Montana

Last night, our new friend Robert showed us a spot to take Puckett to the river. Poor dog hasn't been in the water since we moved from Boise. So, we took the three dogs out and let them have a little fun running and swimming. And really, after playing with this picture on Photoshop, it just reminds me of a Montana picture. I don't care if that's weird, I just like the picture.

Most evenings, nearly all, after Mia goes to bed, Brett spends time in the greenhouse. I'm not sure what he does out there, but clearly it's working. The top picture is his "starter" area. The second picture is of the monstrous tomatoes. It's hard to tell, but these suckers are about five feet tall. The third picture shows the planters and our little Puckett. The last picture shows the pole beans (on the left) and the tomatoes again. It's hard to tell, and I know I'm not doing this justice, but all the green is definitely indicative of a job well done. And, you should see everything on the outside of the greenhouse! We have had broccoli galore this month! Before I forget, we have to give a shout out to Mike and Jamie. They so graciously gave up their old redwood which allowed Brett to build all of these amazing raised beds. Thanks guys!

My favorite picture

If you read the last post on potty training, you'll have noticed what a crummy day this was. Last night, it was so stinkin' hot that I couldn't allow Mia to lay in her room and sweat. Rather, I thought it would be a brainy idea to have her in my arms in the living room where it was cooler. Obviously, the house would cool off soon enough. Bright idea #2: Let's all go downstairs and try to sleep where it's comfortable. So, we marched downstairs (movie in tow), laid down on the big mattress pad we had just replaced on our bed, put on a movie, told Puckett to lay down, and we were set. Wishful thinking. After little sleep, I walked upstairs to check the temperature - 85 degrees and stuffy. Ugh. Finally, at 3:30 AM, we went to bed upstairs. And, poor Brett had to be at work in four hours. Where am I going with this? It was an awful day. Mia slept too late, didn't take a nap, was cranky, and didn't want to do anything but sit in my lap and throw books at me. Did I mention that I have a sinus infection?

Bright idea #3: We went outside in the afternoon to play in the sprinklers. And, while Mia did not want to stand by the flowers like I asked, she did back her pink princess riding toy into them for a split second allowing me to take my favorite picture...ever. I'm biased and I don't care. But at the end of a terrible day, I have this little picture to remind me of my sweet girl days before her second birthday.

Potty Training Update

While I had read numerous websites, blogs, and asked my Facebook friends for advice, I was not prepared for potty training. Thankfully, Mia was. Here's a quick rundown of how it went:

Day 1: Six accidents (two poopy sets of panties included), lots of time in the bathroom, cranky toddler, tired mom, going every 30 min. or so ALL DAY LONG

Day 2: Fourish accidents (includes two poops), less time in bathroom, one successful and quick trip to Sam's Club, less cranky toddler, mom more tired than day before, going every 40 min. or so ALL DAY LONG

Day 3: Mia goes to daycare on Monday's. They had been prepped last week about the big event. One accident, spilled milk on the shirt (unrelated to potty training, I'm sure), overall success, mom feels good

Day 4: ZERO accidents, two poops in the toilet, trips to gym and also gymnastics, cranky and tired mom and toddler due to lack of sleep last night and no nap, overall success

I was not prepared for the overall exhaustion of watching the clock, marching to the bathroom, singing lots of songs, picking Mia up off the floor when she didn't want to sit on the potty, etc. I would not say that was easy. Worth it? Absolutely. Done. Well...a work in progress maybe.

Freshly picked basil from the greenhouse!

Potty Training (the real deal)

Months ago, Mia let us know she was ready to take on the porcelain. Actually, at the time, she was using her pink princess potty that sat on the floor. Gradually, we moved to the big potty, but she was still content to go in her pull-up as well. So, while we know Mia can use the potty, Brett and I hadn't been doing a very good job of really weaning her out of the diapers. Well, folks, tomorrow is the day. That's right! Yesterday, I took Mia to the store to pick out her own "big girl panties." I grimaced at her choices (Dora and Disney princess) but, I had to let her do it herself. Now, they're all washed up and ready. I just hope we are.

Here they are in all their glory:

Sprinklers

It's true. In nearly one week, Mia will have her second birthday. I can't believe it. Where did the time go? We have truly enjoyed our little Mia these last two years, and even before we really knew her. She is truly so much fun! From the time Mia wakes up, she wants to go outside to help Brett in the greenhouse or play with Puckett. And from that time on, it doesn't stop. She likes go GO! But, she also likes to cuddle at night, read books, and lay on the floor playing silly games. She is so much fun and I just cannot imagine not having her around. (I'm sure Puckett feels the same way.)

Plants

For anyone who is reading, here are a couple of pictures of the greenhouse and other plants in the backyard.

Yard work

It has finally been nice enough outside to do some real yard work without freezing our rears off. And, you can see that the grass is actually alive. So, Mia and Brett took the mowing the lawn today. What a helper!

More Gymnastics

Here are Mia and her buddy waiting their turn on the trampoline "runway."

Mia's turn on the high bar.

Gymnastics

Back in January, we enrolled Mia in gymnastics. Since then, we've spent one evening per week at the gym. Mia is in the Tumblebugs class which is for kiddos under three. At this age, it also means that parent participation is required. There really is a learning curve for both the children and parents. I can't tell you enough how much we love gymastics (or "nastics" as Mia would call it). The first two sessions, we spent literally chasing Mia around the gym. However, as time went on, she learned to wait in line, walk with her group with her hands behind her back, etc. It's amazing how much she has learned since then! So, while these were taken a little while back, it still gives you a glimpse of our favorite evening of the week.

Now that she has been going for four months, she can: Go sit near Miss Emily when class is about to begin, walk to the trampoline with her hands behind her back, sit next to her friends while they wait, jump all the way down the trampoline (straight jumps), jump into the foam pit, do somersaults, bear crawl, bunny hops, walk backward, walk on a balance beam, etc. It is so much fun to see this group of kids each week. We love it!

Single parent, up all night, double-ear infection. Enough said. On another note, please bear with me as I first tell you all about our trials of going to church. Never did I have to worry about going to church. We may not have gone often enough, true, but I never really had a worry about it. In fact, I truly enjoyed it when I worked at a Catholic school. I take that back, sometimes I did worry when I was there. Will my kids get their readings right? Will they get up at the right time? Will they...? But, to an extent, I knew that I always had time for contemplative prayer. I knew that whenever I went to church, I received the eucharist. Even when Mia was an infant, this was so easy. It never occured to me that this would/could change. And, then it did. One day, we took Mia to church and she had learned to walk. One day, she wanted to explore. One day, she found her "outside" voice. One day, she learned to run. All of a sudden, church was a worry. Not only that, between Brett and I, we could physically be in church and have no idea what was said. From that day forward, church became burdensome. Then it happened. Mia sat in the pew up until the profession of faith - her longest stint yet. However, she decided she was done. I thought we would walk around in the back. No. She was so loud, I felt we had no other option. Mia and I spend time in the hallway and in the hall. I missed communion. I felt like the roof had come crashing down. I cried. Really. I haven't been back since. I spent time looking for inspiration, advice, etc. Surely, parents have struggled with this before. Katie's advice was inspiring. The blog I read was exactly what I needed. Not going to church isn't an option. Our attitude, and what we do with Mia during church is an option. Easier said than done, but wish us luck and pray for us at least, will ya?

Article

Though I think I tried to email this article out, I thought it was so great that it deserved a spot on the blog as well.

Birthday

No, it's no one's birthday around here, though Puckett did turn five last month and I forgot to celebrate. Anyway, I have been thinking about Mia's birthday even though it's not until July. I think what got my mind turning was the fact that the gym has parties, and Brett said he saw one that looked cool. He may have even used that exact word. So...Mia's birthday is a little less than four months away. As I was thinking, I realized that she seems to enjoy play kitchens. There is one at the gym, in fact, that she is always playing in when we pick her up. I also distinctly remember playing with my Playskool kitchen all the time. I think that was coupled with pushing around my yellow shopping cart and asking for cans from the kitchen to go in my grocery store. Anyhow, in looking for a wooden kitchen, I found a blog that used plans similar to these from Lowe's. I think we might try to make this for M's birthday. And, if we start thinking about it now, it might really happen! However, if you happen to see a used wooden kitchen for sale, please let us know! We'll be in the market for kitchen accessories, too. :o)