan has the toilet thing figured out. Every time he sits on his little potty, he points at the regular toilet and reminds me of the fact that the big toilet is "TJ's. Sam's." I ask him if it's for Nolan and he says very firmly, "Nooooo." He's right. He'd fall right in.
Tuesday, March 16, 2010
Throw away kisses
90% of the time, Sam wakes up in a fabulous mood. I call him 'Mr. Sunshine.' He wakes up, slides right out of bed, and cheerfully asks if his breakfast is ready.
The other 10% of the time, you'd better look out. Sam turns into a grumpy, 3-year-old thundercloud. Sam was in that state when I woke him up yesterday morning. Yes, I had to wake both him and TJ up. The time change was rough on them both Sunday and Monday mornings. But it was 7:20, and I was leaving for work. The boys don't like it if I leave before they get a chance to say good-bye, so I went in and woke them up.
Sam slid out of bed, and immediately informed me that DADDY could NOT get his breakfast ready. Poor Daddy. I don't know why he wasn't allowed to assist. I got Sam settled on his bar stool (they insist on eating breakfast at the counter), and I gave Sam a good-bye kiss. I turned to give TJ his kiss, when I heard Sam muttering about throwing the kiss away. I turned back and asked him what he had said. He told me he didn't want my kiss, so he had thrown it away. I laughed and kissed his other cheek. I told him he wasn't supposed to throw away my kisses. Sam half-smiled/half-scowled, carefully plucked the invisible kiss from his cheek, and tossed it to the floor. I could have been annoyed. Instead, I laughed. Sam didn't appreciate that, but Bill thought it was funny too.
Bill emailed me later in the day and reported that Sam snapped out of his grumpy mood shortly after I left, and was his usual sunshiny self by the time he left for my mom's for the day.
I still can't believe he threw away my kisses!
The other 10% of the time, you'd better look out. Sam turns into a grumpy, 3-year-old thundercloud. Sam was in that state when I woke him up yesterday morning. Yes, I had to wake both him and TJ up. The time change was rough on them both Sunday and Monday mornings. But it was 7:20, and I was leaving for work. The boys don't like it if I leave before they get a chance to say good-bye, so I went in and woke them up.
Sam slid out of bed, and immediately informed me that DADDY could NOT get his breakfast ready. Poor Daddy. I don't know why he wasn't allowed to assist. I got Sam settled on his bar stool (they insist on eating breakfast at the counter), and I gave Sam a good-bye kiss. I turned to give TJ his kiss, when I heard Sam muttering about throwing the kiss away. I turned back and asked him what he had said. He told me he didn't want my kiss, so he had thrown it away. I laughed and kissed his other cheek. I told him he wasn't supposed to throw away my kisses. Sam half-smiled/half-scowled, carefully plucked the invisible kiss from his cheek, and tossed it to the floor. I could have been annoyed. Instead, I laughed. Sam didn't appreciate that, but Bill thought it was funny too.
Bill emailed me later in the day and reported that Sam snapped out of his grumpy mood shortly after I left, and was his usual sunshiny self by the time he left for my mom's for the day.
I still can't believe he threw away my kisses!
Monday, March 15, 2010
Sleeping In
TJ has always been an early riser. Several years ago, I got really tired of being roused by a little boy at 6:30 in the morning. So, as soon as I could, I explained the concept of 7:00 to him. At age 3, he knew that unless his clock said "Seven-Zero-Zero" it was not time to get up. This has worked marvelously. It would be nice if he'd sleep later than 7:00, but I'll take what I can get.
TJ inherited his early riser-ship from his father. Bill rarely sleeps in. Saturday morning was no exception. I was vaguely aware when Bill got up, but I didn't hear any commotion from the kids, so I rolled over and went back to sleep. When I got up later, I asked what time the boys had woken up. Bill said that Nolan had slept until 7:30, but that TJ and Sam were up right at 7:00.
TJ was indignant when he heard that. He said, "No! I slept in! When I woke up, the clock said 'Seven-Zero-Two'."
Ummm...is that progress?
TJ inherited his early riser-ship from his father. Bill rarely sleeps in. Saturday morning was no exception. I was vaguely aware when Bill got up, but I didn't hear any commotion from the kids, so I rolled over and went back to sleep. When I got up later, I asked what time the boys had woken up. Bill said that Nolan had slept until 7:30, but that TJ and Sam were up right at 7:00.
TJ was indignant when he heard that. He said, "No! I slept in! When I woke up, the clock said 'Seven-Zero-Two'."
Ummm...is that progress?
Race to the potty?
Sam, at age 3 years, 7 months, and a handful of days (I'm too tired to count them out) is still not potty trained. I am sure there are some people (maybe including some of you, my blog readers) who think I am nuts for not having conquered this, but Sam is a unique child. Is it not laziness or carelessness that has prevented him from potty training. He remains oddly afraid of the whole concept, and my concern is that if I push him, I will make the problem much worse. I have settled for talking about potty training in a positive light and encouraging him whenever I can. I also signed him up for preschool. He knows he cannot go unless he is potty trained. I have 5 1/2 months to help him accomplish this.
Anyway, Sam has suddenly decided he does NOT like being poopy. To me, this is huge progress. Before, he didn't care, and would often lie in order to avoid being changed. The past couple days, he has coming running to me saying he 'needs me'. When I ask him what's up, he says he needs to poop. He tells me right AFTER he goes, but I do think this is a step in the right direction.
But then there's Nolan. We are two weeks away from his second birthday. He is suddenly asking to sit on the potty. He sits, concentrates really hard for a minute or two, then says he is done. He hasn't produced anything yet, but I don't care. Sam was too afraid to even do what Nolan is doing now. Nolan receives 1 M&M for his efforts each time. I told Sam he could have candy too, if he would try, but he says he isn't ready yet. Sheesh, at this point, I'd offer him anything he wanted, if I thought it would help!
I must remain optimistic. Otherwise, I might lose my mind. Potty training was never supposed to be like this.
Anyway, Sam has suddenly decided he does NOT like being poopy. To me, this is huge progress. Before, he didn't care, and would often lie in order to avoid being changed. The past couple days, he has coming running to me saying he 'needs me'. When I ask him what's up, he says he needs to poop. He tells me right AFTER he goes, but I do think this is a step in the right direction.
But then there's Nolan. We are two weeks away from his second birthday. He is suddenly asking to sit on the potty. He sits, concentrates really hard for a minute or two, then says he is done. He hasn't produced anything yet, but I don't care. Sam was too afraid to even do what Nolan is doing now. Nolan receives 1 M&M for his efforts each time. I told Sam he could have candy too, if he would try, but he says he isn't ready yet. Sheesh, at this point, I'd offer him anything he wanted, if I thought it would help!
I must remain optimistic. Otherwise, I might lose my mind. Potty training was never supposed to be like this.
Saturday, March 13, 2010
Sam's 'joke'
After lunch today, I headed out to run some errands. Before I left, I used the bathroom. When I came out and was getting my purse, Sam said...
"Mom, why were you in the bathroom trying on shoes?"
I was totally confused and asked him what he was talking about. His response, "It was a joke, Mom!"
Well, I don't get it.
This morning, it dawned on me that Nolan's birthday is less than 3 weeks away. I have started jotting down a few gift ideas, because family members are already asking what they should buy him. I decided I would ask Nolan what he wanted. I was really curious as to what he'd say.
"Nolan, what do you want for your birthday?"
"Ball."
"You want a ball for your birthday?"
"Yeah."
Do we need any more balls? Absolutely not. But if that's what he wants, that's what he gets. I bought him a soft blue soccer ball while I was at Toys R Us today. I imagine he'll be thrilled. He's an easy one to please.
"Mom, why were you in the bathroom trying on shoes?"
I was totally confused and asked him what he was talking about. His response, "It was a joke, Mom!"
Well, I don't get it.
This morning, it dawned on me that Nolan's birthday is less than 3 weeks away. I have started jotting down a few gift ideas, because family members are already asking what they should buy him. I decided I would ask Nolan what he wanted. I was really curious as to what he'd say.
"Nolan, what do you want for your birthday?"
"Ball."
"You want a ball for your birthday?"
"Yeah."
Do we need any more balls? Absolutely not. But if that's what he wants, that's what he gets. I bought him a soft blue soccer ball while I was at Toys R Us today. I imagine he'll be thrilled. He's an easy one to please.
Tuesday, March 9, 2010
All the girls
This is from a trip to Illinois at the end of January. It's me, my mom, her mom (a.k.a my grandma), my two sisters, and my three nieces. Nolan came along with me, but we couldn't allow him to be in this photo. :-)
Here's my grandpa meeting baby Charlotte for the first time...with Nolan's close supervision. Charlotte is great-grandchild #7. Great-grandchild #8 is arriving in May.
Here's my grandpa meeting baby Charlotte for the first time...with Nolan's close supervision. Charlotte is great-grandchild #7. Great-grandchild #8 is arriving in May.
It's Tuesday
Sorry. Couldn't think of a more original title than that!
It was time to upload some pictures. Here's Nolan (along with Sam) enjoying his very first lollipop. He didn't even make a mess and he threw away his own stick. The kid is sooo independent, and most of the time I love it!
Nolan has figured out how to zip and unzip his pajamas. He likes to fiddle with the zipper while he waits for someone to get him up in the morning. This is what he looks like most mornings--the zipper is halfway down (it's much more obvious when he isn't wearing a onesie underneath. Then he looks like a tiny biker dude).
In case you are wondering, he fell and hurt his nose. Those are little scabs across the bridge of his nose, not food remnants.
Check out what Nolan is willing to do! (No, he didn't produce...he just sat)
Now, if only Sam would try! We have his preschool open house tonight. He can only start attending in September if he is potty trained. He'll be 6 weeks past his 4th birthday then. I sure hope he's potty trained!
Yesterday, we all went to the chiropractor. TJ's neck was way out of alignment. After Dr. Waswick finished with him, TJ looked over his right shoulder and said, "Wow! I haven't been able to turn my head this direction in years!" Even Dr. Waswick got a good chuckle out of that one.
It was time to upload some pictures. Here's Nolan (along with Sam) enjoying his very first lollipop. He didn't even make a mess and he threw away his own stick. The kid is sooo independent, and most of the time I love it!
Nolan has figured out how to zip and unzip his pajamas. He likes to fiddle with the zipper while he waits for someone to get him up in the morning. This is what he looks like most mornings--the zipper is halfway down (it's much more obvious when he isn't wearing a onesie underneath. Then he looks like a tiny biker dude).
In case you are wondering, he fell and hurt his nose. Those are little scabs across the bridge of his nose, not food remnants.
Check out what Nolan is willing to do! (No, he didn't produce...he just sat)
Now, if only Sam would try! We have his preschool open house tonight. He can only start attending in September if he is potty trained. He'll be 6 weeks past his 4th birthday then. I sure hope he's potty trained!
Yesterday, we all went to the chiropractor. TJ's neck was way out of alignment. After Dr. Waswick finished with him, TJ looked over his right shoulder and said, "Wow! I haven't been able to turn my head this direction in years!" Even Dr. Waswick got a good chuckle out of that one.
Sunday, March 7, 2010
Ick for the day
Nolan eats his banana slices with ketchup on them.
Sam will eat any sort of bread if I put some balsamic vinaigrette dressing on his plate for him to dip it in. Tonight, he had toast dipped in dressing for dinner. That's all. He had the stomach flu a few days ago, and his appetite is taking its time coming back.
I can't watch my kids eat or I get nauseous. Now you know why.
Sam will eat any sort of bread if I put some balsamic vinaigrette dressing on his plate for him to dip it in. Tonight, he had toast dipped in dressing for dinner. That's all. He had the stomach flu a few days ago, and his appetite is taking its time coming back.
I can't watch my kids eat or I get nauseous. Now you know why.
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Band-aids and Bubble Wrap
Why are my children so obsessed with Band-aids? I don't ever recall being so enamored with them.
Sam tore one of his fingernails (both TJ and Sam have become nail biters, much to my chagrin), and it is so short it is painful. He asked for a Band-aid, and I put one on him. He informed me that it 'smelled good!'. Uhhh...okay. Nolan, of course, insisted he had to have a Band-aid too. So, I wrapped one around his finger. He smiled and admired it.
30 seconds pass.
Nolan comes to me, frantically trying to remove the Band-aid. I thought maybe he didn't want it on his finger, so I unwrapped it and placed in on the back of his hand. Nope, he didn't want it there, either. So, I took it off and threw it away. I figured if I didn't throw it away myself, I'd find it stuck to my wood floor, or to the TV screen, or some other inappropriate place.
Sam didn't do much better than that. He threw his away after about a half hour, and I've been hearing him complain about his sore thumb now all day.
I got some new organic soaps in the mail today. I love these types of soaps. They smell fabulous, and they aren't full of chemicals. I got 5 bars today, all different scents, all with an olive and coconut oil base. I also have some fabulous handmade shampoo (not made by me!) that I would highly recommend, if anyone is curious. Unfortunately, Bill hates it. He uses the shampoo he collects from Embassy Suites. He says it smells nice. Anyway...the soaps arrived today packaged in bubble wrap. I gave the bubble wrap to Sam and showed him how he could pop the bubbles. He thought it was hysterical. Only, Sam's hands aren't strong enough to pop the bubbles himself. I tried to show him how to twist the wrap to get more bubbles to pop. Again, he thought it was hysterical, but he didn't want me to pop the bubbles for him.
I found the bubble wrap in the trash late this afternoon. I guess Sam figured if he couldn't pop the bubbles, then no one would. At least he was kind enough to throw it away for me.
Sam tore one of his fingernails (both TJ and Sam have become nail biters, much to my chagrin), and it is so short it is painful. He asked for a Band-aid, and I put one on him. He informed me that it 'smelled good!'. Uhhh...okay. Nolan, of course, insisted he had to have a Band-aid too. So, I wrapped one around his finger. He smiled and admired it.
30 seconds pass.
Nolan comes to me, frantically trying to remove the Band-aid. I thought maybe he didn't want it on his finger, so I unwrapped it and placed in on the back of his hand. Nope, he didn't want it there, either. So, I took it off and threw it away. I figured if I didn't throw it away myself, I'd find it stuck to my wood floor, or to the TV screen, or some other inappropriate place.
Sam didn't do much better than that. He threw his away after about a half hour, and I've been hearing him complain about his sore thumb now all day.
I got some new organic soaps in the mail today. I love these types of soaps. They smell fabulous, and they aren't full of chemicals. I got 5 bars today, all different scents, all with an olive and coconut oil base. I also have some fabulous handmade shampoo (not made by me!) that I would highly recommend, if anyone is curious. Unfortunately, Bill hates it. He uses the shampoo he collects from Embassy Suites. He says it smells nice. Anyway...the soaps arrived today packaged in bubble wrap. I gave the bubble wrap to Sam and showed him how he could pop the bubbles. He thought it was hysterical. Only, Sam's hands aren't strong enough to pop the bubbles himself. I tried to show him how to twist the wrap to get more bubbles to pop. Again, he thought it was hysterical, but he didn't want me to pop the bubbles for him.
I found the bubble wrap in the trash late this afternoon. I guess Sam figured if he couldn't pop the bubbles, then no one would. At least he was kind enough to throw it away for me.
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