Jo Jo's Birthday Hat

Faith LOVES cake!

Earlier this month was my sister's birthday. We went to visit my parents to celebrate. That morning I asked Grace if she wanted to make Aunt Jo Jo a picture. She said, "No, I want to make her a birthday hat!" And so together we made her a birthday hat. I marveled at how specific of idea she had about how the hat should be made. She wanted to use my scrap booking scissors to cut it out. She also thought it had to have ribbons. She worked very hard at it. And Jo Jo graciously wore it for her and oohed and aahed over her creation.

Reflecting on this little project I realized how much I enjoyed seeing my creativity come alive in Grace. If you know us or read my blog you know that most people attribute Grace's strong-willed personality to me. And I'm not saying that it is a totally negative attribute. But its really fun to see something positive and realize she got that from me!! (Yes, Jeremy is also very creative-but he is not crafty so I'm taking credit for this one!)

Sisters, sisters there were never such devoted sisters...

Does anyone else love the Christmas classic, White Christmas? I do! It is one of my favorites. And when I sat down to blog about my sister, Josie's recent visit the lyrics from the famous duet came to mind. My sister is the best. I can honestly say I've loved her before she was born. When my mom got pregnant I was seriously hoping for a sister. I influenced the choosing of her name, wanting a "J" like mine. And from the beginning I was SO excited to finally have another girl! 

On Sunday she came and stayed with us while she was on break and it was great fun. I love getting to spend time with her. Although it takes a little more effort now that I have two girls of my own. Sunday night my husband was a dear and kept the kids so we could go out to eat Mexican. It was so nice to just visit and eat our favorite white cheese dip. Then we headed to Walmart so I could pick up a few things I needed. I had been wanting to paint our upstairs bathroom for about six months. After Josie weighed in I finally choose a color. And we ended up painting the bathroom after nine o'clock. She was a great help (thus the devoted part). After 11 we ended up at Sonic to go get a soda. The next day we also rearranged my living room which I have REALLY been wanting to do but needed some input. It is a challenging layout. And then she went back to Sonic to get us Cherry Limeaides. (I have converted her to the greatness of Sonic drinks & ice!) She joked with my mom that she could only stay one night or I might have her painting the outside of the house.

I had so much fun and am so glad she got to visit. I am so thankful I have such an amazing sister. And I pray for my girls that they will have the same blessing. By the way, I once again forgot to take a before & after of the bathroom. But, it is only part way through the renovation. Jeremy still has to tile the floor. But the paint is a big improvement!! 

Potty Training: The Saga Continues...

So back in my pre toddler days of parenting I remember having a really naive thought. I was talking to Lindsay and she referred to potty training Addy & putting her in panties. I thought to myself, "I thought she did that when they lived with her parents like 6 months ago..." But I didn't give it much thought. I just figured they had moved a lot. Lindsay, I formally want to apologize I had no idea potty training was such a process. (If you are the parent of a child who was potty trained at 18 months, or potty trained in 24 hours just feel blessed- or at least e-mail me what book you read!) Well, at the end of February Grace will turn three. We officially started potty training when she turned two!!!! Yep, a year ago Grace started wearing panties. And she did pretty good. By the time summer came around she was stringing days together with no accidents & I thought we were making progress. Then Jeremy started traveling, we lost our schedule, and Grace decided she was no longer interested in the potty. (When I say not interested i mean she would kick, scream, and refuse to sit on the potty.) So I did what I said I'd NEVER do as a parent. I put her in pull ups. Pull ups are expensive, very expensive especially since Grace basically used them as diapers she could remove. (I should mention from the beginning she has always pooped in the potty so this was a big bonus!) Oh, I didn't give up completely. At some point Grace expressed a desire to have a fish. So we made this fish poster together and put it on the bathroom wall. She received stickers for using the potty. When all the fish scales were full she could have a fish. This still did not motivate her to actually use the potty. She simply found the pull up way more convenient. So as Christmas approached I decided it was probably time to try tackling potty training again. On Monday we went back to panties. It has been a bumpy road. She has already had way less accidents then when we first attempted panties. But she did wake up from her nap on Tuesday and refused to put on panties. She simply stated, "I don't want panties, I want a pull up!" I didn't give in and neither did she. She spent 45 minutes in her room screaming, kicking, and crying. (Okay, I did go in at some point and pray for her and try to calm her down-it didn't phase her!) Now I have heard parents say that if they hadn't gotten a second child they would have thought, "this parenting thing is pretty easy." I personally have not had this experience. If this is easy than, have mercy! But there is another part of me that understands Grace because she is so much like me. And I had no idea I was hard to potty train (but my mother has since assured me I wouldn't do it until it was my idea). So I continue on with this in mind- my mother was successful!!! 

Grace,

I'm sure there will be a point in your life when you read this and wish I didn't blog. I know, I know its embarasing. Sorry. But just hold that thought for about 10-15 years. Then maybe you will have a little toddler running around and you will be glad I did- I promise. I love you sweetheart!