Potty Training

Well, I think we are almost there!  We started potty training with Jack last weekend, Saturday, June 1st.  He needs to be potty trained for his school in the fall and he just seemed ready.  Multiple times, he took off his diaper at nap - clearly a sign he was ready to be done with diapers.  One positive of autism (there are not many, so I like to highlight one if it ever occurs), the therapists did most of the potty training!  And, it was not fun.  Rebecca was here Saturday and Sunday, along with another therapist for each shift.  And then, the therapists continued to work on it during the week.  On Wednesday, I was starting to get nervous.  Jack did not really have many accidents, but he could hold his pee for a long time.  He was scared to pee on the potty and one time literally sat on the potty for 3 hours!  He would cry whenever he was on the potty and actually needed to pee because he was scared.  It was so sad for me to watch and listen to, but I knew we had to push through.  I was also worried he was going to spend the entire summer sitting on the potty.  But luckily, he must have sensed my concern, and on Thursday we turned a huge corner.  He figured out it is not that scary to pee on the potty.  In fact, he likes to watch himself do it and is very proud afterwards.  He also likes to flush and say "bye bye tee tee".  And since then, he sits on the potty and goes within a minute (much better than the 3 hour stand off).  He is not quite initiating that he needs to go, but he will say yes when asked and he will pee when he sits on the potty!  Yahoo!!!  We still need to work on pooping in the potty, but that will come and I am not too worried.  This is one of those things that takes a huge unconscious weight off my shoulders.  When he was initially diagnosed, one of my first questions was would he ever be potty trained?  I have worked with families with big kids who are still in diapers and that was really something I was hoping to avoid.  So, now that he is successfully peeing in the potty, I feel even more confident that he is going to be okay.  And the more confident I am that he will be okay, the more likely it is that I will be okay.

Today I smile again and again

because...

We got into the pool!  It wasn't quite as clean as I would like and it was a little chilly, but we got in!
Christy, Dom, Ever, and Maebe came over to swim and eat dinner - I love them!
Jeremy made grilled pineapple - possibly my favorite thing in the world.
We listened to Hey Lollies and Jack actually watched and seemed interested - yahoo!
I had a delicious iced mocha - another top 10 item on my list.
Annabelle, Jack, and I played ring around the rosie and both kids laughed and giggled.

Today I smile again

because...

Annabelle told me I am her "favorite pillow in the whole wide world"
Jack and I got to play at the park just the two of us - he went down the super fast slide all by himself
Annabelle was so proud to show her brother off to her friends at school
Jack ate his weight in zucchini for dinner
Rebecca said Jack is doing great!
I got to go to central market by myself - and I picked out lemon bars and cherries for myself

Today I smile

Today I smile...

Because I have sunflowers from Mother's Day smiling at me from my coffee table
Because Annabelle and I got to visit our friends the Farrells (Andrea, Anson, Reagan, and Madilyn)
Because I go to go to an awards ceremony for my lacrosse girls
Because Jack ate almost everything on his plate
Because Annabelle asked for "more snuggles please"
Because Jack sat in my lap and let me read a story
Because Annabelle and I got to visit Samaya and Devni and their mama

Funny things

We are saying funny things in this house and I wanted to make sure I write a few down before I forget.

This morning, as Annabelle and I were on a "rocket ship ride", she said, "I'm driving this rocket ship mommy.  Sit back and relax and chill out.  I got it."  It was pretty funny!

Swimming season has arrived!

For Mother's Day, I wanted to get in the pool with the babies.  They have been in their baby pool and seemed to do just fine.  Except, as soon as they figured out they could lean out and reach the grass, the race was on.  Both of them in opposite directions, trying to eat whatever may lie outside the pool.  I love the pool and plan to spend a lot of time in it, if the babies will allow it.  So, yesterday, the three of us got in.  It was a little chilly, but Jack enjoyed splashing and Annabelle enjoyed twirling around in her floaty.  Overall, it was sucessful and I am hoping we will have many more pool days in the future. continue.  It is already 95 degrees - I can only imagine what August will bring.

9 months

The babies are just over nine months.  It is amazing how quickly they grow and develop.  They are both crawling all over the place and pulling up on everything, including moving object like myself.  Over the weekend, we have installed a baby gate and child proof latches on all of the cabinets.  But, it still seems they are able to find something to get into.  They both are very interactive with each other.  They laugh at each other and have started taking one another's toys.  Usually Annabelle is the "taker" and most of the time, Jack does not care.  But, on the rare occassion when he does care, Annabelle will take his toy and his face will go from happy to sad in slow motion.  Annabelle will also scream while eating and Jack's face will go from happy to sad in slow motion.  And then he will cry and cry.  By the time he is calmed down, she will scream again - almost as if she knows what she is doing.  According to Granna, he is the "thinker" and she is the "do-er".  They both say lots of words that do not mean anything, Annabelle talking more than Jack.  It will be fun to see what they do next!