Potty success!

Maggie went all day today with no diapers and no accidents! We were out of the house for about three hours, and she wore underwear the whole time and used two public restrooms. She even made it through a short nap this afternoon just fine. We're so proud! She's very proud of herself, too, and prefers the achievement to be marked with the consumption of jellybeans.

We're about to hit another milestone: It seems to be time to finally put away Maggie's crib and let her sleep in a bed. She likes her crib and we didn't see any reason to rush it, but lately she has made a few attempts to climb out. And then today, she climbed into her crib in the late afternoon and fell asleep! Thus, we're convinced she's ready.

I asked her if she wants to put away the crib and sleep in a big girl bed, and she got very excited and said, "Yes! I want a chair bed!" I asked her what a chair bed is, but she didn't want to answer. Instead, she said she could sleep in a cardboard box, like pigs do (like Hamilton the pig does on the show "Maggie and the Ferocious Beast," one of our Maggie's favorites). I suggested baking a giant birthday cake and using that as a bed, and she said, "That's a great idea Mama!" We actually have a cute little toddler bed that some friends gave us, so we'll use that to start.

Arboretum

We went to the Los Angeles Arboretum this morning to walk around and feed bread crusts to the animals. Maggie was beside herself with joy seeing all the peacocks, ducks, birds, turtles, squirrels and fish.

Building forts

We've been building a lot of forts lately, one of Maggie's favorite activities. I have fond memories of building forts as a kid. On Saturday mornings, my brothers and I would sometimes build individual forts in the living room and then sit in them to watch Saturday morning cartoons. They're older than I am, so they got the plum equipment like big sheets, sofa cushions and tall furniture. I was left with the rocking chair and one blanket. I would drape the blanket over the chair and then scoot myself underneath. Ah, the pathetic lot of the youngest child. A few years after that, when my brothers had grown out of forts, I built a huge fort in my bedroom using all the sheets and large blankets I could find. I used a couple of brooms for tent poles, and heavy books to anchor the ends of the sheets on the furniture. It took up my whole room, and I was proud. I left it up for several days until the repair work became too onerous.

At present, Maggie's forts consist of a queen-size sheet draped over a couple pieces of furniture, often with my head in the middle as a tent pole. Maggie likes to drag in blankets and pillows to make the fort "comfy." Audrey likes to try to pull the whole thing down.

The other day, the three of us were sitting in the comfy fort and Maggie proclaimed she was "King Maggie!" She pointed at me: "King Mommy!" and Audrey: "King Baby Audrey!" We then enjoyed a nice cuddle and opened a window in the fort so we could watch some cartoons together.

Funny Maggie

Two funny stories from my local correspondent, Robert:

Ever since passing a car dealership decorated with balloons months ago, Maggie has been convinced that her ticket to all the balloons she wants is for us to buy a new car. The other day, when Robert was taking Maggie out to lunch, she said to him: "Let's go to the car store. Can we get a car so Maggie can get a balloon? Your car OLD. You get a NEW car, I get a BALLOON!"

Maggie likes to hold her hands up to her eyes to make a pretend telescope, and then look for the mountains, the beach, or whatever. The other day she was looking through her telescope and she told Robert, "I see a bird with my telescope. I'm going to catch it." He asked her, "What are you going to do with it when you catch it?" She said, "I'm going to eat it, and then it will be in my tummy! HA HA HA HA!" (Imagine a 2-year-old's version of evil laughter.)

Photos from today

Maggie's idea of hugging Audrey invariably includes a squeeze around the neck.

Stopping to smell the roses.


New shoes.

Audrey and me, bundled up for another chilly spring day. What is WITH this weather? You'd never believe it was almost May. Isn't it usually hot by now?

Overheard from the bathroom

Guys, I think I'm pooping!

. . . . .

HERE IT COMES!!

(My apologies to my future, teenaged, mortified daughter.)

Maggie sings the ABCs

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Audrey is 10 months old

Our little entertainers

Disclaimer: This is the post where I gush about the cute/brilliant things the girls are doing. Please assume plenty of tedium, laundry, diapers, literal spilled milk that is in fact being cried over, whining and complaining that are not being specified at this time. That said...on with the gush!

When making a decision (milk vs. juice, for example) Maggie will often proclaim something like, "I want milk. Milk is much better" or "I wear jeans today. Jeans would be perfect." She particularly likes the word "perfect" and pronounces it very carefully.

She can sing several songs all the way through, getting all or most of the words right. Her ABCs are flawless. Robert contends that she knows more song lyrics than he does.

She likes to make up song and dance routines. A new one is the "Sunshine Dance" that involves her crouching down, then springing up and waving her arms in the air. Last week our friends Angela, T.J. and Malena came for a visit, and Maggie had all of us doing one of her routines. It included a lot of finger snapping and feet stomping, as I recall. She was delighted to have four grown-ups following her instructions.

One more funny thing about Maggie--she loves to play with her toy cameras and have people pose for pictures. She tells us where to stand, makes us say cheese, takes the picture and then hands the imaginary photo to us. What I wonder is, where did she get the idea that the camera produces photos? As far as I know, she's never seen a Polaroid.

Now for Audrey: She is babbling more and saying "mama" a lot. I think she's very close to recognizing it's a real word. She says it while playing or trying to get my attention, but the sweetest is when she says it when she's sad or hurt--she makes a little frown and says "ma-ma-ma-maaaa," and it goes straight to my heart.

Audrey and I have invented a new game we call the Chicken Game. She stands at one side of the coffee table and I sit opposite. We then toss a little plastic chicken back and forth. She has a really good arm--she can throw things far and actually has decent aim. She also throws her pacifiers. First thing in the morning when I go to get her from her crib, she usually has a pacifier in her mouth. But as soon as I pick her up and she realizes she's going to get milk, she takes out the pacifier and flings it away with considerable force. She will also sit on the floor and roll a ball back and forth. I'm surprised by how good she is at it.

Go Clippers

At the mall

Photos from Phoenix

Traffic

We're making worse time than expected--traffic is heavy. Feels like we've been in the car all day. Oh wait, we have! Bleah.

Speeding through the desert

We're about halfway home, with both girls napping at present.Lesson learned: next time bring more CDs and a DVD for myself!

On the road again

We are headed home. Maggie is looking forward to stopping at the McDonalds playground again.I finally got a good photo of the girls with their great-grandmother before we left. I'll post it from home later.

Bedtime

Thursday in Sun City

I am blogging from my aunt's computer this time. Using the mobile phone to post is kind of fun, but it's hard work texting in all the copy. I don't know how the kids these days use text messaging as a major form of communication. It's so slow and cumbersome! Why don't they just speak to one other? (says the girl who prefers email to phone...but at least it's fast...)

But I digress. We've been having a nice quiet day so far. We went for a walk earlier to enjoy the cool air before the heat of the day sets in. The air is so clear here. We could see the moon up in the sky even at 8 a.m. Maggie quite enjoyed seeing all the cacti and flowers, and kept a sharp eye out for the wild rabbits that run rampant around here. Audrey rode happily along in her stroller but refused to wear her hat.

Maggie has been availing herself of all the fun toys and games her Great Aunt Suella and Great Uncle Larry thoughtfully keep on hand (they have two grandchildren of their own, so they know all about keeping little ones entertained). Maggie quite enjoyed Hi-Ho Cherry-O and a Disney Yahtzee game. Next we may have to experiment with Candyland or Chutes and Ladders.

Rise and shine

We had fun last night seeing everyone and playing with Aunt Suella and Uncle Larry's toys. Audrey slept through the night, but she sure is a noisy sleeper, and she woke me up a lot.Maggie stayed up past 9 last night--I guess she was too excited.She is sleeping in.

Just crossed the border

Welcome to Arizona...and to naptime.

On the road

I have finally figured out how to post from my phone. We are at the McDonald's in Blythe, where the girls are burning off some energy on the play structure.

Another Arctic expedition

It's actually just another two-night trip, but packing for the girls always feels monumental. Tomorrow morning, my mom and I are driving the girls to Phoenix to visit my grandmother, aunt and uncle. I have stacks of diapers, piles of clothes, a mountain of baby food, the pack-n-play, my overstuffed diaper backpack, and an extra bag full of tricks (including little gift-wrapped surprises for Maggie). Whew.

Oh, and we invested in a portable DVD player. That ought to keep Maggie happy.

Happy Easter

We had a long, happy, fun Easter yesterday. The girls woke up to their Easter baskets, filled with toys and treats. We made waffles together, and then it was a mad rush to get ready for church. The girls looked so sweet in their little pink dresses and hats, with white sweaters on top because it was cold and cloudy here in the morning. After church, we went to Robert's parents' house for the annual Easter egg hunt and dinner, with more than 25 people in attendance (a new record, I think!). Maggie had a lot of fun decorating eggs and then hunting for them with the other kids. Audrey had fun playing in the grass (and eating the grass) and watching the big kids run around.

More Easter eggs

Maggie is an egg-coloring pro. Luckily she also likes eating Easter eggs--the white part, anyway. Today she ate THREE, leaving the yolks for the grateful Lucydog. Audrey tried some yolk too, but promptly spit it out.

Pat-a-cake

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My bunnies

Egg hunt at playgroup

Yes. Yes I can.

I woke up early this morning to the sound of knocking. And yelling. As I pulled myself up through the fog of sleep I became aware that the sound was caused by Maggie, who was pounding on her bedroom wall and yelling, "Hello? Can anybody hear me? Mommy? Daddy? Heelllooo? CAN ANYBODY HEAR ME?"

Potty training continues. We went to playgroup today and she wore a pull-up, but didn't need it. She even used the toilet (with no special seat) at their house. At home she has had two accidents, but otherwise is doing great. I'm still amazed by how much she goes.

Working

I went to work this morning for a meeting and got a big hairy project assigned to me. I'll be logging a lot of hours this week. Some annoying things are cropping up, reminding me of all the things I always disliked about my old job. But it is still a refreshing change of pace from mommying.

You'll be happy to hear that I managed to get my free latte today. I gave myself plenty of time to navigate the coffee bar, waited in line, and bravely ordered a nonfat latte. Moments later they handed it over, free of charge! And delicious!

Some success

Potty training seems to have turned a corner. Maggie is completely out of diapers while at home (except for naps and nighttime), and has had very few accidents. She's getting better about going to the potty all on her own, and today she even pooped on the potty! (Apologies to those of you who may not want to hear about such things....) We celebrated by making popcorn, a reward I've been promising her for weeks. She was very proud.

When we leave the house, I've been putting a pull-up over her underwear (thanks to someone who posted that idea in the comments--I'm sorry I can't remember who it was). She has peed in her underwear every time we've done this, but it seems to help because she's very aware that she's done it. She has also used public bathrooms a number of times already.

It's nice to feel like we're making progress!

Easter Portrait

We got the girls' portrait done this weekend. They looked so girly in their pink Easter dresses! They'll be so cute next weekend all dressed up for church and egg hunting.

Audrey claps

Edible sand, public potty & a parking ticket

Ah yes, another exciting morning for the Graff girls! We went to a new playground to meet a bunch of friends from MOMS Club. Maggie had a blast playing in the sand, climbing on the play structure, hanging from a bar (which she did as adeptly as any little monkey), playing with a parachute, and running around with the other kids. Audrey had fun too, especially when given the opportunity to eat sand for the first time in her little life. I tried to be an easygoing mom who doesn't flinch when her kid eats sand. I sat there for a minute watching, and then I was done. After that Audrey stayed on our blanket or in my arms.

At one point I shlepped both girls and our gear to the park's restroom (thankfully, a clean one) to try our first public potty experiment. Maggie was very excited to watch me wipe the toilet seat with antibacterial wipes, and then place her new Dora potty seat on top. She was very willing to sit up there, but didn't pee. She thought the whole thing was great, though, so I'm calling it a near-success.

After two hours of fresh air and playtime, I was feeling good...until I found a $35 parking ticket on my car.

Adventures in potty training

I'm so used to Maggie being great at most things, and I'm so used to bragging about them, that it's a little hard on me to admit that potty training doesn't seem to be going well.

I don't think I'm being consistent enough and I don't think Maggie is motivated enough. She is willing to use the potty often, but not often enough. Sometimes when I prompt her to go she refuses and screams and runs away...and then a few minutes later has an accident. A few times she has had an accident and seemed genuinely surprised. Can she not feel when she needs to go? How will she learn to hold it?

As a motivational tool, I bought her a 3-pack of Hello Kitty underwear. It was literally the ONLY underwear in all of Target in her size (2T/3T), and they're still way too big on her. I will have to scour the mall for more underwear choices. She quite enjoyed wearing them, and managed to pee in all three pairs in no time.

Assorted photos

My goals for the day

My number-one goal for today is to get the girls on a better sleep schedule. We got them both down at 7:15 last night, which was a good start. They both woke up at 6:30 this morning--also good. Audrey cried at least twice during the night but I ignored her and she obviously got back to sleep on her own. I was so exhausted that it actually wasn't hard to let her cry it out. It would have taken sirens or death threats to get me out of bed before light. Audrey napped for one hour this morning, and I'm hoping to get them both down pretty soon for an afternoon nap.

My other goal for today is to continue working on potty training Maggie. She has stayed out of diapers a lot this week. So far today she's had two accidents, but she's also peed in the potty at least 7 or 8 times. She sure seems to go a LOT. Every half hour it seems like, and sometimes more? Is that normal? I think she is really close to being fully trained, and if I can just muster up the energy to constantly remind her and insist that she stay out of diapers, I think she'll get it completely.

One more goal: less TV. So far today Maggie has only watched one complete show (20 minutes long, first thing this morning). We've turned the TV on a couple other times, but then she started doing something else instead of watching. I'm making an effort to distract her with other activities. Like potty training, it requires more energy and fortitude from me, which I will admit is tough...but certainly not impossible. I'm not striving for zero TV--just less--and less reliance on it out of sheer habit or laziness.

The continued chronicles of no-sleep

For the third day in a row, Maggie did not nap. This makes for long days for the both of us.

Audrey's schedule has been weird too. They were both up late last night (past 8pm), then Audrey woke up before 5am. At least she napped okay (three one-hour naps).

Robert and I didn't sleep well either. There's our uncomfortable bed, and then there was the alarm beeping for no reason in the middle of the night.

y a w n

Maggie meets the Easter Bunny

I took the girls to the mall this morning, Audrey in the stroller and Maggie on foot. We managed to return something to one store, buy something at another store and have lunch at CPK. Audrey lost one of her new Robeez booties. I'm pretty unhappy about it.

Maggie was very excited to see the Easter Bunny's uber-tacky set-up, complete with fake grass, two live bunnies, lots of plastic eggs, and the freakishly large Easter Bunny with slightly dirty fur. I asked Maggie if she wanted her photo taken with the Bunny, and to my surprise she said YES. So, I forked over $11 for this one ridiculous shot. Audrey was grouchy so I didn't even attempt to include her in it.

Daylight Tired Time

Is it just us, or are these time changes brutal on all the families with little kids? This morning, I rolled out of bed (after a bad night of sleep--but more on that in a moment) at 6:30, but then suddenly it was 7:30 and we had only 2 hours to get everyone ready and out the door to church. We managed--barely. And then Audrey only lasted a little while in the church nursery before needing to be rescued. I brought her back into the service and she had a grand old time laughing, babbling and making friends with the ladies sitting behind us. Audrey wins fans wherever she goes.

The time change also threw off the girls' naps; Audrey napped late and Maggie didn't nap at all. Then neither of them wanted to go to bed, even though the clock said 7pm...then 7:30.... We finally got them both asleep a little after 8.

As for me not sleeping well--for one thing, Audrey has been waking up at night lately. I know I should be tough and let her cry it out, but it's so much faster (and quieter!) to go in there, nurse her for a minute and put her back down. The other problem is our mattress, which is only 18 months old but is horribly uncomfortable and seems to be literally getting worse each night. It has a "memory foam" top that has developed permanent hollows where we lie. Robert has been uncomfortable for a year, but my side finally caught up and now I feel bad that he's been sleeping this way for so long. It's awful! We are looking into getting a credit because this problem seems to be covered under the warranty. Either way, we will be getting a new mattress soon. We need our sleep!

Talent update

I realized that I haven't posted for a while about the girls' newest accomplishments, so I thought I'd devote a post to the subject.

Maggie is obsessed with a kids' video called "Poupee and Friends" that purports to teach French to preschoolers. At first we were like "whatever" and figured it was enough that she laughed at the puppets. After a few viewings, she started spouting some French vocabulary (colors, animals, etc). We were impressed. Then this morning, she was playing with the remote and ended up on the Sundance channel, where--you guessed it--a French film was playing. Maggie watched, mesmerized, and started explaining to us what was happening. She actually understood enough French to follow the conversation between the characters! Now, she is speaking in entire sentences and refuses to speak English: "Non, mère, seulement français s'il vous plaît!"

I suppose it would help if either of us actually knew any French.

As for Audrey--I'm starting a new "infant toilet training" method with her. After the slowness of trying to potty train Maggie, I thought I'd like to start earlier with Audrey and get her completely trained before her first birthday. I've been learning a lot on these sites: here and here. So far it's going great! I have been working on teaching her how to sign when she has to go, and she has been successfully using the potty most of the time. A nice side effect is that she is learning other sign language, too. I never bothered trying to teach signs to Maggie, but Audrey is picking it up fast! She can sign "more," "all done," "I need to use the potty" and "Beauty of style and harmony and grace and good rhythm depends on simplicity."