(Almost) Wordless Wednesday

This little girl on the left.....



Who still makes us smile daily...



And can cheese it up at a moments notice...



Who loves to play soccer and run like crazy...



Turned 8 today!!!!



HAPPY BIRTHDAY V!!!

Hope this day is as wonderful for you as it was 8 years ago when you joined our family!

Potty Training..Really??!?!?!!

So for some reason S decided he was ready to start potty training at the age of 19 months. This definitely works for me! He started out last week when he was having issues holding his poop and in turn was pooping in my tub. Yuck! I decided to ask him if he wanted to sit on the potty which he replied with a huge head shake. So I quickly grabbed him and sat him down. He lasted for a min or so and decided that the tub full of water and toys was a bit more exciting. Who wouldn't right? About 10 more min of tub time he started with the wonderful arching back so I knew it was time again. Me: Wanna go potty? S: head shake. Back to the potty he goes and HE DID IT!!! He actually pooped on the potty!

I continued to put him on the potty a few times a day so he could get used to it and it was pretty much hit or miss (sometimes literally!). I competely expected it though as I am a "pro" in the potty training department. The past few days it has been more hit than miss which was awesome. Still in my ever doubting mind that he was actually ready for this I figured it would be at least another 6 months or so of this before it actually worked.

I am not sure who came to have a talk with him but whoever it was Thank you! This whole potty thing has finally clicked more than not!!! Today he has successfully peed on the potty 3 times and pooped just as many. Whoo hoo!!! I am completely and utterly shocked that he is doing so great at this!!

I am anticipating some regression when Daddy leaves though but I am more than prepared to handle that. I am confident that he will pick back up in no time.

On the other hand I am sure am going to miss his fluffy butt though!! Thanks goes to Julie, my diaper making Momma friend, for all the wonderful fluffy mail I received!

Zone Cleaning Day 2

Wanna see what I did on Day 2 of Clean Mama's Zone Cleaning? Come on, you know you do! Ok ok fine I will show you!

Today I decided to pick a smaller task since I had 2 sick kiddos at home with me. Much easier on my brain and sleep deprived body.

If you want to join in head on over to Clean Mama and get to work!! Trust me your house will love you even more for it.

Step 1: Set timer for 15 minutes

Step 2: Take everything out of drawers

Step 3: Seperate into 2 piles (keep & toss)

Step 4: Spray down drawers and wipe clean with a rag.

Step 5: Put everything back nice and neat!

Times up!!! Now doesnt that look lovely??

Ok I know I dont have pictures up yet but I will get them up as soon as I go get the diaper bag out of the car!

Not Me Monday

Welcome to Not Me! Monday! This blog carnival was created by MckMama. You can head over to her blog to read what she and everyone else have not been doing this week.

I have never left a bowl of hot chicken soup on the island in the kitchen and turned around to see my 20 month old son, S, pull it down square on his face. Nope NOT ME.

I would never proceed to completely freak out screaming at Daddy to come help b/c I was scared to death. Nope NOT ME. I always act completely calm, cool and collected when there is a catastrophe!

After things have calmed down and said 20 month old is in the tub completely happy I would never take this opportunity to take pictures of my poor sons burned face (which is much better though not 100% now). Nope NOT ME. I would never take pictures of my kids boo-boo's for memories years down the road. Not me!

I would never have 2 children sick with the stomach bug at the same time and think to myself "OH man, I hope Daddy can stay home tomorrow" but when Daddy tells me "No" I have to wonder how to handle that b/c I haven't had 2 sick kiddos at the same time since S has been born. Nope NOT ME!

I would never have to rush to empty and reload the dishwasher so we could rinse out said vomit trash cans because my sink was overflowing with dishes even though I had already done a load that morning. Nope NOT ME. My kitchen is always in tip top shape and I would never allow it to get like that b/c I wanted a relaxing day on the weekend. Nope NOT ME!

PS..I am also NOT super exicted to be participating in my first ever NOT ME MONDAY! Thanks MckMama!!

Zone Cleaning-Day 1

Upon my searches and links to different blogs I stumbled upon this blog. Her mission is to have a clean house in a month. How wonderful would that be?? Unfortunately I didn't find her until yesterday but I decided to jump right in and continue on my way until I had a clean house too!

Today I decided to work on one of the many bookcases in our office. If you know me then you know that I forgot to take before pictures. One of my many bad habits but hopefully this year will turn that around!

If you want to join in head on over to Clean Mama and get to work!! Trust me your house will love you even more for it.

Step 1: Set timer for 15 minutes

Step 2: Take everything off the bookcase

Step 3: Sort papers and books into 2 piles (toss and keep)

Step 4: Spray down shelves and wipe clean

Step 5: Put everything back

Time's Up!

How awesome is this???

A few fellow bloggers are having awesome giveaways for a Sony Touch Reader to an Active Duty Military family compliments of Borders!!!

Head on over to their blogs and follow the rules. Good luck!

My Army Wife Life

Household 6 Diva

Hellcat Betty

Military Avenue

Click Clack Mom

A Yummy Mummy on a Pink Park Bench

Army Household 6

Wordless Wednesday

It's never good when....

Your 3 year old wakes up crying in the middle of the night. You know something is wrong because that never happens! I go upstairs and check on "A" who is whimpering like her tummy hurts. Well the girls has bowel issues so being "smart" mommy I figured she had to poop. I took her into the bathroom, sat her on the potty and listened to her whimper some more (normal for her!). After a minute she screamed so I assumed she finally pooped therefore leaned over to check and then heard the all to familiar sound of "water" hitting the stool. UMM nope not water!! Oh and the fact that it hit the stool meant it hit my jeans. Yippie! My poor baby decided (well ok not really) that it would be a great idea to vomit several times within about 5 minutes. Thank heavens Daddy was home and I could calmly (read: scream) call him upstairs to come give me a hand since she would not hit the toilet or trash can to save my life. Guess she figured it was more fun to hit me, the floor and the bathroom cabinet! After the volcanic episodes we decided it would be a good idea to take her to bed with us just in case. Maybe we were wrong.

Have you ever slept with a possessed creature in your bed?? Well I think that is what she turns into at night. The child tossed, turned, spread eagle, slept upside down, used our rears as pillows, etc last night. Needless to say no one in our bed, well except her, got any amount of good sleep. Another thank heavens would be the fact that since I stay at home I could relax somewhat (read: not chase a wild banshee through the house) during nap time but my poor husband had to go to work and fly today. I feel so bad for him so I think when he gets home I will meet him with a big hug and a kiss to say thank you! Thank you for making our life where I can stay at home with our kiddos and for working so hard after getting many a night without sleep. Thank you baby. We all love you so very much!

Good times

We have had a wonderful weekend around here! We took the girls out to celebrate the girls report cards. (Great job girls!) We went out for pizza and then to see The Princess and the Frog. Cute movie though definitely not like the old style Disney movies if you know what I mean. After that it was home, dinner and bed..just like a typical day! Today we woke up and headed over to Grandma and Bebop's (James' parents) for a day of board games. We played Connect 4, Monopoly Jr., and Life. Man it's been forever since I have played Life and certaintly do not remember it being that long or difficult. After the games were done we ate a late lunch and headed home.  "M" had dance tonight so Daddy stayed home with the other kiddos while I took "M" to dance. I love that man!! All the kids are in bed so we are sitting here watching The Bucket List and enjoying our quiet time! AHHH I so look forward to bedtime around here as it makes the wild, crazy, and most of the time loud days so worth it. The girls go back to school tomorrow so I guess its back to some sense of normalcy around here..well as much as it can be with 2 toddlers at home! We have to start getting ready for "V's" birthday next week!!! I cannot believe she will be 8 years old in 9 days..wow! She wants a slumber party but we are going to put it off a week since my sister is coming to visit. The girls have no clue so when they come home from school next Thursday they will be so excited to see their Aunt and Cousin waiting for them!!! I am sure that will more than make up for the fact that she has to wait another week dont you?? By the way if anyone is actually reading this I could use some help on ideas for a slumber party for an 8 y/o!! She loves soccer, Littlest Pet Shop and American Girl. Heck she is pretty much easy to please.

Meet the kids!

"M": our quiet oldest daughter who loves to dance anytime she gets the chance. She is our leader and helps out whenever she can. She is on a competition dance team and loves every minute of it!

"V": our free spirited 2nd daughter who loves to play soccer and is our tomboy. She is the mother hen and tries to make sure everyone is ok and has what they need.

"A": our 3rd daughter who fits her astrological sign more than I ever thought was possible! She is a Gemini and can swap personalities in .02 seconds flat! She says the funniest things all the time.

"S": our youngest and only boy of the bunch. He is super spoiled to say the least! The wildest child of the group by far so don’t turn your back on him for 1 second or something is bound to be pulled off a table or thrown across the room. Once you catch him though he will give you the biggest grin as to say “I still love you!” HMMM seems he knows how to win in any situation already!

Welcome, Welcome

I wanted to start this blog to family and friends near and far could stay up to date (somewhat) on what our chaotic family has been doing. I am not sure what I am doing yet but in time it will hopefully come together and look nice! I hope everyone enjoys reading about our crazy, chaotic yet wonderful times!