Monday, July 28, 2008
I'm pretty sure that "middle child" thing is an urban legend. Like Walt Disney.
I love this picture. Love it so much. This is Tyler, who is still my baby. But this picture is Tyler to a T. I think of all my kids, Tyler has the personality most like mine. Neither one of us is very into meeting new people, we kind of have tough guy attitudes, we laugh at the same things and we like most of the same TV shows, like The Office. We LOVE The Office.
Tyler makes me laugh. I love him so much. He has such a strong personality. For the first few years of his life, I didn't know if I was going to make it. This kid could throw a fit like nobody's business. Seriously, he could have given lessons. And stubborn??? I'm pretty sure his picture is still in the dictionary next to that word. He wanted it the way he wanted it and no one was changing his mind.
The whole time he was showing his ass though, it was just somehow so funny, I would have to walk away more than once to avoid laughing right at him. He has a gift for attracting people to him no matter what he is acting like. Everyone loves him. Every year at Parent/Teacher conference, I hear about how popular Tyler is. I heard it in preschool, I heard it in elementary school, I hear it in middle school. It's great.
Tyler taught me one of the biggest lessons I have learned in my life. And that is "don't sweat the small stuff." From Tyler I learned that it doesn't matter how many times he shaved half his eyebrow off, or cut his hair, or wore the craziest outfits known to man. At the end of the day, who really cares if Tyler wore Nick's cowboy boots with newspapers stuffed in the toes? Is anyone going to remember that Tyler had on 15 different patterns of plaid in one outfit? Or that he clogged at least 3 different toilets with items he would put in and stir with the plunger while he made his "soup?"
I heard a phrase recently that reminded me of Tyler. "The days are long, but the years go quickly." I learned the truth in this phrase from Tyler as well. I think I am a much more patient and tolerant mom since Tyler came along. I had to be, haha, his personality was always stronger than mine. :)
I love him for teaching me things I may not have learned otherwise. Tyler is great, I couldn't ask for a better kid.
TWENTY YEARS??!? Are you serious?
So here is a picture of my main man, foreign exchange student from the old country, Luigi VonTrapp. Wait, what? Just kidding, that's Nick, regular student from the new country but still my main man.
Nick was TWENTY YEARS OLD last Friday. Yes, TWENTY. Two decades since Nick was born. Wow. See, here's the thing about Nick. He's one of the most awesome and funny people I know, and I don't say that about many. He says really funny things that make me laugh. He is fun to hang out with, we can go do stuff and it's like he is my best friend. Well, maybe my only friend, haha. But I do stuff with him more than anyone it seems like.
At the time Nick was born, I was only 18, two years younger than he is now, which blows my mind. I don't know that it was the most popular choice that I keep him, but I felt strongly that I wanted to more than anything and when I look back I know I made the right decision. He has become all things I would hope he would be. He is kind, caring, great with kids and in love with his little sister. He does what I ask him and helps me out all the time. When he was younger he wanted to play in the Major Leagues. I just wanted him to grow up to be a nice guy who knows how to treat women and he has done that. I am so proud of him.
I almost lost him once, and I am so grateful we had another chance, a chance for me to see him grow up to be all the things I wanted for him and see things I wanted him to see. I will never forget how close I came to not knowing him at all. I can never express the gratitude I feel for that gift.
So twenty years have gone by, I don't know where the hell they went, but gone they are. And never once do I regret the choice I made to keep this boy around. I don't know what I would do without him.
I love you Nick, a lot. Happy Birthday!
Miss Baby America, I presume?
Now I ask you...if that is NOT a Princess with a capital P, I don't know what is. Look at that girl. Every day I wonder how exactly I got lucky enough to get her and thank my lucky stars that she came to me. She has her moments, definitely a little headstrong, but she is just so beautiful, so smart and so funny. She's great!
Thursday, July 10, 2008
She's a POTTY TRAIN!!
So I think I have mentioned before that there have been a few different times I have made a half-hearted effort to do the potty training thing with Miss Piper. It would go ok for an hour or so, she would tell me she needed to pee, then get up from the toilet and pee on the floor. Or she would put around 13 pairs of panties on at the same time and then pee through all of them. She just wasn't that interested. So because I am basically lazy, I didn't push it.
Well, about two weeks ago she decided one night that she wanted to wear panties, so we threw some on. She told me every time she needed to go, which was kind of a surprise but ok, that works.
The surprising part though, is from that minute, she has worn panties every day and has not had an accident at all. She just decided to do it and she did. Yeah, that says a lot about her personality. I seem to breed children who come hell or high water are going to do what they want, when they want, on their terms. I can't decide if this is a good or bad thing.
Anyway, so now she is a potty train! That's what she tells everyone, "I'm a potty train!"
See, I don't believe in forcing kids to potty train when they aren't ready, I am a firm believer in the school of it's a ton easier and less stressful for everyone if they are ready and want to do it.
And to prove my point, look at that, she was trained in one day. Yay Piper!
Well, about two weeks ago she decided one night that she wanted to wear panties, so we threw some on. She told me every time she needed to go, which was kind of a surprise but ok, that works.
The surprising part though, is from that minute, she has worn panties every day and has not had an accident at all. She just decided to do it and she did. Yeah, that says a lot about her personality. I seem to breed children who come hell or high water are going to do what they want, when they want, on their terms. I can't decide if this is a good or bad thing.
Anyway, so now she is a potty train! That's what she tells everyone, "I'm a potty train!"
See, I don't believe in forcing kids to potty train when they aren't ready, I am a firm believer in the school of it's a ton easier and less stressful for everyone if they are ready and want to do it.
And to prove my point, look at that, she was trained in one day. Yay Piper!
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