Zoo with Ellie

What a beautiful day! Saturday was just one of those days that makes you smile. The sun was shining and it was warn enough not to need a coat. We made plans with Diane and her little girl, Ellie. Diane and I met during the long, long adoption process (we were about 6-9 months ahead of her). Both of us had planned on adopting from China but Kevin & I switched over when we heard about Vietnam and then Diane made the switch a few months later. It's so amazing how we all end up with the kid(s) we were meant to have!
The kids played so well together. Ellie is a year younger than Jackson & Isabel so they got to be the big kids for a change. Isabel said to me, "Mommy, I want to touch her" (meaning Ellie) and I told her that would be fine, but to please be gentle with her. Then she said, "Mommy, I want to squeeze her". I tried not to laugh but just asked her to give Ellie a hug instead of a squeeze. So while Isabel wanted to squeeze Ellie, I think Ellie was more interested in Jackson. I would just catch her smiling at him. So freakin' adorable.
My 2 little angels were just that, ANGELS. They were allowed to walk instead of sitting in the stroller IF they were good and they were awesome! I almost didn't recognize them they were so good! :)
Yes, we did go to the zoo but we didn't focus on the animals that much. We rode the train twice and then the carousel. We did enjoy the petting zoo but overall, the kids just had a great time playing with each other. We were at the zoo for 4 hours. I think that's a record for us!
(Oh, when we were leaving our house that morning Isabel was yelling, "Mommy!" I asked what she wanted and she says, "Vamanos!" Last week she thanks me in Spanish and this week I get a "Let's go!" Wow. Vamanos.
As you can imagine, Jackson loved the train. He even wants to touch the track when we walk near it. He is just fascinated and it is so much fun to watch.

This is my favorite pic of Jackson from the day

And this would be my favorite of Isabel if it were just a little more "focused"

The kids checking out the kangaroos

The carousel

Sweet Ellie

Diane & Ellie

He just wants to touch the choo train track :)

The "Potty Rebellion"

Yes, more potty training talk. It's really the only thing going on around here these days. Isabel seems to be rebelling, I don't know if it's against me or just against using the potty but she's been wetting in her pull-ups a lot lately. And then she smiles about it. What's up with that? It's like she's testing me or something. I try not to get irritated with her but it can be really difficult with that child.
And then there's Jackson who has been really surprising me with how quickly he caught on with the whole thing. If you could just see his smile when he does it. So incredibly cute, that boy of mine.
BUT, I dropped the kids off at their "school" Wednesday and the teacher tells me the exact opposite thing is going on there. Isabel does a GREAT job at school and Jackson rarely even tries to go for his teachers. And if he tries it's not usually a success. So is Jackson only comfortable when he's at home with us? And is Isabel so comfy at home that she's testing the waters of rebellion? Trying to make me lose my mind? Maybe.
So what I have done is started to bribe my kids with what they hold most dear to their little hearts - M&M's. I probably should have gone with a healthier option like a sticker reward system or something but I was desperate and I did have a stash of M&M's around. I told them they got ONE M&M for a t.t. in the potty and that they got FIVE for a poopie (still hasn't happened). All was going well until Isabel found a loophole. I checked her pull-up and it was wet. I took it off and told her that she didn't get a M&M if she wet her pants. So she sits on her potty and manages to squeeze out that last little bit of pee into her potty. She stood up, showed it to me and then asked for her candy. I told her no, that she wet her pull-ups. But she looked at me with that damn sweet little face and said, "But Mommy, I t.t.'d in the potty). And she did, it wasn't much but she did it so I gave her the candy. Ugh!

No more diapers!?!

If you recall, every time I have ever mentioned potty training it has involved only Isabel. She has been using the potty off and on for at least 6 months. Several weeks ago we bought her some pull ups (which she adores!) and that has really helped her enthusiasm. She is doing a pretty good job.
When we have asked Jackson if he wanted to use the potty he has always said "No".
After a nap last week he his diaper was dry so Nancy/Nana (my MIL) put him on the "froggy potty" and would you believe he peed in the potty? I really thought it was a fluke and probably wouldn't happen again for months but I was WRONG! He is so happy and proud of himself afterwards and he now has his own pull-ups (with the characters from Cars on them). He is actually doing better with potty training than Isabel. I almost can't believe it. After I pour his "TT" in the potty I let him flush and he waves and says "bye-bye". It is so freakin' cute I can't stand it. Yesterday he told Kevin he had to go potty and before Kevin could stop what he was doing to assist, Jackson had already pulled down his pants and was finished. It's like a miracle! Isabel has always had to be asked and then taken to the potty. She has never done it by herself. I'm such a proud Mommy. So really, no more diapers in our house. Lots of pull-ups but no more diapers!!!

I have a cute Isabel story I don't want to forget-
Last week I was putting lotion on my legs and she held out her little hand and asked for some. I put a little drop on her palm and instead of the "thanks Mommy" I am used to I got "Gracias". She amazes me every day. So incredibly cute. Thanks again Diego!

As far as Jackson and his bottles go......what bottles? I don't remember the last time he asked. :)My babies are growing up so very fast.

Happy Valentine's Day

I hope you all had a very happy Valentine's Day. The kids and I had a great time all day long. The only thing that would have made it better was if Kevin was at home with us. Being in the restaraunt business most definitely has its drawbacks, especially on days like this.
We spent the first part of the day at Mom's as did Nicole & Ella. The kids rode their tricycles (well, my kids are trying to really learn how to ride a tricycle but Ella tried to teach them. We live on a hill so riding a tricycle in our driveway would be incredibly not safe.)
Anyway, we had lunch and the kids played until it was time to head home for a nap. They fell asleep pretty quickly which meant they were up by 3:30 which meant we had time to head to the park before it got dark. We had over an hour to run and play outside and it was wonderful. Overall, a very happy Valentine's Day.

On our way to Mom's

Here we go......

One happy little boy

Ok, we discovered that Isabel loved her helmet because she refused to take it off. And the cute apron was made by my Mom's cousin Becky. (She also made Jackson an apron with trains.) She is crazy talented when it comes to sewing. She made play food out of felt (a cake, a pizza, ice cream.) I tried to take a close up of the cake but it just doesn't do it justice. Thank you Becky!

This is the beautiful "play cake" Becky made

My attempted close up (she MADE each little indiviual strawberry, truffle, all of it). They are even seperated into pieces held together with velcro. Tooooooo cute.

Looking at the pool

Break out the Valentine goody bags!

M&M's are the all time favorite