Wednesday, June 27, 2012
Finally...something about our 2nd child!
So it is June 27th and my last blog update was posted as February, but really written the day I went into labor with Camdyn (March 21st). I just got an email for a free Shutterfly book that expired today so of course I wanted to put something together quick so I didn't lose a FREE book! Anyway, here is a peek at #2...Miss Camdyn Jean. There is plenty more to come, but at least you get a look at her first couple hours/days/weeks after birth!
Photo Book
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Wednesday, February 22, 2012
Larkyn's room has finally come together...
Larkyn continues to enjoy her big girl room with purple stripes! She loves playing in her room, reading books and working at her desk. The changing pad you see in the picture below is no longer there. We put that in the baby's room as soon as we started potty training Larkyn.
"I want to show off my new room too!"
It is hard to see the white letters in this picture...
Larkyn
You are a child of God
Shea made the four shelves that are hanging on each side of the mirror.
Larkyn's room showcases a handful of Pinterest ideas:) The white framed birth stats on the top shelf to the left of the closest and the three canvases to the right of the closest.
Close up of the hand and foot print art...
Monday, February 20, 2012
3 Day Potty Training...
Day One
It was a Saturday morning and Shea and I were up around 6:15 am getting showered and ready for our big day. By 6:50 am we were sitting in the recliners in our living room waiting for Larkyn to wake up and begin her (our) new adventure! Potty training in 3 days...well we hoped 3! With baby #2 around the corner it was time to get at least one out of diapers. The past couple weeks we have been talking with Larkyn about wearing big girl underwear and going potty on the big potty. Any time we did the count down "2 more weeks..." she would follow it up with "NO MORE DIAPERS!" The other day she said "2 more days...NO DIAPERS!" without prompting from us. We were hoping that enthusiasm shined through for the three days to get our little lady fully potty trained!
So it all started back in December when my friend Jessi told us about this e-book by Lora Jensen called 3 Day Potty Training: Start Friday, Done Sunday! Jessi and Chris had read it and decided to potty train their daughter Hannah over Christmas Break. After a couple days of accidents, lots of laundry and plenty of patience, Hannah was potty trained. Yay!
After much discussion of trying to do the same with Larkyn over Christmas Break we decided to wait a bit until we felt we had the chance to read over the e-book more and were more comfortable with the whole idea. Once you start it is on...no diapers (they get thrown out), no pull ups, nothing special for naps or bedtime. Big girl underwear...here we come!
Though Christmas Break would have been an ideal time as far as multiple days home, I still couldn't get myself ready to do it. So looking ahead, the next long weekend we had was President's Day weekend.
So here beings Day One...
Larkyn woke up around 7:15 am. She started out the day in a diaper and her long sleeved "Bucky" tee to eat breakfast. Larkyn enjoyed a slice and a half of veggie fritatta or "Hakuna Matata" as she likes to call it:), a banana, milk and OJ (suppose to load them up on liquids to get the process going!). After breakfast we headed back upstairs to get rid of the diapers and put on big girl underwear. Larkyn went right into the bathroom and we talked about how she will be using the big girl potty. Part of the process involves reminding her very frequently "Remember to tell me when you have to go potty." "Keep your big girl underwear dry!" There is no putting her on the toilet to "try" or asking if she has to go. Our goal is to build independence and encourage her to tell us when she has to go.
So at 8:30 am we came downstairs, Larkyn with her big girl underwear on and a stack of diapers in her hands. We put those diapers, as well as all the other diapers and wipes from all of the diaper bags, into a garbage bag and took them out to the garage. (I have a hard time throwing them away, would rather give them away, so they didn't really go into the garbage at this time.)
After pushing some liquids and looking through pictures and some magazines Larkyn went potty at 9:05. Most of it in her underwear, but Shea caught her in the act and rushed her to the potty to finish. After she broke the seal, she went about every 10-20 minutes for the next hour and a half. Some were full accidents and some were caught and finished in the toilet. We had a lull between 11:20 and 1:00 though there were many "false alarm" trips to the bathroom to sit on the toilet and get right off. It may have had something to do with being distracted with our company. (My mom and Scott stopped through on their way to a wedding north of here.) At 1:00 she told us all she had to go potty and sure enough she made it and went in the toilet. YAY! So much praise and excitement was shared by all! That would be the only time she made it all day:)
I would love to say the day went on with as much excitement and success, but there were many more accidents and hundreds of trips to the potty for her to get right off again within 2 seconds. (Just a tad bit tiring!) Larkyn had a really hard time going down for a nap around 1:30 and continued to call out "potty or poopy" trying to get our attention, which in turn took away from her nap time. She finally peed in her bed around 2:45. We put her back in after cleaning up and once she calmed down from crying she just sat in there talking for the next 30 minutes. Needless to say DAY ONE...NO NAP!
By 8:30 pm and Shea and I were exhausted!!! Between running to the bathroom all day and bouncing around from coloring to play cooking to sticker books and reading, we are pooped! No pun intended:) because she never went! Larkyn was wiped out and fell asleep just after 7:00. She popped up around 8:00 and called out for us and said "potty." Shea ran up to put her on the toilet, but nothing!
Day Two
Larkyn woke up wet around 3:30 am. We changed her pants and sheets and put her back down to sleep. She didn't sleep well the rest of the morning, but at least went back to bed for a little bit. Day two went a little better...I was so exhausted from all the ups and downs and emotionally drained from the "Mommy, Mommy" that I decided to head to church with my mom and Scott and leave Shea and Larkyn home to train together! I think it was a good decision, as Larkyn did a great job with Shea and had more one on one attention and I got the recharge break that I needed. She started to tell him more when she was going potty, though she still had many accidents (including one poop accident). After church I went out shopping and running errands, and didn't come home until Larkyn was down for a nap. She took a longer nap on day two, though she did wake up wet. After her nap, things were pretty consistent and Larkyn was showing more signs of starting to get the potty concept. That night she took a shower with me and I told her it was okay to pee in the shower! She really didn't like that and asked to get out and ended up going on the toilet. What a rule follower! Larkyn went potty again on the toilet just before bed and fell asleep pretty quickly again. During the night if we heard her stir we went in there multiple times to grab her and put her on the toilet. Again...exhausting, but well worth it in the end. She ended up waking up in the morning wet again, but we just changed her clothes and sheets and went on with our day.
Day Three
Wow...what a difference a day makes! Though Larkyn woke up wet this morning the rest of the day went surprisingly well. She did have a few accidents, but for the most part told us every time she had to go potty. She even started running towards the bathroom when she knew she had to go. We quickly realized that this helped her go once we got there. Every time we would pick her up to bring her to the bathroom it was like she lost her sensation to go once on the toilet.
On day three Larkyn's nap went very well. She went potty right before nap and stayed dry throughout. The afternoon was pleasant as well with many successful trips to the bathroom. After the third day, we were starting to get the hang of the bedtime routine and she was going potty every night before bed. She still shouted out a few times to go again as she was laying in her bed, but overall getting the concept of cleaning out before bed! Though we were exhausted after our three day experience, it was proving to be well worth our time and effort.
And so on...
Though we still go into the bathroom to help her pull her pants down, prop her up on the toilet and wipe her when she is done, potty training has been a very rewarding experience with Larkyn. She was very willing to try something knew and got really good at it in a very short time. The next day was a Tuesday and she went to Tracey's and only had one accident all day...nap time! She pooped on the toilet for Tom and Tracey and told them every time she had to go pee. As the week went on the number of accidents during nap time and bed time decreased and soon we found ourselves doing less and less laundry! Larkyn has gotten really good about going potty right before nap time and staying dry. She has also done a great job going potty just before bed. Before Shea and I go to bed we have been taking her to the bathroom (she is completely asleep/out of it and sits on there bent over with her head resting on Shea's knees-he sits on the edge of the bathtub). It is super precious and the best part is that she actually goes quite a bit. We believe this has been helping her stay dry over night and hope to ween her off of this sooner or later, but for now it is working! One thing we have really learned in the last couple weeks is that some of her best dance moves come out when she has to go, but she is working on keeping that bladder strong and has learned how to hold it better each day!
It was a Saturday morning and Shea and I were up around 6:15 am getting showered and ready for our big day. By 6:50 am we were sitting in the recliners in our living room waiting for Larkyn to wake up and begin her (our) new adventure! Potty training in 3 days...well we hoped 3! With baby #2 around the corner it was time to get at least one out of diapers. The past couple weeks we have been talking with Larkyn about wearing big girl underwear and going potty on the big potty. Any time we did the count down "2 more weeks..." she would follow it up with "NO MORE DIAPERS!" The other day she said "2 more days...NO DIAPERS!" without prompting from us. We were hoping that enthusiasm shined through for the three days to get our little lady fully potty trained!
So it all started back in December when my friend Jessi told us about this e-book by Lora Jensen called 3 Day Potty Training: Start Friday, Done Sunday! Jessi and Chris had read it and decided to potty train their daughter Hannah over Christmas Break. After a couple days of accidents, lots of laundry and plenty of patience, Hannah was potty trained. Yay!
After much discussion of trying to do the same with Larkyn over Christmas Break we decided to wait a bit until we felt we had the chance to read over the e-book more and were more comfortable with the whole idea. Once you start it is on...no diapers (they get thrown out), no pull ups, nothing special for naps or bedtime. Big girl underwear...here we come!
Though Christmas Break would have been an ideal time as far as multiple days home, I still couldn't get myself ready to do it. So looking ahead, the next long weekend we had was President's Day weekend.
So here beings Day One...
Larkyn woke up around 7:15 am. She started out the day in a diaper and her long sleeved "Bucky" tee to eat breakfast. Larkyn enjoyed a slice and a half of veggie fritatta or "Hakuna Matata" as she likes to call it:), a banana, milk and OJ (suppose to load them up on liquids to get the process going!). After breakfast we headed back upstairs to get rid of the diapers and put on big girl underwear. Larkyn went right into the bathroom and we talked about how she will be using the big girl potty. Part of the process involves reminding her very frequently "Remember to tell me when you have to go potty." "Keep your big girl underwear dry!" There is no putting her on the toilet to "try" or asking if she has to go. Our goal is to build independence and encourage her to tell us when she has to go.
So at 8:30 am we came downstairs, Larkyn with her big girl underwear on and a stack of diapers in her hands. We put those diapers, as well as all the other diapers and wipes from all of the diaper bags, into a garbage bag and took them out to the garage. (I have a hard time throwing them away, would rather give them away, so they didn't really go into the garbage at this time.)
After pushing some liquids and looking through pictures and some magazines Larkyn went potty at 9:05. Most of it in her underwear, but Shea caught her in the act and rushed her to the potty to finish. After she broke the seal, she went about every 10-20 minutes for the next hour and a half. Some were full accidents and some were caught and finished in the toilet. We had a lull between 11:20 and 1:00 though there were many "false alarm" trips to the bathroom to sit on the toilet and get right off. It may have had something to do with being distracted with our company. (My mom and Scott stopped through on their way to a wedding north of here.) At 1:00 she told us all she had to go potty and sure enough she made it and went in the toilet. YAY! So much praise and excitement was shared by all! That would be the only time she made it all day:)
I would love to say the day went on with as much excitement and success, but there were many more accidents and hundreds of trips to the potty for her to get right off again within 2 seconds. (Just a tad bit tiring!) Larkyn had a really hard time going down for a nap around 1:30 and continued to call out "potty or poopy" trying to get our attention, which in turn took away from her nap time. She finally peed in her bed around 2:45. We put her back in after cleaning up and once she calmed down from crying she just sat in there talking for the next 30 minutes. Needless to say DAY ONE...NO NAP!
By 8:30 pm and Shea and I were exhausted!!! Between running to the bathroom all day and bouncing around from coloring to play cooking to sticker books and reading, we are pooped! No pun intended:) because she never went! Larkyn was wiped out and fell asleep just after 7:00. She popped up around 8:00 and called out for us and said "potty." Shea ran up to put her on the toilet, but nothing!
Here are some pictures from the day...
Pushing the fluids...She had a lot of water and juice over the 3 days
We moved up her little blue table from the basement for her. Notice it is on the hard floor and not carpet! She loved building with her duplos.
Eating lunch with Daddy...
Coloring with Grandma Debbie...
Day Two
Larkyn woke up wet around 3:30 am. We changed her pants and sheets and put her back down to sleep. She didn't sleep well the rest of the morning, but at least went back to bed for a little bit. Day two went a little better...I was so exhausted from all the ups and downs and emotionally drained from the "Mommy, Mommy" that I decided to head to church with my mom and Scott and leave Shea and Larkyn home to train together! I think it was a good decision, as Larkyn did a great job with Shea and had more one on one attention and I got the recharge break that I needed. She started to tell him more when she was going potty, though she still had many accidents (including one poop accident). After church I went out shopping and running errands, and didn't come home until Larkyn was down for a nap. She took a longer nap on day two, though she did wake up wet. After her nap, things were pretty consistent and Larkyn was showing more signs of starting to get the potty concept. That night she took a shower with me and I told her it was okay to pee in the shower! She really didn't like that and asked to get out and ended up going on the toilet. What a rule follower! Larkyn went potty again on the toilet just before bed and fell asleep pretty quickly again. During the night if we heard her stir we went in there multiple times to grab her and put her on the toilet. Again...exhausting, but well worth it in the end. She ended up waking up in the morning wet again, but we just changed her clothes and sheets and went on with our day.
Wow...what a difference a day makes! Though Larkyn woke up wet this morning the rest of the day went surprisingly well. She did have a few accidents, but for the most part told us every time she had to go potty. She even started running towards the bathroom when she knew she had to go. We quickly realized that this helped her go once we got there. Every time we would pick her up to bring her to the bathroom it was like she lost her sensation to go once on the toilet.
On day three Larkyn's nap went very well. She went potty right before nap and stayed dry throughout. The afternoon was pleasant as well with many successful trips to the bathroom. After the third day, we were starting to get the hang of the bedtime routine and she was going potty every night before bed. She still shouted out a few times to go again as she was laying in her bed, but overall getting the concept of cleaning out before bed! Though we were exhausted after our three day experience, it was proving to be well worth our time and effort.
Look at my big girl Minnie Mouse underwear!
Playing in her kitchen to pass time...
And so on...
Though we still go into the bathroom to help her pull her pants down, prop her up on the toilet and wipe her when she is done, potty training has been a very rewarding experience with Larkyn. She was very willing to try something knew and got really good at it in a very short time. The next day was a Tuesday and she went to Tracey's and only had one accident all day...nap time! She pooped on the toilet for Tom and Tracey and told them every time she had to go pee. As the week went on the number of accidents during nap time and bed time decreased and soon we found ourselves doing less and less laundry! Larkyn has gotten really good about going potty right before nap time and staying dry. She has also done a great job going potty just before bed. Before Shea and I go to bed we have been taking her to the bathroom (she is completely asleep/out of it and sits on there bent over with her head resting on Shea's knees-he sits on the edge of the bathtub). It is super precious and the best part is that she actually goes quite a bit. We believe this has been helping her stay dry over night and hope to ween her off of this sooner or later, but for now it is working! One thing we have really learned in the last couple weeks is that some of her best dance moves come out when she has to go, but she is working on keeping that bladder strong and has learned how to hold it better each day!
Sunday, February 12, 2012
Basketball weekend in Wisconsin...
Living 3 hours from our niece and nephew, Breally and Cayden, makes it a little difficult to see many of their events and activities. We lucked out in finding a weekend where both of them had basketball tournaments in the same area. We spent the majority of Saturday watching basketball games. Well, Larkyn and I spent some of Saturday at Janny's taking a nap, but Shea and the rest of the gang watched games from 9 am to 6 pm. When Larkyn was at the games she was very interested in the action of the game and sat watching very intently.
We watched Cayden and his team in Stevens Point right away Saturday morning. He does a nice job handling the ball and made some really good passes and shots. The game we watched went into overtime. Cayden's team ended up winning the game, but lost the other two.
We also watched Breally play in Wisconsin Rapids. She also handles the ball well and is very aggressive. Breally's team made it to the championship game and ended up in 2nd place.
Larkyn enjoyed hanging out with Breally in between games. She got to be one of the "big girls"!
The rest of the pictures are from after the championship game...
Sunday, January 29, 2012
Playing with the camera...
So the more I get into Pinterest, the more ideas I get about photography and the more motivated I get. I'm still trying to learn everything I can about my camera, lighting, backgrounds, positioning, editing and much more. I still have A LOT to learn! However my best learning comes from doing so it is a good thing I have a little guinea pig to work with at home. Due to the winter weather and the inability to really do much photography outside at this point, I decided to get something set up in our house. I opened up the blinds from the sliding glass door (for some natural light), pushed our kitchen table out of the way and set up "my studio". I had a white sheet that I threw up as a backdrop and set my guinea pig up to get to work. She was quite playful for awhile, but was done within about 20 minutes. Good thing it was just a practice round! So after many adjustments with the sheet and using big work bench clamps from Shea to hold it up I decided I wanted to research some other options. Shea and I found a photography background stand set including 3 muslin backdrops (black, white and green), and a lighting kit on Amazon. It arrived last week and I look forward to unpacking the kit and getting it all set up. The problem is space...looks like Larkyn's play area downstairs may have to be sacrificed for a bit. The great thing is it all packs up really easily and could be taken from place to place if needed. I have a tripod and remote as well so my hope is to use all my resources over the next couple weeks to take some maternity photos before this big belly goes away! Oh, how I look forward to the infant photo shoots. Hoping for a cooperative baby...
Some silly shots...
Saturday, January 14, 2012
Zoo with Grandma Debbie...
Grandma Debbie came to visit us for the weekend so we decided to take her to the zoo on Saturday morning. We saw many baby monkeys hanging on their Mama's tummies or backs. We also saw a very pregnant Mama monkey with a baby in her belly. Larkyn enjoyed showing Grandma the birds and reptiles of the Tropics Trail. We finished with the dolphins, sharks and fish in Discovery Bay. Larkyn enjoyed putting her hands in the water just above the Sting Rays...YIKES!
On Saturdays during the winter months there are many opportunities for kid crafts and activities. We sat down for a bit so Larkyn could create a card for her daddy. We cut out starfish, sharks, and dolphins to color and glue on the card.
She was more interested in the supplies than actually creating the card!
Later in the evening, Shea, Larkyn and I met my mom and her friend Scott and some of his extended family at Cadillac Ranch in the Mall of America for dinner. Larkyn was very social that night and got playing a game with beaded necklaces with a little girl and boy next to our table. No relation or knowledge of who they were...just fun people to be around I guess! She also enjoyed jumping on the inflatables that surrounded the mechanical bull until she got kicked out with the rest of the kids! It was fun getting to know Scott a little more this weekend and meeting some of his family. We would have loved to have stayed to join in the fun on the rides at Nickelodeon Universe, but our little lady was pooped, and it was time for bed!
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