Potty Training Update part 2

I haven't updated on Andrew's potty training in a while, so I thought I'd give a quick update.

After finally pooping on the potty, Andrew was still hit or miss on going number 2 for a while. He would go on the little potty when he felt like it. Other times, he would hold it and refuse until he finally couldn't anymore and then would end up pooping on the stairs, in a bedroom, or on the floor somewhere else. It was frustrating, but I had to remind myself that Lillian took an extra couple of months to train on number 2's after she was training with her number 1's and I started her at 2 years and 9 months and Andrew started a little before 2 years and 6 months.

Well, after going to the kid's preschool open house a couple of weeks ago and telling his teacher that he was trained except for number 2's on and off. He decided to come home and go on the potty and ever since then, he has done so!

I also repainted our downstairs half-bathroom last week and when he got home that day, he went in saying he needed to go potty and ended up pooping on the big potty for the first time that day.

So not only are we trained at 2 years and 7 months, I also put away the little potty! Yay! What a great feeling to have that done! Now we just need to work on stopping the nighttime pull-ups, but I'm still happy with that. One pull-up a day for each kid is definitely better than lots of diapers!

A New Look

For the past 2 years, our light fixture in the downstairs half-bath hasn't worked to it's fullest. It has 3 lights, but one didn't work. So finally about a month ago I bought a new fixture and put it up and the bathroom is so much brighter! That inspired me to paint it and just give it a whole new look.

Brandon took the kids to Shiner for the day on Sunday, so I made my own While You Were Out experience and got it done. It took me almost the whole time they were gone to prep, paint, and put things back together again. I also ran to Home Depot and Bed, Bath, and Beyond with coupons and got a new toilet seat, a valance, rug, and toilet lid cover. I'm so happy with the result. It turned out really well. It went from a burgandy that was there before we even bought the house to a more neutral look. The burgandy walls were scratched up from the kids knocking things over off the toilet and just made it look extra dark. Now it is bright and clean looking!

Bobcat Football Time!

We loaded up in the van and made our first trip down to San Marcos this season to watch the Texas State Bobcats season opener. We took on the Southern Arkansas Mule Riders and came out with a victory. It was a great game to watch and the weather was nice. Lillian, unfortunately came down with a cold on the way there and on top of that hadn't napped, so she passed out on Brandon pretty fast. Andrew, however took in the whole experience. He loved watching the band most of all and there were fireworks with each touchdown. He also walked up and down the aisles of the stands and enjoyed his snacks. Even though Lillian missed most of it, she asked the next morning if we were going to another game that day! Here's to another great Bobcat Football season! Eat'em Up!

First Day of Preschool 2010

The kids started back to Harmony Hill Preschool this morning. They will be attending Tuesday/Thursday mornings from 9 to 1. They were so excited to see their new classrooms last night at the Open House and to meet their new teachers.

Lillian was ready to get dressed as soon as she got downstairs this morning! She wouldn't wait until after she ate her breakfast. I haven't seen her more excited. I know she'll have a blast in her new class.

Andrew was excited because she was, but when dropping him off and he saw me leaving, he started crying. I'm sure he'll be fine, but he is still my baby. He only went to preschool March-May last school year, so it will still take some getting use to for him.

Here are some pictures of them in their new clothes for school this morning:

Friends and the Lake

My friend, Irene's husband was supposed to be traveling to India for his work for 3 weeks, so we planned a getaway with our kids to the lake several months back so she could have something to make the time pass quicker while he was gone. It turned out his trip got moved to later, but her kids will be back in preschool then, so we went ahead with our plans to go to the lake this week. We stayed in my family lake house at Lake Palestine in East Texas.

My friend/neighbor, Karen and I took my van with our 4 kids and Irene took hers with her 2. So we arrived at the lake with a grand total of 6 kids ages: 4, 3, 2, 2, 2, and 1. I'm happy to report we all are alive and survived without any injuries.

Wednesday morning, we took out the party boat to tour around the lake. The kids loved it and it was the first time many of them had been on a boat. The kids danced to the radio and cheered when we went under the bridge over and over again.

Then in the afternoon, we swam in the lake, went down the slide into the lake, and played in a baby pool. After much hesitation by a few, they ventured into the lake water and learned that it wasn't as bad as it seemed! Growing up always swimming at the lake, it was commonplace to me, but I guess when you grow up only going to beaches and more clear water places, I can see how it would be kind of a different experience. Irene and I were the only brave souls that went down the slide. It was fun! The older girls did get on the end of the slide and drop down to us in the water, but they wouldn't go down from the top!

That evening, we had a birthday party! Karen's daughter, Audrey will be turning one on September 4th, so we celebrated early there. Karen made the girls all tutu's and the boys capes so they wouldn't be left out. She had a princess/ballerina themed party. The kids looked so cute all dressed up out by the lake. They enjoyed the pizza Karen ordered and the yummy cupcakes. I've never seen a 1 year old down a cupcake like Audrey either! Most kids on their first birthdays just smash it and play with it, but she inhaled that cupcake! ha ha...she is a doll!

It was a lot of fun, but we are all exhausted! We did manage to get the kids to sleep in the same room, but it was a lot of work and we didn't sleep all that well. It will be nice tonight to have them in their own beds and get some quality sleep.

Us moms had some nice evenings though when the kids did finally go to sleep. We brought movies, wine, and snacks to enjoy! It is always nice to have a girls night!

I'd be up for another trip in a few months, but resting is good for now! :)