Thursday, September 30, 2010

Don't ask me, I don't know what I'm doing!


When I do homechecks for people adopting puppies from HART (the rescue group I volunteer with), they often ask me for tips and tricks on housebreaking their puppy. I tell them the best advice I can give is to not ask me for tips and tricks on housebreaking their puppy. Seriously. It took us two and a half years to housebreak Noelle and I'm STILL not convinced she's 100% housebroken. Either that or she's just spiteful and I choose to think the best of people...and dogs.

Now, I recognize it's unfair to compare housebreaking Noelle to potty training Kaitlyn, but it feels a little bit like the same routine. Yeay! Lots of forward progress! Lookit that! Poop in the potty! Lookit that! A whole day with no accidents! Next day, five accidents! I had to go buy underwear in a bulk pack of 100 so that we can make sure we have enough "unnerwear" to cover us through two days. An exaggeration, sure, but man, this potty training thing is kicking our collective butts! And you can say to her "Kaitlyn, the pee pee goes in the _____" and she will very nicely finish with "the POTTY!" Same with the poo poo. She wants to do well, she wants to wear the unnerwear, but she most DEFINITELY does not want to stop what she's doing to go potty. Unless what she's doing is boring (like waiting for mommy to finish her conversation or going to bed earlier than 10 pm) in which case she has to go RIGHT NOW and as OFTEN as possible!

On a medical front, TIC had a massive ear infection in the earlier part of last week. What I thought was her eardrum bursting was her eardrum pushing out her tube with a big fat "ptoooie!" A follow up with the ENT yesterday recovered the tube (I have it stashed securely between two dixie cups...yup, we're high tech) and cleared fun gunk out of TIC's ear. And I mean FUN! And brought tidings of comfort and joy. Prognosis is we're looking at another set of tubes, within the not too distant future. I don't know what the issue is (genetics) but I'm seriously over this nonsense! And I'm guessing TIC is too, but I could just be projecting.

TIC also learned a very important lesson this week: If you hold your hand out without giving anything in return, you will continue to have a very empty hand. We encountered a fat toad on our walk one evening. I goaded her into trying to pick it up. Her version of picking it up was to walk towards it with her palm outstretched as if hoping the toad would decide to jump nicely into the palm of her hand! The toad did not comply, but I don't think TIC was too disappointed. In truth, I'm not entirely convinced that it wasn't just a way for her to appease me and that she really DIDN'T want to pick the toad up. I get. I don't want warts either! ;-)

Until next time...don't ask me! I don't know what I'm doing. At all.

Saturday, September 11, 2010

Conversations with Kaitlyn

I'm stealing the title from my friend Julie, but these are some snippets of conversations I've had with Kaitlyn so I can't think of a more appropriate title.

The proper name for a movie burned onto a disc:
Me: Kaitlyn, can you put that piece of paper back into the DVD case?
K: No, MY paper.
Me: No, Kaitlyn, the paper belongs to the DVD?
K: Paper goes to DBDB?
Me: Yes, the paper belongs to the DVD.
K: No DBDB...my paper.

Promises, promises:
Me: Kaitlyn, you can have the toy when you poop on the potty.
K: Poop on the potty?
Me: Yes, you need to poopoo on the potty and you'll get the toy.
K: I poopoo on the potty mommy. I promise.
(C'mon...how cute is that??)

In TJ Maxx:
K: I have a booger
Me: Kaitlyn, you have a booger?
K turns to look at me with her finger up her nose: Yeah, I have a booger (giggle)

No shame in admitting we are struggling with pooping in the potty. We put the "product" of the accident in the potty and then dispose of the underwear or pull-up. The following conversation happened after putting the poop in the potty.
K: Put poop in the potty?
Me: Yes, Kaitlyn, mommy put the poop in the potty.
K: I DID IT! COME SEE MOMMY! POOP IN THE POTTY!!
Me: *Sigh* Yes, baby, there is poop in the potty
(How do you explain the difference?? LOL)

Thursday, September 9, 2010

Labor?? What Labor??

For Labor Day weekend, the Shoup House was abuuuuuuuuuzzzzzzz with activity. Nothing new there. Momma took the term "Labor Day" to heart and labored...all weekend long! To escape the madness, Daddy and Kaitlyn went to see a really cool live butterfly exhibit at the Smithsonian. It was so "live" that butterflies could actually land on you and we have pictures to prove it! It was also, so "live" that by the time they came home, Daddy and TIC both were ready for long naps! But when she woke up, the Toddler in Chief was excited to tell me all about the butterflies.

Sunday night we attended a barbecue at a neighbor's house. I was unsure of how TIC would do because 1) she was cranky from her late nap, and 2) there were no children to distract her. She did great and sat in the patio chair and ate her dinner like a little lady. What surprised me was her intense interest in the corn on the cob. She's been eating corn for awhile, so the concept of corn was not new to her, but eating it off the cob is. Brent broke off a piece of his cob and she chowed down like we had never fed her before. By the end of the night, I think her cob was cleaner than mine! I wasn't even considering giving her corn on the cob until she was like 30 and I could be assured that she wouldn't fling corn stuff everywhere, but apparently she's ready and I better assume my seat on the bandwagon.

Monday brought us a playdate with classmate Allison. TIC was a gracious hostess and showed off all that her basement had to offer. I think she was excited to have someone her size to play with and she and Allie are good friends at school As the playdate wore down and Allie and her mom went through the motions of going home, I noticed Allie didn't have her shoes. I asked TIC to get Allie's shoes for her. TIC located the shoes, brought them to Allie and gave them to Allie's mom who was very surprised. She clearly is unaware of Kaitlyn's obsession with matching shoes to the right person! The entire rest of the world can be chaos, but Kaitlyn will know where everybody's shoes are. She's coy about it. When you ask her "Kaitlyn, where are your shoes?" She'll reply with an instant "Ionno" and shrug. However, less than a minute later, she'll give you the location and you'll be on your merry way. This clever child of mine...I'd better be careful whose house I let her loose in. She'll have their shoes catalogued in no time.