Playing, playing with the boys...

That particular song (known from the movie "Top Gun"...most girls of my generation know that song well - all we have to remember is a certain beach volleyball scene!) has been on repeat in my brain as I've gone through these pictures from yesterday.

Really, the most resounding thought to me is this: Boys (and girls too, really) need their daddies.

Thoughts on Tuesday...

1.  Just felt like posting a list on this rainy Tuesday.  My brain is a jumbled mess.

2.  Rain:  we've had over 10 inches of it in the last 24 hours.  School was cancelled today due to flooding and transportation issues!  Ryan caught the last Metro bus into downtown - the bus driver was telling everyone as they boarded that this was their chance to "take a day off" because his was the last bus allowed to leave the dispatch lot because of all the street flooding. (Note: it was only the second bus to leave his park-n-ride)  As it turned out, Ryan made it to downtown in about 30 minutes, so all is well.

3.  The worst part of potty training is over, I think.  Can I get an AMEN!?

4.  I might have to wear compression hose THROUGH THE SUMMER IN SOUTH TEXAS because I have varicose veins cropping up in my left calf.  Those suckers hurt.  So does the cost of the hose...

5.  We have a very special appointment in almost exactly one week.  It's the big ultrasound!!  What will this one be?  Boy or girl?  Any guesses?  Any name suggestions?

6.  I'm very anxious to find out if the 'beebs' is going to need a blue wardrobe or a pink wardrobe.  I think my mom-in-law might be the only one more anxious than I am! :)

7.  That ultrasound is the bright spot in the next week.  A big concern and something for your prayer list is my grandpa's open-heart surgery that is scheduled for next Monday.

8.  I can't imagine what it was like for Noah and his family while they were cooped up with so many animals (...including snakes!  ugh!  did they even contain those creepy things?) for over 150 days.  These last few days of torrential rains have made me a bit crazy.  If I was Noah's wife or one of his daughters-in-law, they probably would have thrown me overboard.  With the snakes.

9.  Cravings this time around:  Dr. Pepper over Sonic ice.  Pretzels + cold chocolate chips.  Carrots and ranch dip.  OK, I guess those things can't really be classified as cravings - I don't have to be pregnant to want them!

10.  I'm in the weird in-between stage where nothing fits - 'normal' clothes are too tight, and maternity stuff is still gargantuan.  T-shirts, yoga style pants, athletic shorts, and just a couple pairs of pants (they have drawstrings) comprise my daily wardrobe.  At least it's comfy! 

11.  Just thought I'd end on eleven.  Y'all be blessed...

Thankful Thursday, 4-23...

Well, I may have said something I shouldn't have said at the end of that last post - because I have to give a quick update on Caleb's progress!  As of this morning, he has filled in all of his potty chart - which means we'll be making a dinner trip to Chuck E. Cheese soon!  For three days straight pretty much all I've seen of him is a bare little behind.  While I think it's super cute, I admit I'm a bit tired of seeing so much skin! :)

Our next step will be to stay dry in big boy undies between trips to the potty.  He has done really well today, so maybe he's turned a big corner!  Hooray!

Essentially, that is what my Thankful Thursday post is about - that both he and I have survived being around each other the last several days, and that Caleb is doing most of his business all by himself!  I read this verse this morning, and before Caleb even woke up today I prayed it over him:

But thanks be to God!

He gives us the victory through our Lord Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 15:57

I know that verse wasn't written with potty training children in mind, but I am confident that God is OK with me claiming victory in His name for Caleb's potty successes!

When you gotta go, you gotta go...

When to potty train a little boy...  That is certainly THE question around here for the past several months!  After being told by our pediatrician to not even push it until Caleb turns 3 (unless he were to take an interest in it before that) that's exactly what we did.  We would bring it up occasionally, but before his birthday back in February, Caleb's standard answer to us was always "I'll go on the potty after my birthday party."  Just like that.  End of discussion, for him at least.

Oh, I had big hopes for the days following his birthday party!!

Fast forward, past the birthday party.  Caleb still doesn't want to use the potty.  (I can't believe I'm writing a post about this...but it's a big part of our everyday lives right now, so that makes it blogworthy, right?)  He runs away from me when I pull out his big boy undies that he had previously picked out at the store.  Pull-Ups aren't even an option for him, which honestly is OK with me.  Using incentives and rewards (aka 'bribery') doesn't have any impact.  He's sat on the potty for looong stretches of time while we read book after book after book, with no results.  He receives lots of praise for at least sitting on the potty, but still doesn't have much motivation to "do the deed".  

However, I did clean up two accidents on the floor yesterday after I decided in a moment of insanity to just let him run around nekked from the waist down.

So what do you do with a 3 year-old who is reluctant to get out of diapers?  I am hoping this will work:

PLEASE ignore the artwork...I was not meant to draw much of anything, let alone cars, trucks, and helicopters! :) Caleb gets one sticker to put on the path for each time he goes "tee tee" in the potty, and two for each successful #2 in the potty.  After we fill in five squares on the path, he gets to choose a new car out of the reward jar.  Once we reach the end of the path (20 squares) we get to eat dinner at Chuck E. Cheese.  He's only been to "ChuckCheese" twice, so it's a very big deal to him.

So far, the chart has been posted on our fridge for about 24 hours.  No stickers yet...but hopefully there will be some soon!  I'm hoping and praying that he'll catch on and get more excited about it after he has some success.  He did wake up feeling under the weather today, so we'll work harder on it tomorrow if he's feeling better.

Oh, Lord, please help my boy to learn how to use the potty soon!  The thought of three babies in diapers ... one of whom is a three year old ... that scares me a bit!

(I promise I won't give continual updates on this process!  I will have to celebrate it a bit once we've gotten it mastered during the day... to me, that is certainly worthy of a blog post!)

Celebrating a sweet friend...

Movement...

"Edamame" is on the move.

flutter kick, flutter kick, flutter kick... 

It's unmistakable this third time around!

A birthday party...

Saturday, my sweet husband, mom, and in-laws hosted a birthday party for me.  I was only allowed to know when it was, and where it was being held (our house).  I had to give Ryan a hard time when he told me it was to be here, saying "Hmmm.  So I need to clean my own house for my own birthday party?"  At the time, his plan was to come home a bit early every day the week prior to the party to clean, but as things go with his business, he got slammed.  Mom came over on Friday, and the two of us were able to clean.  Thanks, Mom!

Anyhow - this is about the party, right?  We had a very nice turnout of family and friends, both old and new.  I always feel awkward as the center of attention, and this was no exception.  We had a great lunch and a scrumptious cake, and I hope those who came enjoyed their time.  I enjoyed seeing everyone!

I also enjoyed seeing these beauties... Ryan picked out around 50 roses to decorate the house, and Mom and our friend Nancy did all the arranging.  They're gorgeous!  Pictures never do flowers justice - but believe me, they're very pretty.