To Whom It May Concern

I need to express a few of my pet peeves to those opinionated strangers out there who feel the need to express their opinions about my kids.

First of all, I think I am competent enough to know how to dress my children. Don't come up and touch my infant's bare feet and tell me that her little feet are too cold. First off, you shouldn't go around touching other people's infants if you don't know them, it's just not right. Secondly, you are not aware of the fact that the child just had the blow out of the century and her socks were subjected to the blow out proceedings. So, I'm sorry I wasn't carrying another pair of socks that day, but something is bound to slip your mind in the scurry out the door with two children under the age of two . .

Secondly, please make an effort to notice the gender of my child. Now don't get me wrong . . . if you catch her without a bow on and dressed in neutral colors, the gender guessing game then becomes my fault; however, pink clothing and bow can only indicate one thing . . . SHE is NOT a HE!!

Finally, I am NOT a nanny to my two kids, I had my children UNDER wedlock, and NO they were NOT an accident. I would think these inquires into my personal life would at least permit being on a first name basis . . . wouldn't you think?

I Can Do It Myself

I remember a book from when I was little girl that my parents used to read to me. It was called "I Can Do It Myself" and it had Grover from Sesame Street doing several things all by himself. I battered that book to pieces and now I am on the hunt for a copy for my daughter.

Kenzie feels the need to do EVERYTHING by herself. I think this idea of independence came to her in a dream one night, because she seemed to wake up one day with the will to do all tasks on her own.

This newly found independence can be a huge trial to my patience; but I can usually bite my tongue and let her figure out these tasks on her own (after all, the sooner that she can do it on her own, the better!) It's just that it was so much faster and easier to put a coat on, put shoes on, get in the car seat, and get a bag packed when I was able to do these things for her; especially when there is a need to do these small tasks in a hurry. I try my hardest to give ourselves an extra ten or fifteen minutes before leaving the house for ANY type of outing, so that I can avoid frustration on my part, and melt downs on Kenzie's part; but life is life and rushing moments come. In these moments when I try to help her get an arm in a coat that she has been fiddling with for several minutes, I am met by strict counsel to not interfere with her proceedings; when interference is absolutely necessary (such as when we are in the middle of the store and she has managed to take off her shoe and feels the need to sit right in the middle of the aisle to correct the problem and mommy must move her to a place where a traffic jam will not be caused) it is cause for an instantaneous melt down. The emotions of toddlers . . . gotta love it. In the end, the whole thing is quite comical.

Hooray for Mommy!

As you may know, Kenzie is in the process of potty training. Things are going quite well. She has pretty much got it down when we are at home, which is all I am really looking for at this point. I need to pick up a few more things before I attempt potty training outside of the house. (Being at the park without a toilet in sight is currently at the top of my list for reasons to panic.)

My favorite bits of the potty training business would be the following:

1. Sorry Hillary, you said not to blog about this one, but I just can't help myself . . . Last night Kenzie's friend Sarah was over, and Kenzie was showing those definite signs of needing to do her serious business in the bathroom. I caught her just in time to have her whisked away to the bathroom and placed on the pot. No one is allowed in the bathroom while Kenzie is doing her thing, so she quickly instructed Garrett to leave and let her be. So, Garrett returned to our company in the living room and told her to let us know when she was ready to wipe and wash her hands. (Which usually consists of her screaming out that she is ready to wipe at the top of her lungs - I'd be quite surprised if our whole apartment building isn't aware of our current potty training adventures) Well, we all got a little caught up in some adult conversation before we realized that the house was a little bit too quite for two year olds. We went into the bathroom to find Sarah with a fist FULL of toilet paper ready to help her little pal out . . . now THAT is friendship. :)

2. Kenzie feels that her sister should be potty trained as well. Anytime I change a poopy diaper of Jordyn's, Kenzie tells sister that she is "icky" and should put her poo-poo in the potty. Kenzie often insists that sister go and sit on the potty when Jordyn is showing the obvious signs of making a mess in her diaper. I am just hoping that I don't find Kenzie trying to put Jordyn in the toilet one of these days . . .

1. Finally, Kenzie feels the need to celebrate mommy's potty training abilities. Anytime I am getting ready to head to the bathroom Kenzie inquires about whether or not I need to poo-poo or pee-pee in the potty. As soon as she hears the toilet flush and I make my appearance out of the bathroom, she is there to congratulate me with one or all of the following: a hug, a high five, or a "Hooray for Mommy" while she jumps up and down. She knows going potty is truly something to celebrate . . . even when you are a twenty-three year old mother of two.

You Know That Feeling . . .

You know that feeling of FINALLY getting the baby to sleep only to turn around and walk into the wall, curse, and send the fan crashing to the floor, which all results in the baby waking up? You know that feeling? Grrrrr . . .

We've Hit a Wall . . .

Um, what do you do when your two year old is asking to sit on the potty about every thirty minutes just because she wants a treat? We won't give her a treat unless something is actually deposited in the toilet, but we never know if she actually has to go to the bathroom, or if she is just in search for a "teet" (treat). Yesterday I got frustrated with the whole process of stopping whatever I was doing every thirty minutes to sit with her in the bathroom. So, after the twentieth request to sit on the toilet I told her, "You don't have to go potty, you just want a treat". Well, a few minutes later she had a dirty diaper and I was frustrated that I hadn't let her use the potty when she asked!? I guess this is just another test of patience . . .

Potty Training Tip: Just let the kid run around in their diaper and t-shirt all day. This makes getting onto the pot SO much easier. You don't have to unbutton the pants, take off the shoes, take off the socks, and then undo the diaper. (Unless your child is okay with letting their pants sitting around their ankles, my child is NOT okay with this scenario.) As soon as we walk in the door from an outing I just take off her pants, shoes, and socks so that I am immediately ready for the familiar cry of "ensie wet in potty" (Kenzie go wet in the potty)

Poop

That's right . . . we have begun potty training. Once again, I am entering terrain that I have never entered before. I am wondering what to buy to help this new process along? Which toilet or toilet seat do I buy? Should I buy books or videos about potty training to speed the process along? How do I help my child to realize that our freakish toilet that flushes so loudly that it sounds like a bomb went off is actually something that she wants to sit on? How long should I try to coax her into sitting on the pot? How often should I ask her to use the bathroom? How long will I be giving treats to her as a mode of bribery? What the HECK am I going to do when she has GOT TO GO and we are stuck in traffic? And I'm a little worried about how embarrassing it will be when she feels need to celebrate my potty going abilities in a public bathroom. (I can only imagine, "yay mommy, big poo-poo in the potty! Push it out!") I don't even have a clue as to how long this whole process is going to take . . . For now I will do what I did when I had questions about how to nurse a baby, how to get a baby to sleep through the night, how to travel with kids, or which stroller/carseat/crib to buy - I will read a ton of different opinions on the internet and pick the brain of any mother I can only to find that there are more opinions on the matter than there are fish in the sea, and I will eventually find that there is really no ONE right answer, only a need for patience, prayers, creativity, and a good sense of humor . . .

I'm Missing Something

You know how they always tease that becoming a mother makes you loose brain cells?  Well here is proof:

1. Last Thursday I left our house excitedly to go and pick up my fabulous little sister from the airport.  I was a little bit worried when I left because I was just leaving the house when she sent me a text message that her plane had landed; but, due to some delays at the baggage claim I arrived just as she was stepping outside.  I circled the SFO two times looking for my sister in much confusion.  She said she was outside and I couldn't find her ANYWHERE.  I was arguing with her about how the Southwest pick up area is at the front of the drop off and not at the end of the airport when it dawned on me . . . .  I WAS AT THE WRONG AIRPORT!!!!  When I left my house I thought that SFO was the only airport that existed, but there is a little place called Oakland that has an airport in it as well.  This story wouldn't be so bad if it weren't for the fact that I am the one that booked my sisters ticket.  And that's not the end of this little adventure.  It all started the day that I booked the ticket.  Apparently it's a bad idea to make dinner, talk on the phone, entertain two kids, and book a plane ticket at the same time.  When you try to do all this at once your end up booking a flight for your sister who lives in Orem, Utah to DEPART from the Oakland airport to come and see you in San Francisco. Note to self - your sister who lives in Utah should probably depart from an airport that is IN Utah.  

2.  I was really confused when I ordered Garrett's Father's Day present a few weeks ago.  The price was much higher than I had anticipated, but I really wanted to get him the gifts I got him.  Not until the package arrived in the mail did I realize that I had ordered two of everything.  That explains the higher price . . . 

3.  I'm usually a very organized person.  That seems to have gone down the hill lately.  I seem to forget everything.  I have forgotten to bring the tithing check that is TAPED TO THE FRONT DOOR for the last three weeks now.  I was in heaven a few weeks ago when I had Garrett with me down in Daly City running some errands. I had several things to return to a few stores.  Well, only one of those things made it into the car and that stores didn't open until thirty minutes after we got there. (For those of you not familiar with San Francisco, some of the basic stores that I often shop in like craft stores, Target, and Home Depot are about a twenty to thirty minute drive away - depending on traffic)  And don't ask me to remember something simple like what we had for dinner last night, because I probably couldn't tell you that either.

4.  Finally, I feel like my ability to put my thoughts into words is completely handicapped.  You know that feeling of "It's on the tip of my tongue" - yea, that's pretty much a constant these days.  I can't remember the names of my neighbors that I have lived next to for the past two years, and I can't try and describe a great restaurant that I went to last week.  I feel like people are always looking at me with a confused look on their face when I am holding a conversation with them because I can be so confusing . . . 

Maybe one day these dead brain cells will come back.  I figure that I am so preoccupied with being a mom that something has to go out the window at one point . . .