Smooth...

I love days that go off without a hitch. Today has been one of those kind of days.

I'be been reading a new book - "Have a New Kid by Friday" by Dr. Kevin Leman.

Don't get me wrong. I think my kids are fantastic...in my opinion, books like these deal far more with parenting problems than with kid problems.

I am a softie and let things go until I yell...there, I admitted it and admitting is, apparently, the first step.

The idea behind the book is that you should only have to ask your kids to do something (or stop doing something) once. It gives strategies for parents to turn kids who tune out into kids who listen...and reasons to stay calm. I think most of us can use some of these.

I am already using some of these strategies successfully and I can honestly say that I have not yelled once today...so far, so good.

We tidied the upstairs and throughly cleaned the kitchen, had a playdate, a snack and played with playdough. Visited the park, had lunch and put a loaf of bread in the breadmaker. Liam voluntarily pooped on the potty (which is good because it would have been messy) then I went upstairs with the boys and told them it was time for a nap...they are still sleeping.

Alan is due home in 2 hours and we will have a salad, fresh loaf of bread and soup for dinner.

I love smooth days...

Potty-training Part-2...Poop

Ok, so Noggin has been doing really well with the whole potty-training thing. We went out today, sans pull-up and he stayed dry.

Of course, I did put him on the potty every 15-20 minutes...which is no easy feat since he fell into a public toilet last month after his portable potty seat broke.

He completed a respectable #1 and spent about 1/2 an hour playing enthusiastically with Smooch, M & L when I lost sight of him for a few moments.

When I did finally catch sight of him, he was standing by a railing, shifting and looking somewhat conspicuous and uncomfortable.

"Oh CRAP"...I said to my friend, S, who was seated beside me, supervising her two completely potty-trained angels.

So Noggin and Mama began the long trip out to the car to retrieve clean clothing, then the bathroom where the pants he was wearing (thankfully old, worn-out sweatpants with a cuff that just kept holding on) found a new home in the garbage.

So, today I am grateful for several things;

1 - Extra clothes
2 - Paper Towel
3 - Foaming hand cleanser
4 - Good friends who are willing to watch (and discipline, if need be) other children when disaster strikes.
5 - (and really, most important), I am grateful for the close relationship I have with my kids, and that I know, just from a facial expression, everything that I need to.

Motherhood rocks...even when it gets crappy.

Pee

Potty-training a 3 year-old is like...er...well, after the last few months I feel like I would rather put hot sauce in my eyes.

Noggin has been stubbornly resistant to using the potty. He likes the warm sensation of a load in his pull-up. He doesn't notice the plants wilting and other children fleeing from him in record numbers.

The last couple of days he finally seems to be clueing in. He sits on the potty and pees...don't ask about the other business...I don't wish to discuss that.

I have been using bribery on him, of course. "Noggin, if you do a poop on the potty, Mama will give you...er...10 CHOCOLATES!!". He gets 1 Chocolate for a pee...so I figured I'd better up the ante to see if it brough about some results for the messy stuff.

So far, nada.

This morning he sat on the potty for 20 minutes, got up, put on some undies and announced "Mom, I have PEE on my foot!".

Any parent who has potty-trained a child dreads these kinds of statements. We know what they mean - Pee on foot=Pee on floor. Pee on floor=Pee down hallway.

Basically there is just pee everywhere.

Noggin opens his bottom drawer and selects a pair of waffle pants because they have dogs on them. He slides them on. 5 minutes later he announces "MAMA...I'M LEAKING!"

I mistakenly answer; "NOGGIN...go leak in the POTTY!!".

I hear him pad down the hallway and realise too late that he is leaving wet footprints on the tile.