Potty Adventures, Part 4

This morning I got Tara up at 8:15, fed her breakfast and after breakfast she was dry. So I asked her if she wanted to go potty and she said, "yesh". So off we went and there she sat for a good 5 minutes, but no pee. I got her down put her diaper on her, by now its 9 am, and off she goes to play and sure enough she fills the diaper. So I change her and ask her if she wants to go potty and again she answers, "yesh". Again, no pee. This time I put some undies on her and send her on her way. About an hour later she comes to me and speaks her foreign language, I have no clue what she is saying but decide to ask if she needs to go potty. She answers, "YESH!" We get to the bathroom and as I start to pull her undies down I find a surprise, she had pooped in her undies. I get her cleaned up and sit her on the pot and there she sits but no pee. I get her down, put on a new pair of undies and off she goes, again. Later, its now about 12:30, we've had lunch and played and folded laundry and she still has not peed since the morning. I ask her if she wants to go, she replies "yesh", but no pee, we get down, run to the front room, where this time I sit down to get a diaper ready (she is going down for a nap). She runs to the corner of the room and sits and...pees. Yep. (Luckily it was on the tile floor) She stood up and looked down at her mess...she looked intrigued by this. I think she would have danced in it if I would have let her! I'm hoping this afternoon, after nap time, will go better. Just hoping for that one time where she pees IN the pot! Once she does that, I know she can get trained. Just gotta get her to pee in the pot so I can praise her! I know she is still young, so I don't want to force her, at least not yet. My boys didn't get potty trained until they were 3, that was my choice though, I chose to wait. So, if she needs to wait a little longer, I will, but I would love to have her trained by 2! We shall see!
Something other than pee...
Yesterday Jeff had off and so after he slept in we took the kiddos to the pool. It wasn't too hot out though so the water seemed extra chilly. We had so much fun, especially since we had the pool all to ourselves. Actually, I've never had to share it! Jeff took Tara in and at first she whined but with in a few minutes she was happy and splashing. Jeff put her on his back and swam around with her. She was so cute holding onto him with a huge smile! I wish I had my camera b/c that would have been a priceless picture! Josiah and Gaber had a great time being thrown in the water by daddy and doing all that fun pool stuff. :) I even braved the cold water and did a little swimming.
We are looking forward to this weekend, Jeff has a 4 day weekend and tomorrow we have a bbq at his work. The boys will get to see where daddy works and maybe even ride on some of the equipment. I'll try to get pictures and post them soon.

Summer Vacation!

Today is our first official day of summer vacation. Josiah's last day of school was yesterday, they have a 1/2 day of school today but he didn't have to go since he earned good grades. So, Yay! :) So this morning I took the kids down to the pool which is only about a 5 minute walk but we drove b/c I was too hot. Public schools are still in session so guess who had the pool all to themselves? The boys had so much fun in that freezing water. Tara on the other hand decided to be a girly girl and sat on the chair, mommy's lap and the side of the pool the whole time. So, guess who had to sit out too. Boy was it hot sitting out there too. Around noon I got the kids home, had lunch, laid Tara down and cleaned. Now the boys are playing a game while I blog. What a great start to summer!

Last night we finally got Gaber's tooth out. We decided it had to be pulled b/c it was really bothering him when he ate. That tooth was so loose that I barely had to even pull and out it popped onto his tongue. :) He was so excited and decided to write a note to the tooth fairy, with mommy's help, asking her for a yo yo instead of money since this was his first tooth. :) Too cute! Last night he excitedly tucked it under his pillow, hoping the tooth fairy would leave his yo yo. This morning he came running out with his yo yo, he was so happy that she left him one! *wink*

I better try to get more laundry and cleaning done.

Potty Adventures, Part 3

This morning Tara woke up completely dry...for the 3rd time in a row! So I decided to let her eat a banana while sitting on the toilet, that was the only way I could get her on it. So, there she sat eating a banana but no pee. *sigh* She sat there eating and I sat there on the floor, praying for her to go, I knew she had to but she just wouldn't do it. Five minutes later I take her off and put her diaper back on. When we leave the bathroom I realize it is time to get siah to school so I pick her up and immediately feel the warmth. Yep, she went and filled that diaper to the max. Little stinker.

Stuff

I've decided to home school the boys this coming year. I'm actually really excited and hopeful...but now is the time to pick a curriculum. I just can't decide. I want to try out SOS for Josiah, but I just feel very cautious b/c I don't want anything boring. It looks very interesting to me but so did the a beka video curriculum...and that turned out, lets just say, not so good. For Gaber I will either use a beka (not videos) or ACE. I want to pick the right curriculum now and stick with it for all the years to come b/c I don't want to be jumping around all over the place and having the boys in a whirl wind of different learning systems. So for now all I know is they aren't going back to the school. I think its a step in the right direction for us.
So onto other stuff...
Josiah had his 8th tooth pulled 2 nights ago. I tell you what, that 8th tooth has been loose for at least 5 months. It just did NOT want to come out. I tell you what else, Josiah is such a trooper b/c I can't tell you how many times I pulled on that little tooth of his. He took it like a "man" each time too. I finally came to the conclusion that it was the wimpy string I was using so the other night I found a thicker string and out popped that tooth with one good pull. He was so excited when he felt the tooth pop out and onto his tongue. lol He didn't want money this time from the tooth fairy though, he wanted a yo yo. Actually, this was Gaber's idea....see, Gaber has 2 loose teeth of his own and he said he didn't want money, he wanted a yo yo. Josiah heard and decided that sounded pretty good. :) Poor Gaber has yet to lose any of his loose teeth though, so he is still waiting on a yo yo. One of his teeth is pretty loose, but he just can't sit still and stop giggling long enough for me to get a string tied around it. I think he giggles when he's nervous! :)
On the potty training adventure (Part 2)...Tara woke up completely dry again this morning. We drove Siah to school and ate breakfast and she was still dry. But she wanted nothing to do with that toilet and sure enough she filled her diaper 2 minutes later. Oh well, I know it will happen soon. :) I'm just excited to see that she can hold it and that she is about ready for some "real" training here soon.

Tara's Potty Adventures; Part 1

Tara woke up this morning completely dry. I took her to the bathroom but she didn't want to sit on the toilet...which is weird for her b/c she loves sitting on her new potty seat. I decided it was b/c she was hungry for breakfast. So I took her to the kitchen for breakfast. She ate and afterward she was still dry. So I took her back to the bathroom and got her on the toilet but then she changed her mind. I'm guessing she knew she had to pee and was just too scared. So I reluctantly took her off, I don't want to force her, and put her diaper back on. With in 5 minutes she had filled the diaper. I was hoping she would do it on the toilet w/out me making her. I really don't want to force her, I want it to be something she enjoys. Hopefully w/in the next few months she'll do it on her own. *fingers crossed*

Happy Mother's Day!

This is a day late but I thought I'd do it any way.
Jeff and I have the greatest moms anyone could ever ask for. We love them both, even though he still calls my mom "hey you" and I still call his mom, Rose.They both want to do so much for us and our children. I know they worry and pray for us and I just hope I can be a good mother to my children too like they have been to us. :) Jeff and I love you both!
Here are some pictures of our wonderful mothers...


Loving some time with Tara in Georgia


Cheezin' with Siah in Okinawa


Enjoying some vaca in Hawaii


Another great mother, Jeff's grandma :)


Snugglin' with Tara in Fulton

These moms will follow us anywhere, Oklahoma, Mississippi, the Azores, Okinawa, Hawaii, Georgia...and we love that. No matter how much it cost, they will get there to see us and of course the main reason...the grandchildren! :)
Happy Mother's Day!

Decisions

I've been thinking about homeschooling our boys this coming year. Well, I am already homeschooling Gaber, but Josiah goes to our church school. I really do love sending him and I do want Gaber to have that experience too, but then I want to try homeschooling both and see how it goes. Another reason is the cost. Our school is very inexpensive compared to most christian schools, but still we are a one income family so it takes quite a chunk out of our wallet each month. This coming year it will be almost too much with both boys enrolled. So...this week I have been praying about it and searching the web for curriculum's. I found one called Switched on Schoolhouse. (I actually think my sister-in-law told me about it a couple years ago). Well, I came across it the other day and really liked what I saw. I think Josiah would do good with it and even may enjoy it. For Gaber I'm thinking maybe ACE or abeka.
So that is one of my big decisions right now. One decision of ours was made last week when Jeff was accepted to be a Cadre. He started this Monday as an instructor at the MOB school on base. We have been praying and praying about which path he should take for months now. Well, this door opened up and the plus of it is we get to stay here for a couple more years. I love seeing prayers answered! So this was a big decision for us, because if he didn't get this or the other career he was hoping for, we may have gotten out. But now that he got this job we have decided to reenlist for another 4 years, which will take us to 12 years!
The last thing I have been thinking about is whether to start a very small home daycare to earn us some extra money. Like I said before, we are a one income family and so things are usually pretty tight. But now, with the thought of homeschooling, I'm not sure what I want to do. I'm trying to decide if I could handle babysitting another little one while teaching my boys. I think I could, but i guess I'd need to find a parent who wouldn't mind me being busy with my kids and theirs.
So, there are all my decisions. I need to decide about the boys soon b/c their book fee is due in one week at the school and it is non refundable, so I need to decide before then.
One last decision...I need to figure out why I have ants all over my desk! There is no food or drinks to attract them and I don't even see where they are coming from! I keep killing them with my finger but they keep coming back...time to get serious and spray!