Juice

I’ve hinted around the subject of Little JCrew talking in previous posts. He has his own language. Occasionally, an English word sneaks into his sentences.

He has two words that he uses clearly and in the correct context; ball and juice. No mama or dada. Just ball and juice!

The other day, he saw the soccer balls in the garage. He says, “ball” each time he sees them. This recent time, he was talking jibberish. “Gaba daba beeka deeble BALL gaba ooo peeky daba.” He sure knew what he was saying, and the only thing I understood was “ball.”

The way he says his English words is SOOO cute. Mr. JCrew adores the way Little JCrew says “juice.” He use to go to the fridge and look at it to signal to us that he wanted something to drink.

Now, we have to be careful of saying the word in front of him. The second we say “juice” he thinks, “Hey, I am thirsty!” And then he starts repeating the word while he runs to the kitchen. Mr. JCrew had been begging me to catch it on film. Easier said than done. The kid gets camera shy and frustrated when you whip out a camera instead of his juice cup.

I finally caught it. The juice cup was on the drying rack on the counter. In the video, he is saying “juice” while pointing to the cup. Momma likes to play dumb and pretend she doesn’t see it while I video him.

W saying “Juice”

I’m so proud he is using his words. It’s not many, but they are precious.

Ball and juice cover all his needs. What more do you need in life?

Mr. Brigglesworth has something to catch on camera, too. Mom said I needed to capture how he eats his food. When you put in non-pureed food he twirls it around with his tongue and it’s funny to watch. I purposefully fed him crust last night to get it on tape.

B eating

Have a great weekend!!

Attitude Changer: Quote #2

I gave you quote Number 1 two weeks back with the intention of posting one every Wednesday. I disappointed Mr. JCrew with my post about patching holes last week! Ha. 

In these related posts, I am sharing quotes from a wonderful book called, “Lead the Field’ by Earl Nightingale.

In summary, the book talks about your attitude. It determines your actions, as well as the actions of others. Mr. Nightingale takes our lame excuses for NOT being successful and refutes them all.

Today’s Quote: “Don’t take the attitude of waiting for people to be nice to you – be nice to them.”
 
Don’t sit in front of a cold stove waiting for the heat. Put in the fuel. Act first. It has to start somewhere. Let it begin with you. Attitude is a reflection of the person inside.

People doing an outstanding job and getting outstanding results are outstanding people and that is because of an outstanding attitude. They think they can achieve. They believe that achievement is the natural order of things, and it is. They believe they can be as successful and competent as anyone else. They are usually no smarter or talented than anyone else but they have the right attitude. Attitude makes the difference. Accomplishment is easy because so few others really try.

The book goes on to give an example of a couple that had just moved into town from another state. After only a year, they were moving back home. When asked why, the husband stated his wife did not feel welcome. She was waiting for her neighbors to come introduce themselves. She never reached out to them. They took that as a sign that she wanted to be left alone.
You can’t get upset over a situation if you gave no effort yourself.
 
Quote #1

Potty Training Learned

Beware: I will be using my potty-mouth for this post (heck, I would like to use a few choice words!)

I hate failing at something. It feels like I have been failing at parenting; and that is the worst feeling ever! I've been through it before with Little JCrew's eating situation and sleep training, and now I am going through it with potty training.

Little JCrew has a sensitive stomach, so we have to watch what he eats. For a while it was playing a guessing game of what caused it and most of the time it didn’t make sense. His sleeping habits were just as troublesome. He is a light sleeper and didn’t start sleeping though the nights until he was 11 months old! We tried everyone’s advice out of desperation and nothing worked. But it was my goal to get him sleeping through the night before Mr. Brigglesworth came along. The downside was that once Little JCrew was sleeping through the night, pregnancy insomnia was keeping me up!

So, here we are with the latest parenting fail… Potty Training. I will start off by saying it really helps if you have a great support system. Everyone that has a role in your child's life needs to be on the same page as you. I am not a full-time mom, so there are many people involved in raising my kids. Making decisions are hard. People are looking to you for answers you may not have and then they will question your given answer. Just pick a position and stick with it!

It was and it wasn't my idea to potty train Little JCrew. He appeared ready. Mimi was going to start when she got back from Florida. I decided to start before she got back because I was home all day with him for a week. I really wanted to take credit for something my child learned (a goal for a part-time mom.)

My engineering brain kept stats of the week.

“Sprinkles” were just that; he’d sprinkle as he was learning to hold his bladder. An “Accident” resulted in more than just a sprinkle… it was a puddle.

The first two days were horrible. I could see where people want to give up. It only fueled me more. We went pants-free around the house. There was lots of sprinkling. I literally had to keep my eye on him and every time he started to sprinkle, we took him to the "potty." By Day 3, he knew what to do! We were able to leave the house that day, too! We went three places and he used a public restroom. We later discovered he thought it was cool to use urinals.

I was waiting to write about this experience because I wanted to verify the success. The first two weeks were great and he got it. These last month has been frustrating. The first month overall was good. We had normal accidents, but he was proud to use the bathroom. The second month went downhill, and fast! He started to not tell us that he had to go. So, it was back to watching him like a hawk like we did the first week. Then he got strep throat and potty’ing stopped completely. He rebelled taking his antibiotics twice a day and his poor attitude continued with deliberate accidents.
As of today, we have stopped trying with potty training. We take him to the restroom and he goes, but he has stopped telling us he needs to.

Reasons Why It Wasn’t Working:

1. Little JCrew is approaching the terrible two’s. The timing was horrible with him learning about his independence.
2. Little JCrew can’t talk. He couldn’t tell us he needed to go, but he’d run to the restroom in a panic! It will be nice once he finally talks.
3. I was not the only one in control. This sounds bad to say, but breastfeeding has been my only success. I only had to rely on myself and it worked. I know other things played a factor and I’m lucky my babies have been champs at eating, but seriously, it’s the only credit to my name.
4. Little JCrew’s will is just as strong as his mama’s. I am the most hard-headed person I know. I research things like crazy, make a decision, and don’t back down. This is good and bad. I DON’T do things because others are doing them or because someone told me I should. Little JCrew doesn’t like to do things because he was told to either. He wants it to be initiated by him. The last month he was not happy about being told to use the restroom. He would do it, but only to please us.

I gave this challenge my all. I read how persistence was “key” and to not give mixed signals. Little JCrew never wore a diaper while awake for ANY situation. I may have been told to put a diaper on for ease on the parent, but I was willing to forgo making things easier on me so that he would learn. And he did learn.

Potty-training is not for the weak. It is hard. It tests your patience. I became much more patient through this all. I would keep going if all the parenting decisions were up to me. But I’m listening to my other half. We have decided to stop the training and to go back to diapers. It eats me up to claim a failure on a task, but I have to be realistic. I can understand if I was cheating or didn’t give it my all, but I gave 110%!

So, I’ll end on a positive note and share what was working for us.

What Worked:

1. Little JCrew liked peeing standing up. We started by him watching us use the restroom. It was easier for him to watch the pee go into the toilet if he was standing up. We didn’t have to use the Cheerio trick. He just liked watching it. I don’t know how I’d train a girl. She can’t stand and watch.
2. Little JCrew liked high-fives as rewards. Every time he used the restroom, he turned around to get a high-five. He walked in on my dad once and gave my dad a high-five. Dad came out and told us Little JCrew gave him a high-five for using the restroom! Both of them were so proud! I thought that story was too cute not to share.
3. We were persistent. He only wore a diaper for sleeping. He wore underwear to go to church and run errands. The church nursery staff was great working with him. We didn’t let him wear a diaper in the high-chair or to go outside and play. He had to learn how to hold his bladder. We never had an accident in the high-chair or even the car! He knew better.
4. He was naked from the waist down. When we were at home those first few days, I didn’t even put underwear on him. It allowed me to see the “sprinkles” start and I could rush him to the restroom. All the tips I read said to not use Pull-Ups. But you wouldn’t believe how many people told me to use them! Pull-Ups don’t give the undesired feeling of peeing in your pants. I still don’t understand how Pull-Ups would help. Again, I think it is for the ease of the parent to not have a mess to clean up when an accident happens. I probably made my life harder by giving myself messes to clean up, but if you know me, you know I don’t take the easy route.

I wish I could claim success on this one, but it didn’t work. And I wasn’t ready to give up. But if it causes stress on other family members, then I have to let it go.


When the second month started going downhill, we reached a middle ground and went with Pull-Ups. (I know, I said I was against it, but I'm not the only one in charge around here.) The first day that we decided no more potty training, Little JCrew was telling his Mimi he had to go! She wasn’t going to stop if he wasn’t willing to stop. He was very good about telling his Mimi and the Nursery workers when he had to go, but never us! We did Pull-ups because it was easy to pull down when he used the bathroom. He was still holding his bladder, so Pull-Ups just caught the dribble before we reached the restroom.

Then a few weeks later he realized Pull-Ups catch accidents, so he stopped holding it in. Little JCrew knows what the restroom is and knows what to do. This will make it easier for when we start this process all over again.

What’s Up Next:

1. Take a Break. We need to cool the training until he loses the two-year old attitude.
2. Still Take Him to the Bathroom. We just won’t be strict about it. We didn’t really punish for accidents, but we acknowledged they weren’t good. For now, we’ll ignore the accidents.
3. Use Diapers. Pull-Ups are expensive if we are going to allow accidents.
4. Monitor the Situation. We’re going to watch his attitude every two weeks and see if he starts to improve and he isn’t rebelling anymore. When he shows interest again, we will start back up.

I honestly am so confused on this situation. He goes to the bathroom when we take him. He’s just so hard-headed! Through this all, I have learned I have a strong-willed child. Thank goodness he doesn’t say the word, “No.”



To my friends that had successful potty-training results at 18 months and earlier, “You rock!” As they say, every kid is different and that’s why there is a BIG range when it comes to developmental skills. I hope all mothers remember that, especially myself. It doesn’t hurt to try things, but we can’t get frustrated when it fails. My only goal is that Little JCrew is potty-trained before he goes to school. If he isn’t by the time he is four or five, THEN I can be worried. Mr. JCrew asks me the following questions:

1. Do I know of an adult not potty-trained?

2. Do I know an adult that cannot talk? 

I do not need to worry about when Little JCrew will do things. It’s just a matter of time.

I can’t wait to see that tush in underwear again. Little underwear is sooo cute!

Happy Parenting!

A Lesson On Frogs

Little JCrew had a lesson on frogs. The boy LOVES being outside. It’s what we do every day when we get home from work. I had my camera out and was taking pictures of the flowers.

When I stepped away, I heard something drop. I look down to see what it was and saw that a frog jumped as I almost stepped on him.

I love frogs. There is a running joke in my family about me ‘chasing frogs.’ Kendal, stay quiet!

I pointed the frog out to Little JCrew and he started kissing it.

There were also some sweet nothings whispered to the frog.

Before I knew it, he was reaching down to touch the frog.

I was warning him while I kept my finger on the camera trigger!

The frog jumped before Little JCrew could get his hands on him.

This actually frightened him. He wasn’t expecting the frog to jump. He probably thought the frog would sit still and let him pet him like the dogs do.

I always wanted our dogs to lay next to the babies while they had tummy-time or napped, but our dogs have taken a LONG time to warm up to the little humans in the house.

Anderson was the first to get close to them. I think he was trying to get to me, but settled for the baby. I have pictures of both the boys are the same time developmentally playing with Anderson on the floor.

Anderson just lets them tug on him.

I told him that one day they would give him the attention he starves for!

Colby is a timid pup. He was an older puppy when we got him, so I don’t know his upbringing, but I think it was fine. He could just care less about a baby. However, recently he is all about Little JCrew!

Little JCrew loves on Colby and pets him. Colby use to run away, but now he loves it! It’s more hands to pet him.

Colby thinks Mr. Briggleworth is okay, but he’ll be cooler once he can stand and Colby can knock him over!

Oh, and I have to make note of Mr. Brigglesworth’s hair. I can’t get it to lay down. It does for maybe a minute as it dries after a bath, and to me, he looks funny. I’m so use to seeing the hair standing up, that it makes him Mr. Brigglesworth. I don’t want to make it lay down.

I hope you all have a great weekend. My sister, Kerry, is coming into town to see her boys! We are soooo excited! Little JCrew wants to take her to the park and play. Wooo!

See you Monday! (I’ll be sharing my potty-training story)

Patching Holes

I’m on a mission. Spring Cleaning is in full effect. I have a theory… Spring Cleaning happens naturally after you are forced to stay indoors all Winter and look at your cluttered and un-organized house. You can’t get away from it, so you decide to clear it out. Am I right?

I had those moments several times this Winter. Our dining room table stayed clear for 1 hour before things were piled on it again. I see too many cute things and try to find homes for them. I look back and realize I’m adding to my clutter.

When I look at inspiration pictures, the walls are semi-bare. There are just a few details.

http://pinterest.com/pin/246220304600117799

It hit me, that in my quest of looking for something to do, I do something with a blank wall. I literally have no blank walls in my house!

I started taking things off the walls and patching up the holes.

It started in the master bedroom. I was already going to have to paint over my samples and if I had the paint out, I might as well patch some holes.

When we moved the TV in the bedroom to the playroom upstairs, I never did a good job of patching that hole. I had since read instructions and was going to try again.

I used my spackling and SANDED it this time. That was something I had never done before.

I painted over all my holes and primed over the paint samples I made earlier. Since I decided I wasn’t going to paint the room for the fourth time, I used my primer to cover up the sample swatches before I painted the room back to it’s normal color. The primer helped because the sample finishes were not the same as the original flat finish. I would never recommend flat finish paint. Lessons learned.

The bedroom looks almost new.

While I was in a patching frenzy, I took down pictures in the playroom.

It really made a big difference.

I even took the stuff off the dining room shelves and patched the holes better.

When I added the shelves, I only did a good job of patching the holes that were not covered.

And I didn’t stop there. I even used the primer and paint to cover up where Lysol dripped from a light switch.

Worked like a charm!

Some of the things I removed off the walls had anchors. Some anchors came out easily, some I could push into the wall. But I came across one that wasn’t moving.

After I spackled it, I hammered it flat; then spackled again.

The kitchen sink nook is clutter free.

 

While I had the sandpaper and paint out, I took off the switch plate and smoothed out the drywall.

When I replaced the light switch, the new faceplate wasn’t the exact same fit. Now you can’t tell the difference.

I was so close to throwing away all my paint cans during my Spring Cleaning, but I’m glad I didn’t. I didn’t use the same “finish” in each room so I wouldn’t know what to get again for touch-up paint.

Now I just have to remember to fight the urge when I want to find an adorable object a home. Not all of my walls need to be covered. I’m learning lessons for the next time around. I don’t like holes in my walls. I like clean walls.

Wood Filler

Back when I screwed the exterior door frames with more screws, I left the heads exposed and went on with my life.



I thought I could live with it. Some are hidden; some are not.



Weeks later, they are staring at me! I had to do something.



I’ve been put on a brief pause with projects around the house, so I am looking at fixing things I have around me. Why not cover the screws up and paint over them? I have the paint. It would make them much more appealing.



I used Elmer’s Wood Filler.

Step One: Put filler into the hole.
Step Two: Use a scraper to even the surface
Let it dry, sand it and then it’s time to paint.
 
I had a gaping hole in our front door frame that has been there forever!



I never asked the builder to fix it, so I finally did!



Our trim paint color is Pacer White by Sherwin Williams (SW 6098). It’s an offwhite color for sure. I’m not sure how much I love it. I like white, but too white can feel commercial and lose that homey feeling.



Now it is just a distant thing in the past that I re-enforced our door frames. Hopefully I will never need to kick down my door. I won’t be getting in that way.

My Little Boys

Wow! How is it that Little JCrew is 20 months and Mr. Brigglesworth is 7 months? I’m trying to decide if I want to do a bigger than family birthday party for Little JCrew this year. He loves other kids and I think he’d really enjoy it. Sometimes I think the parties are just as much for the parents, too. Any reason to get together is a good excuse!

At 20 months old, Little JCrew is a handful! We started potty-training a few days shy of him turning 19 months. (I promise to share details later.) That process brought on the terrible-two’s attitude! At times, he shows the attitude of a teenager! The other night, he threw his cup on the floor; as he does sometimes when he finishes it. I’m trying to get him out of the behavior so I sternly said he needed to ‘cut it out.’ He was in his room and I was standing outside in the hallway. He then proceeded to stand up, walk over to the door and close it. All the while, giving me this look of “I don’t want to talk to you right now.” We have “Latchy Catchy’s” on the door, so he can get the door back open without having to turn the knob.

He didn’t open the door immediately, so I left and sat down in the living room. Not even thirty seconds later, he comes running out, has the biggest grin on his face and gives me a huge hug. He knows when he upsets Mom or Dad he has to follow up with a big hug! How can we get mad at him?

As far as developments, he’s doing good. He still doesn’t say much, but he understands a lot!! He FINALLY answered a question with the correct word. I showed him a ball and asked, “What is it?” He then said, “ball.” This was HUGE! We caught it on camera.

 

“What Is It?”

Disclaimer: He really liked the ball hitting him directly in the head. No harm was done to any children while making this video.

I can’t wait for the day he really starts talking. He’s on his own time. He just doesn’t like to be a puppet and repeat us. I just think it’s ironic that his first word was ‘ball.’ He’s a boy all the way!

Mr. Brigglesworth is growing! I feel like I just moved him into 9-month size clothes and I’m moving him up to 12-month size already. On Friday, I put on a 9-month pair of jeans and laughed because they were SKINNY jeans on him. He couldn’t even sit in them!

As far as developmentally, he is doing good, too. He sits on his own and plays with us on the floor. He can catch himself from falling over, which is good. I did this with Little JCrew too, but once they are sitting good, I put them through the grocery cart test. If they can sit in the cart without slumping by the end of the trip, then they are ready to move into the convertible carseat!

Mr. Brigglesworth liked sharing a seat next to his big brother, but I think that was because he wanted his brother’s cookie. He knows what food is and has never met a food he didn’t like. He stared at Little JCrew’s cookie and boo-hoo’d!

Mr. Brigglesworth got Little JCrew’s old carseat and Little JCrew got a new one.

It makes both of them look so grown up!

I can tell the adventures have only just begun. The brothers just adore each other and I’m hoping it lasts.

Have a wonderful Friday and a great weekend!