How sad is it that I have a day off, peanut is in school, and the two things I’m looking forward to are grocery shopping and dishes?  Shouldn’t I be lounging on the couch munching on something yummy and reading one of the books about to topple over on my to-be-read pile?

Grocery shopping will be the biggest part of my day by far!  First of all, I am going to actually look in my freezer, get rid of anything that is old or my mother brought by for us because she didn’t want to eat it.  I’m actually going to make a list of things I want to buy!  I won’t have a toddler asking if it’s time to go yet.  Then, when I get to the store, I won’t have said toddler fighting me on whether or not she can sit in the basket of the cart, whining to walk, whining to be carried, etc.  I will be able to get the things on my list without her asking for everything she sees that she likes.

Damn the marketers for putting cartoon characters on snack foods!  If they were truly concerned about kids eating healthy, there would be liver packaged in a Scooby Doo wrapper!

I will also do dishes without my “helper” today.  If she could understand that the dishes I put in the rinse sink get rinsed and the dishes in the drainer are already rinsed, we’d be good.  Unfortunately, she thinks the dishes in the drainer need to be rinsed and the dishes in the rinse sink need to be washed.  You can see how this quickly becomes a problem!

Most of the time, I let her help me and I keep working with her, praying she’ll understand someday.  I don’t want to banish her from the kitchen or make her think she can’t do it.  I know that I need to savor this time when she wants to help because right around the corner the fight will change to me wanting her to do things and her refusing.

Does being a mom ever make you wonder what in the hell happened to you??

Today is turning into a very emotional day!  First, my 17 year old cousin is graduating from high school in about 25 minutes.  I remember the day she was born.  I remember making a welcome sign for her and being devastated when I realized that they gave her a different middle name than I had been told, thus the sign was wrong.  Thinking of her graduating made me realize that before I know it, my own daughter will be graduating.  I know I still have about 15 years before that happens, but as quickly as the past three have gone, it’s not long at all!

Then, I received an email from Nana.  She has a few “school outfits” for my little bug to wear.  On June 2nd, she will be starting a preschool program in town.  It’s time, I know that, but for the first time, it hit me that my little baby is no longer a baby.  I actually welled up as I read that email.  It may not be kindergarten, but two years from right now, we’ll be getting ready for that.  How did we go from helpless newborn to starting preschool?

I now realize why I was 12 years old and my dad was trying to put me in Mary Janes, wouldn’t let me cut my hair, and threw a fit when I got my ears pierced.  It’s hard to deal with any sign of your kid growing up!

I really want to send K to Montessori.  I think she’d do very well in the setting and she’d thrive with the Montessori teaching philosophy.  At this time, I don’t think we’ll be able to make that work.  My work hours don’t guarantee that I will be done in time to pick her up and my husband’s hours are even more difficult.

As time goes on, I realize it’s time to move K from her in-home sitter to a more structured environment.  She is eager to learn and I think she needs someone with an educational background to help her grow.  Couple that with some recent issues, and it’s very obviously time to look for a preschool/center to put her in.

It’s a scary time.  Her sitter is the only one she’s ever had.  She’s been there since she was four weeks old with the exception of last summer and fall when I worked from home.  Part of me feels like I’m slapping the sitter in the face by moving her, but I have to push that to the back of my mind for the sake of my little girl.

This afternoon, we’ll be checking out two local facilities.  I was happy when talking with both of them.  The first one is walking distance from our apartment, they have decent hours, and the schedule they have the kids on matches K’s current schedule.  The second one has better hours and it’s a bit more structured.

I’ve talked to other parents who made this switch and they all said it was rough at first.  At the same time, none of them have regretted it.  One had a daughter who was very similar to K as far as her development at this age.  They wound up fighting their local school district to have her admitted to kindergarten at the age of four because the she was so far ahead of the rest of her class.  Her dad said he wouldn’t change a thing and that he made the change because he worried that his daughter was getting bored at her sitter.  Hopefully we’ll feel the same way after we move her.

This week was a lesson in being careful what you say around a two year old.  Luckily, it was nothing bad, but it easily could have been (and has been in the past, as evidenced by the colorful vocabulary I’m trying to break).

We’re on our way to the sitter’s, and I hear, “Barack Omama” coming from the backseat.  Over and over and over again.  It would have been annoying if not so cute.  It took me a moment, and a quick listen to the radio to figure out what she was saying.  The host was talking about the Pennsylvania primary and K hear them talking about Barack Obama.  She has no clue that it’s a name, she just knows it’s fun to say.

That night, her phrase of the day evolved.  Apparently, Barack is a verb in her mind.  Now, we hear, “Barack Omama” and “Barack Odaddy” quite a bit.  It’s cute and she loves it because we laugh every time.

Friday, I had her say it for my dad.  Apparently he’s a Barack supporter, because he immediately taught her to say, “Next president.”  Now, she’s spent the entire weekend telling the world, “Barack Omama, next president.”  Only a little over six months to see if she’s right!

When you decide to start potty training, there’s a plethora of information at your fingertips.  There are ebooks you can buy, pretty potty inserts, toddler toilets with bells and whistles, pull ups that have disappearing images or change temperature, cloth trainers, etc.  I think we’ve tried them all.  As we near potty training success, here’s my thoughts on what has or has not worked for us.

ebooks - You know all of the “Get Rich in a Week” books and tapes?  This is kind of like that.  “Potty train in only 3 days” screams at you when you go to the websites.  A friend of mine bought an ebook, let me look at it before I decided whether or not to make the investment.  Maybe if I was at home and had nothing to do but potty train, it may have worked.  If you have to work, clean, have other kids, etc, I’m not sure it’s worth it.

Elmo’s Potty Time - Very entertaining DVD, did nothing for our potty training efforts.  I still recommend getting this, simply because it has some good lessons in it.  One of the best is Grover talking about accidents.

Cloth Trainers - If you’re looking for them, they’re with the baby layette items, nowhere near the diapers.  They do hold in some of the accident, but you’re still going to have to clean up the toddler and the floor.  There are covers for them, but they can be hard to find.

Pull-ups - After debating myself on whether or not to attempt Pull-ups, I broke down and bought them.  I was set against them, they were another item on my “I’ll never” list.  I went so far as to buy the cool effect ones that were supposed to get cold when wet.  My justification for spending more money was that if they worked, we’d need to buy fewer packs, therefore making them a bargain.  I didn’t notice a difference.  The ones that had hearts that would disappear when wet helped me know when she had an accident but she certainly didn’t watch the hearts to see if they were still there.

Toilet insert vs. Toddler Potty - Being on this side of potty training, I’d say skip the fancy potty and get an insert.  After our sitter started having more success than we did, I looked in her bathroom.  She didn’t have a special potty, just an insert.  I was worried that it would be too big for Khaila, but she loves it!  She likes feeling like a big person.

It seems that my daughter has everyone in her life trained.  If we ask her, she will use the potty without fail.  We’ve even had days with no accidents.  Unfortunately, she won’t tell us when she has to go.  She’s really good at telling us as soon as she does it though!

Yes, I think it’s turning into adult training.  Once addicted to my morning cup of coffee, I now get up and race her into the bathroom.  Then, we become parrots, knowing that she won’t tell us.  I really hope we can get past this phase!

This week, Khaila did pretty well at Millie’s house.  Early in the week, she’d have one accident a day and then do fine.  Wednesday, she was with my mom.  Another excellent report, no accidents.  So WHY wouldn’t she go for me?  I was firmly convinced that she just doesn’t want to give up the control or something equally stubborn (after all, she is my child) and that she’d be wearing diapers at home until she goes to school.

This morning, I noticed something I’ve never seen before.  A dry diaper!  Yes, my little girl, my baby, woke up dry!  Knowing she would have to go, I took off her diaper and put her on the potty.  At first, she wasn’t sure about this.  We have a good routine going.  She gets up, comes in to our room where I’m usually watching the news, we turn on “Super Why” and cuddle.  Her routine doesn’t include a pit stop.

After about a minute, I heard the wonderful sound of a big girl!  Yes, my little girl started out the day with celebration.  She also got fruit snacks before breakfast.  Millie gives her a Tootsie Roll (must remember they’re for Khaila, NOT for me to eat) but I figured I’d try something a touch healthier at 7am!

I’m hoping we’ll continue this progress.  I almost feel bad for the run down that the hubby is going to get in the morning.  I want to make sure he knows EXACTLY what we’ve been doing to work with her so he can keep it up while I’m stuck slinging pizzas for 10 hours.

This is the lesson we learned today.  If a two year old shoves a cinnamon mint up her nose, it will dissolve.  It’s pitiful to deal with in the mean time, but as the saying goes, “This too shall pass.”

This morning, on the way to the sitter’s house, I popped an Eclipse mint in my mouth.  Khaila wanted one too.  I’ve given her mints before with no problems.  We got to Millie’s and she kept pointing to her nose.  By the time we got inside, she kept saying, “Mommy, nose,” as she tried to put my finger in her nose.  Her right eye starts watering.  Nose is running, cinnamon pink snot trickling onto her upper lip.

I call the nurse line to see if I need to take her in.  While we’re waiting, Millie gets the flashlight and I lay Khaila on the kitchen table.  Look up the squirming toddler’s nostril, don’t see anything.  After about 20 minutes, I can’t wait for the nurse to call, I have to work.  I get Khaila’s coat on, walk to the car.  I’m figuring that if I show up at the clinic with a child obviously uncomfortable, obviously with something foreign shoved up her nose, maybe I’ll get better results than calling had gotten.

Right as I pick up Khaila to get her in the car seat, she sneezes.  It’s not a pretty sight, but there, right on her upper lip, sits a small oval mint.  I take Khaila back inside, tell the sitter the issue is resolved, and we both laugh.

Seriously, most parents I know have dealt with this.  On one hand, it was a mint, something small, no intervention required.  On the other hand, it was a mint, it had to burn!  The mommy in me is hoping she learned a lesson and will no longer feel the need to shove things up her nose.

Last week, I talked about Khaila and how much she wanted to cook.  It seems that wasn’t a passing phase, or if it was, it’s exceeding the standard two year old attention span of 13 minutes.  Because of that, I’ve found myself trying to adapt our weekly menu.  I want her to be able to help me, but there are some things she just can’t.

Last night, she got her first shot at meatloaf.  I’m not sure she enjoyed it as much as using the spoon to stir.  Unlike stirring, this was cold, messy, icky.  Sure, she likes getting messy as much as the next kid, but she’s not a fan of the cold/icky combination.

Every Friday, I’m going to post a kid-friendly meal, in terms of both preparing and eating.

Barbecue Cheeseburger Meatloaf

2lb ground beef (also good if you use 1lb ground turkey and 1lb ground turkey sausage
1 packet onion soup mix
1 egg
1 slice of bread, torn in pieces
worcestershire sauce (to taste)
garlic powder (to taste)
1/2 cup barbecue sauce (split)
1/2 cup shredded cheese

Mix all ingredients by hand.  Save 1/4 cup of barbecue sauce for top.  Bake at 350 for 45 minutes.