A visit from Mimi and Jimmy goes to the Superbowl

While Jimmy was in Tampa for the Superbowl, Mimi came to stay with us. It was fun to get out and do a little shopping. I always appreciate an extra set of hands to help with the kids. And as always, Kendall was sad when Mimi had to leave. She kept saying "Mimi in the plane."

Do you see the smile on their faces? Jimmy had an absolute blast at the Superbowl with his Dad. What an opportunity to be in the middle of all the excitement as the Steelers claimed victory. I was so happy that he had the chance to go, spend time with his Dad and just have fun! What a game it was! Go "Steers"!!

I'm still laughing!

Look closely at this picture.....can you figure out why I was laughing so hard? Check out her pants or underpants more like it. Yep, Miss Kendall insisted on putting her own underpants back on after using the potty and this is how it ended up. I didn't even notice until an hour or so later when she was coloring. I looked over and just started laughing hysterically. Then, together, we fixed it.

Here's Jace after his bath. Jimmy gave baths tonight and when they came back downstairs, this is how little man looked. It was so funny but the picture says it all; Jace didn't like that bandana on his head.

A lazy day at our house

Are you comfortable Kendall?

Here's Jace's new toy... his feet. I put brightly colored socks on him and he'll play forever with his feet. (Play the video.)

Dallas had an ice storm come through last night so we are stuck at home today. Every once in awhile it's nice to hang out in your pj's and just do nothing. That's pretty much been our day today. As you can see by the picture above, Kendall's propped in front of the TV watching Diego, her absolute favorite cartoon. I'm about to cuddle up with her.

As far as the potty training, she is doing fabulously! I was dreading getting her trained. I guess I envisioned constantly cleaning up pee and poo all over my house but can't believe how easy it was. I read 3 day potty training, compliments of my friend Alexis, and got some great advice from my mom & Jimmy's mom and while 3 days was a stretch, she had it down in about 5. She wears big girl panties during the day except at night and nap.

Some other big news is that Jimmy's going to the Super Bowl. He's like a kid in a candy shop. If he could have done a happy dance yesterday when the plans started coming together, he would have. I'm so happy he gets to go b/c he works so hard, so he definitely needs a day of football and fun! Also, Mimi, Jimmy's mom, is coming to Dallas on Saturday. Kendall and I are definitely excited to have some company.

Well, I gotta run or should I say go be lazy. I'm off to cuddle up in a warm blanket w/ Kendall. I jut pray Jace sleeps a bit longer. :~)

Jace's 4 month check up

Jace had his Dr. visit this morning. He weighs 13 lbs. 9 oz. and is 24 inches in length. He is doing fantastic and growing great but still on the small side. All of his measurements were in the 20th percentile. Like I've always said, he may be small but he certainly is strong. He's so close to rolling over tummy to back. When he's on his tummy, he tucks 1 arm under and tries his hardest to roll over. He just needs that little extra push to get himself going.

OK-- below may be TMI (Too Much Information) but it's mainly for the grandparents:

Kendall wore big girl panties to school today. I brought her potty seat (the one that fits on the big toilet) to school and she insisted on carrying it into the school. I was bit embarassed I must admit. Most kids are carrying just backpacks and then there's Kendall.... backpack and potty seat. But if you know Kendall, then you know she insisted because she wants to do it herself. Anyway, when I picked her up, I was praying that I'd see her in the same pants that I dropped her off in and thankfully, that was the case. Her teacher, Mrs. Keller, told me she didn't have any accidents but didn't go to the bathroom either. While I would've hoped she'd used the bathroom at school, I was just thrilled that she didn't pee or poo in her pants. And sure enough, as soon as we got home, she did both in the potty. Go Kendall!!!!

Nasal Aspirator and "Thank you"

Now I know you are thinking.... what in the world is this going to be about!!?? Well, give me a second and I'll tell you. As many of you know, being a mom to a toddler and baby is quite a thankless job. But today I got a great big "Thank you" from Kendall. Yes, I sure did as I was using a nasal aspirator to suck snot out of her nose. She stood patiently on a chair as I used the aspirator to clear her out. Then when we finished, she hopped down, looked at me and said "thank you." Now you have to understand, I usually have to prompt the "thank you" for receiving gifts, when someone does something nice for her, etc. But, nope, when I use the nasal aspirator, no prompting necessary. I get a big ol' "Thank you." I just love it!

(p.s. Thanks Gammy for the battery powered nasal aspirator. Works like a charm! And your granddaughter seems to just love it!:~)

Pretend Play, Potty Training, and Precious Smiles

Here's Kendall and her baby doll having lunch. She sat the baby in the booster seat, strapped her in, and even gave her a spoonful of tuna noodle casserole with no prompting from me. Talk about pretending! It was so cute to watch and I was just happily laughing inside.

Also, Kendall is almost (!!!!) potty trained. I say almost because I don't feel 100% confident in letting her go free in big girl panties. Today, Day 4 of our training, she only had 1 accident and went to the potty the rest of the times. I was so proud of her. The challenge in all of this isn't the potty training but trying to nurse Jace and potty train. It never fails that she wants to "go potty" when he is hungry!!! We are certainly doing the best we can and making progress. Hopefully,the next update will be that she is fully potty trained. Fingers crossed!

Watch this video of my little chatty guy and you'll see why I'm the luckiest mom in the world.

Potty Training and Special treats

I've been putting some effort into potty training Kendall. My attempts thus far haven't been successful, so I've decided to go in a different direction. I'm not a huge candy for a reward person but have decided that if it works to get her trained, I'll try it. My pouring of praise over her wasn't getting the job done.

So, I went to CVS and bought several bags of gummy worms (Kendall's favorite candy) and told her that when she pees or poos on the potty, she'll get a "special treat". So, here's what happened this morning. (I'm still laughing!)

Kendall tells me she has to "pee pee on potty" so we head to the bathroom. She tells me several times, "I pee pee mommy, special treat." (I take the gummy worms and place them on the counter, so she can see what she'll get if she pees or poos.) So after several times of telling me she has peed when she hasn't, I take her off the potty and put away the gummy worms in the drawer.

So, about 15 minutes later, I'm on the family room floor playing with Jace while Kendall is in her playroom. Well, that's what I thought until I hear the crinkling of plastic wrapping. I walk past the bathroom only to see Kendall standing on her potty, reaching into the drawer, and eating the gummy worms. About 1/3 of the bag was gone. The funny part is she looks at me, takes the gummy that is in her hand, ravenously shoves it in her mouth, and says "special treat."

Oh lord help me!! Tell me this will happen before she's 5!! Needless to say, the gummy worms have found a new home and Kendall uses her potty as a stool instead of what it's supposed to be used for.

Little Jimmy

Doesn't he look just like Jimmy!!?? It makes me laugh b/c even Jace's doctor said, "He must look like his Dad because he doesn't look anything like you." I just agreed b/c it's true and I think it's very cute. I can't believe little man is going to be 4 months soon. Time truly is flying!

Kendall is back at school after Christmas break. She was so excited to go back which made me really happy. In fact, she was dancing in her carseat on the way to school on Tuesday. It was to a Britney Spears song but that's beside the point. :~) When I asked her who her friends were at school, she named 6 out of the 7. It was precious!! She LOVES school!

Gotta run-- my cat napper is up-- ALREADY!!

A well deserved date night

Do I have a handsome husband or what!

Jimmy and I had a date night last night for New Years. My mom and dad were in town and watched the kids so we could go out by ourselves. We didn't go far b/c the party was at our neighbor's house right across the street. I must say that was a good thing b/c who really wants to drive anywhere on New Years. We had a lot of fun and met quite a few new people. We came home at 3 a.m.--haven't done that since my college days. It was a great time but guess who decided to get up at 5:30 this morning-- Mr. Jace. Needless to say, I'm a bit, I mean extremely, tired today but it was well worth it.

Go Dawgs!

My big and little bulldog fans

Is this the picture of a future football player or what??!!

Gotta have clean teeth to watch the Dawgs! :~)

What a fun day! The Bulldogs played and BEAT Michigan State in the Capitol One bowl game today. Kendall made it through part of the game before her nap. During the game, she would throw her arm up in the air, make a fist and say "Go Dawgs!" It was so cute and makes me think we may have a future cheerleader on our hands.

Jace was pretty fussy so he was passed among me, Jimmy, Gammy and Papa until he finally dozed off. So, he pretty much missed the game but we have many years of football watching to come.