Wednesday, January 29, 2014

Potty Training



St. Louis got blasted with 10+ inches of snow a little over 3 weeks ago, so Rian and I took advantage of being snowed in and decided to potty train Hailey!  We took the "cold turkey" method: just switch her into underwear and see what happened...

She received some Dora undies for her 2nd birthday last June and they've been hanging out in her drawer since then.  She knew what they were and tried them on from time to time, so she was super excited when we told her it was time to wear them for good!  

In anticipation of this event, we went to the library and got some potty books for her to read as well as a package of Pull Ups for naptime and overnight.  We also got some apple juice {which is a super special treat!} to help keep the liquids flowing!

First we had her help us "throw away" all the diapers in the house (meaning, put them all in a big trash bag and put them in the garage).  So then we said "we don't have any more diapers!  we just have to wear our big girl underwear now!".  We set her on the potty and gave her a sippy of some juice and read her the potty books until she did her first tinkle {that's a funny word to write...}.  This particular potty chair has a sensor and says "you did it!" and sings an annoying song about toilet paper every time liquid hits it.  So we all got really excited for her and she got her first treat - 1 M&M!  From then on the method was supposed to be that we set a timer for 20 minutes and then set her down again and wait for her to go.  Well, she was so excited to do this that she didn't want to get off the potty at all!  That ended up working out in our favor because in the first 30 minutes she tinkled about 4 or 5 times!  

Eventually she got off the chair and we were able to start setting timers, but she wasn't really making it to 20 minutes on that first day.  It took a few accidents and underwear changes to see that she was really going every 10-15 minutes!  We kept her confined to the kitchen to avoid accidents on the carpet, and that was certainly a good decision on those first few days.  We brought lots of toys and books and activities to her to make her time in the kitchen less boring.  We also let her rent some Angelina Ballerina DVDs from the library to watch in the kitchen as well.  Day 1 potty total was somewhere around 20 tinkles on the potty and 4 accidents.  

We only set timers for the first 3 days, and after that she was doing great with running to the potty whenever she felt she needed to.  She was still having a few accidents each day, so we kept her confined to the kitchen for about a week and I would say that by 10 days in she was fully potty trained as far as "tinkle" was concerned.  

It's now been 3 and a half weeks and she {just yesterday} gave in to going "#2" on the potty as well.  We had some issues with that for the first few weeks, which is totally normal, but she finally understands that "poo poo belongs in the potty".  I think the fact that she gets 3 treats for a poo is helping out as well :)

I'm so proud of my girl.  I wasn't sure how it was going to go, but I suppose I shouldn't have doubted her.  She is amazing!  



waiting for the snow!
12 hours later... It's here!
daddy's snow goggles...
Too cold to go outside = bring the snow inside!


Ta Da!  Indoor snowman!

more kitchen fun!
Play Doh!
Color sorting!

Mommy & Daddy are so proud of you, baby girl!

A Day in the Life: Buckner Style

As a stay-at-home-mom, sometimes I'm asked the common question, "what do you do all day!?"  Put on the spot like that I'm often hard-pressed to find answers other than "take care of the kids, change diapers, feed them, laundry, etc."  So I thought it would a good idea to actually look at what I do all day and journal it... really just so 10 years from now when I'm back at work and the kids are in school I can remember what these days were like with a toddler and a baby at home.

Let's start here...

4:00 AM - Addison wakes up for the first time (since the night before around 7:30pm) to be fed.  I nurse her quickly and she goes right back to sleep.
5:45 - 6:00 AM - This is the average time that Hailey wakes up.  Rian gets up with her and takes her downstairs for milk, breakfast, and likely a "kid show".  
6:45 AM - Rian brings Hailey back upstairs and puts her in bed with me so he can take a shower and get ready for work.  She usually watches another kid show or does puzzles on my phone.  I persuade her to be quiet because Addie is still sleeping.
7:00 AM - Addison wakes up (from her rock n play next to my bed) and I feed her.  Hailey is probably jumping on my bed singing "5 little monkeys" by this point.  Rian goes to work.
7:30 AM - I put Addie in the baby chair in my bathroom so I can take a shower.  Hailey plays with Bucky in my room.  
7:45 AM - I change Addie and get her dressed for the day, and then head to Hailey's room to get her dressed for the day.  
8:00 AM - We all parade downstairs and I get my coffee and make myself breakfast.  Hailey usually wants a second breakfast by this point so she gets some fruit or a small bowl of oatmeal. Addie plays in her play gym or sits in her baby chair in the kitchen with us.
8:30 AM - Time for Addie's first nap!  H stays downstairs and plays while I put Addie down upstairs.  
8:45 AM - This is when I usually clean up the kitchen and straighten the house a little bit.  Hailey loves to help unload the dishwasher and help me vacuum.  She also does her one and only chore of filling up Bucky's bowl with food.  I've probably reheated my coffee about 3 times by this point :)
9:30 AM - Done cleaning and Hailey and I play for a little bit.  Usually with her dollhouse, or do puzzles, or play dress up, or do a project at the kitchen table.  
10:00 AM - Addie wakes up and I bring her downstairs to feed her.  Hailey sits next to me on the couch playing "monkey on the bed" on my phone {watching YouTube clips}.  
10:30 AM - Hailey gets cut off from playing on my phone as soon as I'm done feeding Addie.  I change Addie's diaper (and let's be honest, I probably change her whole outfit too from the spit up/diaper explosion that likely happened).  Then Addie and Hailey play for a little bit or we have an hour to run an errand if necessary (usually the grocery story).  This is also prime time for a play date with Lindsay, Kenzie & Lexi or Rachel, Cooper & Will.  OR this would be the time for my dad to come over and watch the girls while I go to the gym.  
11:30 - 12:00 - Somewhere in this time frame Addie goes down for her 2nd nap and I make Hailey's lunch.
12:00 - 12:30 PM - Somewhere in this time frame Hailey goes down for her nap.  Some days I'm REALLY lucky and get both kids napping at the same time.  Those days are super special because I get about an hour to myself!  Every day varies, but if I know I'm only going to get a few minutes of alone time I'll probably just have time to eat lunch.  Other days when I get more time I will prep dinner, blog, work on laundry, do dishes, or any other project/item from my to-do list.  
1:00 PM - Addie is up by this time and I feed & change her.  
1:30 PM - Hailey is usually up by this time so we all play together for a little while.  Sometimes downstairs in the playroom, or we do a project in the kitchen, or play school upstairs in Hailey's bedroom.  I also have about an hour here if we need to run another errand or take a trip to the library.
2:30- 3:00 PM - Somewhere in here Addison goes down for her 3rd nap.  This is where the flexibility sets in because sometimes Rian is home from work by this time so I can go to the gym if I want or run some errands without kids (hooray!).  If Rian is not home, Hailey and I are probably in the kitchen having a snack and prepping things for dinner.  She loves to help me cut vegetables or play with water and bubbles in the sink pretending to wash dishes :)
4:00 PM - Addie is up and I feed her.  If Rian is home he is playing with Hailey and if he's not home she plays by herself while I feed the baby.  She is great at keeping herself occupied.  She is also great at going potty on her own!  
4:30 PM - Rian is usually home by now so we get some fun family time to play together before I make dinner.
5:00 PM -Rian takes care of the girls while I make dinner
5:45 PM - Hailey, Rian and I eat dinner and Addie takes a quick 15-20 min nap in her swing.  
6:15 PM - I take care of the girls while Rian does the dishes.
7:00 PM - Rian takes Hailey upstairs for bath & bed and I stay downstairs to feed Addison and change her into jammies and put her in her swing.  
7:30 PM - Hailey is asleep upstairs and Addie is asleep downstairs in her swing.  Now Rian and I watch TV & hang out together till 9:30-10ish and then all 3 of us go upstairs to bed! 

And there you have it!  Phew!

2.5 years / 3 months

Wednesday, January 22, 2014

3 Months Old


Guess who is 3 months old today!  My sweet, smiley, chunky monkey Miss Addison Leigh!

Here are weeks 9-12:



At 3 months old Addie is:
  • Wearing size 2 diapers
  • Doing a great job filling out her size 6 month clothing....
  • Smiling ALL the time!
  • Starting to laugh a little
  • Holding her head up like a champ
  • Nursing 6 times per day (7am, 10am, 1pm, 4pm, 7pm, and a super quick feeding around 4-5am)
  • Taking 4 naps per day and sleeping 12 hours at night.  
    • I'm starting to transition her from napping in her swing in the living room to napping in her bed (and by bed I mean rock 'n' play ...) upstairs.  She naps better and longer this way.
    • Her naps get shorter as the day goes on.  
      • Nap 1 (around 8:30am) is the longest (75-90 min)
      • Nap 2 (around 11:30ish) is about 45-55 min
      • Nap 3 (around 2:30ish) is about 30-45 min
      • Nap 4 (around 5:30pm) is the shortest (25-30 min)
    • She nurses for the last time at 7pm and then goes straight to sleep for the next 12 hours!  She normally wakes up around 4 or 5am so I nurse her for like 3 mins (lights off, still swaddled), and she goes right back to sleep until 7am!  It's wonderful.


Hey!  Who turned on the light?!

Addison still won't take a pacifier or bottle, but it might be because I've stopped trying.  She has learned to self soothe so I'm over the whole paci thing, but I'm going to get serious about trying different kinds of bottles soon because I'd really like to have more flexibility in being able to leave the house.  

She doesn't have much interest in toys yet, she'd rather suck on her hands (which is so cute).  She will lay under her play gym thing and just look up mesmerized by the lights and dangling toys - but she doesn't really reach for or bat at the toys just yet.  Hailey is really good at it, though :)




"My name is Addie and I love my hands!"

{also available here}

 She loves to "talk" back and forth with people, especially her daddy.  
He is so good at making her smile and coo!

I've come to the verdict that Addison and Hailey look nothing alike.  I did another comparison shot of both girls in the same outfit at 3 months (I had to do it closer to 2 months for Addie, actually, or else the onesie wasn't going to fit her anymore...)

What do you think?

 Addie does a great job putting up with Hailey's crazy antics all day long.  Hailey is always loving on her little sister and trying to put random "phones" up to her ear so she can "call the doctor".  {Background: Hailey is currently obsessed with singing "5 little monkeys jumping on the bed" and she is constantly holding random objects up to her ear for the "mama called the doctor and the doctor said" portion of the song}  Please enjoy this video.... this is my life!

{Also available here}

There's not much else to say about this 3 month old other than she is sweet, cute, and super easygoing (unless you're trying to shove a bottle in her mouth)! We absolutely love her to pieces and can't wait to see how she grows and changes in the next month!  Here are the rest of my favorite pics from this month:



Cousins

Love this so much.
Stare down!
Morning kisses for sis
She always sticks her tongue out when she smiles! 
Favorite. Pic. EVER.
2nd Fave!
3rd Fave!
What a difference 11 weeks makes.






Mommy loves you!!!

Wednesday, January 8, 2014

Christmas 2013


Christmas 2013 was wonderful.  Hailey was at a great age to understand the basics of the holiday and it was so sweet to hear her sing Christmas songs and talk about Santa, presents, and "Jesus' birthday".  She was not afraid of Santa like she was in 2012 and when we met him she very sweetly and timidly asked him for a baby doll.  Addie was just 2 months old on Christmas so she obviously didn't know what was going on, but it was such a great feeling for Rian and I to have our whole family of 4 together on this special day.  Honestly, Christmas Day itself was a little hectic just due to traveling from place to place and also fitting in naps, meals/snacks, and Addie who was nursing every 2 hours!  So Rian and I didn't get to do much relaxing or visiting, but such is life with young kids and we wouldn't trade it for the world.

On to the fun part - pictures!  Here is Christmas Eve:






Dancing with "gwampa"


Aunt Missy lovin' on baby A
Ready for Christmas morning!




Christmas Morning at our house:


Look!  Santa brought her a baby doll ;)


She thought it was so funny that she got underwear :)
Baby's First Christmas
Big Sister opening Addie's gifts for her





All dressed and ready to go!


Christmas afternoon at Grandma & Grandpa's :


Maybe someday we'll get a good pic of the 4 of them...






Adorable doll house from Grandma & Grandpa

Another adorable gift from Aunt Missy



Christmas Evening at Great Grandma & Grandpa's :






She loves her Doc McStuffins toys!