Lesson From Potty Training

"The low points in motherhood are potty training and driver's training."

I think that my friend's mom has it right. At least the potty training part. (Thankfully, Zachary's not old enough to learn how to drive!) There are so many theories and methods for potty training a mom could get lost. I would love to do infant potty training, but for some reason we've never really given it a go. I just read another article about it that made me wonder if Eleanor is still little enough to try it with.

When I was first gathering information about potty training Zachary I asked a friend who has many kids what to do. She wasn't really sure. I thought that was funny considering she had five or six kids who seemed to be pottying by themselves! Now I understand what she meant. I have three kids who are pretty much trained, and I don't feel like anything I did made a difference at all.

Zachary took forever, and then suddenly was trained after being pretty sick soon after he turned three. Quinlan got trained on accident in less than two days two months after he turned two. I was quite hopeful when I had heard that girls are easier. But Veronica has taken Zachary's path of foreverness and is only just now going potty consistently. Of course, with each of these, there's a longer story!

It seems that no matter what I do or try, this is something that is out of my hands. If I needed yet another reminder that I don't have control over anything, I think this would be it. God has taken everything in my life and used it to show me over and over again that He is in control and I'm just along for the ride. No matter how hard I try to make my will happen, God's will is stronger and overrides my own desires.

That doesn't mean that I get to stop trying! I am still responsible for doing my best to train them. He uses me in their lives and the lives of others. But it does mean a thought and attitude shift as I go about my day. I can look around for the opportunities God has placed before me and submit my will to His larger plan each and every day.

I think that the Lord is trying to show me that this is how He works in other areas of my children's lives, as well. I need to pour my time and energy into them. I need to train them and discipline them. I need to love them and hug them. But in the end, how they turn out is all God's doing. I can try to take credit myself, or I can give Him the praise and glory for how He's working in my children's lives. And I can learn this now before those teen years!

Photo Shoot

Today we dressed all my kids up in matching outfits and embarked upon a photo shoot with cousin Lucy. We took over 100 photos, and I think we might have ten good ones :) After three hours, we had our photos taken, had them uploaded, and had a collage made. I spent a little more time playing with the collage maker and we get to pick up our prints later tonight. Technology is awesome!

Lucy is two months and Eleanor is six months. They were never happy at the same time. And when they were happy, they weren't looking in the same direction. My sister-in-law said that if they would even both cry at the same time, that would make a good picture. But that never happened, either!

It was amazing how many times we'd have all the kids set up for a photo, and one of them would turn their heads. And that's not even taking the babies into consideration! I think we need to have more photo shoots like this throughout the year, so that when the time comes, my kids will hold their poses, look at the camera, and smile normally.

For some of the better pictures, check out the album Christmas photo shoot on picassa.

Still Thankful

I've been meaning to post about Thanksgiving. Can you believe it's been a week already? We've so quickly moved from a time of being thankful into a season of being greedy. I'm trying to hold onto the spirit of thankfulness a little bit longer this year. We still don't have our tree, yet, so it's a little easier not to get sucked in!

We had a wonderful time Wednesday night with our homegroup. Even with our guests the kids still outnumbered the adults (18 kids 16 adults). One unique thing about our group this year was the international flavor. Moh Yin (from Malaysia) brought a new friend from China. There were also eight of the nine Egyptian neighbors. When we got home (around ten) we spent some time on the computer showing Zachary a map of the world and where we people were from. We compared everything to how long it took to drive to Aunt Donna's house (Nevada). Did you know that it would take roughly two weeks to drive to Egypt from Nebraska? I wonder if anyone's tried it?

The definite hightlight of the festivities were when our new friends sang traditional songs from their countries. I, of course, drew a mental block and could not think of a single song! Even if I could, I'm not sure my kids would have known any. I mean really, how often do we sing "Johnny Appleseed" or the like?

We spent Thanksgiving in Blair. I was really worried about not being able to eat any dairy (Eleanor has an intolerance). Can you name a Thanksgiving dish without butter or cream cheese? The hardest part by far was passing on Paula's french silk pie. (I attempted to make one with margarine for Greg's birthday- that doesn't work.) We had a wonderful time with friends and family. We watched a slideshow of a honeymoon in New Zealand- it made us want a digital SLR and new passports!

The rest of the weekend was spent lounging around and watching football. We made an advent wreath and are preparing our hearts for the celebration of Christ's birth.

All For a Smartie

Today after breakfast I sent Zachary in to clean the bathroom. It takes him forty-five minutes, and I could do a better job, but if he does it every day it stinks less and he'll get better at it. Anyways, I headed upstairs with the other kids and Veronica went potty! It was so exciting and she got a smartie. The boys wanted a smartie, too, but we don'e just pass the candy out in our hosue. So Zachary offered to clean all three of the bathrooms and Quinlan stripped and remade the beds. I had the majority of our jobs done for the day and all I had to do was raid the Hallween candy! I still have the rest of the package in my pocket...I wonder what else we can get done today for a smartie?

Best Mommy Ever

This morning when I woke up, my husband looked at me and said, "You're the best mommy." Before you think Greg has suddenly grown sentimental, let me tell you about my night. Basically, I slept on a crib mattress, with an infant, in a room full of vomiting children. If you're squeamish, stop reading now! Only experienced mothers need continue!

Yesterday Quinlan fell asleep on the couch after lunch. Yup, he had a fever. Normally, I love it when my kids have a fever- it brings their energy levels down to within range of most other kids. :) After dinner they all started complaining about stomach aches. I thought they were just trying to get out of working. I even found Zachary in his bed instead of cleaning up the toys covering the hallway. Well, we were working, when suddenly Veronica starts vomiting. (Why is it always the two year old? They can't even pee in the potty chair, how can I expect them to vomit there?) Thankfully, she was sitting on a huge plastic road, so we were able to throw that in the tub and clean it off. Afterwards she seemed fine. Then she vomited again. This time I carried her (leaving a trail) to the bathroom (thankfully we missed Eleanor). Of course, by the time we got there, she was done! So we just decided to put everyone to bed early. You guessed it, she vomited all over her bed. So I brought her down on the couch where she vomited twice more. We decided that she and I would stay down here so I could take care of her, and Greg could get some sleep. When he went in to check on the boys, Greg discovered that Zachary had vomited all over himself. Several times, apparently. So the activity level in our house around eleven last night, was pretty intense as we showered Zachary, stripped his bed, started laundry, and moved Veronica upstairs. We pulled the crib mattress on to the floor in their room, and that's where I "slept." Veronica vomited a few more times, Zachary vomited again. To complicate all of this, Eleanor woke up at midnight, and Greg brought her in to me. She then proceeded to wake up every two hours all night long. I think I was up ten times, not counting the times I didn't get out of bed- I just heard kids moving around and got nervous it was going to start again. Everyone woke up a little before seven, and the kids have had diarrhea today. You know what your night was like when you're thinking of diarrhea as an "improvement!"

So, if I didn't earn the "best mommy ever" award last night, I don't think I even want to know what I have to do to get it!

Knights in Plastic Armor

We had a great time getting costumes ready for Halloween this year. Zachary and Quinlan were knights. I cut out shields out of foam board and the boys decorated them. Greg made some awesome swords that we spray painted- they look pretty real! We purchased helmets and breastplates from the dollar store. Some towels for capes and they were ready! Veronica was the princess they were to protect. She kept taking her tiara off, but was still pretty cute.

We took the kids to some friends for dinner. We visited a few of their neighbors then made our annual trek to the Ambassador, a nursing home not too far away. The residents love seeing the kids all dressed up. There are several people we've come to recognize from years past and it's good that the experience isn't just about the candy.

The next day we had a medieval feast! What a project that was! Zachary made most of the mincemeat pie. Quinlan didn't like cutting the meat because it was too yucky, and he didn't like stirring the fruit because it was too hot. So he watched. :) Zachary had a great time running the food processor and helping with every dish that we ate. There was a lot of food and it was all actually pretty good. We won't be doing this every year, but it was fun to have something different.

If you want to see more fall pictures, check out picasa. http://picasaweb.google.com/nette6132 I've put some photos up there and hope to keep that pretty well updated.

Rolling

Today Eleanor made progress towards mobility. She rolled from her back to her tummy! She's been able to flip off her tummy for a couple weeks, so I guess this means that rolling around the living room is coming soon. With my first baby, this was a celebratory moment. Today, I found myself near tears. It's so great to be able to put a kid down and know that's where they'll be staying! Even as wiggly as Eleanor is, she doesn't make it more than a foot from where I've set her. After rolling, will come the dreaded scooting- and all those dirty clothes that show the world I don't vacuum enough! Then she'll start crawling, walking, and running. Pretty soon she'll learn how to read and write and balance a checkbook. I'll be putting her in high school and Greg will be teaching her how to drive. We'll pack her off for college where she'll probably meet the man she'll marry. Before you know it, I'll have grandkids! And it all started today...when she rolled from her back to her tummy.