Wordless Wednesday: Somersault

This weekend Elliott stood in the center of the living room and proceeded to do a perfect somersault.

Besides freaking out just a little that she was going to break her neck (every mom thinks that at some point, right?!) I was super shocked! Scott and I kept laughing and asking her where she learned that......while Ellie gladly obliged us with many, many more encores.

Linking up with Live and Love Outloud, Jenni From the Blog, and Better in Bulk

Out of the Mouths of Babes

I am so overwhelmed when I think of the actual person my baby is becoming.

She has words.

And not just words, but she forms these words into phrases.....all on her own!

She has her own thoughts and ides, and she forms them into sentences and communicates with us now.

I know this type of thing doesn't happen overnight, but some days it just hits me like a ton of bricks.

She is no longer a baby. 

There is no more silence in this house, either. 

Constant chatter. 

I love it!

"Momma, I hold you?" - this is quite possibly my favorite phrase. ever. She says this when she wants to be picked up. Melts my heart every time!

"I yike it, Opa" - in translation, "I like Opa". I love how she turns the words around. She inserts various different words and names (although Opa is one of her favorite people, so we hear this phrase quite often as is).

"It's pink!" - everything is pink to this little girl! When I correct her, and tell her that the banana is, in fact, yellow she responds with:

"It's lellow, good job mommy!" - I giggle every.single.time

"I want the pungcorn" - that's my best interpretation of how she says "popcorn"......it's one of her favorite foods, and I really need to record her saying it one of these days.

"Mommy driving" - yes, baby doll, thanks for pointing out the obvious. I told you, there is constant chatter around here. It's like she can't stand to NOT say something....I have no idea where she gets this adorable quality.

"Ellie shoes. Mommy shoes. I'm Ellie." - constantly labeling items, and she has recently started referring to herself as Ellie. She does it while pointing to herself, always checking with me to make sure she's got it right ;)

"sun song!!!!!" - E yells this from the back seat almost every time we get in the car. It's her favorite song, by Caspar Babypants.

"I watch Frank-on" - if you don't speak toddler-ese, that undecipherable word is Franklin, her most favorite show in the entire world. I've started recording Franklin on our DVR because I never know when the toddler is going to want to watch it.

These are just a few of the phrases that make me stop and say "wow, she really is a little person!"

I hope to add to this list as I remember (and as Elliott's speech progresses), because these are the little things that I don't ever want to forget!

My Valentines

Happy Valentine's Day!

Today is a day where I wake up giddy with ideas of ways to shower those I care about with love!

It truly makes me happy to make others happy.....and in my opinion, 

that's what today is all about!

I plan on snuggling this sweet girl when she wakes up, and giving her a little basket with some of her favorite things (a Dora coloring book, some rainboots.....she's going to flip her lid when she sees them, for sure! Some sweets, of course, and a Franklin DVD). She's spoiled, but it's only because she's the sweetest, most amazing little girl ever! I love her so much!

Then I'll be sure to bring some sweets to work with me, along with Elliott's Valentine's to pass out. My friends at work seriously are the reason why I keep going back there, and today will be a fun one, for sure!

And finally, I'll come home to this sweet man! We have such busy schedules, and Valentine's Day is no exception. But, I've got some shredded chicken simmering in the crockpot for an amazing taco dinner, and I'm fairly certain the husband is taking care of the dessert/sweets department, so we should be all set for a cozy night in. Perfect by my standards!

I hope you all have a fantastic Valentine's Day, and that you take a moment to do something nice for someone else today!

My Little Valentine

Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays. 

Err, scratch that. 

Valentine's Day is one of my favorite holidays to prepare for. 

The actual day itself usually kind of sucks for one reason or another. 

But the hearts and the candy and the flowery centerpieces I love. 

To the cheesy valentines and random acts of love/kindness that the holiday brings about I say "bring it on"!!

I know Elliott is not old enough to "get" it yet, and in fact she doesn't even have any classmates to hand valentine's out to just yet. But, that's okay. I'll use her as a fabulous excuse to whip up some cute little valentine's and I will pass them out to all of my her good friends!

This idea may be SO last year, but I couldn't help myself! I thought that Ellie would be a little more cooperative for these photos, but who was I kidding?! She's two!!

So, without further ado, here are Elliott's Valentines:

I can't wait to hand them out to all of OUR friends next week ;)

And, as promised, here are the rest of the pictures and some outtakes.....all of this for just one picture!!

And finally! We have a winner!! 

It's not the typical pose for this particular valentine, but it was as 

good as it was going to get for us:

I photoshopped out the sucker, and replaced it with a real one. I added the text in photoshop as well, and then printed them out at Costco. I'm so please with how they turned out! 

And now I am curious and in the Valentinesy mood.....so, tell me, what's the most creative valentine you've seen?  

Project 366 Rewind: Days 29-35

This week's theme for Project 366 Rewind was "weary". Boy, am I weary these days! 

I've got this major urge to re-organize, re-decorate, toss stuff our, and just clean and make my home feel more cozy. I've been working pretty hard at all of it, and I've grown weary. 

Tonight my feet actually hurt, and I realized that it's because I haven't sat down all day! I have literally been on my feet all day long. I've accomplished SO much though, and it feels good! 

This week my photos represent all of the changes going on around our home: de-cluttered and organized closet, my husband's medals finally on display where they belong, and a happy kiddo.....I attribute her happiness to my own happiness. I feel so much more relaxed when my house is clean and in order, and I definitely think that Elliott can sense when I'm happy!

What about you....has the spring cleaning bug hit you yet?
It took my mom pointing it out to me to realize that's what all the fuss was about at my house.
I just have the urge to de-clutter and clean ALL THE THINGS.
 And while I might be growing weary, at least I'll have a clean house to show for all of my hard work!

Potty Training: Update

I haven't talked about potty training here for a long time. Some of you might not even know that I tried potty training Ellie just after she turned a year old. Silly, right?

Well, it's only silly to some. Others might think I'm crazy for not starting sooner. Potty training is kind of a taboo subject, at least in my experience. I really don't care how (or when) others potty train their children. It's not a sign of how intelligent the child is or how determined the parent is. I don't believe that potty training your child at three and a half years old will harm them in any way, but if you think Elimination Communication is the way to go, then more power to ya! I'm not here to tell you that my way worked magic......because it didn't! I think the only way to potty train your child is to do it the way that works for you and your child. 

This has been such a long road for us that I would be hesitant to hand out any sort of advice or tips or tricks. What has worked for us?

Bribery

Consistency

Low-Pressure Attitude

Patience

When Ellie was about 15 months old, I was determined that she would be potty trained by the time she was 18 months old. I knew that starting at that age, we would need at least a few months to really get there.
Well, when she hit 18 months, I set a new goal of being potty trained by age 2! Haha!
I am happy to report that at 2 years and 1 week old........we are well on our way to being potty trained ;)

This potty training business is no joke! And while I'm making light of it, and it probably sounds like we've been in potty training hell for almost a year now, that's just not the case. The truth is, while Ellie isn't completely potty trained just yet, I haven't changed an actual diaper in at least 3 months.
The road has been long and slow, but I actually really like how it has worked out for us.
I feel like this has just been one more transition, and since we've taken it slow and eased into things, it hasn't been traumatic or stressful for either party. Sure, there were days where Ellie hated the potty and no amount of gummy bears would get her to sit her little toosh on it. But then there are days where I get brave and take her out of the house in underwear and she amazes me by staying dry all afternoon!

For me, the biggest motivator is diapers.....they're all cute and sweet when you have a newborn squishy baby who loves to coo and look up at you while you wipe their butt. But my cute little baby started hating diaper changes starting when she learned to walk. She absolutely HATED them. Naturally, I began to hate them too. I would much rather peel soaked underwear off her little bum five times a day than wrestle her around for 10 minutes every time she needed a diaper change. That's the honest truth.
That was my biggest motivator in all of this, and if I had a laid-back kiddo who didn't mind diaper changes one bit, I might not have pushed the potty-training envelope so much.
I can't emphasize this enough, but this is what worked for me and my child and my family. To each their own.

So where are we at now? 

At 2 years old, this is what potty training looks like for us:

1. Ellie wears a pull-up to bed. Usually she wakes up in the morning and her pull-up is wet. It's wet, but not soaked. And sometimes (I'd say one day a week or so), she even wakes up dry!
My next step is going to be waking her up before I go to bed and have her use the potty one more time. We'll get to that step eventually. She was wearing pull-ups for naps, but as of the last week she wears underwear for naps, and it's working out well! I'd say she is dry after her nap 60% of the time. 

2. Ellie wears underwear all day. (If we are going to be gone all day and I know we won't be making it to the bathroom regularly, then I will use pull-ups, but all other times it's underwear.) I pack plastic covers for the babysitter to use......sometimes she uses them, sometimes she doesn't. At home we try and just stick to the underwear without a cover, and for most quick errands we go with just underwear  now (and pants, of course!). Yes, this means she sometimes has accidents, but the accidents are much easier to identify in underwear than they are with pull-ups.
I'm getting over my fear of public accidents.....they're going to happen, no matter how prepared we are!

3. We use bribery. I thought that we would be weaning the bribes out of our routine by now, but the truth is, we just aren't at that point yet. Ellie knows that she will get a gummy bear, or an m&m, or some other small treat if she uses the potty and stays dry. However, if she forgets to ask for a treat afterwards, I don't remind her! I know that eventually we will cut back and change how we use treats......for now, anytime she uses the potty is still a celebration :)

4. In general, Ellie has been doing SO good! Since she is in underwear all day now, it's easier to "tally" up her accidents and keep track. She has been having about 3 accidents each day (this includes naptime), and she's even had a few accident-free days! 

I feel like she is doing a great job, and I'm happy about our journey so far.

I stated earlier that we have a Low-Pressure Attitude towards potty training. I know that some parents choose to wait until their child is "showing signs of readiness" before they potty train, while other parents choose how and when their child will be potty trained and don't stray from their plan.
I feel like we fall into the middle somewhere......I had a general idea of how and when we would potty train Elliott, and I didn't really wait for her to tell me that she was ready. I don't punish Ellie or make her feel bad for having accidents, but now that she knows what to do, I definitely make sure she knows what our expectations are about the potty.
Does that make sense? I feel like I laid out the plans, Ellie showed us how much she could handle, and then we readjust the goals and standards from there.
We are constantly changing our expectations and goals to fit where she is at and what she has learned. 

Like I said, I feel like potty training is just another little transition.......just like moving from a crib to a toddler bed, from crawling to walking, from bottles to food.
 Each transition has taken longer than I thought......its a progression, not an over-night change.
I like knowing that each day is a new day, never the same as the one before or the one after that.
While we may not fall exactly into a category of "diapers" or "potty-trained", we are somewhere in the middle and THAT'S OKAY! 

What are your experiences with potty training? I'd love to hear your thoughts, tips, and advice!

Dance, Doctor, and Day Date

Last Friday was a really fun day. It was pretty ordinary and nothing too special, but it was still really fun. 

My best friend Katie, who's laid up with a broken wrist and can't go to work right now, decided to spend this typical Friday with us. I think that's what made it so fun! 

We started the morning with Dance class. We missed the week before due to snow, and all of the kids were making sure we remembered that! It seems that at any given time, one of our normally-well-behaved children was having a meltdown or just plain not listening to instructions. Either way, we were all happy to be back in our dance routine, and seeing my little girl dance around with her pals never ceases to put a smile on my face!

 Sweet little Stella (above) and adorable Rowan (below) c/o Melissa

We only had about 30 minutes between the end of dance class and Elliott's 2 year check up at the doctor's office. So we rushed to the other side of town and made it just in time. I always get a little antsy for doctor's appointments. I don't really know why, but this time I knew that shots were on the agenda, so that probably had something to do with it. Ellie was still in her little dance outfit, and she really had no idea what was coming!

The appointment went smoothly, and little miss handled her two shots (one in each leg) very well! 

She weighed in at 23 lbs (8th percentile), is 32 inches tall (11th percentile), and has quite the big noggin at 19 inches (71st percentile). All just as I had suspected :)

For doing so well with her shots (and because mommy and auntie needed a Target fix), we headed to Target and hit up the snack bar and the Starbuck's before we got our shop on!

I'm sure glad that I took the time to enjoy these moments.......because the second half of our day wasn't nearly as nice! Ha! Shots took a toll on Elliott, and no nap made for an exhausting afternoon for both of us. Ah well, such is life!