Diana was potty-trained last week! We fill her up with Kool-Aid in the morning and let her practice 5 times if she has an accident, walking from the spot she had the accident to the bathroom and going through the whole routine. 5 times. It took about 2 days before we had no more accidents. She stays dry at naps but not nights yet, although she did wake up at 10 last night to go which was awesome! Because the first few days are tough I try to keep her in the kitchen so accidents can be easily cleaned (no carpet cleaning this time hooray!) and so we actually had a lot of fun painting, coloring, shaping playdough, etc. Jacob enjoyed all of the Kool-Aid and I also let him have some Smarties candy that Diana got as a prize every time she went to the bathroom. He was very encouraging to her since he wanted more candy :)
Pretty exciting I know. And probably way more than you need to know. Such is my life!
Blueberries are growing!
Jim went to Costa Rica for 7 days. Pottytraining D kept my pretty busy but we also had soccer practices at night and sometimes they were after the little ones bedtime so it was quite an adventure.
One evening we were blessed to have the cousins and Uncle Daniel (who is working for Brandon and staying here this whole summer!!) come play at the park. It was one of those evenings where I couldn't believe how blessed I am to have family here!
Mike and Jake's practice. I love the Mayberry feel of a late afternoon sun and blue skies with a water tower and train passing by. Of course Diana, on day 2 of training and no nap made us end up in the car with her screaming while I watched the practice through the windshield. You win some and you lose some :)
Nicole had a nature field trip while Jim was gone too and she came back with some sweet flower tying skills.
Jake had an articulation assessment for his language. Marian watched the little girls for me or it would have been nuts. Overall, he is just under the normal range so they'll keep an eye on it at school. He has a great vocabulary but is hard to understand, especially when he's excited. He will slur words together, drop sounds, etc. I feel like he's improving a lot but when his preschool teacher suggested it I figured it wouldn't hurt. Jake was awesome at the screening, totally enthusiastic and talked a lot so she had no trouble getting speech samples lol. She talked to me after and mentioned his high energy level. I wanted to tell her about his older brother's energy. You haven't seen energy until you keep up with Michael starting at 6:15am.
Flare looking amazing!
Spike has been sick a few times and not eating. The kids fasted for him last month and seriously he got better right away it was crazy. He's beefing back up and is a happy little lizard.
Jim kept emailing asking how I was doing while he was gone. I finally sent him this picture on day 5 of his trip with these words: "I cannot be held accountable for the financial or dietary consequences of your prolonged absence." :)
Mike eats like crazy. That is his fifth slice and he wasn't near done.
Jake had his yearly checkup last month. He is 35lbs (10th %) and 42.25in (37th%) with bmi of 13.6 (3rd %). His growth rate is steady, he's just not the tank his older brother is. I love the differences in my boys and how they are each so special and strong in their own ways. Watching them play soccer is something else!
Nicole and her playtime lineup!
Kiersten my niece was baptized this last weekend. The cousins all sang Baptism which was super cute. They were pretty good during the meeting but there were plenty of shifting little bodies all over the place since several other large families were there too. When the dessert table opened (and it was like 10 in the morning still) the kids were in heaven and the room was the quietest it had been. We joked that next time we'll serve refreshments first and then proceed.
Daniel provided the piano music and while he played postlude Diana wanted to help out.
When Michael gets something on his mind it stays there. He made some craft at school and got a home depot apron. He wore that apron for two days, asking and talking about his plans constantly until I went to the store and finally got him some paint and promised him some time with daddy sawing and nailing wood. He didn't beg, just told me how excited he was to make this or paint that. 24-7. He can really get something done if he puts his mind to it!
Today Nicole had her class play. We are blessed that they have a drama class which really helps the kids identify emotions and talk about them. This play was cute and it was great to see the kids each say their lines even when they would each face a little stage fright. Nicole did awesome and was right in the beginning, she was so brave!
The red crayons! Diana and Katy were wiggly and slightly noisy the whole time but we survived. Diana really wanted to go to class with Nicole and snuck off twice to try and follow her to class while I was talking with some moms. Diana is such a fireball of energy- she's the kind of girl who will be a great friend because there will always be something fun going on where she is. Katy isn't walking yet, she's much more chill about life. She is super cuddly and sweet, a little reserved around strangers right now.
