Busy Day!

We had a very busy day. Nate had two birthday parties! I debated making him pick one but in the end let him go to both. He has another tomorrow, so his social calendar is full this weekend. I put off getting the gifts, so I had to get up early & got to Target with Nate to get the gifts. We also picked up some Star Wars guys for Zach - see the "New Approach to Potty Training" below.

Much of the day was spent getting Nate to & from the parties & getting Josh to his game also - see post below with pictures of Josh's game.

In between all the driving, we did a little work in the yard, some grocery shopping & finished a bit more of the pavers. Jim has about 1/2 the pavers cut that need to be cut...he seems to have a system down & I think all the pieces should be cut tomorrow.

Here are a couple other highlights from today. I finally found a pair of shoes that stay on Ethan's feet. I have tried a couple pairs of sandals and regular shoes but he always seems to take them off or they fall of. Check out these shoes...not only do they actually stay on but I think they are so cute too!

Here is a picture of Ethan kicking back outside.

I had the novel idea of getting a picture of all four...guess it was not a good idea at the end of the day. I took about 3 pictures before I gave up...you can see in the second picture that Nate has pretty much given up too (he was trying to hold Ethan).

Here is Ethan enjoying his fire engine car.
Just a nice smile from Nate!

Josh the Soccer Star!

Josh had a great game. He played the first half in goal & made some great saves...see picture #1. He also scored 2 goals but most importantly he had LOTS of fun!

New approach to poop...

Well, I think I need to review the toddler potty training manual because we just do not seem to be having much luck with Zach. I decided to try a new approach & brought home 2 cool Star Wars guys for Zach. I told him that he could have them as soon as he went poop in the potty. He was all excited & repeated that he would get them when he pooped in the potty. We put them up on top of the fridge where Zach can see them!

We went on to poop in his pull-ups two times today. I don't think he really understands when he is pooping....which seems strange because he is a sharp little guy & understands so much. We will keep trying....wish us luck but I think General Grevious & the Storm Trooper are doomed to stay up on the refrigerator for quite some time!

I am not sure what it is about Friday nights but it must be the day that my boys picked to test my parenting patience & I am failing miserably! You will remember a few weeks ago & the fun I had with Nate and Zach when trying to leave Josh's practice...well, I think Zach topped that tonight!

Jim took Josh to practice and left me with the other three. We played outside for quite awhile but Ethan was getting tired so I brought everyone inside to get baths started. I bathed Zach and Ethan, then got Ethan ready for bed while Zach used the potty.

I needed to get Ethan in bed so I left Zach & Nate in the living room while I went back to put Ethan down. We have been trying the commando approach a bit with Zach so I left him naked watching a cartoon. Nate was playing on the computer. Zach had just got off the pot so I figured he would be fine for 10-15 minutes. I was rocking Ethan when Nate came back to tell me that Zach had pooped in the living room. Here is where the fun starts! Ethan had been settled down & I was almost ready to lay down before Nate showed up. Nate's burst into the room had changed all that! I was not sure how bad the mess was, so I put Ethan in his crib...figured that was the "safest" place to ensure that he stayed clean! This was not a popular choice & Ethan was screaming as I left the room

When I got to the living room, I found that Zach had pooped on the floor...not too bad...certainly could have been worse on the furniture....but then I see Zach. He is covered with poop! Nate failed to mention that Zach played in the poop, picked it up, EAT SOME & then must have tried to wipe it off his hands...right onto his belly & back! What the heck....why would you eat poop! I am trying to decide if I need to worry about the fact that he just ate or at least put feces in his mouth! I decided since it was his own & it had just LEFT his body that a small taste would probably not cause any major problems! I put Zach into the shower (he HATES the shower..probably not the nicest mom thing to do) & cleaned off all the poop while he cried. In the background I can still hear Ethan screaming also! My blood pressure always goes up when I have several kids crying & I am trying to deal with things like one of them eating feces. Once I got Zach out of the shower, I dried him off, put a diaper on him & sat him on the couch (on TV) & told him to stay there until Jim got home (which I figured would be in just a couple minutes). I went back to try and calm Ethan down.

Jim did come home shortly to find Zach still sitting on the couch & he was filled in on what happened by Nate and Zach, while I was still rocking Ethan and trying to calm myself down as much as Ethan....what a wonderful mom moment!

Field Day was a hit with the boys. Both boys enjoyed themselves. Jim worked in the morning at the shoe toss event. Nate's class came through while Jim was working but Josh's class did not. Josh came home with a first place medal but there were 19 of them given away in his class (there are 19 kids in his class!). I think it was just Josh's teacher who gives them out because Nate did not come home with anything but he did say that he had fun!

It was a strange day for me because Jim took the boys to school & then brought Josh home. I only went to pick up Nate. At 11:14 (the time I usually leave to get Josh), I felt like I was forgetting something! It is going to be strange next year to have both older boys in school all day!

Josh had an exciting day...he rode with Aiden today on Ms. Sandy's bus. Ms. Sandy has the first bus in the bus line to pick up the AM Kindergartners & she is usually there a few minutes early. Zach loves the bus & sometimes will stay on the bus with Ms. Sandy & Cheeks (a stuffed dog on her bus) while I go inside & pick up Josh....so we know Ms. Sandy pretty well!

Jim spent the evening taking apart our lawn tractor because the steering went out on it. Seems as those some gears may be striped. It certainly seems that if it is not one thing then it is another breaking!! Ugh!

Zach has had a rough couple days. He has skipped too many naps & stayed up too late. Today he is so tired & it certainly makes life a bit more of a challenge for me! I had really wanted to get him in bed early but before I knew it, it was 8:00! Luckily he can sleep in tomorrow because Jim is taking the boys to school...hopefully that will help him catch up on sleep!

Well, I am not sure if this is progress but Zach pooped in the potty today for the first time... Jim went into the pantry this evening to get some tools from a tool box (the pantry is still serving as Zach's bathroom). Jim told me that Zach had left a surprise for me. I figured there was pee in the potty as I had Zach sit on it after dinner (before he went outside). When I went to clean it, there was actually poop. Zach had pooped & not even told anyone. I asked Zach if he pooped in the potty & he said "no". I guess he didn't realize he poop...so I am not sure if this counts as progress.....

Tomorrow is Field Day for the boys at school & we are hoping for some nice weather....keep your fingers crossed!

Josh rides the bus!

Josh rode the bus home with Aiden today! He was excited because he got to ride Ms. Sandy's bus. Ms. Sandy is the first bus in line at school & the boys often stop by to say hi and check out the bus. She has let them on the bus to walk through it & check it out....exciting for little boys who normally do not ride the bus.

Enjoying the morning together!

While I have been working on laundry, cleaning & such...Zach and Ethan have been playing & having a great time playing together. This is a recent development, previously Zach really wanted nothing to do with Ethan and they played mainly by themselves.

Here are a couple pictures of them this morning. Note the placement of the cushions! Ethan is now able to wiggle and pull himself onto the couch, unfortunately he is not real aware of the edge when he is up there and has a tendency to crash to the floor! I solved this by putting the cushions up...then if misjudges the edge it is not too far to the ground. Someday, I will have a house with regularly placed furniture that is not covered with dirt, grit & snot provided by 4 boys!

More Progress

Jim finished laying the bricks tonight...well most...the only ones left are the bricks that need to be cut. After he fills in the final gaps, we will just need to fill with a special grout sand & our project will be done. It does need to be sealed but we were told to wait awhile before sealing. I think it look great!

Pee in the real potty!

Zach used the big potty for the first time today & stood up....he was oh so excited about making bubbles & then flushing them! Whatever it takes to keep him interested in this process is fine with me!!!

A hot one today!

It was warm today! The van showed a temp of near 90 & with some high humidity....not the best for working outside. We continued with our outside work & made great progress. We probably still have another full weekend to finish the pavers but it is going to look nice! Once the pavers are done, we will need to widen the gravel section next to it. That will mean a few more weekends of excavating & putting in stone.

The kids spent most of the day outside...even filled up their little pool & the played in the water. They spent a considerable amount of time today catching wasps, can you see me rolling my eyes?? Before we did our addition & siding, we had a problem with wasps/yellow jackets. They had a couple hives that we were continually spraying. Recently they are back. The awning where they built their nests are gone but I think they may be trying to get up behind the new siding. Anyway, yesterday Josh was stung by one of them...he wasn't bothering it at the time...it landed on his land, he brushed it while not realizing what it was & got stung. I had wanted to get a wasp trap anyway, so he went with me to get one after he felt better yesterday....back to today....they (mostly Nate) spent the day catching the wasps & putting them in the trap! Not quite the intent. Surprisingly, Nate did not get stung!

One of Zach's highlights for the weekend was that he peed on a tree for the first time...he was very excited! Now, if I could just get him that excited about all of his potty training...it is not going particularly well!

The big boys are back to school tomorrow but it is really downhill from here. I think Nate has 14 days & Josh has 13 days left. Both have two more field trips, field day, end of the year parties, Kindergarten celebration, the last two days are 1/2 days, so I don't think there will be much learning left!

Picture from yesterday, the boys had great fun playing on the pallets of pavers...

Here are some pictures from today & playing in the water.

A busy day at our house....

We worked outside quite a bit...made progress on the front pavers & did a few other things around the yard.

Zach had a great day with his potty training & kept his pants dry all day. He even peed on a tree for the first time today - sorry no pictures!

Nate and Josh got themselves into some trouble today (for lying & not listening). Out by the garage there was a robin nest. The robin laid three eggs. Two of the eggs hatched last week. The nest was actually in a place that was easy to see but safe from most pr editors (probably safe from all 4 legged pr editors but not 2 legged ones!). When I went out to check on the nest today it was gone. I looked on the ground and there was nothing, which I thought was weird. If something (4 legged type) had got the nest, there should have been evidence of the nest left on the ground. I asked Nate if he had touched the nest & his response was "not that I remember". This immediately raised a red flag as it was a very peculiar answer from him. I asked him again with a firm tone & a doubtfully look & he then admitted that he and Josh had moved the nest to "somewhere safe". He and Josh had tried to bring the baby birds worms to eat but obviously the little birds are no longer with us. I can completely see where two little boys would be intrigued by the nest & the thought that they would raise baby birds; however, I CLEARLY told the boys to leave the nest alone & not touch it...then there was the "not that I remember". The boys sat in a time out for awhile & then had to spend some time cleaning the backyard.

When I grow up....

Josh has always said that he wanted to be a scientist to study things. Today he came home & announced that he changed his mind. He wants to be a pilot or the person who drives tank. I think that in honor of Memorial Day, that his class has been discussing the military & what they do. Josh explained that it is a "tough job" & that "the army guys have to be gone for a long, long time". He decided that if he flies planes that he probably shouldn't get married or have kids because they would miss him too much when he was gone flying.

We have a toddler!

Ethan is really picked up on his walking & is now able to walk across the kitchen or living room. It is still more of a rigid Frankenstein type walk but he is quickly getting better and better!

We are nearing the end of "friends" week at the Grueber house. Aiden came home with Josh today...that was the third friend that he brought home this week. We dropped Aiden off around 3:30 when he picked Nate up from school.

Then after Nate got out, he brought home a friend, Shawn. Shawn stayed until almost 7. The boys had a great time. I was very proud of Nate because he included both Zach and Josh for most of the stuff that the bigger boys were doing!

Zach went in for his 3 year check-up today & everything looked good. Looks like he may end up being tall like Nate.

Zach was 39 1/4" for his height which is 1/4" taller than Nate was at 3.

Zach was 33 pounds which is 1 pound less than Nate and 2 pounds less than Josh at the same age.

Nate of 1880!

Nate left all dressed up for his field trip today! I thought he looked great!

We even packed his lunch in accordance with what was done in the late 1800s. He brought his lunch in a pie tin tied with a bandanna. His lunch included a jelly sandwich, fresh & dried fruit & root beer (a treat for a Boy from 2008!).

Take a look....

Zach's own bathroom!

Last week, one of the things that I was having trouble with was keeping Ethan away from Zach's little potty. When it was not in use, I had to put it up where Ethan could get it. Then I had to set it down on the floor & try to keep Ethan away while Zach was using it. Helping Zach pull up his pants when he was finished & emptying the potty were a pain because Ethan was right in there trying to help. Jim came up with an idea that has actually worked really well! He put Zach's little potty in the pantry & now Zach has is own bathroom. Zach thinks it is really cool & likes to have the doors closed while he is in there. He did mention that his potty does not flush & that there is not a shower in his bathroom....guess that can be put on Jim's to-so list!

Just Because...

Jim sent flowers to the house last week....no special reason...just because. It was a real surprise & I have enjoyed them. I took a picture today, the flowers still look almost as fresh as the did when they arrived. The two red tulips were from Josh. We walked home from school & he wanted to pick them (they came from our yard). It just happened to be the same day (before the flowers from Jim were delivered), so I added the tulips from Josh to the bouquet from Jim.

I need to take some pictures....looking over the page it has been a few days since I posted any pictures. Tomorrow should be a good picture day because Nate gets to dress up for school. They are visiting the Geer school which is a school house from the late 1800s. They get to learn how kids used to "learn" at school. They are suppose to dress appropriately.....come by tomorrow to check out the Nate of 1880!

Not too much happened today. Josh had another friend over from school...somehow he ended up with 3 play dates this week...just kind of worked out that way after a couple reschedules.

I did have a scary mom moment today...one of those when your heart skips a beat or two. There was a call with "Plymouth-Canton" on the caller ID - which means the school is calling. The person answered and said this is so-and-so the school nurse....then there was a VERY LONG pause & she finally says Nate is okay. Seriously, in the pause, I had a complete plan of how I was going to pick him up, take care of the other boys & Josh's friend, who I needed to call, etc. But Nate had just bumped heads with someone on the playground. Their heads collided pretty hard & Nate ended up sitting with an ice pack on his face for quite awhile...he was a little happy because he even got to miss some class! Anytime there is an injury involving the head, regardless of how bad, the school's protocol is to call the parents. He seems find tonight but he does have a red mark on the side of his face near his eye.

Our morning was pretty uneventful...everyone really slept in. I am not sure if this is because the weekend tired them out or everyone is getting whatever Ethan has.

I had to wake Nate up...at first he was not too interested...but then I reminded him of our deal & that there were only 18 more mornings until summer break & then he rolled over with a grin and got out of bed.

Josh had a friend over after school. We walked home but I thought we would never actually make it home. The boys had to test every "helicopters" on the way home to rate it flying ability. I never realized how many Maple trees there are in our subdivision until today. The helicopter that were deemed unsuitable were smashed & destroyed. Those that flew the best were tucked away as prized treasures. Children really do see the world completely different!

After school, the big boys and I played soccer in the back yard until Jim came home. we practiced shooting & dribbling, and then we played a game to practice goalie skills. The boys each took turns in goal...I kicked 10 shots for each to see how many they could stop. They got a point if they stopped the ball & I got a point if I scored. I did these 2-3 times for Nate and Josh & didn't win a single time! Nate was being really aggressive & stopping some really hard shots...now we just have to get him to play like that in a game!

Nate had practice tonight. Jim went to help out while the rest of us stayed home. Jim came home hanging his head. Nate quit about half way through practice saying that he was too tired. I have mentioned that he is really hot & cold when it comes to playing soccer. He has the ability but just seems to lack in the drive. We are not sure why. His attitude is really poor at times & he complains that he can't play. I/we have over and over tried to encourage him & get him past the negative attitude. I think there is something more that we are missing. We are really not sure what to do. We are not trying to push him into soccer if he is not interested...he can stop playing, play something else or play nothing. We tried to take a Love & Logic approach, we talked to him about options & put things on his shoulders to figure out what he wants to do....we will see what happens....

Progress...

Zach just asked for the first time ever to USE the potty because "Pee coming" to quote him. We still had two poop accidents but this is progress!

Josh had his soccer game this afternoon. Jim took him & the rest of us stayed home...mainly because the weather was cold & rainy! Jim said that Josh did awesome. He scored once on break-away & had a second break0away but kicked the ball directly at the goalie so it didn't go in. He played great in goal to & had several saves!

In looking through the posts, I realized that I have not mentioned Etey-Petey much. Now you may be asking yourself...who is Etey-Petey. Well, he is also known at Ethan but seldom goes by that name. I am not really sure how he ended up with that name. I guess it is because all the other boys have shortened names and someone decided to try it with Ethan's name. The only problem is that there is not really a short name for Ethan...so it because Etey (sort of like ET, I guess). Then someone rhymed Etey with Petey, so now the boys call Ethan Etey-Petey & even Jim and I do it at times. At first it sounded really goofy to me but now I am pretty used to it.


Anyway, Ethan is doing well, he did wake up today with a runny noise...not sure where he got that!?!? He is getting braver with his walking. If I hold just one of his hands, he will walk pretty much anywhere. He really does not use my hand much for balance but more for security. It won't be long before he is walking everywhere. He has started climbing & climbs on everything. He figured out how to climb up the rock wall side of the play structure & I need to get Jim to fill in the slats to prevent him from climbing...this is the same thing we went through with Zach at this age.

The highlight of the day was a visit from Uncle Dave. The boys love to see their uncle! They were a bit disappointed that Uncle Dave came more to work with Dad and less to play with them this time....they still managed to get in some play time. Uncle Dave also went and say Nate's soccer game.

Dave and Jim finished all the excavation for the front pavers. Some of it has been backfilled with stone. We still need some more stone & then a sand layer. The pavers will be delivered later this week!

After Nate's soccer game we decided to go downtown and get something to eat at Panera's...the kids enjoy eating out once in awhile & places like Panera are not too expensive! After we ate, I decided to head home with Ethan because it was cold and after 7. Jim stayed downtown with the other 3 boys to play in the park downtown. They all came home a little after 8. Jim let me know that Zach had a present in his pants for me...he is doing well with #1 but we have yet to get him to go #2 in the potty. I have switched exclusively to pull-ups (we still call them underwear). It is easier to change poop in pull-ups than real underwear. Anyway, when Zach walked in the door, I asked him what happened & why he pooped in his pants...he shrugged his shoulders & said "I just don't know". I really wanted to laugh (but held it in) & said I was really sad & he grabbed his cheeks and made a frown.

Then I did something that probably really set our potty training back...I not only laughed by I grabbed the camera & took a picture of his frown & then had him shrug his shoulders again & took a picture. It was just too funny & I couldn't help it but I know I will pay for it later when he repeats his performance & thinks I will laugh! Oh well...

Zach saying he just does not know what happened:
Zach frowning after I frowned:

It is not always laughter & giggles at our house...in fact, tonight two of my kids showed their not-so great sides!

Josh had soccer practice at 6. Jim was just walking in about the time we needed to leave. I left Zach with Jim and took the other 3 boys with me. Josh's practice is at Nate & Josh's school, so all the boys like to go along and play on the playground. Jim came up about 15 minutes after practice started & brought Zach. I sat on a blanket & played with Ethan, while watching Josh practice & also Nate and Zach play....all good so far!

About 7, I decided to leave because Ethan was getting tired & everyone needed baths (I was not sure how much longer practice would run). Ethan and I were sitting on a big blanket...I folded up the blanket, picked it up, picked up Ethan & also some toys. This is the beginning of the I am going to kill my kids part....so wanted to make it clear that my arms are really full!

I walked over to the play structure where Nate and Zach are & let them know that it is almost time to go. Nate is obviously not happy & asks why. I tell him that it was getting late & that we need to go to get home & bath everyone in time for bed. I let them play a few minutes and chatted with a dad that was standing there. So then I called Nate and Zach & said that we now needed to leave. I hear a big "no!" from Nate. Here is were I start to lose my patience...remember, I am standing there with my arms full, I gave them there warning & now it is time to go. I particularly didn't appreciate Nate taking this moment to argue in front of another parent! I finally gather up Nate & then it is time to get Zach. He has followed Nate's lead & is not real happy about leaving. He runs off and climbs up a play structure. I go over & try to coax him down...no luck...so I just have to grab him and pull him down...course this is a real test of my mom abilities because my hands were already full. Nate's outburst now pales in comparison with the show that Zach puts on! Zach SCREAMS as I drag him to the van while trying to to drop Ethan in the process. Zach is hysterical & no talking or reasoning will work at this point...just time to drag him to the van. Once we made it to the van, it was very clear that I could not let go of Zach because he was going to run away. I enlist Nate's help to hold Zach long enough for me to put Ethan in his seat. Then I turn to Zach, really I just want to strangle him but I know he is tired (no nap) & I tried to take that into consideration. I pick him up, try to tickle him & make him laugh thinking maybe I could snap him out of his mood...no good. By that time we are around the van & I buckle him into his seat. He is yelling that Nate hurt him (not really, Nate just held him) & he is also saying that Nate is NOT his best friend...okay, now you know he is hysterical!

He screams the entire ride home, all the way into the house, while I take his clothes off for a bath & while getting into the bath. There was about 15 seconds when I put him into to the tub that he laughed but it quickly turned back to screaming when I didn't put as much water in the tub as he wanted. I bathed up both boys (Zach & Ethan), got them out, dressed them both & the sent Zach to his room. During all this time he is still crying and screaming. Throughout our activities, I tried a few times to break his mood but he was just so tired & worked himself up that I was not going to be able to help him. He was really mad at me. Let me tell you, he is lucky that I just sent him to bed....I was so frustrated & had absolutely no patience left. Jim cam home about 5-10 minutes after I sent Zach to bed. I told him about my adventure & suggested that he go in & try to work with Zach (yes, Zach was still crying and fussing). Jim was able to go in & calm him down.

So that is my story....most of the time my boys are pretty good but then have their moments as well. I can not remember the last time that Zach acted up this much & hopefully it will be a long time before we see this side of Zach again!

Visitors Tonight

We were inside getting dinner ready when we heard a bunch of quacking outside. We looked outside to see a momma duck and 11-12 ducklings on our patio. By the time I thought to get the camera they were already leaving. They headed through a neighbors yard. Jim said that they had just left the nest & the momma duck was taking the babies to water (where they would be safer). The all stopped under a bush in front of a neighbors house.....they had gone quite a distance & I guess two noisy boys chasing them had made the momma duck a bit nervous to go any farther.

My Best Friend Nate

Yesterday Zach and Nate cooperated for a couple cute pictures! I figured it was a good time to introduce you to "My Best Friend Nate". A couple months ago, Zach decided that Nate was his best friend....guess this is a benefit of being the biggest brother (although at times Nate probably does not see it this way).

Everywhere (and I mean everywhere) we go, he will tell everyone "Nate is my best friend". Nate does not even have to be with us, but Zach will tell people at the park, the checkout clerk at the grocery store, moms in the hall at school, whoever he meets that he has a best friend Nate. For awhile this caused a problem at our house because Josh's feelings got hurt. We worked with Zach & explained that you can have more than one best friend & that all of his brothers are his best friends. So if you ask him now who his best friend is, he will always still first say "Nate my best friend", then if you ask him who else is his best friend, he will usually responds with "Josh, Mommy, Daddy and Ethan".

HAPPY BIRTHDAY ZACH!

Zach is officially 3 now! He woke up this morning to find his cake & was very excited....all the boys thought it was pretty cool! Zach wanted to eat it right away but I told him we had to wait until Daddy came home...sort of torture for a 3 year old! I did bring out a special box of Cocoa Crispies that I bought for his birthday & that seemed to be good enough for the moment. It was a special addition Indiana Jone box & came with a light-up spoon...so that was a real treat!

Mid morning, he stood staring at his cake and asked "please" to have the guys. I couldn't say no...so we pulled all the guys off the cake and Zach played with them until it was time to get Josh. Ironically, Indiana Jone spent the morning flying around in the Millenium Falcon...just thought it was funny since Harrison Ford played both Indy & Han Solo!

Anyway, after Zach played with the guys, we washed them off & put them back on the cake...his idea....his idea to put them back, my idea to wash them off first.

When Jim got home, we opened presents & dug into the volcano cake!

It is 10 PM & I just finished up Zach's cake for tomorrow. I baked it this afternoon & spent the last two hours decorating. It did not turn out quite as I envisioned but I think it will be a hit with the boys nevertheless! I had originally planned on using Star Wars characters but Target was sold out so I defaulted to Indiana Jones (pronounced Ind-Jones or Indy-Jones by Zach). So Indy is fighting a Mummy & Cannibal on a volcano!

Two thumbs up this morning!

I will be the first to admit that our life is not all laughs & giggles. We have our share of struggles & frustrations. One of our big struggles is the morning...getting everyone up, ready and out the door is sometimes more of a challenge than I can handle.

The struggles usually start with getting Nate out of bed. Josh is almost always up around 6:30 & Zach shortly thereafter. Nate on the other hand would sleep until 9 every morning if he could....so our morning battle begins around 7-7:15 when I tell him it is time to get up. Most mornings it take 5-10 minutes of encouragement before he is up but he is never really happy about it. Some mornings his complaining & lack of cooperation use up all my patience before I can even get him out of bed! UGH!

Yesterday I made a deal with him...there were only 23 more mornings left until school was out. I told him if he got up with a smile for each of those mornings that he could sleep in as long as he wanted once school was out. He seemed to be intrigued by the deal. So today was morning #1 & sure enough he got up on his own & even had a smile....it was such a nicer way to start the morning with him! Any bets on how many more mornings like this I get before he goes back to the old ways?

Jim and Nate went to soccer tonight. They stayed late after team practice & practiced a bit together. Nate came home really pumped up & excited about playing! We struggle with him a bit because he is so hot and cold when it comes to playing soccer (well, really with most anything he does). We continue to encourage him, telling him that he needs always try his best & keep a positive attitude!

Josh and his class had his Parent's Day performance today. Jim, Zach, Ethan & I went to hear many songs, poems & books. It was very cute. It started with a little parade play and Josh was the Grandfather in the parade.

Did I mention that potty training is one of my least favorite activities? Zach did well most of the afternoon & used the potty for #1 but things fell apart tonight & twice he pooped in his underwear (well pull-ups). Ugh....he just looks up at me and says "sorry". Well, tomorrow is another day!

Poop in His Underwear :(

Well, it happened today....the first time Zach pooped in actual underwear. It is such a mess! Yuck! I sacrificed the underwear. I noticed that it was starting to separate near the band & that was enough of an excuse to cut it off & avoid trying to pull them down! I was so annoyed because he had JUST got off the potty!

Potty training is one of my least favorite parent activities. We sort of put it off with Zach because we were busy and lacked the energy & also he showed absolutely no interest. He turns 3 on Wednesday so we really couldn't put it off any longer...definitely time. I was certain that he would get it quick, afterall, the kid knows the names of the characters on Star Wars, can tell you if they are bad or good & even does remarkably well playing Star Wars Legos....so my thought was that if he could do all that, he could certainly figure out how to use the toilet! After working with him the last couple days, I realized that potty training is really less of "understanding" and more of changing a habit. He has never worried about stopping what he was doing to use the toilet & making it a habit to stop playing is obviously not easy for a 2-3 year old. I guess though that this gave me a little more perspective & hopefully a little more patience as I deal with "accidents".

Day two of potty training did not start off with a bang. I guess Zach thought wearing underwear was a fun game for one day! Today we cried and cried when we put on his underwear. After the initial battle, he did well until we left for the older boys' games.

It was a beautiful day for the soccer games. We started at Nate's game and then headed to Josh's game. Both did well. Josh loves playing goalie but I think his absolute favorite is falling down...the kid seems to spend half of his time on the ground! Both boys play in goal as well as on the field. Picture on the right is Josh tossing the ball out after a great save....he had 5-6 saves while in goal & no one scored on him. Picture to the left is Nate in goal...looking so serious!

We (well Jim) made progress on our front patio. He moved 4000 pounds of rock and compacted it. The next step is to get the sand in & compacted & then we can lay the brick!

After the games we decided to go out to eat for Mother's Day (since Sunday is always too busy).

Can you hear my cheering? Zach has been sitting on the little potty most of the morning. We set it up so that he could see the TV while sitting on the pot! He finally went pee & we are waiting for #2. Zach has been fighting us for so long, he has been insistent on keeping his diapers. I have just not had the time to commit to potty-training so it has been avoided. Well, Zach turns 3 in a few days & it was definitely time to get serious! So, this morning we have sent working on it & eating M&Ms (his reward for sitting on the pot).

Today when we (Ethan, Zach & I) dropped off the boys, Zach started talking about Daddy. Here is our conversation...it really made me laugh.

Mom: Zach, where is Daddy?
Zach: Daddy at work.
Mom: How did Daddy get to work.
Zach: Drive truck.
Mom: What color is Daddy's truck?
Zach: Black
Mom What does Daddy do at work?
Zach: Eat candy.
Mom (after laughing): What else does Daddy do at work?
Zach: Eats more candy.

So there you go...all who thought Jim was hard at work...little did we know!

Jim has the area for our front walk all excavated! Three evening of excavating & he is done! We have a huge hole in front of the house...there is a 20" drop off the porch & Zach can not get down without help!

We are the worst at making a plan and sticking to it! We have our plan for the front walk & that is set but we keep switching up on ideas to do with the extra pavers. We have talked about paving an area next to the concrete patio in back but we have also talked about paving a path or a border around the house. This is really a bad habit that we have...we set out a plan & then change our minds over and over. I always blame it on the fact that it takes us so long to finish....gives us (probably me more than Jim) too much time to think about other options!

On another note, Ethan is taking more and more steps. He went from the couch to a bar stool in the living room today (about 6-7 feet). His preferred method is still a modified crawl. He sort of looks like he is "taking a knee" & then sort of scoots while he is upright & drags one leg behind him.

Well, the van is acting up yet again! We just put money into repairs & came home from our trip noticing a new strange noise. I suppose that we should be thankful that we made it home & that the van didn't die on the side of the road somewhere between Sandusky & home.

Although we hate to pay someone else to work on the van, we are in a bit of a time crunch and really need the van fixed. We decided to drop the van off at the Dodge dealer & let them take a look at it. Everyone went to Nate's soccer practice tonight, then on the way home we dropped off the van. One problem....we can not all fit into the truck....so we walked home from the dealership. It is only about 1 mile, so really not too big a deal!

The three younger boys had a lot of fun playing at the park while Nate had his practice. There is a big play structure for the boys to play on & there was also a few kids Josh knew from school there also.

Ethan is getting much braver with walking. He has been cruising around walls & furniture for quite awhile. He finally decided it was time to take a few steps....it was just like he woke up this morning & said to day it the day! He has taken up to about 6-7 steps at a time, spanning quite a distance! Now if we can just get Zach to wake up and think "today is the day I stop wearing diapers!"

Nate had an AWESOME game today. He tends to be a hot and cold player....some days he is really into the game & some days he is not so much (he can tend to be more like a spectator on the field). Today is one of those days when he was in the zone & played his heart out! He scored two goals! Great job Nate!

Josh decided today that he is going to start a rock collection. After Nate's game we headed out to the Rock Shop to find some pavers for the front of our house. While there, the boys were allowed to pick out a special rock from a bucket of shiny colored rocks....Josh fell in love with rocks & has decided to start a collection!

As far as our pavers....we sort of got a great deal! I say sort of because we decided to look through the stock of discontinued bricks to see if we could find something that will work. Well, we did & were offered the bricks we wanted at $2/sq which his less than half price. We only need a 200 ft2 of pavers...which was a little less than half of what was left. After some discussion, the guy agreed to sell us the entire pile for just over $1/sq ft. So we got an awesome deal but ended up with more than twice the bricks we originally came in for. We bought the extra because there will be enough to pave the area between our house and patio...someday....for now we will focus on the front of the house.