The MomGate MG1

Well Gabe is 'technically' potty trained enough for preschool.  He rarely has accidents of the pee kind, he asks to go potty but he has some trouble getting his pants up himself.  Heck I am told that after I used to go potty I'd yell 'I'm FIIIIIINIIIIIISHHHHED' for someone to come wipe me... so dont think that is a make it or break it point.

However the kid just will not poo on the potty.  He can sit there for hours and he will just hold it until he is in his overnight Pullup.  Usually when he holds it all day you can tell.  OMG you can tell. 

Nothing is working, no bribes, no cajoleing... I think I may just have to wait him out.  Eventually he will get the hint I hope.  Considering he isnt quite 3 yet I am proud of the peeing on the potty.  Even going to the store or to the zoo he still will ask to go potty.  During awake hours he is in 'big boy' underroos and seems to be proud of them.  So I guess we did SOMETHING right =)

So I thought I would translate some of Gabe's language for the unintiated.  I am sure there will be more to this as I remember the words...

Gug - Frogs of any size and shape, often used to describe lizards as well.

• Points of note - Gabe has Big-E Gug, Lil Gug, Pillow Gug,  and Dino Gug.  These are the four Gugs that pretty much go everywhere with Gabe

<-- Lil Gug




<-- Big-E Gug, the first of his Gugs












Hungee - Hungry or Thirsty

Yogum - Yogurt, specifically Go-Gurts (or any yogurt in a tube)

Pop - Ranges from lollipops to popsicles, although he is starting to use Icy Pop when he wants a popsicle

Cook - Poptart or Toaster strudel, he picked this up when he started getting impatient for the strudel while it was cooking.  Told him mommy had to cook it so now he calls it Cook.

Gugum - Fruit by the foot or fruit rollups.

There will be more once I remember them =)

Well although I am a lover of winter and snow... Spring is such a nice season especially after a snowy winter.  The sun is out but it isn't so hot that I cannot breathe... And of course I WANT to take my daily walks with the kids. 

Shawn and I just started a routine that I hope we can continue to do throughout the spring summer and fall, an evening walk.  We get the kids in the wagon and start chugging.  We are lucky that our neighborhood is nice, although the bad areas of Meriden are starting to encroach.  After all there was a group of teenagers in front of the park drinking out of paper bags yesterday... I mean come on people, if you want to be stupid don't do it in front of a child's play area... of course knowing the youth in this day and age, a couple of the kids running around were probably belonging to those drinking...

I digress.  We started walking around our block, and there is a pretty good hill one street over so it isnt completely mild.  Tuesday was our first night of doing this and we walked the block three times.  Yesterday we only walked it once but that was because we let the kids play at the playground for about 45 minutes, until it started to get dark.  Caitlynn got to sit in the bucket swing and boy did she love that! 

Not only is it good for the kids (while it took them longer to fall asleep, they seemed to sleep more deeply)  but it gets Shawn and I off our keisters.  Goodness knows I need to be less sedentary, but it feels so good to be getting fresh air and excercise.  And with Shawn trying to quit smoking, again, it seems like we aren't in the negative spiral anymore personally. 

Lets hope we can keep this up!  I am tired of the constant grumpiness =)

So yes... 24 hours later the plumber still hasnt given me a definite time or even DAY on when he can come look at our backflow problem... maybe I should find a new plumber.  Problem is so many of them will scalp you.  Today being Wednesday as well... it is my usual grocery shopping day.  Once again there will be no napping for me... and of course being concerned about getting my banking and shopping done.  Of course I do want to stop at the craft store today because I found an idea for a great Christmas present for my family members. 

If it turns out well I may consider adding them to my Etsy shop... I've been lazy lately and havent added anything new.  Doing my best to find some way to make some extra money while being home with the kids.  Lots of ideas but nothing panning out yet.


But as for the title of this post - back to it anyway since I am rambling.  I really need to get down in the basement and start cleaning out and tossing the waterlogged things that were ruined over this past weekend.  3 days of torrential rain I doubt anyone in CT has a fully dry basement.  And of course some of the ruined things are our own fault for not really unpacking them when we moved 2 years ago.   Luckily my MIL brought a dehumidifier over for the basement, here's hoping we can keep it for the summer ;)  We have tax return funds still, but honestly I would much rather keep it as an emergency fund. 

Ahh well, I guess I should get back downstairs before my kids drive my MIL crazy.  Caitlynn has been clingy lately, not her norm, so I am guessing she is going through a growth spurt or something.  Ahhh the joys of motherhood! =D

So I am trying to get more active... I did a workout tape this morning, made it through it but was wheezing by the end... but it gave me a lot of energy for the rest of the day... so after dinner I decided to take the family out for a walk.  I had hoped the fresh air would help everyone get some much needed sleep.  Well here it is almost 1am and I am the only one wide awake... while it did take the kids a long time to settle down tnight, time change is still rough on them, I am just bounding with energy. 

I am hoping my insomnia clears up soon, because once I fall asleep I end up having to get up to be a mommy!  Lucky me =) well at least I am trying to get rid of all the weight I gained since I was post partem with Gabe.

And now I need to get back into the habit of using the blogger. Not only is it stress relieving... it helps keep me on track with our budget meals and menus!

So anyway - this past week has been a really rough one, not only from the recent time change... (I hate 'springing' forward) but also a series of unfortunate events. They didnt come in threes this time... unless maybe they are multiples of three - I should count them and see if we had 6 or 9 sad issues this week. Yikes!

Well Caitlynn is walking now, when she thinks we aren't watching. She thinks she can get places faster by crawling, which at the moment is true, but she will quickly get the hang of this bipedal thing. She has claimed a lovie, thank goodness, and it is a silky and plush blankie that used to belong to Gabe. Luckily she isnt very picky so I can swap between four different blankets. However they are all plush on one side and silky on the other. Two green ones, a blue one and a recently purchased pink one. if she doesnt have them at naptime and bedtime she has a fit. Now to just convince Gabe to stop trying to steal them from her crib!

Anyway, this week our menu is very limited due to the fact we have to pay for a plumber... and a dehumidifier... and potentially a couple of new rugs... so it is mostly leftovers from the sweet potato soup I made last week. I did manage to snag some Chicken Paprikash leftovers from Ama and Jaggee's house Sunday so that will be tasty.

Tuesday: Leftover Chicken and soup
Wednesday: Take out day (after a day of grocery shopping/car maint./banking I dont want to cook)
Thursday: Pasta Primavera (Have a hankering for lots of veggies!)
Friday: Stuffed Porkloin with apples
Saturday: Leftovers
Sunday: Lasagna

So now I am sitting here waiting for the plumber to call and hoping Gabe stops being a grump and takes a nap, goodness knows Caitlynn needs it!