Potty training continued...

Yesterday was not a good day...you woke up fussy and wouldn't eat anything. So, while I was trying to find you something else to eat or cleaning up your last mess, you managed to poop twice and pee once in the floor...big set back. The first time you pooped you said, "poop!" and ran to the toilet...so that was good and I was happy with that. But, later on when I was vacuuming up your cheez-its you peed in the kitchen a little. Sometimes you're scared of the vacuum and other times your not...I don't really understand that. Then, while I'm doing dishes you start to finish your first poop since you're still not comfortable going #2 on the potty. By that time I was ready to lose it, so I did what any other pregnant woman with hot flashes and headaches who is trying to potty train their toddler would do...I let the sobs begin. Thank God your daddy decided to come home for lunch that day and he walked in just in time. After that, things got better b/c I didn't have to do it alone.
Today you haven't had any accidents, but I did throw the no diapers/undies out the window this afternoon when we headed to Bridgestreet to eat lunch with Daddy again. We tried to get you to use the travel potty in the CRV, but you didn't. You rode the carousel for the first time today which was exciting :)

When we got home I let you play outside for a while and then you said, "poop!" and ran inside to the garage door. So, I ran inside with you and we went to the potty and took off your dry diaper...I saw where you had started to go #2, but didn't. I was impressed that you didn't pee that whole time and that you let me know you had to poop. We still have a ways to go, but I think things are going pretty well. I'm really glad I have your daddy to remind me not to take things so serious and to help me feel like I can "break rules" if I need to...ex. letting you wear a diaper when we go out. I feel so much more relaxed today :)

Adventures in Potty Training

We started potty training "boot camp" this past weekend. Basically, both parents stay home Friday, Sat and Sunday and the toddler gets to be naked the whole time. Then, for the next 3 months your toddler is supposed to go without undies inside and outside the home.
Well, little man, you have been doing very well. The first day you partially peed in the floor about 4 times and pooped in the floor that night. Daddy and I took you outside for a while and for a trip around the neighborhood with no accidents. Not too bad.
Saturday you had no pee pee accidents, but did poop in the floor again on Sat night. We took you to the park on Sat and you used your travel potty in the back of the CRV...again, so proud!
Sunday, since you had been doing so well, we took you to the pool for the morning/afternoon. You used the travel potty a few times and again had no accidents. Man, this potty training is nothing.
Well...today (Monday), Mommy is so confident in her little boy...I take you shopping. We didn't shop for longer than 40 min in the first store b/c I thought you would need to try and use the potty. So, out to the CRV we go.

After sitting on the potty about 5 minutes, I'm ready to get you off b/c you always go right away when you have to go and I was hot (reminder, Mommy is almost 34 weeks along). But, you insist on staying on it. I let you stay a little longer, but you looked like you were just playing. So, on to the next store. Since you put up a fight about getting off the potty I thought I'd let you try again before going into the next store. I put you on the potty and still...nothing. Not even 5 minutes later...you're peeing and pooping in the store. So, with my blushing face...I very calmly, yet quickly exit the store...trying not to make eye contact with anyone. After a clean up and a reminder that pee and poop go in the potty, we head back in the store to clean up the pee. Luckily, your shorts contained the other. You've done so well with peeing that I wonder if you didn't pee in your potty b/c you were afraid you would poop too. I know you're not comfortable with pooping in the potty yet...I hope you are soon though!
So far, you've done really well and your Daddy and I are very pleased with how you are doing. However, I don't know if we'll be taking anymore shopping trips this week...maybe to the playground though. :)

ABC's

Today you sang the ABC song for the first time. We were listening to toddler tunes while I was getting ready. And before the song was over you were singing it. You have to get that from your Daddy...I have to hear a song a ton before I remember the words and the tune, but your Daddy hears a song one time and can sing it perfectly. You've been singing it and twinkle, twinkle on and off all day :)

twinkle, twinkle

Rylan's favorite song for the last couple of weeks is twinkle, twinkle little star. Every night he starts moving his hand in the twinkle motion and saying, "twinkle star" if I don't start singing it first. I try to sing other songs like, Jesus Loves Me, but he won't have it.
Well, tonight when I was changing him he started singing it like normal, "twinkle, twinkle..." and then the said, "...up above ah world" and then "how I wonder..." Anyway, I was very excited because this is the first time he has really sang a song. He has tried to mumble along before, but not using actual words. I called for Cam to come listen and he said, "you're gonna be mad, but he was doing that earlier while you were you gone."
He has to tell me these things! He thought Rylan had been doing that already, so he wasn't as excited as I was. Just another step my baby has taken...he's getting so big!!

Another first

For Rylan's bath routine I wash him and then let him play for a while. The other night while he was playing and I was on my phone I heard him say, "I didn't poop." He said it like he was trying to hide something. When I looked up from my phone he was in the corner of the tub holding his bottom. Then he saw it and started looking all worried and holding his arms up to me to take him and whining a little bit.
This was a first for him and me and Cam got a good laugh from it.

Batter my heart, three-person'd God

Prayers like these give me comfort that I’m not alone in my struggle with human nature and in my desire to walk closely with Christ and to live a life pleasing to Him.

John Donne’s Holy Sonnet 14

Batter my heart, three-person'd God ; for you

As yet but knock ; breathe, shine, and seek to mend ;

That I may rise, and stand, o'erthrow me, and bend

Your force, to break, blow, burn, and make me new.

I, like an usurp'd town, to another due,

Labour to admit you, but O, to no end.

Reason, your viceroy in me, me should defend,

But is captived, and proves weak or untrue.

Yet dearly I love you, and would be loved fain,

But am betroth'd unto your enemy ;

Divorce me, untie, or break that knot again,

Take me to you, imprison me, for I,

Except you enthrall me, never shall be free,

Nor ever chaste, except you ravish me.

God and Myself (Puritan Prayer)

“Lead me to repentance, and save me from despair; Let me come to thee renouncing, condemning, loathing myself, but hoping in the grace that flows even to the chief of sinners.”

And...wise advice from Thumper: 

 

That goes for thoughts too ;)

Rylan...20 months

So, my little man is 20 months old...although everyone thinks he is older. I haven't kept up with each month's progress/events since he was really little. I wish I would have.
Rylan, here are some things you have been doing recently:
-Repeating a lot of things we say and repeating everything we say with emphasis, example, "dang!" We have to get better about what we're saying around you.
-You hate wearing body suits now, b/c you love feeling your belly.
-You have hated diaper changes in the morning for at least a month now...you refuse to get out of your crib b/c you don't want to get it changed.
-You have escaped from your crib a few times in the last few months, but haven't tried this past month for some reason.
-You would drink your milk from a bottle all day every day if we would let you. I had you happily off the bottle at 11 months, but pulled it back out at a year in order to bribe you into drinking whole milk. Well, from 12 months to 19 months we gave you a bottle right before bed and thankfully now your bottle is a thing of the past. Well, until Cullen gets here at least.
-You have went from 2 naps to 1 nap in the past couple of months. You sleep for about 2 hours.
-You love covering yourself with blankets, "blanky" and pillows. And you love climbing onto our made bed and pulling all the covers down and throwing all the pillows off and snuggling down for 5-10 seconds at a time.
-You've been wanting to be held more often. I'm not sure how easy it's gonna be to hold you as my stomach continues to grow.
-A really funny thing you've started to do this past week is get annoyed at my belly when you're sitting in my lap. You get frustrated after a little bit and keep trying to scoot back, but there is no where to go. I try and move you back onto a pillow with your legs still in my lap, but you get mad and plop back down on my lap and push your butt into my belly.
-You usually say, "bless you mommy" when I sneeze which is freaking adorable.
-You LOVE being outside...I'm pretty sure you would live outside if we let you.
-You love riding in the truck with daddy on the console around the neighborhood...there's a part of me that doesn't know what to think about that. But, daddy says I don't trust him enough with you, so I have to pick and choose my battles. And you do love it.
-You boss the dogs around and say, "Boyths!"or "Boys!"and you sometimes say, "Away!" or "Go away!" But, you love them very much too and give them kisses and love to play with them and chase them. They like the attention most of the time, but not always.
-You have become very interested in bugs..."big bug" and want to find them and sometimes even touch them.
-You LOVE bath time and you think it's funny to splash water out of the tub and on mommy which really isn't as funny as you think.
-You sometimes mimic when people laugh even though you don't know why they are laughing.
-You love when daddy tickles you.
-When you're in the mood to give kisses...you GIVE kisses. Yesterday, you pulled my face to yours for a long kiss. That was a first :)
-You have only said, "I love you" once in the last few months. You said it quite a few times when you first learned how to say it, but I guess you want to reserve it for special moments.
-You love fries most of the time and "a sip" from whatever we are drinking. We think it's really funny when we go through a drive-thru and once the food is in the car you say, "fries." What makes it even funnier is that your car seat is still rear-facing and you can't see what's going on.
-You are really comfortable around everyone. You are shy sometimes, but it doesn't take you long to warm up to people. This makes me happy, although we'll have to talk about "strangers" when you're a little bit older.
-We haven't started "potty training" yet. We'll probably try the weekend method once we have a free weekend...maybe sometime in May. You haven't shown much interest in the potty yet.
-Oh, and you love playing in my girly stuff (mousse, gel, brushes, etc) when I'm getting ready.

I could go on and on I'm sure...that's what happens when you haven't written down each month's events I guess.

Rylan, you bring our family so much joy, contentment and laughter. You are so silly, fiesty, sweet and stubborn. We know you are going to be a great big brother!

Here are some recent pics :)