Trail Ride...

Paige set up a trail ride for her horses today. Here she is giving orders and telling everyone to hold on to the reins. She also likes to point out that Barbie is a good horse rider.

Thanks to Andy and Alice for passing long this wonderful toy, it has provided lots of entertainment! Not sure that Paige is actually supposed to ride it (it's meant for an American Girl Doll), but she's had a blast trying! The original owner was their big cousin Samantha, she would be so proud :)! 

Potty training is a lot of work...

Nobody told me that potty training would be this much work. Paige started off strong and has been slowly declining, I'm  hoping tomorrow will be a better day and we can start fresh. I feel sort of defeated and yet I know it's my own fault. Paige had several accidents today, but we were busy with family and friends. No matter the amount of reminders it just didn't seem to sink in. She has also started to resist pooping in the potty and that IS NO FUN to clean up out of underwear!
It's hard for her AND it's hard for us as parents to not want to throw in the towel. I keep reminding myself that it's a process and we'll be dealing with it for a while. Tomorrow is a new day and hopefully a good night sleep will help all of us get back on track. I know she can do this, we just have to stick to it!
We had our neighbors over for the game tonight and Paige had fun with her buddy Ava. Ava even sat by her and read books in hopes that Paige would go poop on the potty (which unfortunately didn't work). She's a year older then Paige and such a sweet little girl. I'm happy to know that she'll have such a nice little girl to play with when she gets older.

Potty Training Day 3

Well, day 3 was a success in my books. She only had two accidents yesterday and I told her that Ryan and I would take her to the ice cream shop if she had a good "potty" day. She did a great job so away we went. The decision was, do I leave her in underwear or put her in a pull-up? I decided a pull-up was the way to go, I told her it's her special big girl underwear. I reminded her that she still had to tell us if she had to go potty, and that the ice cream shop had a potty just like our house. She agreed and we were on our way. She told Ryan and I that she was getting vanilla...Ryan was getting chocolate and somehow I was getting strawberry (my least favorite). When we got there we tried a few flavors and settled in with our cones, about 5 minutes into eating she stopped talking and looked at me with a sad look. She said "mommy, I'm peeing my pants". At that moment I was beyond happy that she was wearing a pull-up! We still have a lot to work on, but I was glad we could reward her for such all her hard work (and mine)....we both deserved our ice cream cones!  

Note how tired we both look...potty training is hard work!!!

Potty Training - day 2

Well, I have to say that I'm pretty amazed by my little girl! She did an amazing job today! She went potty in the toilet all day (with the exception of one small accident before dinner) and I'm pretty sure the "gummy bears" were the best motivation ever! I have to send a thanks out to grandma and grandpa for stopping by this morning, it was fun to see them and they rescued me by replenishing my "gummy bear" stash.
I forgot to mention that Paige even stayed dry during nap time! I've been putting a pull-up on her at nap and bedtime because I wasn't sure how that would work...only time will tell I guess.

So proud of my little girl!

Although, I myself am exhausted. I'm not sure why, she's doing a great job...but I guess spending most of my day in the bathroom and talking about poop and pee must be tiring me out!

Tomorrow is another day of staying home to keep things going, I know we're moving in the right direction!!!

Potty Training Part II

So far so good! I honestly can't believe how easy it has been, I have a feeling tomorrow might be a different story...could I really be this lucky? She told me every time she had to go potty and even told me that she had to poop, and she actually did! She got a "gummy bear" aka a fruit snack every time she went potty, but pooping on the potty got her 5 gummy bears! She is so proud of herself!

I'm proud of her and I'm praying that tomorrow will go smooth.

I must admit it's a little sad, my little baby is growing up so fast. Sitting at the dinner table tonight she seemed older, and I'm excited to see what her future holds but not ready to let go of my precious baby.

Today she informed me that she's "working on her manners". I love this kid!

Potty Training?

Well, I'm going to do it...today after nap I'm going to attempt "big girl underwear" for Paige. I decided starting after nap wouldn't seem like such a long day for either of us. I told her before nap that she could wear underwear when she woke up, she seemed excited...time will tell. I honestly have no idea what I'm doing, I've read a few things here and there and heard advice from other moms...but I don't really have a set plan. Well, I guess I do have a few little things up my sleeve. I'm doing a sticker chart and a reward for every time she goes potty in the toilet. Her reward is ONE fruit snack, anyone who knows Paige knows that's a BIG deal! She doesn't get treats very often and she loves "gummy bears" so I have a feeling this might help her to get what she wants (and ultimately, what we want too!). Fingers crossed...I'm not promising anything, just testing the waters.
Stay tuned!

Happy New Year!

We had an uneventful, yet perfect New Years Eve. It was spent with just the 3 of us, and that was just fine for us. I'm pretty sure Ryan and I were asleep by 10:30, much different from our younger years. We both laughed about it and said we won't always be this boring, but sometimes being the parents of young children can change your perspective on "fun". It was fun to eat pizza and let Paige run around in her "underwear", it was hilarious to watch her jump off the couch into her bean bag. She thought she was being so daring, and Ryan and I couldn't stop laughing. Snuggling and reading books in our new king size bed before her bedtime was great...I love our family and being together all snuggled up felt like the perfect new years eve to us!

Today was a fun and busy day. We decided to take a trip to Brainerd to see Great Granny, but first Paige had to play the drums to get us going...

We picked up a pizza and brought it to Granny's place, she lives in a beautiful assisted living building with plenty of room for Paige to explore. They had a blue Christmas tree up in the sitting room, she thought that was great because blue is her favorite color. She had some major static cling happening with her hair, that's what happens in MN winters...serious hat hair! Granny got a kick out of it and requested a picture. Paige loves getting rides on Granny's walker, she is a lucky girl to have such a fun GREAT Granny. Who would ever guess that she's 96 years old...I hope I'm that full of life and witty when I'm her age. She told us the story of a lady that moved in across the hall from her. She said she never comes out of her little apartment so Granny took her some cookies the other day and asked her if she wanted to play cards with some of her friends - to get her aquatinted with some of the ladies. I think it's pretty sweet that even at 96, Granny is still making a difference in people's lives. It's a good thing to remember on this new years day, there is always a chance to make a difference in the life of others...no matter how old or young you are!

We ended the day by FINALLY seeing Grandma and Grandpa. Grandma has been sick since Christmas so we have let her heal and kept our distance. She's finally feeling better, and even let us beat her in a game of golf on the Wii tonight! It was great to see them and look at all their Christmas decorations, to bad that we didn't get to enjoy them on Christmas! Oh well, all that matters is that she's feeling better and we'll pray that next year everyone is healthy! What a fun and busy day, what a great way to start the new year! Happy 2013!!