Thanksgiving that was..

The thanksgiving that was............

whoo........ what a rideeeeee. It has been a whirlwind couple weeks visiting family and remembering what we are blessed with.  :)  First- a surpise visit from my aunt and uncle who live in Indiana.. they stopped in to visit my Grandma and decided to surpise my mom and visit her a home- and we all came to visit.  I didn't have Vincent with me since he went with his other Grandma but they got to meet victoria and play with her a bit and chat.  It was a nice visit.  They are moving to FL so I don't know how often we will see them now because it is SO cold here, and warm down there :p

Now.. the day before thanksgiving...... I had decided well- my kids are going to be meeting family so that means.. they get scrubbed until they are shiny and cleaned and vincent needed a small... trim to look nice.   So, I decided ok I am going to put victoria down and- she is a squrimy little thing so she can wriggle kinda-creep to get things.. I was busy and cutting vincent's hair.. he was sitting there whining because he doesn't want to get his hair cut and im like too bad.. we are seeing Great-Grandma Marie (for those that don't know- Victoria's middle name is from her ) :) so we have to get your hair cut and you bathed so you are all pretty for her.  He was not happy. I am like I promise if you let me finish you can have some skittles (ah bribing a 2 year old and i said i would NEVER bribe my children HA HA good parenting!!!) he sat willing for a few skittles ok...... so we are done and I trim a bit of the bangs.. he protested loudly...... and wriggled...... therefore..... now he has curvy styling bangs! I tell him YOU DID that to YOURSELF.. mommy only held the sciccors.. and he giggles. man.. 2 year olds. Vincent laughs and says Look baby mama!!! ( look at the baby mama!)
I looked............. and...... Tori...... bless her heart.... had a pen in her mouth............... and pen lines allllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllllll over her face..... on her nose.. on her forehead......... and on her sweet chubby cheeks......... dear child.  we have thanksgiving tomorrow.............and you are meeting Great Grandma Marie and Great-Grandpa Don and you have pen marks all over your face- oh great and you giggle at me.  Vincent was laughing.  I was like are you telling her to do that?????!
oh dear......... now what do I do............. thank goodness......... baby wipe got most of it off..... then a little of baby oil worked for the rest of it....... and she was a beautiful baby again. Vincent is running around at this point with his curvy headbangs rocking his new "hair-cut" how i love my crazy life these days! 

the next day was thanksgiving and we spent it with don and marie and andys mom's siblings and Vincent ran around being his usual very happy chatty self and wanted to play a lot and colored and threw his pooh around while the game was still going and he clapped a few times when the packers got a TD... he was exicted about the game.  victoria was her usual diva self.. very upset when we got there and took a bit to calm down then she accepted that other people were going to hold her and she tolerated it pretty well........ it is a never ending guessing game with her.. some days she is fine and accepts other people to hold her and talk to her.. and other days she only wants her mama and daddy. :) 
Friday was a very quiet day for us............ we spent time together as a family and decorated our tree.. tis very beauitful. Vincent helped me with it and rearranged the xmas lights just so... and he was running backand forth with me to fix the green leaves and setting up the lights.. it was a precious 2 year old memory with him always.  Tori was sleeping but when she woke up she got to see the lights.. and she likes it but she is not suepr interested in right now.... :) 


it was a beautiful quiet weekend.......... with time with family. I remind myself.. even with the craziness that surronds me everyday.... I am truly blessed and thankful for my kids and Andy...... my life would be so different without them :)


 

Potty Training a 2 year old

So.. I am potty training a 2 year old now...... Yep.... im in the troughs like every other frazzled mom.   On top of having 2 kids- both in diapers and one that is Diva- and Vincent is such a sweet devil child that makes me utter- sweet baby jesus about 1,000 times a day. 

In mid- October- I had finally seen that Vincent was Ready to start potty training. I wrestled with first time mom questions like- AM I THINKING he is ready or is he ready truly?  am I doing this because I am sick of having 2 kids in diapers and changing them both all day long? Yes... but vincent seemed emotionally, and physically ready...... but the doctor said not to push it...... BUT i have 2 kids in diapers!!!  my sister C- she said if you're ready and hes ready then let it happen.  So- off to the store we brought his potty chair and his potty training book- and a bag of skittles to bribe him (im such a great mom) and big boy underwear.. and we told him you have to go potty in potty so you can wear big boy underwears.........

As soon I placed vincent on the potty and looked at him..........and my mind twirled backwards to the day i gave birth to him..... how quickly had time flown by? how possible is that? It still feels like a few months ago I just had him and here is my vincent as a 2 year old ready to be a big boy.  I find with every big moment- my heart feels sorrow and also joy and triumph because my little boy is growing up but sorrow because every step I give him-- he is leaving me a little bit more each day.  I remind myself what I do now to help him will make him a wonderful man xomeday.. I can only hope.

A few days of potty training he wouldn't do it.......and then all of the sudden he did....... and lots of hugs and high fives  and some skittles. he was game.  He quickly learned if he went pee or poop he got skittles.... and he really has taken a interest in it.. Now he goes with some regularity but we struggle with staying dry and him wanting to be a baby- and a big boy. I know everyone struggles with this. and we are working on it as a family.  At this point I realize Vincent will always need me no matter what.

He goes through fits and days he doesn't want to go into it.. but recently he has started to go again... so I am hoping maybe he will be all done potty training during the day for christmas. that would be nice. and save money and he will be a BIG BOY...... for now.. he is alternating between big boy pull ups and diapers.
 I have found that it works. Vincent does not really like the diapers anymore.. so I tell him well.. if you wont go pee i have to put the diapers on........... so he really TRIES to go pee to avoid the diapers. :)  

who knows.. maybe in a few weeks i'll be posting he is all done and is wearing underwears. :) we will see. 

what is it like having a 2 year old??

Two Year olds.......... are FUN........... and DEVIOUS.

Here is how my day goes now with the children- and I lovingly refer to vincent as a demon child-mind you he is sweet as pie.. but has his Devil moments.......... Tori so far is the Diva. :)

Diva gets up at 7-730 am.... Eat, and be changed
7:45 to about 9:00 playtime for Diva...
Vincent gets up around 8-830- potty and cereal and milk
Callilou goes on the tv... 
9- time to eat for Tori again and change and dressed for the day
930- vincent dressed and potty again or change depending on his MOOD. 
10:30 Diva gets cranky.. and crankier...... vincent gets mad because I am dealing with DIVA and decides to go off and......create trouble that i will find... and later yell about.
11- tori eats again and she plays for a while usually off to nap around 11:30 -12 30 depending on the day and what time she gets up.
I find mess- clean up and yell at vincent and put him in a chair... 
Making lunch......
eat lunch........
play with vincent
1:30-2:30 Diva wakes up and wants to eat. Vincent gets mad again because Diva cut his play time short with mommy- he goes off to create another mess or whine about why Wii isn't playing callilou or Bar-fart_ney... lord help me. 
Tori gets changed after eat.. then its play time and I clean up the mess Evil child makes.. I beg said evil child to take a nap- no go.
I guess if Diva cut his playtime short with mommy and Diva takes up mommys attention he must stay up all day so he can drive me crazy- boy am I a glutton for punishment now!
4:00- vincent starts getting cranky- hungry for a snack- eats snack- Diva usually screams for food too.- feed and change - I look at the clock and think to myself.. praise sweet baby jesus 2 hours to kill until andy gets home and i can pass off the devil child on him.  
5:00 sometimes tori takes a very short late nap.
vincent has made numberous mess and most likely will make a mess before dad arrives home just for the hell of it.. by the end of the day, I have said about 1,000 Nos, Please don't. and you better think twice before you......................... 
Diva just screams all day when she isn't being paid attention to and it is most likely to happen when Devil child makes a mess and i must clean.


Man.. a two year old is exhausting............. but Vincent yet has so MUCH energy.  I think I should ask him to bottle it up and give it to momma.. he sure loves me........... but he still likes being evil.  


(sigh)


Off to another day tomorrow.......


Stay Tuned- vincent's first Christmas parade this weekend in GB. :) YAYYYYYYYYYYYYYY :)

Sorry it's been so long

Man... it has been really busy around here with two kids.. I have so much to catch you all up on... first of all.. Halloween was Awesome.  I invited Ashley to come and hang out with me and "assist" with trick or treating since Andy was going to be working late so he missed out on all the halloween fun! Boo.  We dressed vincent up as Spiderman- let's just say he was VERY EXICTED to be spiderman.. and was showing Ashley how he could fly.  :)  it was so cute to watch my 2 year old Truly believe in imagation and really think in someway he could really fly.  It makes me feel like I have done a good job so far as a mother- if Vince feels secure enough to really let go of reality and imagine for a while.  Victoria was going to be a pumpkin- but due to the weather and I was not sure how long we would be out for.. I transformed victoria into a pink bunny from the xmas story.  I am sure one day Tori will kill me for doing that to her.. but she was SO CUTE.  Vincent was raring to go.. once he figured out he was getting candy from the neighbors... we were out for a hour and 20 minutes.. and even stopped to visit Grandpa M.  Grandpa M was very happy to see him and vincent was "chattering" a lot about the candy.  victoria the bunny slept the whole time in the stroller which amazed me and Ashley. she must have been very warm and cozy in the stroller and the stroller moved a lot. :)   We got a lot of candy......... a lot.  Ashley and Stu also contributed to vincent's sugar high by buying him skittles- a love of vincent and Stu's forever...... it was pretty funny to see vincent all hyper from all the sugar :) By the time Ash left.. Vincent started behaving like a drunken spiderman.. it was pretty funny. poor kid. haha.  memories.


So now that halloween is done... we just had Victoria's 6 month check up completed- and she is 16 pounds 1 oz, 25 1/4 inches tall and her head is about 42 cm. - she was born with a 32 cm head.. so she has doubled in everything since she is born which is what they want to see... so they were very pleased... execpt she has had a horrible yeast infection that we've had a hard time resolving.. thankfully to the nurses of bellin- someone told me to give her a baking soda bath.. and it cured the inflmation.  I am SO happy.  


Next.. it started to snow!!!! it was pretty crazy because we still have leaves on our trees around here and it usually doesn't really snow until right before thanksgiving- like when it gets super cold...... well.. the sky just started dumping rain.. it became freezing rain.. and it became snow.  Vincent was VERY excited when he saw this.  I explained it was snow not rain and he was running around the house signing frantically mama its snoooooooooooooooooowing. Great.  thanks for the alert weatherman Vincent.  :)  Vincent will also alert me to the fact it is raining outside.  It is so cute how Vincent is very interested in the weather changes and what is going on outside.  so it snowed all day... and It got me started to think about christmas.. I admit i had been thinking about christmas because of the kids and what they want and need for christmas.  but.. the snow made me really think about how exicted i am for it this year.. Vincent really enjoys watching Christmas movies with Barney and Caillou and I think once we have the tree up and get ready for christmas.. I plan on counting down the many days of christmas with him and really teaching him what christmas is all about.. giving and recieving.. and of course the decorations and meeting Santa. :)  vincent had met santa last year.. but was too afraid to sit with him and have his picture taken.  I am also looking forward to vincent's christmas pictures with his new little sister.  It should be interesting because tori is now rolling all over the place and TRYING to creep but she goes backwards.. she is also very vocal.. and very demanding.  Lately she has been a crab.  It is no fun-I barely get things done because when one is sleeping the other wants attention.  Man. :) juggling two kids...........