Things I Love Thursday: Potty Power

Alrighty, so it's Things I Love Thursday and I honestly love love love the children's video Potty Power. This is what my life has become folks...potty videos. Seriously, this video has brain washing effects!

The video's main character, a grown woman, comes on all cheery and bright eyed. She has a big encouraging smile and cheeks that you just want to pinch along with a voice that will convince your child that they want to be a big kid. She's got mad skills girls! My kids (yes both) love the songs! My daughter who was potty training a few months ago, took the whole thing very seriously. She marched and danced to the songs and when the song, "No More Diaper for Me" came on she mimicked the kids on the video, got all her diapers and threw them in the trash. Don't worry. I took them back out when she wasn't looking. I mean, if I'm going to put something in the landfill that will be there for 30 years, it's going to be dirty. If you're potty training or if you need a refresher course this DVD is worth it's weight in gold!


This post is a part of Things I Love Thursday from The Diaper Diaries http://thediaperdiaries.net/things-i-love-thursday-mothers-day-gift-ideas-giveaway/

So Long Smile

My son lost his front tooth this morning. It was painful to watch and caused much excitement at the breakfast table. Now, an hour later, I'm in mourning.

It's ridiculous, I know. I feel like my little boy vanished with the loss of this tooth. His sweet little smile is gone. It's the last "baby" thing about him. WHAAAAAA! I know...I should save some of this melancholy for when he leaves for college. At least he still believes in the tooth fairy.

Our tooth fairy has been forgetful in the past. You can't really blame her..she has a lot going on. I explained her absence by telling my son that we had forgotten to crack his window for her. The next night she arrived and left a note. I can't tell you how much fun I had writing it! I used a font that looks like cursive and a pica of 2 or 4....tiny! We had to use a magnifying glass to read it. He was so excited about the note that he quickly forgot and forgave her tardiness. The note went something like this:

Dear ________,
I'm sorry I didn't come last night. All of your windows and doors were shut so tightly I couldn't get in! Remember to brush your teeth because this tooth is a little bit dirty and stinky! I'll see you the next time you lose a tooth and remember to leave your window open just a crack.
Love,
The Tooth Fairy

P.S. You snore just a little bit. It's cute.

Like any boy, he didn't find the snore part insulting at all and was very motivated to brush! The plan did backfire on me a bit when he found out that another little boy in his classroom is getting paid $5 a tooth. Come on people! $5?!!! That seems a bit high! He has plans to write a note to leave with the tooth tonight...oh,boy! I'm stuck in the middle of salary negotiations with a 6 year old and the tooth fairy. Any ideas?

Post-It Tuesday

F=ma

...gravity.
We have a boulder wall in our back yard. When we first moved into our house our back yard was one perpetual slope. At that time, our kids were little enough that they would begin running, their legs turning like windmills, and unable to stop, they would eventually fall to the ground and continue rolling for a yard or two. It was slightly alarming but mostly hysterically funny to watch.

Last year, with the plan and vision from my dad, we worked to flatten our backyard. We installed one bolder wall that snakes through the yard creating 2 tiers. And where I see beauty and a place for my kids to play, our 6 year old son sees adventure.

The kids have always known that they are not allowed to climb up the wall but apparently, no one said anything about jumping off of it. I started to suspect as much when my son began complaining about pain in his feet. My suspicions were confirmed one day while I was doing dishes. Looking out the window, I saw a streak of blond hair go by, pause mid-air, and Geronimo...he was gone. I had to snicker at that one...boys will be boys after all. What is it about boys that makes them so daring? It's as if they come out of the womb looking for a challenge!

I could ignore the jumping. After all, I kind of enjoy it that my son is tough, brave, and dirty. He's all boy and I love that. But then I saw him walking his bike from the front yard to the backyard with a certain spark in his eye. We mothers can spot that look a mile away. We aren't boys....we never were...and yet, we know the look. All I had to do was crack the back door from our sun room and give him the look. He sputtered on about how he wouldn't get hurt and he would buy a new bike if this one broke In the end, I didn't let him try it. I know though...I'm not fooled. He's going to try it. He's going to wait for an opportunity when I'm not looking. My monologue about making wise choices had little to no affect on this idea. Sometimes one has to learn F=ma in a more practical setting.

Pretty Crier

There are 2 modes of crying. There's the tears that allow you to speak through them. You dab at your eyes in a dainty way all the while holding a conversation. It's a pretty cry. Then there's the crying that is so mournful no on can understand a word you're saying. It's not pretty. It includes gasps and hick-ups and broken apologies for the melt down.

I'm not a pretty crier. Guttural sounds escape me while tears course down my cheeks. I swat away the tears from my face while I try to apologize to whoever is with me. My face turns red and it grows increasingly wet as my nose joins in on the outburst.

I recall a specific incident when, as a new mom, I felt overwhelmed by the minute tasks of motherhood. I was trying to make my way through a mega grocery store with a baby who was hungry and wet. I was new to being a mommy and getting out of the house. Getting in the doors of my destination, with a baby, seemed more daunting then cimbing Mt. Everest. Just as my newborn's wails reached a new pitch, I looked down to see that my shirt was soaking (thing breastfeeding) and my baby's car seat carrier had a new yellowish-brown goo in it (think poop).

Some poor store employee caught my eye and asked if I needed help. Oh, the poor soul. I unleashed the sobs that had been building in me for the last hour...day...week. My victim just stood there with a blank look (stricken even) on his face as I sputtered about just getting out of the house, feeding schedules, blow-outs intermixed with apologies. At some point, I must have just walked away, loaded the carrier into the car, and headed home. I don't remember that part very well.

Going to the grocery store is a breeze these days in comparison. I still have outbursts. Certainly, I have not achieved the status of a pretty crier. That's okay. Sometimes, it's just good to let it out!

Things I Love Thursday: my son's bedroom

It's Things I Love Thursday from one of my favorite blogs, The Diaper Diaries. And I love my son's room. I've said it before but while I'm not artistic I am creative. Nothing gives the creative side of my brain more pleasure than carrying out a children's bedroom theme to the fullest. My 6 year old son's room has a nautical theme. We live 30 minutes from Lake Michigan and we no longer own a boat but hey, it's a boy's room, right?!

So here are my favorite things in the room...

My son, like any boy, loves keys and key chains so we hung up this key rack. My garage sale queen sister found this port hole. I used windshield glue to insert a mirror that I picked up at the craft store near us. It does open and someday I'll paint something behind it.











I found this buoy lamp in a store near the shores of Lake Michigan. Perfect!



The nautical flags came from Pottery Barn. I'm too cheap to shop there regularly, but I love to look at their catalogs for ideas and paint colors. I have no idea if this spells something in flag language...or whatever you call that. I like to pretend that it says, "Mother of the Year Award".





I stole the idea of an oar growth chart from Pottery Barn. I bought the oar at Meijer. I used my husbands numerical punch set to indent the numbers into the wood. I then used a wood burner from a woodsy friend of mine to darken the numbers and add the dashes. Viola....growth chart for under $20!


This painting has no frame but I still love it. Actually I think I love it more because it doesn't have a frame. I considered adding ribbon to cover up the canvas fasteners but I like it looking raw and aged. It was a happy accident that the boat matched the painting...anoerher hand-me-down from the deal queen sister of mine.


I really do love these things...some day I'll get around to showing you what I did in my 2 year old daughter's room. Ohhhh, I love that too!

Never Quite Prepared

I'm not a girl scout and I never was one...or is it the boy scouts that are always prepared?

Either way, I never seem quite prepared enough. I went to the post office today to renew my passport. I thought I could renew it on-line but it turns out that since I've changed my name since the last time I traveled outside of the county, it's a little more complicated than that. I took the time to gather my birth certificate, my checkbook, my old passport, my driver's licence, and even my marriage license. I packed books, 2 matchbox cars, and sweets to bribe my 2 kiddos with but I still could've been more prepared.

My kids spent the time that it took for me to have my photo taken and fill out the proper paperwork, ...on the floor...of the post office...rolling on the matted rugs...pretending to be dogs.

Upon leaving, a stranger says, "cute kids". I smile, look at my kids and say, "To the bathtub!" in my best Batman, to the bat mobile, voice.

Some days are like that.