potty time - don't jinx us!

When Daddy was away, Bella tinkled in the potty! It was completely unexpected and such a great surprise! Before her bath, she practices sitting on the potty. It is part of the routine and she loves it. She sat on her potty top (Sesame Street seat that fits on top of an adult toilet), pushed toilet paper between her legs over and over. She doesn't actually wipe, but she knows that the paper goes down. She also toots, a lot. It's cute. She sits (plays) for a while then "makes bubbles" which means she wants to take a bath. Into the bath she went, lots of bubbles, lots of fun. Suddenly she stood and said "potty" with her hand pointed down. I lifted her and sat her on the potty. She tooted and then I heard tinkling!!! There was actual "water" trickling down into the toilet! YAY! I screamed, I high fived her, I encouraged her to flush since there was really pee-pee in the potty. I was so proud!

The next night we came home and she was fascinated with this portable potty. Up, down, moving it all around. It's been around for a while, but she didn't play with it as much as this night. I took advantage and made dinner and actually ate it all while she pottied. When it was "make bubbles" time (bath time) I picked her up and noticed that there was pee pee in the potty! Again! She did it all on her own! Two nights in a row must mean something. We are on our way to being potty trained and spending a whole lot of "diaper" money on something else.

Since then, she has refused to potty at all. When we ask, she consistently and adamantly says "no!" We're bummed, but I think we could get somewhere if we had some M&M's as motivation. Matt is concerned about the sugar in the candy so we agreed to get mini M&M's. We'll see how it goes. Fingers-crossed!

from Ms. Tiffany

Ms. Tiffany is one of Bella's teachers at daycare. She snapped these pictures from the summer and sent them to us. We love that Bella loves being a part of the Purple Room!

playgroups - how to break in?

Since all of our friends with babies have moved away (not really all of them, just the two that lived closest to us) Matt and I are seeking couples with kids that live nearby. I belong to an online parent group which I love. It's great for baby advice and buying & selling baby gear. They have organized playgroups which meet at parks on a regular basis, most of the time during daytime (working) hours. I decided to give a couple of the afternoon playgroups a try.

Friday afternoon I picked up Bella from daycare and drove straight to Spotts Park where our age playgroup announced they would be meeting from 4-6 pm. I have never gone to an 'event' nor have I ever emailed or spoken to a parent that belonged to the group. Bella and I arrived and smiled as we walked toward the play structures. No one rushed over to ask who we were and whether we were new or not. Of course I didn't expect this, but it would have made it easier. I made small chat (how old is yours? that's a cute outfit. isn't the weather great?), but no one remained engaged and I felt I couldn't keep asking questions. I wasn't even sure that these parents were part of the playgroup. Anyway, one by one, everyone left until it was just me and Bella. We played some more, then went on our way. Defeated.

Monday afternoon I picked up Bella from daycare again and drove straight to Proctor Plaza where an all aged playground meets regularly from 4-6 pm. Again, Bella and I arrived and smiled as we walked toward the play structures. No one approached us. No one moved. There was a group of parents circled around each other not too far from the playground. I was fairly certain that these were the moms that I wanted to meet. I could not figure out how to actually meet them. How are you supposed to do it? Walk over and say "hi" ? Then what? It was clear that they knew each other very well. How do I break into the clique? Bella still needs quite a bit of supervision on the playground. I couldn't just leave her to attempt to talk to the moms. Bella would not tolerate hanging out when there's a playground so close. I gave up. Bella and I played. After a while, we left. Defeated.

I'm going to keep going to these playgroups in hopes that someone will recognize me stalking them. Maybe one of the times, there will be fewer parents so I can get to know someone without trying to jump into an already established conversation and clique. Any other ideas are welcome! Really, what I would rather do is send Matt to these groups. He's much more outgoing and would just walk up and say "hi" without anticipating the next move. It might be awkward, but he'd get to know someone.

pre-picture

Jack and Bella were all dressed up for new pictures. Matt complained that Bella's sweater looked like a "grandma sweater." I'm not sure what he means, but I like the frilly top.

The Lion & Tiger (Tigger)

Jack & Bella, I mean, Tigger and Lion, got together to practice being in costume for Halloween. There was some crying, but not anymore. Bella loves putting on her costumes to play, especially when we promise to visit Martha and "Mack", our neighbor and her English bulldog.Even Penny likes to play in costume - NOT!

Bella at play

As Bella becomes more independent, away goes any inhibitions that she may have had. Spending time with other children, both her age an older, has helped this progress; as she watches other children at play, she immediately tries to either imitate or participate. She has never been on a tricycle before, but didn't hesitate to get onto this one as soon as our friends Jeff and Monika's daughter Vicky got off. Never mind that fact that Bella capsized this about four times before mastering the mounting technique, she was determined to get on this thing and try and ride it as Vicky just had.
Jeff sent a text yesterday afternoon inviting us over to let the kids run around and meet the new puppy (Bruno the Vizla). At first, we didn't think we would make it since we had a long drive ahead of us back from camping, however Bella had a great nap during the ride, and we got back to the house at about 1 PM leaving a great afternoon ahead of us.

When we arrived at Jeff & Monika's, Bella was a little slow at first to warm up to people that she hadn't seen (or seen by) in over a year: (I can't believe that it has been that long since having Bella over to visit them at their house with Bella). It only took about 10 minutes, a little snack, and seeing all of the other small children (and puppy) running around for Bella to ditch Daddy and join in the mayhem: Up the stairs, down the stairs, to the swing set, on the swings, chase the puppy, Vicky was a bit reluctant at first, but then very hospitable to invite a "strange" 20 month old up to her room to see her toys. After seeing this, I just let her go and figure the rest out for herself. In time, Bella teamed up with Tom and Megan's daughter Fiona climbing up the ladder to the second tier of the swing set (no small feat for someone Bella's size; it was a regular ladder, not a set of stairs!).
Out came the sidewalk chalk, and everyone dropped the rolling toys and got down on the ground drawing and being drawn. Bella immediately grabbed a piece, but took a minute or two to figure out what to do with it. She made a few scratches on the ground herself, and then joined the others "helping" color in their drawings; she even tried coloring Daddy's feet at one point. Then Jeff asked Vicky to lay down so that she could be "drawn". As soon as the other kids saw that this meant special close attention, they were lying all about waiting for their turn. Bella, or course, followed suit and struck a pose in suspended animation on the driveway. As I drew her, she didn't move a muscle waiting for me to finish: it almost reminds me of the silhouette of her on the header of this blog - in mid-step with her hands up in the air.

Camping with Bella - Trip #2

We camped at Fairfield State Park which is half way between Dallas and Houston, so it was perfect for meeting Tiffany and Zahid. This trip has been planned for a while, unlike the previous sailing weekend when we made plans the night before. It was really fun to hang out with them two weekends in a row. Above: Matt, Zahid, Bellatrix, Laura, Jersey the dog (also called Shorty), Tiffany, Penny the "bad" dog and Zoey the "perfect" dog.

Bella and I began packing at 2:30 Friday afternoon. Matt arrived home and helped us finish and we were on the road at 4:30, just in time for rush hour traffic. We had to drop something off to John & Ashley which ended with a bit of playtime for Jack & Bella. We were on the road again about 6 pm. We finally arrived at the State Park around 8 pm, which was a bummer because it was dark and we were starving. We quickly learned that there was a burn ban so we were thankful for Tiffany & Zahid's Coleman stove. Matt pitched our tent, Zahid pitched their tent, Tiffany began preparing dinner and I followed Bella around and helped when I could. Tiffany cooked turkey burgers with red peppers. They were the best! Honestly, I've never had such a delicious burger. I'm getting the recipe and adding them to our list of frequent dinners.

We turned in early as most campers do. It was cold without a fire! We slept great for some amount of time. I heard critters walking around, but nothing alarming. Later I heard what I thought was Tiffany searching for a bottle of water in the cooler. I figured "she" was wakened by the very loud steam release from a nearby power plant. After some prodding, Matt awoke and explained the eery steam sounds. When he heard the rustling of leaves, he promptly pointed a flash light outside to see what all the commotion was about. Penny also helped out by leaping out of the tent and barking loudly. There were raccoons! Matt got out, investigated and saw our breakfast potatoes spread all over the campsite. Later, we found the tortillas and cheese also stroon about. The best was all the little muddy paw prints all over our cooler. We certainly learned our lesson.
In typical dipping fashion, instead of eating the apple, Bella used it as a tool just to eat the caramel. There's nothing like fall weather, apples and caramel.
Here's Bella just before sunset on the beach. Obviously, she's a little tired and has a blank stare...but a cute outfit! It's all (including the shoes) from her friend Camilla.
As if the raccoons weren't enough! This armadillo was out and about at about 4 pm. We were all a bit leary. It was odd that he was awake and roaming at this hour, especially so close to a campsite with three barking dogs.
This is out of order, but I'll explain anyway. After the middle of the night steam release and raccon feasaco, Bella woke up because she was cold; it was 48 degrees in the tent. She was bundled, but her head and hands were still cold. She got into our sleeping bag which pretty much meant that I didn't get to sleep the rest of the night. We reached a point and thought it was just better to get up and out so we walked around until sunrise. Do you like the layered look?
Zahid had perfect form for skipping stones.
Tiffany and Bella enjoyed each other.
...and so did Bella and Zoey. Actually, I think Bella enjoyed Zoey more than Zoey enjoyed Bella. Zoey is Zahid's 15 year old dog. She's perfectly behaved. Quiet, tolerant, observant, beautiful. Matt loved her and compared her to Dutchess (even though Dutchess whined and barked frequently).
Shorty and Bella enjoyed time together in the hammock. Jersey (or Shorty) liked 'kissing' Bella.
We didn't bring any toys so Bella made do with what was around. The coffee maker has lots of parts which were fun to take apart and put back together.

The next night was so much better than the first. We all slept from 9 pm to 7 am, no interuptions or strange sounds. It was 60 degrees and absolutely perfect camping weather! We all had a great time!

Sailing on Lake Ray Hubbard

This one picture does not describe our weekend. We had the BEST time with Tiffany and Zahid sailing on Lake Ray Hubbard. We drove to Dallas last Saturday morning then boarded the boat a bit after sundown. Tiffany and Zahid time share a Hunter 33. We prepared too much food and brought too much wine. It was all delicious! The weather was absolutely perfect! Bella enjoyed looking around as we sailed across the large lake. Matt and Zahid talked about all their sailing experiences as Bella slept soundly in her car seat below. We were in heaven on earth. It was the perfect evening: good friends, good food, good wine, good conversation, good boat, good baby, good time.

swinger

Would you look at that 20 month old on an amusement park ride without mom or dad! She sure is growing up fast.
We went to the Greek Festival Friday night. We walked around, shared some wine and yummy Greek food. We walked to the kid section of the festival and Bella immediately started walking toward the merry-go-round swings. It looked pretty fun, but it was obviously for 'big' kids. Bella was persistent so I asked the worker if I could ride with Bella. He just laughed. ...and it took me several seconds to realize that this meant 'no'. We analyzed and thought about the swings some more, then decided that Bella could try it. The worst that could happen is that she falls out (but it seemed unlikely) or cries. Matt bought the tickets and placed her in the swing. Fortunately, in addition to the metal bar there was a little seat beat to keep her safe and secure. We walked away and stood apart from each other, watching from different areas, just in case one of us had to go in after her. The swing began to move. Bella's face absolutely changed - she smiled from ear to ear! It was adorable to watch her enjoy the swings so much. We were proud parents!
Of course, removing her from the swing brought on a huge tantrum. She didn't understand that her turn was over and it was time for others to ride. She screamed and yelled, then laid down on the concrete to really protest. Matt attempted to capture the moment using his cell phone camera. We were blocking the sidewalk so the police man came over. Instead of telling us to move, he asked if we needed to borrow his flashlight to properly illuminate Bella so the picture could be taken. Ha! His great sense of humor eased everyone, including Bella. She eventually crawled into her stroller for our long walk back to the car.

Camping with Bella - Trip #1

We made our first attempt at camping with a 20 month old this past weekend at Palmetto State Park near Gonzales, Texas. We limited this first trip to one night so that we could slowly ease Bella into the routine change. Despite the pouty picture, Bella really enjoyed herself and was a lot of fun, just not too cooperative in taking this picture. She had too much fun to go to sleep right away, but then slept through the night (even with all of the coyotes howling and cold air) up until about 04:30 when she wanted to walk around the tent in her bare feet. It was tough for us for about 45 minutes, but then she crawled into our sleeping bag and fell back asleep until about 07:00.
Bella was very helpful (most of the time), and sometimes too helpful. She wanted to help with unpacking the car, at setting up the tent, and cooking breakfast. We have already learned the word "hot", so just telling Bella that the fire is hot is enough for her to know that she doesn't want to touch it. She loves pushing things around on wheels and throwing things out in the garbage. Next task is getting her more proactive at putting away her toys when she's done.
We took a short hike around the park on Sunday morning which included stops at the fishing dock and the playground.
Bella enjoyed showing her cousin Jack the fish swimming below.

I just had to include this picture to show Bella's color coordination. Starting from the top: maroon and brown ski cap, hot pink sweatshirt, red and orange pants, and of course the brown, teal, and pink moccasins.

Just one last picture to finish this short entry; about two campsites down from ours is the great vine coming up out of the ground and snaking quite a distance to the nearest trees - it looks like some super creepy ghoul waving its extremely long arms at tha campers. Next time we have to get this camp site so that we can see this at night.......