Ely, Minnesota

Every July, John's parents get a cabin at The Lodge of Whispering Pines on Big Lake about 30 minutes outside of Ely, Minnesota.  It's such a wonderful vacation.  Sloane stayed busy swimming, looking at Uncle Aaron's bugs, blueberry picking, feeding the ducks and squirrels and kayaking. 

It's so fun to look back at the first two years to see how much Sloane has grown.  Check it out here where she's one year-old and again here last year, at two .  She's changed so much!  I mean the difference between last year and this?!?  She's a preschooler!  Not a baby, not a toddler a LITTLE GIRL! 

And yes, little "baby Adler", as Sloane calls him, came along too.  I'm embarrassed to say I don't think I took a single picture of him the entire week but he too stayed busy having play dates with his cousin (when they were both awake) and taking walks while we hunted for blueberries. 

Here are a few of the pictures from the week....

Happy Birthday Sloane!

I'm in a hurry today.  We're headed up North to the Boundry Waters with John's family this afternoon and I have lots to pack still but wanted to post a few pictures of Sloane's birthday before we left!

This is her first birthday party where I felt like she actually had friends of her own to invite (not children of my friends)!   Her favorite things in the world are friends, parks and sweets- combine all three and we've got a great party!  As cheesy as it sounds, I was so happy for her.  In the car on the way home I asked her if she had fun and she said, "Yea, I want to have my party again tomorrow."  Bless her heart- only 364 more days :)

3 years and 2 months

On the 4th Adler was two months and on Monday (the 9th) Sloane will be 3 years!  I know every parent says this but I can hardly believe it.  Time has just flown by!  

Gettin' Creative

Happy Monday!  I hope everyone had a good weekend! We went to the Art Fest on Saturday morning and Saturday evening John and I went on our first date since Adler was born! It was a wonderful two hours!  We went out to eat at one of our favorite Mexican restaurants and then we went grocery shopping.  You know your life has changed when you have free time and all you want to do is grocery shop at your own pace without kids!  :)    

I've been meaning to post these for a while...one of the most challenging parts of our day while John is entertaining Sloane while feeding Adler.  The first few weeks she was happy to sit down and watch Curious George or play with a new toy out of storage but those activities aren't getting the job done anymore. So, two weeks ago I started flipping through all my Family Fun magazines and all those ideas I've pinned on Pinterest but haven't actually used and finally put them to work!   Here are some pictures....

Chalk paint: Equal parts corn starch and water with a few drops of food coloring! So much fun!

Play Doh- Flour, salt, water and food coloring.  Ours was a little sticky but she didn't care.

A note about the sticker on her belly....The sticker belongs to an outdoor plastic toy that John put together last weekend.  She found them while we were setting up to play with play doh and put them all over her body.  I didn't think anything of it because she puts stickers on her arms and legs all the time.  Well, apparently these were like super adhesive stickers and terribly hard to get off of her.  We eventually got them off by rubbing baby oil all over her body and pretty much just ripping them off while we tried to distract her with TV.  She was mad at us for awhile but eventually got over it.  I'm curious to see if she ever tries it again.

A PSA from the Brees Family

If you've been following the last few posts you know that John and I have been laying down the law with Sloane and today was no exception.

We went to the Art Festival this morning.  This will be our third year in a row and we (or at least I) just love it.  There is tons of stuff for kids to do and I enjoy looking at all the different works of art.  This year has been especially fun- my good friend Amanda's sister, Lindsay was chosen as one of Iowa's top emerging artists!

Anyways, before we even entered the grounds we clearly spelled out what we expect of Sloane, which is always the same two things-stay close to Mom and Dad and follow directions. She knows if it doesn't happen we will go home. Sloane did a really good job for the first hour we were there but as nap time creeped closer she started to lose more and more self control-which is to be expected. The final straw came when John asked her not to touch the paintings and she did it anyways.  As I mentioned in previous posts, we can't let the little things slide because those eventually turn into big things, so without hesitation we grabbed her hand and headed back to the car.  I'm sure you can imagine the tantrum that followed but we continued on doing our very best not to show emotion even though we were both a little dissappointed we had to leave, especially since we had talked about getting kettle corn before we went home.  :)

I have to say, I think we're getting pretty good at the discipline in public part and I'm totally fine with the way things went down this morning but the part that gets me......  People STARING!  I know she's crying and screaming, "I want to follow directions, I want to be a big girl." but STOP staring! Some people look at us like they've never seen a toddler meltdown (they should be so lucky)!  And I know, I KNNNOOOOW some are judging....thinking they could do it better or they would do it differently.  Even thought I'd be willing to bet those people don't have kids the staring still irks me.  I just wanted to look at them and say, "We're working on it buddy! So unless you're going to offer us a hand- stop staring!"

With that said, my little peanut is still the apple of my eye and even though we're working through some tough times together I love her dearly.  I mean what's not to love about this.... :)    

Have a New Kid By Friday: Day 4 & 5

While I'd love to tell you that I sat down and read the entire book, I didn't.  Who has time to read?  I suppose if I stopped surfing Pinterest and watching any of the Real Housewives I'd have time but I'm not giving either one of those up any time soon.. so instead we just skipped to the ever so handy back of the book that addresses specific concerns like spitting, hitting, siblings, etc. 

The verdict?  I hate to discount the book in any way but really it has all come down to staying consistent, following through and giving her any undivided attention we can.  Those three things are of course recommended in the book but I probably didn't need the book to tell me that. 

It sounds easy but when staying consistent means enforcing consequences even when you either a. know it will break her heart or b. probably isn't really that big of a deal NOW but could become a big deal LATER- it's hard.  I hate to take away activities or toys especially I know when she's really sorry and even more so when I like the toy or activity! :) But being sorry isn't enough- it's the "hurt" that comes with having to leave the park or putting away a fun game because we weren't following directions. 

Another piece of the puzzle is giving her lots of attention when we can.  I feel terrible when she asks me to come play with her and I can't (because I'm feeding, changing, soothing, etc Adler) and it's no coincidence that during those times she starts to test my limits.  So my solution has been to play with her even when she's playing well by herself every chance I get and if I can't play with her I've been getting really creative with some actives (I'll post pictures later) that she can do by herself.  And again, sounds easy but that means less checking email and reading magazines for mama.  It's ok though- her improved behavior is well worth it!   

I know if people were to watch us in action they'd probably think, "Geeez!  Relax..." but if I know one thing about Sloane (and most kids) if you give her an inch she will run right over you and make you pay.  It's better for everyone to keep her in line even with the little things.

I hate to even say this for fear of jinxing it but I've even thought a few times, "Wow, what a well behaved girl she is." Of course, it's not all the time but she's so good about saying, "please, thank you, excuse me, may I..." and there have been a handful of time she has picked items up without being told!

And finally, since Sloane and Adler can't say to me, "Mom, you're doing a great job with us, keep up the good work.  We appreciate it." I've realized there are a few things that need to happen everyday (or most days) that make me feel like I'm doing a good job.  These are in no particular order....

• Exercise--it honestly give me more energy and patience to deal with whatever comes up later in the day....I think this was one of the missing link a few weeks ago but now that Adler is 6 weeks I can take them both to the nursery!
• Clean--something, anything!  My house is by no means spic and span but having stuff a little picked up helps.
• Doing something active with Sloane
• Reading books with Sloane--she used to love books and now it's like pulling teeth to get her to listen to a book.  We're working on it.  
• Having a plan for dinner-- ideally, we'd eat together and I'd like to be the one to cook it.  I'm not a cook but I do feel more "mom-like" when I do and I really feel good when we eat together.  
• Shower-- Hey, it can be hard to find time some days!   

If those 6 things can happen then I'm a happy mama!  And, if you want an extremely happy mama throw in a Target trip in there too.  :)

Thanks to everyone who has given John and I support the last few weeks.  We've really needed the encouragement.  Throw "adjusting to two (or more) kids" on the list of things parents don't talk about until you ask them and then they tell you how horrible it is. FYI also on the list- breastfeeding and potty training.  Hopefully someday we'll pass the support onto our kids.   
  

Have a New Kid By Friday: Day 2 & 3

As I wrote about in my last post, John and I started implementing some new discipline techniques with Sloane on Friday and I have to say by Saturday we were already seeing some improvement!  We took the divide and conquer approach to errands- John took Sloane and I took Adler.  John said she was "as good as one could expect a toddler to be" at the bike shop.

Of course we did still have a few meltdowns but we'd be fools to expect perfection.

One of the ideas the author suggest is only asking once.  If children don't respond then you take care of the problem for them.  The kicker is though  next time they ask for something they don't get it.  For instance, yesterday I asked Sloane to help pick up her toys and instead of nagging her to do it and then getting upset when she didn't do it I just did it myself.  About two seconds later, she wanted a popsicle and as recommended I told her we couldn't have a popsicle right now.  Of course that was followed with a million "why's" but after she realized she couldn't get a treat because she didn't help she threw a fit and wanted to spill all her toys out again just to pick them up.  :)  She gets its, it's just a matter of us staying consistent.

A problem I'm having though is taking away privileges of hers that I enjoy too.  On Sunday she wasn't following directions and I could feel myself starting to get upset when I said, "Ohhhh!  How sad!  I guess we can't go to the park this afternoon." (which we had originally planned).  As soon as I said that I thought, "Uggghhh why did I just say that!?  That was stupid, now I can't go to the park either!"  I need to stop and think before I tell her the consequences of her behavior.

 All in all I'd say we are headed in the right direction,       

Have A New Kid By Friday: Day 1

I know everyone has a bad day at the office now and then but I've had a bad day at the "office" just about everyday this week and when your "office" also happens to be your home no one is happy.

I hate to rag on her because I love her dearly and she is such a blessing to have but Sloane has me wanting to cry, yell, scream into the pillow, cry again, beg her behave and finally throw my hands up and wave the white flag all in a matter of minutes. And John isn't far behind me either.  She's officially out of control.  Or you could say we're out of control.  Either way it's had me questioning if staying at home is what is best for her, me and the rest of our family.

I hate to even say this at risk of offending my working mom friends but at this point going to work looks like a much more appealing option then staying at home another day.  I've never had and can't even imagine a job that tests my patience more intensely then this past week has.  I do think it's important to note that I'm well aware that patience has never been my strong point. Of course, I don't really want to go back to work but I feel terrible spending what feels like the majority of my day battling a 3 year-old. 

I know what you're thinking. That it's typical toddler behavior, right?  I would argue that Sloane isn't the typical toddler but even if it was typical toddler behavior it's still behavior I'm not willing to put up with.  She's yelling commands at us, throwing tantrums multiple times a day, runs away out of sight often, has NO regard for safety requests we've made when near Adler (that one really gets to me) and top it off this week she was in time out twice at the gym for spitting and choking other kids. I'm not saying she's the only 3 year-old who acts this way.  I know she's not because I have seen other children behave the same way- they're on Super Nanny. Only joking, she's not that bad but even her teachers at the gym and preschool have noted her amazing, endless amounts of "energy". The only thing keeping me sane right now is John, who is always home on time to give me a break. 

I've taken Love and Logic classes and read multiple parenting books so I'm not a complete dummy when it comes to disciplining Sloane but obviously whatever we've been doing wasn't cutting it anymore.  Knowing of my frustration my mother recommend a book she saw on the news that had rave reviews.  "Have a New Kid by Friday" by Dr. Kevin Leman.  We have nothing to lose at this point so I read the first 50 pages last night and started implementing some of his principles first thing this morning.

It's not rocket science, but I'm focusing on consistency, follow through and only making requests once- no more warnings.  Needless to say it was a rough morning- a lot of privileges were taken away, a few time outs and a lot of tears but she's a smart cookie and I'm sure (I hope) will catch on fast that Mom and Dad are taking back control of the house! 

I'll be sure to keep you updated!

3 weeks

This last Friday Adler was three weeks old and while I'm sure you can't see much of a difference in the photos he seems to be packin' on the pounds! 

Peanut

I have to be honest....I've been kinda tough on Sloane these past two weeks.  As I've told many people- she loves Adler, hates us.  Undesirable behaviors (i.e. running away, throwing toys, etc) that didn't seem  much of an issue before Adler now seem to be a huge deal and thanks in part to lack of sleep and patience I haven't always dealt with them in an acceptable adult like manner.  Translation- I yell at her, feel bad about yelling and then cry about it.

Now with one week under my belt of just the three of us at home alone I think Sloane and I are coming to a mutual understanding of one another.  I've relaxed a little, after all she is only a toddler adjusting to some huge life changes and she's started following directions much better.  Give a little, take a little right?

Anyways, we were outside yesterday (with the camera of course) and I snapped this picture of Sloane and thought to myself, "My God, she's not a baby anymore." **Thanks to raging hormones I'm fighting tears just writing this-- what happened to me?!  She really is a little girl, make that beautiful little girl.  She hears everything you say, remembers everything you say and despite being a little turd a lot of the time she has one of the biggest hearts of anyone I know. 

And just for the record no matter how old or big she gets she'll always be my peanut. :)   

Any relation?

I was outside with Sloane and Adler today and had a few minutes to snap some pictures.  As I was going through them I ran across one that Adler reminded me so much of Sloane.  What do you think? 

This is Sloane at one week.  We paid (what seemed like it at the time) big bucks to have her photo taken and she cried all the way through it.  I swear I had broken her.  People keep asking me who I think Adler looks like and the only person I can come up with is Sloane!  Which of course, in my opinion is great because I think she's adorable! 

Since then I've conned John into buying me a nice camera to take our own pictures which for these poor kids means any well behaved moment tends to turn into a "photo shoot".

And here is one I did with sidewalk chalk.... I'm trying to learn how to use new photo editing software now that picnik is gone so excuse the "flare" :)  

More pictures to come soon! 

He's here!

He's finally here- Adler John was born Friday May 4 at 1:15 in the afternoon!  After going a week overdue John and I (along with our doctors) decided it was time to be induced. 

We went in Friday morning and got things rolling right away- water broke, pitocin (to get contractions started) pumping by 8:30.  I'll spare you the gross details but around noon I started to get pretty uncomfortable with the pain and was only dilated to a 3 so I decided to get an epidural to make myself comfortable.  The nurse came in and checked me again right before the anesthesiologist entered and I was a 5.  While I was happy to make progress I was in quite a bit of pain by this point.  Fast forward 30 minutes later (1pm) the poor anesthesiologist still hadn't gotten the epidural in (probably because I couldn't sit still) and I felt like I needed to push!  The nurse checked me again- fully dialted and I quote, "He's right there."- referring to Adler's head...

All I could think was, "Nooooooo, this is not happening!  I wanted the epidural!  I'm just going to walk out of here and go home, I'm not having him today. I don't want to do this anymore!"  I hadn't practiced breathing techniques or anything- thank God for my wonderful, wonderful nurse, Denise.  I'm pretty sure I broke her hand and as John would say taught her a few new vocabulary words. 

Because I had progressed so rapidly the on-call doctor wasn't able to make it back in time.  I remember another doctor coming in and introducing herself saying she was going to help until I couldn't wait any longer.  Of course I told her in a not so calm manner that I wasn't waiting.  Someone had to be at the end of the table because this kid was coming out!  Just as I got my feet in the stirrups another doctor from our OB group entered (in nice dress clothes no less) and told me I could push whenever I was ready- thank God!

There must have been an Angel looking out for me because three contractions worth of pushes later and he was out!  It was honestly one of the most intense situations I've ever been in and of course totally worth every second but I'm not so sure I'd do it that way again. 

Enough about me :) 

Adler is a peach!  I know, I know he's only six days old but we really can't complain. He's almost back up to his birth weight, sleeps fairly well (for a newborn) and has his dad's hearty appetite!  Sloane loves him so much.  She's always ready to give him a blanket or a toy and loves giving him hugs and kisses which just melts our hearts but we're still working on "nice, gentle touches."  Of course, she's still a handful but let's be honest- she was before Adler came along. :)  There will be growing pains and we'll have to learn how to juggle two on one but we'll get there...eventually.....right?

And let's talk about John for a minute too... He's taken the whole week off to help us get adjusted.  He's always more then willing to change a diaper, swaddle, get me water while in the middle of the night while I'm nursing or take Sloane for a walk.  He's a jack of all trades dad and husband and the three of us are so very lucky to have him.  Yes, I'm bragging...be jealous.  I couldn't ask for anything more.  Annnnnddd he didn't even complain when I practically strangled him during delivery.  He's a champ.

I've taken a few pictures and will post more later but just had to get this one up.  Too sweet!

      

New Deck!

What?  Two posts in one day! I'm getting pretty crazy huh?

I wanted to post this before the baby comes and I forget all about it. 

If you've been to our house before you know that the previous owners had a hot tub complete with a deck built around the hot tub.  When they moved they took the hot tub and guess what....we didn't buy one to replace it.  Surprise, surprise.  :) 

Well the deck was in pretty bad shape for many reasons other then the entire west side of it was left open, paint was chipping (which you know who would love to eat, sick) and rails were falling off.  It needed some help.

Because we don't really have a "safe" drive way for kiddos to ride bikes, draw with chalk, shoot baskets, etc due to the high traffic on our street John and I thought it would be great to tear out the old deck, build a smaller deck and replace most of the area with a concrete patio. 

We couldn't be happier!  Sloane has a great place to ride her bike in circles and bounce balls all she wants!

There is still some landscaping to do and the lumber on the left obviously will go but I couldn't wait any longer to share the pictures!  

any day now....

I am officially 40 weeks pregnant today!  I had a doctor's appointment yesterday.  I'm dilated 2cm but that's about it.  While I know this isn't any indication of when I'll go into labor, I just know my body and I think this baby wants to cook a few days longer.

The doctor did say that statistically speaking women who make it to 40 weeks typically deliver sometime between 40 weeks and 3 days and 40 weeks and 5 days....So, sometime between Sunday and Tuesday?  I'll take it!  Funny thing about that fact is that Sloane was born at 40 weeks and 3 days too.

I do have an appointment for Thursday the 3rd to be induced if I need be.  Fingers crossed I won't need that appointment though.

Here are a few pictures of the pretty much finished baby's room!

 

You've got to be kidding me

 Houdini strikes again.... and no, that's not dirt on the dresser. 

I can handle an hour of Sloane crying just about every nap time.  I can handle when she takes everything out of her dresser drawers and throws it on the floor.  I can handle it when she rips apart her bed and removes all twenty blankets and thirty stuffed animals.  Heck, I can even handle it when she gets mad and rips apart books- even my favorite ones (which I've since removed from her room) but poop.....poop is where I draw the line.

I was lucky enough to dodge this horror scene once last week.  I was getting a hair cut when John sent a picture of brown spots on the carpet.  Although the lighting was bad I knew what those "brown spots" were.  I thought to myself, "Thank God I wasn't home....I don't think I could have handled that." 

Well, Houdini struck again.  I just finished my abnormally quite lunch (which yes, should have been my first clue that she was up to something) when I heard, "Mommy come upstairs."  I responded with a firm, "You're ok, please go lay down." to which she responded with, "I had an accident."  Awesome.  Whatever is it....awesome. 

I ran upstairs and the first thing I saw was poop smeared on the door then her hands....covered.  It looked like she had been making poop cakes or something.  Carpet- poop, mirrors-poop, walls-poop.  I knew there was even more I hadn't seen because when I went to grab her she said, "come see.".  I plopped her in the bath, got her cleaned up and went to investigate.  Windows and dresser?  Poop and poop.  Are you kidding me?  How does this not just disgust her?!?

I got it cleaned up well enough to put her back to bed.  I was darn sure she wasn't going to get a treat by laying in my bed, watching cartoons and skipping nap time which is what she would have wanted for sure.  I gave her a hug and kiss and left the room.  A few minutes later..."Mommy come clean up the window."  Again I went upstairs.  More poop.  I must have missed it the first time.  It was like and Easter egg hunt (but only smeared poop) and checking to see that I found them all. 

A few minutes later after that.... found her in the bathroom by herself playing in the water and "putting on lotion". 

Ok, so I know that most parents have at least one or two stories that sound like this but the amazing thing about Sloane is--- her jammies were still on!  It's not like she took off her PJ's and thought I'll take off my diaper and make a mess.  She reached up the leg of her jammies and pulled the poop out.  She knew exactly what she was looking for and dare I say...had fun doing it. (dry heave)  Keep in mind- we still have her jammies on backwards with the zipper tab ripped off so she can't take them off herself.  I guess we can check "short" jammies off the list as appropriate bedtime attire.  And to address the bathroom issue.  Her gate was still locked when I found her out of the room.  She once again jumped the gate.  Looks like we might have to go back to two gates stacked one on top of another. Pretty soon I'm going to be posting that we have her sleep in a 4x4 padded room with only one blanket and no windows!

I know one thing for sure-  Sloane is a determined little girl.  I can only hope and pray that one day, her determination serves a better purpose then smearing poop and jumping baby gates. 

Baby Update

11 days left to go (although really I think it's going to be more like 16 days)!!  I can hardly wait! I'm getting really anxious!

There have been two or three times where I had some contractions in a row and thought, "this is it!" but then they'd stop and I'd become disappointed.  You would think that this would have been all the encouragement I needed to pack my bags and get the car seat in the car but... nope.  I have a theory that if I pack them it will be May before this baby arrives whereas if I don't pack them he might come sooner. Yes?  Maybe?

I'm still feeling good and still able to do just about everything that I want to do and anything I don't want to do- John takes care of.  He's wonderful.

I did learn an important lesson this week.  Don't take your toddler who loves to run to a large open area such as Grey's Lake when you're super pregnant unless you are willing and able to chase after her.  :) 

   

The Dentist

Last week I took Sloane to the dentist for the first time.  I know they to have your first check-up at a year old but hey, better late then never right?

Really the reason I wanted her to see a dentist is because Sloane loves to brush and floss her teeth!  She would do it every time we were in the bathroom if we let her.  I was curious to know if a toddler really needs to floss her teeth and if using the same toothpaste we use was safe for her. 

I convinced John that we needed to see a pediatric dentist (as opposed to our adult dentist) and boy was it worth it.  They had computer games in the waiting room, a movie to watch if she wanted while they cleaned her teeth and everyone has plenty of tricks up their sleeves to keep Sloane entertained while they inspected her mouth. 

She was a peach and loved every minute of it.  They let her touch all the instruments and gave her drinks of water from that little thing that squirts water and "vacuumed" our her mouth with that suction thing.  She had so much fun.

While she was well behaved the doctor did find a "sticky" spot on a tooth that he thought if we let go would become a cavity!  Seriously?!?!  A CAVITY????  She's not even three!  I asked if it was her diet or hygiene and he said her hygiene looks great but a lot of kids her age get candy stuck in their back teeth that even brushing can't get out.  He specifically mentioned suckers and gummy candies.  Hmmmmmm.....  well, if you know us you know that we constantly have suckers on us (they can buy us at least 10 minutes of time at the store) and we've used life saver gummies for potty training for the past three months.  Oops.

I left the dentist, went to the store and bought a bag of m&m's to replace the gummies.....as far as her teeth are concerned that's an upgrade right?  :)   

February and March in Review

You know what's funny?  I follow multiple (and by multiple I mean at least 15) blogs a day- it's what I do with my free time since I quit facebook, and I often get annoyed when the blogs I follow don't have new posts everyday day yet I can't seem to update our once a month even!  My apologies to our followers (g'ma and g'pa)!

So how about a quick update.... 6 weeks left til baby #2 arrives.  At least it better be 6 weeks- we still have some projects left to finish.  Is the to-do list ever wiped clean for homeowners and parents?  I'm feeling great and can't complain especially with the weather we've been having!  Sloane and I have missed being outdoors.  She's so happy to be outside and if Sloane's happy, mama's happy!  I sit on the steps and read a magazine and she makes "pancakes" for me out of sand, sticks and dirt.  That's true love.

As our due date gets closer I am getting more and more excited but I do feel a little sad that it won't be just me and Sloane anymore (and John too but you know what I mean).  I feel like she's my little partner in crime, my buddy.  My buddy that I occasionally have to put in time out :)  I know my other mom friends have told me differently but I just can't imagine that I can love a child more then I love her.  We put her to bed and by morning I miss her!  Don't get me wrong- she pushes our buttons and makes us want to pull our hair out at times but she's a great little girl and I know she'll make a great big sister.

So to "celebrate" Sloane (before the baby comes and is the new center of attention) I've put together another top ten list of things we love about Sloane.

10. Hugs still come with a kiss on the lips...even for strangers
9.  She says "hi" to just about everyone we meet on the street or in the store and then tells us she said "hi" to them- like we didn't hear her.
8.  She pronounces knife like Ife.  I guess she already knows the "k" is silent :)
7.  We've lived in our house almost a year and every time she hears a fire truck siren she runs to the window to see it....it never gets old.
6.  Anytime John or I say "ow" she asks in the most sincere voice, "You ok?"
5.  Anytime she falls down and we ask her if she's ok she says, "No, I ok".
4.  She thinks you can feed the baby through my belly button.
3.  Anytime I wear anything other then sweats she asks if I'm going to work.  (Sad, but true) Consequently, the same thing happens anytime John puts on a button down dress shirt.
2.  She thinks farts are funny.  I know one day we'll regret encouraging her but at this age- it's funny.
1.  Her smile!  I think we've made it past the horrible close your eyes and grind your teeth smile and have graduated to a rather nice smile that works (most of the time) on command!

Here a few pictures from the past couple months.... Enjoy!

At kidsfest in the police car

 At the YMCA family night carnival

   What happens when mom thinks we can make it all the way around Grey's lake

(We got exactly half way around and we "didn't want to ride our bike anymore" -there aren't exactly any shortcuts across the lake..oops)

Potty Training Houdini

First off I don't think I told everyone ....we're having a BOY!!!!!  John and I are so very, very excited!  It's hard to believe we only have a little over three months to go! 

Because we're so close to baby time we thought it would be a good idea to get Sloane started on potty training while still allowing ourselves a few months to prefect it.

I don't know what impressions other first times mom had about potty training but everyone I knew told me it took their kid like three days (if that) to get the hang of it.  Other then it should take three days and let Sloane run around naked we didn't really have any idea of what to expect.

We're now on day 10 of no diapers (expect at nap and bedtime) and doing well!  In fact we took our first start to finish poop in the toilet today....sorry if that's TMI :)  Of course we've had our ups and downs.  I was about ready to throw in the towel on day three when someone told me to give her a little bit longer to catch on.  Thank you whoever told me that....

We give her a treat every time she has a "hit" on the potty.  It started out as three m&m's then moved to a Hershey kiss then Skittles next to chocolate covered raisins and now we're on to gummy lifesavers.  We had to stop the chocolate mainly because John and I kept grabbed a handful whenever she got one too.  Not a good habit to get into :) 

Aside from a few accidents here and there we're doing well.  The only big problem we're working out now....she somehow can get out of her pajamas and nap and bedtime.  If you remember way back I posted this about Sloane taking her clothes off all the time.  We tried backwards diapers, layers and layers of difficult clothes, taping her diaper on and finally settled on footless pajamas on backwards- meaning the zipper is in the back.  This genius idea has worked for almost a year... until now.  You know it's not good when you walk upstairs to go to bed and see a diaper and pajamas thrown over the gate.

John came up with another genius idea in hopes to keep her fully clothed at bedtime. 

If you look really close you can see that he snipped the "handle" of the zipper off.  The only way I could get it down to put it on her was to bend a paper clip back through.  If she can get out of this she's talented. 

Wish us luck!