Monday monday

After being completely discouraged at my weekly doctor's appointment I am looking at the bright side. This baby will be coming out in ten days, I will get some sleep eventually and I will be able to see my feet soon. The contractions that wake me up every five to seven minutes will stop or they will start to actually do something other than keep me awake and have to run to the bathroom. I will keep the words the doctor said to me as he walked out of the office as a mantra in my head "it can happen very quickly, just call as soon as it does." Knowing that there is an end in sight makes it much easier to get through the day and believe it or not I am actually enjoying this pregnancy. If I were able to sleep at night I would be a whole lot happier and helpful around the house.
The girls are getting ready for the new baby to come home and there has been a lot of talk about the hospital stay. Lior is very excited about coming to visit me at the hospital and not that happy that I will be sleeping there without her. Sydney is not at all thrilled with the hospital stay and has told me that she is taking the baby out and helping me in the "hopipal." She is not looking forward to staying home with Grandma because she will miss me. I know she will be fine because she is very excited at the prospect of changing diapers and playing with all things baby. Jordan seems ready for this baby to come out as well because she spent the weekend picking up my shirt pointing to my belly and saying "baby out!" I guess there is just not as much room on my lap as there used to be.
Here are some more pictures of our time with the horses, we had such a great time and the kids spent the day talking about them.



I can not believe I almost forgot the highlight of Matt's weekend, he finally made bagels!
Don't they look good?
Well don't worry looks can be deceiving, they were actually much better looking than tasting (he said it first!) but at least he got the urge to make them out of his system.

Bim's weekend

The big girls started attending school three days a week last week in preparation for the new baby. They are now attending school on Friday's for Shabbat. When I was telling the girls about going to school for Shabbat they were very excited, Lior wanted to see the Kiddush cup and Sydney wanted to wear a costume. It was only when Sydney asked if she could make noise that I realized she thought she was going for Purim. She had fun in spite of the confusion.
When I picked them up from school we were told we were going to have a visitor for the weekend, Bim. Bim is the shabbat bear the travels home with one child a weekend and the parents write about their adventures in a journal. I was surprised but the girls were excited to have Bim come for a visit and we tried to entertain him to the best of our ability.
Saturday morning Matt took the girls to the playground so I could continue my cleaning quest. Bim and the girls went down the slide, rode bikes and washed their hands at the park.
After the park they went to Dunkin' Donuts where everyone enjoyed sharing their donut with Bim.

Matt had the time of his life trying to take the girls to the bathroom. After Matt got everyone settled at the table with their donuts Sydney announced she had to go to the bathroom. Matt got everyone up and told the man behind the counter that they were still working on their donuts and not to clean them up. He got everyone into the bathroom and Lior on the toilet when he realized that he left the portable potty in the car. Of course Sydney refused to use the big potty so he got Lior off the toilet and walked everyone to the car for Sydney's potty. He had to remind the guy behind the counter not to clean up the donuts on the way out and on the way back in. The kids headed straight for their donuts when they came back from the car and Matt had to coax them back into the bathroom where Jordan decided to run around with the toilet paper and touched everything she could find which drove Matt up a wall. When he came home he sang my praises and asked me about a hundred times how I did it every day without loosing my mind.
On Sunday we decided to take the girls to a horse farm. Matt's landlords at work board horses and own several of their own and have been inviting us over for close to two years. Lior's recent fascination with horses has made the offer more enticing and so we decided to take them up on their offer. Their property was just beautiful and the horses were spectacular. The girls got to feed the peacocks and look for iguana's and turtles while we walked around the ponds. We pet several horses and were able to get up close and personal with Bravo, a beautiful gentle horse who the girls got to hug and kiss. It was amazing how large the horses were in comparison to the girls. Sydney and Lior were as tall as Bravo's head! The girls loved showing Bim the horse and letting him give the horse kisses too. Jordan was very brave and got close enough to kiss the horse but did not like it when it made any noise.

It was a great experience and we can not wait to take the girls back to see the horses again.

Jordan

Today is worthy of two posts because Jordan was so very cute at the gym. She was taking risks and having a great time. When Matt looked at the pictures the first thing he said was "I can not believe you let her walk across that beam by herself!" I wonder if he has met Jordan, you can not really stop her from doing anything.





I did my very best stopping her from falling asleep in the car, including letting her go to town on the biggest bag of chips I could find.

Wednesday

Wednesday is usually a very long and rough day for us because we have to be out of the house by nine and we do not return home until after three. By the time we get home I am wiped out and the kids are at each others throats. I am usually at a loss when it comes to new activities for us to do and wind up either at Target or the mall. Yesterday I decided that it would be easier to take the kids to the playground and let them run around and then stick them in the car for a nap.
It was by far the best Wednesday we have had in months. The kids played on the playground for over two hours. They climbed, played on the swings, went down the slides and tried to do things that they had never done before. By the time I got them into the car Jordan was completely wiped out and fell asleep instantly. The big girls fell asleep about twenty minutes later while I was driving to Matt's office for lunch. When they woke up everyone was in a good mood and ready for the gym. The girls even managed to stay with the group and follow all the directions at the gym. Most importantly they were not fighting, they were not screaming and tantruming all day.
For the most part even bed time went rather well. Matt had to work late so I put the girls down by myself. Lior was not very happy with me so she was still upset by the time Matt came home and Matt had to sit with her. That would have been fine had everyone slept through the night but Jordan had other ideas. She woke up at about twelve and played in her crib for about an hour and then all hell broke loose and she was up. We brought her downstairs and let her lay down with us but she was not ready to go back to sleep. At about two in the morning I was ready to take her for a walk around the neighborhood, hoping she would fall asleep. Matt did not think his "ten month pregnant wife should be walking the neighborhood in the middle of the night" so he took her. It did not work. She was wide awake. When he brought her back into the house he hit every wall and every chair on his way in. So I was not surprised when both big girls woke up and were wide awake at almost three in the morning.
I went up to sit with the girls and decided that since everyone was awake Jordan could go back to her crib and cry herself to sleep. Who could she wake up? Even the dogs were awake and pacing. Matt crawled into Sydney's bed with both big girls and Jordan yelled in her crib for ten minutes and we were on our way back to sleep. I think Matt and I got about a total of four hours of sleep last night. Hopefully, next Wednesday we can have a good day and a good night. Tonight, well we can only hope that tonight will be a good night and all of our children will sleep through the night.

What was she thinking?

Jordan did something she never does last night, she woke up at eleven and could not go back to sleep. Matt went upstairs and tried to cuddle her back to sleep but she was not having it. He wound up bringing her downstairs so that I could try to cuddle her back to sleep. She was too busy climbing all over our bed and Kaya to go back to sleep. After she grabbed Matt's water bottle and tried to drink it I asked her if she wanted a milk sippy. The next thing I knew she was climbing off of our bed and running out into the darkness. When Matt got out of the shower I told him that Jordan was free in the house and he went out to look for her. He found her standing in front of the refrigerator holding a cup and a cover, waiting for her milk sippy.
It took about another hour of Jordan trying to kiss us every few minutes, calls for her Pluto doll or her Aurora for us to put her back in her crib and listen to her cry for the next hour.
The problem with having a house that creaks when you walk down the hall or a gate at the top of the stairs that makes a lot of noise when you hit it with your leg is that it wakes up other children who were once sleeping peacefully. Lior's little head picked up when Matt walked by with Jordan and was up for close to two hours. She only wanted her mommy and wanted no part of her daddy who offered to cuddle until she went back to sleep. She only wanted me and because I did not want to deal with three screaming children and a very cranky husband, I went upstairs and sat with her. She could not go back to sleep. "Mommy it is too hard to go to sleep." I stroked her hair, she fell asleep, I went downstairs and she woke up. I did this twice and gave up. I had Matt bring her downstairs to sleep in our bed and she was asleep within five minutes and did not wake up until the morning. Matt said he has bruises from sleeping next to her but she slept.
Jordan has always been a great sleeper and we had absolutely no idea what to do with her up and screaming. I think I can count on one hand the amount of times she has woken up and then we popped a bottle in her mouth, and stuck her in the swing and she went straight back to sleep. I hope she sleeps through the night tonight because tomorrow is a very busy day and I will not have the opportunity to nap.

Another monday update

I had another check-up today. Everything is the same, there have been no changes. The baby is comfortable and in absolutely no hurry to come out and meet its siblings. I do not blame it because they are a very noisy bunch. Matt is also in no hurry because he wants the baby to stick to the plan and come out when it is scheduled. We still have not picked out a name so the extra time might be a good thing.

Lior takes after my brother Danny when it comes to going to the bathroom. It is the highlight of her day when she can go poop on the potty, just like Danny. There are times when she tells me that she is going to need a book and other times when she tells us that she does not need one because it is not going to take that long. The other day she was sitting on the potty and she looked in and said "Aww, I wanted it to be a big one!" For those of you who know my brother Danny, you know that he is a man who loves going to the bathroom and talking about it- just like his niece. Lior, I am sorry.

Sydney has been a little out of sorts lately. She is just very clingy and whiney and not like herself. This could be because of all the new talk about the new baby and the influx of "new baby" items into the house, her disrupted sleep and Jordan's newly found love of all things big girl. I think it is a combination of all of the above. Jordan wants whatever Sydney has or wants and it is starting to get on Sydney's nerves, especially when Jordan walks over and smacks Sydney across the head with whatever toy she has just stolen. Sydney is very excited about the new baby and can not wait to meet it. She tells me that the new baby is going to sleep in her big girl bed and that she is going to change its diapers and cuddle it to sleep. Whenever I show her something for the new baby she reminds me that it is for her new baby too.

Jordan is a tough cookie and getting tougher by the day. She has a very bad temper and is getting very frustrated when she plays with the big girls. She thinks she can do whatever the big girls do and when it does not work out for her she screams and hits them which makes them scream and cry. For the most part they do not hit her back but there are several tug-o-wars a day over a toy. Jordan has discovered that if she hits the girls she will get a reaction and now will walk over to them hit them and then lean in for a kiss. The kiss makes it all better! I am trying to get her to kiss them for attention instead of hit, for the most part it is working and we are getting far more kisses than hits.

Matt admitted I was right the other day. This was a red letter day for me because it takes a lot for him to admit when he is wrong. He admitted I was right about Lior and the potty training, she was ready and just resistant to change. I feel redeemed, thanks Matt! We still have not done a thing that needs to be done around the house but we have spent quality time together. I think this weekend I would prefer he change a few light bulbs and mow the lawn before I loose one of the kids because the grass is so high.

Purim

The girls had a wonderful time during Purim. Lior told us she wanted it to be Purim again today. She was very sad when we told her it was over but seemed much happier when we told her she could wear her costume anytime she wanted.
The girls had fun at their parade at school

and during the Megillah reading at the Shul.

When we got home and I asked the girls to get together for a group picture, this is what I got. Sydney striped off her costume the instant we walked through the door.

Of course our new camera that seemed so wonderful is not so wonderful because the majority of our pictures look like this.

Rambling on and on about laundry

I have been trying to figure out how a family of five could generate so much laundry. I realize that the fact that the girls use a new towel for every bath adds a lot to my work load but towels are easy and not a problem to fold and put away. We also have no choice because of our previous battle with MRSA. So where does the rest of the laundry come from? When we first started potty training there was definitely an increase in the laundry because the girls were having lots and lots of accidents. Now that they are "potty pros" we do not have clothes that need to be washed because they are drenched in pee or poop.
Lior does have a significant problem getting the pee into the potty, however, which adds to the amount of laundry. She usually winds up peeing everywhere except in the toilet. Matt thought that girls would be neater to train because there would be less aiming involved. This is not true for Lior who just pees out of the potty, on the wall, on the seat, on her clothes, on Sydney's clothes, and on the floor. So Lior increases the amount of laundry not because she has accidents but because she can not keep it in the pot!
Sydney likes to change her clothes at least three times a day. On school days I like the girls to wear pants because they play outside a lot and I want to minimize the amount of cuts and bruises. The second she gets home she rips off her clothes and puts on a dress. If that dress gets dirty before dinner she feels the need to find another dress and wear it to dinner. I have put an end to dressing for dinner, if she wants to be clean for dinner she is invited to wear her panties but not another clean dress.
Jordan adds to the laundry by wearing most of her food on her clothes at every meal. Since she winds up wearing her meals so do we. She requires an outfit change after lunch and sometimes after her snack and so do we! She is a messy little girl but she loves her food and eats with such gusto I almost do not mind doing her laundry! Notice how I said almost because I hate doing the laundry almost as much as I hate folding it and putting it away.
Just this weekend I was looking at the shelves where I keep the girls clothes and wondering where I was going to put the new babies clothes. I think I am going to have to move Jordan's clothes from the dressing table and add them to the chaos on the shelf. I am going to have to work really hard to keep Jordan's clothes separated from the big girls clothes or Sydney and Lior will be wearing clothes that are several sizes too small. Matt just hates when I make fun of him for dressing the girls in Jordan's clothes.
I can not imagine what the new baby will bring to our never ending pile of laundry. I think I am going to start encouraging Sydney to help me with the laundry more often. Right now she is more than thrilled to take clothes and put them in the washing machine for me. When can they do their own laundry? More importantly when can they fold it and put it away?

We don't look sick

Lior has had a runny nose since Friday and yesterday it turned green. Sydney started coughing and sneezing on Sunday. When Sydney found out that Lior was not going to school today because she was sick she had a melt down and decided she was very-very sick and could not go to school. We did not disagree with her because she was coughing and sneezing during her melt down and her eyes looked a little cloudy. While Sydney was upset Lior was telling her "Sydney I just a little bit sick, it alright." Both girls were thrilled to stay home with me and Sydney spent the next hour following me around and cuddling every chance she got.
My mom came over to take Jordan to her Baby and Me class and the big girls played outside. They were certainly not acting sick but Lior's nose was running. I think spending the day at home was good for them. I did not get as much stuff done as I had hoped but everyone had a good day and I think the girls got the rest they needed to feel better.

Present for mommy

On Sunday my parents came over bearing gifts. This is nothing new, they always come over with stuff for the girls but I am not usually the recipient of the gifts. Until yesterday when they came walking in with a new camera for me and some cute outfits for the new baby! They were at Costco and saw a camera that claimed it could take action photos, so they picked it up.
I actually attempted to read the manual today while I was at the doctors office and found myself completely lost because I did not bring the camera with me. I decided to just sit outside this afternoon and try to take pictures of the kids in motion. This is the outcome:




What do you think? Are they any better? The kids are still cute and Cyrus is still a nut job!
I think I finally figured out that the camera does not do or fold laundry because there is still a pile of laundry on Matt's side of the bed waiting to be put away. And I thought this camera could do anything!

Hamentashen

On Thursday the girls baked Hamentashen at school and Lior loved every minute of it. When we got home from school she asked if she could bake some Hamentashen with me. Of course, I said yes because I am a sucker and I love to bake with the kids. Sydney was not as excited about the prospect of baking but liked the idea of eating the cookies. I promised we would bake over the weekend and that is just what we did.
We took the kids to the playground on Saturday morning and the kids had a great time going down the slide. Jordan continues to try and climb down the slide the same way she climbs up the slide. She just thinks it is a riot to watch us run towards the slide in a mad dash to stop her from falling face first into the mulch.
The big girls practiced their gymnastic skills.


Once again we brought the bikes and the girls rode around the park. Sydney has really taken to the tricycle and just lives riding. Lior has a harder time riding the tricycle and seems to give up when it is too hard for her. She seems to prefer when we are able to push her and she can take a ride. Matt is going to have to take her out by herself on the "good tricycle" so she can have more of an opportunity to ride the bike.
After the trip to the park and a three hour nap for the girls and their very tired mother we took them to Publix to buy all the necessary ingredients for dinner and the Hamentashen.
We spent Sunday baking and playing in the backyard. We could not have asked for a more relaxing weekend! The Hamentashen came out very well if I do say so myself. The dough was hard to work with and very rich so the next time I bake them I will have to find a better dough recipe. I will definitely make the chocolate filling again because that was very good and not overly sweet. Lior has great taste because she picked chocolate filling. Sydney picked the apricot filling which was good but too sweet for me. She really likes fruit, even in her cookies!

"There is a baby in my butt!"

This morning Sydney was very sad. She woke up very sad and I heard her tell Matt while he was brushing teeth "I bewwy sad daddy". She was sad during breakfast. So sad that she looked like she was going to cry, Matt actually let her get up in the middle of breakfast to cuddle me. When I asked her why she was so sad she said the toothbrush hurt her but I do not think that is the real reason she was so sad. She never really ate breakfast which is something she does with gusto every day.
She seemed to cheer up after I got her dressed and we cuddled in the chair. She did make it a point to tell us that she did not feel well and wanted to stay home with me today. We told her that she needed to go to school and have fun with Lior and all her friends and she seemed fine with that. While we were cuddling we talked about the baby in my belly and the baby in her belly. She showed me where hers was and lifted up my shirt so she could see my baby and kiss it. By the end of the conversation she decided that her baby was no longer in her belly, "the baby not in my bewwy, it in my butt". I told her I knew exactly how she felt because I think my baby has moved to my butt as well.
We had the ultra sound today and the amniotic fluid level is very good. The baby has hair and we even have a picture of the hair standing up on top of its head. We have never had a baby with hair before. The baby looks like it weighs four pounds ten ounces which is on the small size. We seem to have small babies so I am not that worried, what worries me is the room for error. Apparently the measurements can be plus or minus a pound. I do not want the baby to be too small and have to spend any time in the NICU. I have lived through that and do not want to have to do that again.
We ran into the doctor who came to check on us while I was having the ultra sound and we told him about the contractions I was having so he did a quick internal exam. It seems that my cervix is shortening and getting soft. I never had any cervical changes when I was pregnant with the twins and experiencing pre-term labor. I was surprised to hear it but not really surprised that there was something going on because I can feel that! He must of told me he was on call over the weekend about four times but I assured him we would not be calling because this baby needs to gain some weight. My plan for the weekend is to eat and eat and eat and then eat some more. Oh yeah, and to stay away from the hospital.

Costumes

Jordan had her Baby and Me class yesterday and they were asked to wear costumes so Jordan went dressed up. She really liked wearing the costume and climbed directly into the stroller when it was time to go. She really did look cute in Lior's old Halloween costume.
When the girls got home from school they saw the costume sitting on the couch and attempted to try it on with no luck. I promised them they could wear the costumes after their nap and snack. As soon as Sydney was done with her snack she told me she was ready for her costume and ran into my bedroom. Lior took one look at them and said "Oh, is it Halloween?" and eagerly put on her Snow White costume. Sydney wore her Aurora costume and only took it off to use the toilet.

Lior was not as thrilled with her costume because it was "itchy" and if truth be told she would much rather run around naked. Jordan wasted no time and jumped into Lior's Snow White costume. Too cute!
and everyone wrestled, can you see Jordan at the bottom of the pile? She was laughing the hardest, I think, until she started to cry.
These pictures remind me how we need to get a new camera because they were all blurry and they could have been so cute!

We have a date

We have a date, maybe now Matt and I will sit down and talk about a name for this baby! Right now it looks like the baby will be born on April tenth. I suppose the date can change after the ultra sound on Thursday or if the contractions I have been experiencing all day do not slow down. I actually had to call my parents and had them come over because I did not want to have to pick the kids up. I never ask for help so they came over very quickly and they provided dinner! I am sure the contractions will pass and this baby will come after we decide on a name!

Monday update

Operation nap time is a compete success, Lior slept in the "crunchy room" again today without a fight. I did have to lay down in the hallway to make sure Lior and Sydney did not talk to each other from the doorways. Sydney really wanted to play with Lior but they calmed down and everyone slept for a minimum of two hours. She is very proud of herself for sleeping alone in the bedroom and so are we.

I had an OB appointment today and all went well for the most part. I still have not gained a ton of weight and I am holding steady at nine pounds. My blood pressure is still very good and the baby has a nice strong heartbeat. My measurements are a little off from the last appointment so the doctor had me set up an appointment for an ultra sound on Thursday. They will check the amniotic fluid level and the babies growth. I am thrilled at the prospect of another chance to see the baby and find out where all its body parts are so I can find out what body part has been poking me! I had this issue when I was pregnant with Jordan so I am not concerned about having to have an ultra sound or my measurements being "off". I am confident that the baby is fine and all will be well on Thursday. The surgical coordinator tried to call during nap time today to schedule the C-section but I was asleep in the hallway and missed the call. When I tried to call she was away from her desk and has not called back so I still have no idea when this baby will be born. One thing is for sure, it is coming out!

Jordan continues to be a huge trouble maker. She is talking up a storm and I am amazed constantly at the words that come flying out of her mouth. Today she was playing with the phone and said "Hi Danny" and when I told her to say "Hi" to Tanya she said "Hi Nana". She is getting ready for her shabbot phone call, so you guys better call her, she is ready for you! She can not keep her pants on. She runs around the house with her pants in hand or around her ankles laughing. I want to cry because it usually means that she has left her diaper somewhere behind her. I have started to dress her in onesies with panties underneath because she can not get the diaper down but t-shirts give her easy access. She continues to torment her big sisters by hitting them and kissing them every chance she gets.
Sydney is as sweet as ever and continues to amaze us every day. When Sydney makes a decision to do something she does it until she can do it by herself. No matter what the outfit is Sydney can put it on without assistance. She decided she was going to nap in her bedroom by herself and she does. Her ability to share is remarkable. The other day we had friends over and I offered banana's to the big kids and inadvertently neglected our friend Will, Sydney noticed that Will did not have banana and handed him a piece of hers. She is the same way with her sisters, even with M&M's, she shares everything she has.

Lior, now that she is napping is the child we know and love. It is amazing to see how much the sleep or lack there of has impacted her personality. Now that she is well rested she has found her sense of humor and we can not tell you how happy we are she found it! Hopefully life will be a little calmer now.

A beautiful day

The pancakes got made today, but they will not be as good as they usually are. We needed to get the kids up and out this morning because Miss Lior was having a major temper tantrum and needed a change of scenery. Why was she having a temper tantrum? We must have looked at her the wrong way or did not let her do something herself or the wind was blowing just right because she pitched a major fit. I chose to ignore it and get her dressed, in the outfit she requested, through the screaming. Jordan was very upset by all the screaming and went over to kiss her every chance she got. Lior dealt with it but I was afraid that Jordan was going to get pushed to the floor.
We took the kids to the playground with the "bumpy slide" and they had a wonderful time. Sydney and Lior went down the slide holding hands and Jordan had fun running away from her daddy. We brought the girls new bikes and they rode around for a little while and were thrilled at their new found freedom. Even Jordan tried to ride one of the tricycles but was content letting us push her from place to place.

We made it home from the playground with everyone awake, a small miracle! We walked in the door and told the kids it was nap time. This was fine with everyone except Lior who demanded to sleep on the couch. When we told her that sleeping on the couch was no longer an option she was not a happy camper. I tried to lay down with her but she wanted her daddy, thank goodness because I just wanted to sleep. It took Matt around twenty minutes of extreme patience to get her to go to sleep. We are all very happy she did because her disposition was so much better after the nap. She was the Lior we all know and love as opposed to the monster who invaded our home in the morning.
It was a great day filled with lots of laughter and very few tears. We celebrated Lior's nap in the "crunchy bedroom" (that is what she named the room) and a day of great listening with ice cream after dinner.
The girls decided that Sydney, Lior and Jordan were good listeners, Mommy was a great listener, and even the dogs were good listeners but Matt lacked the skills necessary to be a good listener.

Cleaning out?

I think it was January when I wrote about cleaning out the house and getting organized before the baby arrived. Well surprise, surprise not much has been accomplished. Matt and I spent one afternoon cleaning out the garage but we barely made a dent and I am sure we have piled more stuff out there. We did switch the girls into their big girl beds and redecorate their room. We gave our guest bedroom furniture to my parents and put a twin bed in the room (sorry Dan and Tanya!) with a trundle along with a crib. I did go through all of the baby clothes and get rid of clothes that were in poor condition, stained or I did not think I would put another child in. Unfortunately, Jordan has gone through another growth spurt and I will have to put away clothes that do not fit and pull out the next size. I also have to go through the big girls clothes because some of their shirts are now way to small. It never ends!
I never cleaned out my closet, Matt's closet, or the closet in the living room. I also wanted to clean out our pantry, get rid of the furniture in the dining room and some other random pieces of furniture. I think I mentioned throwing one item away every day during the month of February, never happened. I need to organize some of the drawers in the kitchen and stream line some of our dishes. I wonder if anything will get done and the list keeps getting longer.
Matt and I had some plans to organize some things upstairs today so Lior could nap in a bedroom. We wanted to install a potty seat upstairs and clean out the closet in Jordan's room as well. Do you want to know what got done? Nothing, not even a light bulb got changed. Matt had to go to work so the girls and I hung out and baked cookies today. I never even got out of my pajamas, that NEVER happens. Lior spent the day in underwear and the only reason why Sydney got dressed was because she marched into our bedroom and put on her polka dot dress. We were bums all day long and had fun but we got nothing done! Actually, we did make a good cookie and after dinner they had a great time in the tub!
I think we will try to get the upstairs organized in the morning but we want to take the girls out tomorrow to do something "fun", since Matt will only have one day off this weekend. So it looks like another weekend that nothing will get accomplished except of course those pancakes Matt is famous for will get made and eaten.

Relaxation

I did not sleep well last night and usually that makes for a very bad next day but today was the exception to that rule. The girls were amazing all day. They played without issue for a majority of the morning, they sat and cuddled when I let them watch television for a half an hour, and they went down for a nap without issue (even Lior). When they woke up from their naps their friends were here and eating lunch, waiting for them to wake up and play. They played with their friends with minimal conflict while we were inside and had a great time playing outside. Sydney wanted to make sure that each of her friends got a juice box while they were outside playing. I had the chance to laugh with my girlfriends while our kids climbed all over. Potty training was never easier or more relaxed and the girls were dry without much prompting or issue. When the friends left we went out to a wonderful dinner with my parents where the kids sat nicely, ate like champs and asked to go to the bathroom and went three times. Matt even took them! Who could ask for a better day? Perhaps next time I will schedule a pedicure or a foot massage but since that will never happen, I could not ask for a better day than today!

Partnership

A few weeks ago I had a meeting with the girls new teacher at school. There were several concerns we were having about another student hitting Lior and how that was being dealt with in the classroom. I am not sure it is actually being dealt with but Lior is not telling me she is being hit anymore and Matt asked me to leave well enough alone. He is happy that she is not being hit. I think I would be happier knowing that both children were being taught how to get along and that there was a consequence for hitting, pushing or any other aggressive behavior for all children involved, especially Lior. But as I said I left well enough alone and will stick with the status quo for now.
I believe that there needs to be a line of communication between home and school in order for a child to be successful. This is something I thought I was establishing with the teacher when I set up the meeting and discussed the concerns I had and my plans for the girls in terms of potty training. I told her that I wanted to send Sydney into school in panties because she seemed ready. I explained that she would still need to be reminded to use the bathroom because she may not be willing to tell them she had to go. I was assured that potty training was not going to be an issue and they would do what ever needed to be done to help her achieve this goal. Sydney has had what we perceived as great success at school and given Lior's ability to stay dry, with occasional prompts, I sent her to school in panties this week.
Imagine my surprise when the school's director approached me today and suggested that I put them back into pull ups at school. I think had I known that this was the schools policy I would have taken a different approach to potty training at school and perhaps I should have been told this when I met with the teacher. The director explained that she knows that I feel strongly about this issue but this is what other schools have done in their two- year old program. I explained that the girls would not be taking a step backwards by being put into pull-ups again. I fully understand that it is hard to potty train kids in a school setting but I also know that with appropriate prompting and support it is not overly time consuming or a detriment to the other students in the room. It is a natural part of the learning process and should be incorporated into the curriculum.
I think the situation was handled badly. Rather than suggesting that the girls take a step backwards or be punished for having an accident, I would expect the teacher to approach me and ask for additional support. I think it would be much more appropriate and educationally relevant to devise some kind of reward system that they could use at school. While I was taking Sydney to the bathroom when we arrived at school I noticed that they have a sticker chart in the bathroom. I also noticed that it was not being used. At our meeting the teacher told me she would bring in a timer and use that to remind Sydney to use the bathroom, a great idea but I wonder if it is being used. There are ways to motivate children to use the bathroom in a school environment that can be incorporated into the school day and be made part of the routine. Needless to say I am surprised and more than a little angry that this is how they chose to deal with the situation.
I do not feel that the girls have had an excessive amount of accidents to warrant this kind of reaction. Sydney has had poopy accidents, one of which I cleaned up. Lior peed her first day in big kid pants and was completely dry today. I feel that they have not been given an adequate chance to make this transition and rather than risk hurting their self esteem and place a blemish on an otherwise positive experience I explained to the director that I would sooner pull them out of school than put them back in diapers.
After several conversations with my wonderful support system (mom, Leanne, and Joy) I feel that I am on the right track. They all told me that they have never met two kids who were more ready to be potty trained because they love going to the potty. They tell everyone they meet how they pee on the potty and that they wear big kid pants now. I am just not willing to take a step back when I am not convinced the school is trying to support my efforts. Are the girls being prompted to use the bathroom? Are the girls being taken to the bathroom before playing on the playground and being given ample time to use the toilet? Based on how fast Lior raced to the bathroom when we got home today I doubt she was taken before I picked her up.
Is there more that the school could do to support the potty training efforts, absolutely. Is there more that I can do to support their efforts, absolutely. My problem is that I was not asked for more support or any support prior to today. When the girls go back to school on Tuesday I will have devised a reinforcement plan and perhaps ask them to place the girls on a more rigid schedule to ensure that the girls are being prompted and taken to the bathroom.

Potty training update

The girls have really been doing a fantastic job using the potty every time they need to go. Lior went to school on Tuesday in big girl pants and had one accident at the end of the day and Sydney did not have an accident at all! We were very impressed with the level of their success.
Because Lior is doing so well it is hard to believe that she is still very resistant to the process. This morning Matt accused me of pushing Lior into potty training when she is not ready. I really thought about what he said and decided he was wrong. Lior is resistant to change, she always has been. She likes to know what we are doing from day to day and she likes her routine, always has. There was a time when Matt fed the girls the same thing for breakfast every day and when he tried to change it because we ran out or had something special for them Lior would flip out. I think that is what is happening now. She does not want to take her diaper off in the morning for big girl pants and begs for a diaper. She would rather walk around naked than put on panties. Once I get her on the potty she screams and cries until she goes and then her attitude changes and she refuses to wear a diaper. This morning when she was refusing to pee on the potty I offered a diaper and she refused.
Could it be that she does not know what she wants? Maybe. Could it be that she is two and a half and needs to argue with me? Maybe. I really like having the girls in big kid pants and I think they like being in them. We make it through entire days out and about town without any accidents so I am sticking with it even though Matt thinks I am pushing. I have to remind myself that he is resistant to change also and that it may take time for Lior and her daddy to get with the routine.

Just some photos

The girls had so much fun on our trip to the playground on Friday. They loved going down the "bumpy slide" holding hands!
Jordan on the tricycle.

Having fun on the swing with Daddy.