Potty Training Ayden Style!

Run around the house bottomless.

Start to tinkle while playing with my Handy Manny Tool Bench.

Look down and realize what's happening.

Stop tinkling.

Run over to my potty and sit on it backwards.

Get huge smile on my face and say "I pee! I pee!"

Then proceed to say "I dump! I dump!"

Take potty insert to bathroom, dump my pee in the toilet and flush.

"Bye-bye pee pee!

This has been going on for about a week and a half now. I'm quite proud of Ayden! He pretty much started doing this on his own. I was convinced that he was just playing games with me and sitting on the potty. I was getting really frustrated but I didn't want to discourage him. It payed off! Last Monday he was bottomless because he had wanted to sit on the big potty and of course make the pee sound "pssssss" and do nothing. His little potty was in the family room ready for business. To my surprise he went over to it and peed! I stayed home as much as I could that week. He's got it down for the most part at home but we do have some accidents. Not so much when we're out and about. He's making progress and I am using a lot less diapers on him! He's even pooed on the potty too!

Playing at the Park

We recently went to a local park that for some reason I hadn't taken the boys to this summer.

Ayden had fun playing with his cousins.


Shockingly they all looked at me and smiled!

Ayden fell off the bottom of this slide twice! I would have though he learned his lesson the first time. He crashed into Carter at one point too.

End of Summer Project

So we've had this composite decking sitting in our driveway for at least a year. I know, I know, totally hillbilly! We had every intention of re-doing our existing deck and making it bigger, it just took a really long time to actually get around to doing it!

Andy found someone off of Craigslist to build the deck and
I took on a small landscaping project.

I had a little helper!

The deck came out GREAT and for the right price! We couldn't be happier!
There are still a few minor details that need finished. Lattice needs put up around the bottom and maybe eventually a railing.

So far Ayden's favorite thing to do is jump across the deck.

And how cute is this table and chairs?!?
My mom bought them for Ayden's upcoming birthday.

Bedtime Battles are Gone!

I am happy to report that Ayden's bedtime battles are over!

He's been going down super easy and sleeping all night once again since the beginning of the month!

Ahhhhh, it's been so nice!

I took his childproof door handle off. He now comes downstairs all by himself when he wakes up!

When Andy or I put him in bed for the night, he goes into hibernation. Poof, vanishes under the covers. It's quite funny actually!

I don't even keep the monitor on for him at night anymore.

My little boy is growing up...

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

It most certainly has not been 2 weeks since I have blogged! You know since nothing new has been going on in my life...

I am so not procrastinating on planning Ayden's 2nd Birthday Party. Nope not me!
I have been planning for weeks...

There was not at least 4 loads of clean laundry piled high on top of my dryer this morning! I would never let our clean clothes sit there and get nice and wrinkled. And I wouldn't finally fold them and hope the wrinkles work themselves out! Nope not me!

I would never let Ayden walk around the house in just a diaper. Nope not me! He's always dressed and ready to impress.

I was totally not amused to see him walking around in said diaper with his shoes on. I definitely didn't help him put on his hoodie when he insisted on having it on. Nope not me!

What have you not been doing this week?

Toddler Tantrums

Enjoying a Starbucks Smoothie:..


Throwing a fit about who knows what.
I decided to see the humor in this one and photograph it...

5 Months

My baby boy Cohen. I see your little sponge brain soaking everything in all day long. You are a happy baby, just like your brother was. You do tend to think about it first before letting out that giggle. You do have a bit of a temper though. Once you get mad about something, you're mad. And if that means screaming in the car for a 30 min. trip, you'll do just that. Your have lost most of your beautiful dark hair. I hope it grows back soon.

You're still sleeping in your crib at least half of the night and sometimes I don't hear from you until 4 or 5am. Other times you wake up when we come to bed and then into our bed you come. You tend to wake up an hour into your afternoon nap and I usually bring you into bed and nurse you back to sleep. Bad habit? Maybe. But I know it won't last forever. You roll all over the place now. I can't leave you on the couch for a second! When you're on your belly those legs are moving. You just have to figure out how to get your arms moving. I haven't given you any solids yet. I "tried" once, against my better judgment (you were waking up so much at night) and on the recommendation of your pediatrician, even though I knew you weren't ready. Guess what, you weren't ready. I'll try again around 6 months. It's so much easier just to nurse you and you are growing just fine that way. I'm not looking forward to adding baby food to my purse again! I already carry around a whole lot less for you than I did when your brother was a baby. There really is no reason to carry around so much stuff!
I'll be back to report on you again next month!

What's going on in the world of Jess

Let's see. I have been watching way to much Mickey Mouse Club House, Handy Manny and Sponge Bob. The first two I actually like. Sponge Bob, not so much.

I can function a thousand times better on lack of sleep compared to Andy.

I am looking forward to fall TV which means I better get caught up on my reading.

Currently checked out from the library:
Dr. Bob's Drugless Guide to Balancing Female Hormones
Bringing Up Boys by Dr. James Dobson

Currently reading:
The Happiest Toddler on the Block

Passed on to me from my mom:
Three NCIS books by Mel Odom

and from my mother-in-law:
A few Jodi Picoult books (author of My Sister's Keeper)

Whew, that a lot of reading! Good thing my two boys don't keep me busy!

My landscaping looks like crap. Somehow I always find other more important things to tend to.
Seriously, I do enjoy it, it's just that sadly it's on the bottom of my list of priorities.

There is always laundry to do, a kitchen to clean, toys to pick up, mouths to feed, butts to wipe, errands to run, pictures to take, and so on.

Speaking of pictures, I just got Photoshop Elements and LOVE it!!! It's very user friendly. I'm also selling on ebay again and am gonna try really hard to not spend the money that comes in and buy a new camera...we'll see how that goes...

Oh and I just realized that today marks my two year anniversary of leaving my 9-5 job and advancing to the 24/7 one.

I love my boys and am so happy to be able to stay home and raise them. It's frustrating at times but as someone once told me, "The days are long but the years are short."

23 Months

My sweet Ayden, you are just one month shy of your second birthday! Wow! You have definitely kept it interesting these last few months. I am currently reading The Happiest Toddler on the Block and must remind myself that you are primitive in your ways and that you are still learning. I find myself losing my patience very easily with you and I promise to work on that. Having two small boys is not as easy as it may seem. Nap time and bed time have been interesting to say the least but I do see a light at the end of the tunnel. You slept ALL night last night! That hasn't happened in weeks, maybe even months. It is very frustrating in this moment in time to be woken up all night by two little people, not just one. Yes, your dad and I would take turns putting you back in bed, but I was always awake. I try to tell myself that you are still little and I should appreciate the fact that you need me because I know one day, you won't be little and want my hugs and kisses anymore. Your vocabulary increases everyday! I even hear 3 word sentences from you every now and then. We just bought you some new shoes yesterday. Size 9! I'm sure you will follow in the footsteps of your father. The last I checked you were 30 lbs. and 36 inches tall. We were looking at some of your baby pictures the other day. You were so chubby and only had two teeth. Oh so sweet. I miss that already!

Not My Child! Monday

Welcome to Not My Child! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

It was not my toddler that has twice now taken a pen and scribbled on the computer monitor. Maybe he thinks he's an artist...

It is definitely not this same little boy who now wakes up multiple times throughout the night. Just two nights ago, he had woken up twice before Cohen woke up once!

His voice is most certainly not horse from crying when he does this! Nope, not him!

That's all for today folks! I have a mess of clothes to finish tackling in Ayden's room. His generous Aunt has cleaned out Carter's closet once again. This is one mess that I don't mind cleaning!

[Shower] Times Have Changed

When I showered today I did not lock Ayden in my bathroom with Cohen and I as usual. Instead I gave him free reign of the house. Wouldn't ya know, he stayed in there the whole time!

It really is pointless anymore since he can climb in and out of the Activity Center that I have been putting him in forever. Seriously that thing has been in our bathroom for at least the last 12 months and it's not going anywhere anytime soon.

Instead I put Cohen in there and it was way too cute!

10 seconds into my shower I peak out and see Ayden trying to feed Cohen these crackers!

Once he got over that novelty, he flushed the toilet...twice and played with these bathtub knobs...

There is no peace and privacy anymore... but I love my boys!

Not Me! Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I most certainly have not been giving in and sometimes nursing Cohen to sleep. I know that I should always put him down drowsy and let him fall asleep on his own. Which leads me to say that I have not been laying down with Ayden until he falls asleep. An almost 2 year old can totally fall asleep on his own, right? Honestly he was doing so good then somewhere along the way it went up in smoke. It's partly mine (and Andy's) fault. Who wouldn't be able to resist a sweet little boy who never wants to cuddle anymore patting the pillow next to him for you to rest your head on!?! Not me!

I did not let Ayden fall off my bed head first because I totally have cat like reflexes. I am supermom and did not look like a wild animal flailing my arms around completely missing his leg that I was trying to grab as he fell in slow motion. Nope, not me!

I did not walk in to the laundry room and find Ayden drawing on the floor with a green sharpie calling it chalk. Nope, not me! I know better and have all sharpies out of toddlers reach!

I did not enjoy a few hours minus Cohen yesterday while we went swimming and grabbed a quick dinner. Nope, not me!

I did not snap this picture, knowing in the back of my mind that there was a similar picture of the boys from last year.

2008

Wordless Wednesday

A Photoshoot with my Favorite...

...flowers!

Hydrangeas (and some roses too)!

These were taken with my point and shoot camera. I was playing around with the settings.
I didn't even edit them in photoshop.

Not My Child Monday!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

While MckMama did not put up a Not Me Monday post, I did one anyways. She has been busy with Stellan in the hospital but the great news is STELLAN GOT DISCHARGED TODAY!
You can read his story here: http://www.mycharmingkids.net/search/label/Stellan%27s%20story

Ayden was not falling asleep on the mower with Andy because he has been getting up at the crack of dawn lately. Nope not him!

He did not take his diaper off and nap in just a t-shirt because he was so mad that he had to come in and take a nap.

He did not have to be woken up from said nap after 3-1/2 hours! Nope not him!

Ayden did not run wild at the Oberlin Inn on Saturday at a wedding reception. Nope not him. He definitely sat in a high chair the whole time...

He was not bribed with fruit snacks and pretzels out of the vending machine to spend sometime in the highchair. Nope not him!

He was not the cutest looking kid there. He was not rockin' the mohawk, button up shirt, tie and jean shorts. (Will post a pic of that later)

Cohen did not start screaming the second we walked in. Nope not him. He is a perfect angel all the time...

He did not cry the entire way home, when Nana and Pawpa took the boys home so Andy and I could stay at the reception. Nope not him!

Dear Ayden

You are 22 months old today. Sitting in front of me is a picture of you at 6 months old. Those eyes and that smile haven't changed on bit! You amaze me and frustrate me all at once. Bedtime last night was rough. Daddy left and met a friend which normally isn't a big deal. You always went to bed for me with no problems. I guess it started this morning. You actually got out of bed on your own and began making your way down the stairs. I met you halfway. I thought it was cute at the time. It wasn't so cute when you did it more times than I care to know in the span of an hour when it was already past your bedtime. I lost my cool about half way in. I could have definitely used a wing man.

Okay, enough venting!

I love watching your little brain work. At our Sunday morning breakfast spot daddy put some jelly on your toast. Of course you liked it, you eat PB&J. You began dipping your toast in the jelly and sucking it off. When your toast got soggy, you bit it off and started all over again.

You LOVE being outside and usually cry when it's time to come in. Sometimes I can convince you to come in minus the tears but it's usually 50/50.

You tend to yell in the car, just to yell for no apparent reason. This however, scares your brother and makes him cry.

You went from calling Cohen "Doe" to "Toe". I like to call him "Co" which is where your version comes from.

Your list of words is quite long. Some new ones include:

dip, help, you do, read, law and safe (I was explaining to you why you need buckled into your carseat)

You play rough and tend to make other kids cry. You're not being mean, you just don't understand the word gentle. We're gonna have to work on that.

Dear Cohen

You were 4 months old yesterday! Oh how the days fly by! You smile, you coo, you laugh. You are content in the exersaucer for short bursts at a time looking at the toys. For the past week or so your sleeping habits have changed. I just remind myself that you are a growing boy and need me to fill your little tummy. You like to lay on the couch and (dare I say!?) look at the tv. You are still most happy in my right arm, facing out, watching the world around you. Each day your little sponge brain takes it all in. You no longer get mad the second you're on your tummy. You can hold your head up a look around. You drool like crazy. You chew and suck on your hands (and mine) every chance you get. If you follow in your brothers footsteps I don't expect a tooth anytime soon.

Tomorrow is your 4 month check up. I'll come back and add your stats.

Update:15 lbs. (55th percentile)
26-3/4 in. (95th percentile)

Guess I've Been Busy...

I did not realize that it had been so long since I blogged! Who would have ever thought 2 boys under 2 would keep me busy?!

July has been a busy month so far:

Went to the Fray concert with Sam and had a great time!

I have been to 2 Crushers games and enjoy them more than the Indians. I think it's just the small setting. (Hmmm, wonder why I like the House of Blues so much...)

Dad and Gail were in town. We went to Mill Hollow, my family reunion, had dinner and Wii time here at the house, went out to dinner and to Alex's graduation party.


Went to a bachelorette party Saturday. Let me add that I had on a fabulous new white dress which is now tinted lime green and has a tye dyed look to it thanks to me washing it with a (you guessed it) lime green dress. I am still working on it and may resort to bleach (eww!). Let me also say that Andy had the boys by himself! I was quite proud!

I made it to the gym 3 times this week!

I got a new phone today (much needed!) and I bought a cool hard case for it on ebay.

Goodbye infant carrier, hello convertable carseat! Cohen is so much happier in the car now! He's even playing with some rings that I bought at Target (my favorite store). I didn't switch Ayden until he was 6 months and able to sit on his own. So until then, I will wear Cohhen in one of the three slings that I own, put him in the stroller or carry him depending on the situation. So far this has been working out great.

Cohen found his toes the other day! He laughed too! I need to get that on video. He also rolled over at exactly 3 months. Ayden didn't do that until 4 months.

Ayden LOVES his 4 wheeler (and daddys too). Actually it's more like obssessed!

He rode on his cousin's dirt track the other day. It was super cute! Andy blew off work that day and spent the it with us.

And lastly, we are rockin' the mohawk, just like daddy!

Wow, that was long! I promise I will blog sooner!

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I most certainly did not scream like the little girl I am when Andy came home with the baby snakes he and Ayden were playing with the other day. Andy did not really have them in a Gymboree bag.

We did not head to the International Festival where they were scanning people with a metal detector at the door! Is that really a safe place to take your kids?!?! They don't do that at the Jamboree!

I am not the die hard softball fan that stayed at Andy's game yesterday through the rain. It was not their first win of the season. I mean really, who would have their 3 month old out in that? The mom with the 21 month old little boy who had a blast playing in the mud!

Ayden was defiantly not a soaking wet messy little boy who was wearing a mostly white shirt. I'm smarter than that, right?

I did not take my camera to the game only to realize that it had no memory card in it and the internal memory was full.

I did not have a sleeping Cohen in the Moby wrap with Ayden's hat on him, chasing Ayden around the fields for 2 hours.

Overall, I had a good weekend. Cohen is changing from a newborn to a baby right before my eyes. He was so good with all of the things we did this. Ayden, of course ran non stop ALL day yesterday. Can I bottle up some of his energy and save it for myself?!

Making Me Time (is there such a thing?)

Not really.

Monday I decided that I'd like to start running down my road. I run on the treadmill at the gym but I really need to kick it into high gear and shed some pounds. So I figured that this would just be extra points, right? I mean going to the gym two times a week does something right? It makes up for all the Hersheys Dark Chocolate Kisses that I consume on a daily basis, right?

Actually it comes down to me being lazy. The weight came off so much easier with Ayden...sigh...
I'm breastfeeding so I carry some extra weight for this reason, or so I've been told. I don't remember that being the case with Ayden. Of course he ate so much more than Cohen so naturally I was burning more calories.

Okay, getting off topic here.

So back to my run. I put Cohen to sleep and told Andy he could spend some time with Ayden then put him to sleep. I get out of the house. I get some Me Time and Andy gets to spend some extra time with Ayden since usually when 8pm rolls around I jump on that and get Ayden off to bed. Andy of course lets him stay up later. I have been referred to as the Nazi for that. Thanks Andy.

I return from my run (doing better than I thought I would) about 40 minutes later. Andy is sitting on the stairs going back and forth with Ayden who is in his bedroom.

Ayden: Daddy? Daddy?

Andy: Go to sleep buddy.

Ayden: Daddy? Daddy?

Andy: Lay down Ayden.

You get my point. This goes on for a while. Andy retreats to the couch. I'm on the floor stretching and all of a sudden I see Ayden's bedroom light flashing on and off. I tell Andy and we both start cracking up. So then Ayden starts laughing too becasue he hears us. At this point, I'm staying out of the process. Andy started it, he can finish it.

I'm now on the computer (surprise there!) and I hear Andy gasp. I look up and gasp too. Ayden came down the stairs, peaked his head around the wall and scared the crap out of both of us.

He proceedes to come down the rest of the stairs, walk to the patio door and let the dogs in who had been barking. Okay, time for me to step in and be the mom. I scoop him up, we kiss daddy and up the stairs we go. It's almost 9:30!!!! I, the Nazi, put Ayden back in bed with a quick song and some hugs and kisses then leave and shut the door (key point there Andy). He falls alseep shortly there after.

Tuesday went a little better. Ayden was actually asleep when I got back, Cohen, not so much.

We'll see how tonight goes...

Playing With Photoshop

Honestly I have wanted to learn photoshop for a long time, I've just never taken the time to sit down and do it. Here is my attemp at bluring the background and doing an eye pop. Thanks to Simply Jenna for her inspiration.


Before:


After: