Let The Potty Training Begin....

Ladies & Gentleman............In this corner we have Audree weighing in at 29 lbs and in this corner we have the potty weighing in at (10 lbs). We want a fair & clean fight! Ready, Set, Go
(DING DING DING)

Alright so I really thought potty training was going to be like a wrestling match, but much to my surprise so far its been fairly okay! We tried potty training Audree when she was 18 mths old and she was doing great! She was going potty when we took her and everything until one dreaded day and she went completly backwards and wanted NOTIHNG to do with it. So we gave it a rest and tried again in Jan (23 months). Once again she screamed, kicked, cried she wanted NOTHING to do with it.

So now that she is 27 months old I said we are trying it again! She has been telling us when she potties in her diaper, even brings you the wipes at times and says here change me! I have read u pon MANY different potty training methods and I just didn't know which one to choose! After reading more into it we said fine we will go straight panties, no pulls ups except for nap time and night time. Well panties didn't make a difference Audree still went, she didn't care. I tried not to get frustrated but had to do some more reading.I had read about the "bare bottom" method and we tried it and it seems to be working for us! Its wear you stay at home all day and let your child go without any bottoms on. I was hesitant thinking oh lord mr clean aka my husband will have a fit if she tee tees or poo poos on the floor. BUT I said Ill give it a try im willing to do anything!! It worked, it really really did! She tee tee a tiny bit yesterday (day 3 of potty training but first day of bare bottom method) and said i need to tee tee mommy. She ran to the potty and ta da there came the rest. 2nd time same thing ran straight to the potty, 3rd time told me before she had to go and off we went and so on and so forth!

She gets a sticker on her potty chart & one piece of candy (m&m or chocolate covered raisin) when she goes potty! At the end of each row on her potty chart there is a reward and she is so excited about that!! We completed row 1 last night (day 3 of training!!) I might have to revise her chart a little to make it 10-15 stickers instead of 5 haha We'll be broke and out of rewards faster than I thought!


Day 1=fairly well, had a few accidents but went on the potty as well.

Day 2= HORRIBLE! Didn't potty one time on the potty all in pull-ups and panties.

Day 3= EXCELLENT!! Audree went potty 4 times on the potty and only had one accident! . We did put her in a pull up for nap time and night time as I know she isn't and we aren't ready for the bed wetting yet!

Day 4 (today)= GREAT! She has gone four times today so far!! She had gone a tiny bit in her panties and realizes she has to go and runs to the potty! BUT hey its not in a diaper or all over the floor! She's getting there and MUCH cheaper than diapers might I add haha

Chocolate covered raisins and M&M's are her rewards

Her big girl toilet paper (flushable wipey's)

Row 1 completed last night (first day of bare bottom training) Gets ice cream

Her big girl panties (were armed and dangerous haha)

Audree picking out her big girl panties

We almost have a whole row again today!!

Hook Em

Well as most of you know my husband is the biggest UT fans I have ever met in my entire life! His whole wardrobe consists of UT shirts haha, no seriously im not joking! Im surprised my washer isn't stained burnt orange!

Anywho what would our family be without having UT fans from the start?

Audree came home from the hospital in this oufit and it FINALLY fits Ashlyn so we did a little photo session :)

Twinkies

I was browsing thru some old pics of Audree this weekend and came across this photo and a current one I took of Ashlyn! I think they look sooo much alike! Im looking thru more and hope to do a post of tons of pics where they resemble each other!

Audree is on the left (May 08) Ashyln is on right (May 10)

These "Shoes" Were Made For Walking.....

And thats just what they'll do.

One of these days

these "shoes" are

gonna walk

all over you

Ringling Brothers

This past weekend the circus came to town and we couldn't pass up the opportunity tot ake the girls, okay I didn't want to pass it up haha Im a big kid if you can't tell! Anywho my dad, stepmom, Brett, Audree, Ashlyn, my sister in law and myself all went! We had fun and they put on a good show.

I loved seeing all the animals, esp the elephants they're my favorite and Audree's too! She has a pink stuffed elephant, named Ellie, she sleeps with every night. she's had it since she was born and she rubs her ears or tail until she falls asleep at night! She just couldn't understand why they weren't pink like her Ellie haha!

The Diva

They were riding horses and juggling while standing up

Audree checking on sister while watching the circus

Riding a motorcycle on a tight rope

Audree laughing at the performers

He was sooooo cute & sweet (the lion that is )

Walking upside down through rings

Jumping through a ring of fire blind folded

Audree watching the show

The big Ellie!

1 Month Old

WOW! I can't believe Ashlyn is already 1 month old, it still feels like it was only yesterday that we were getting ready to have her.

Ashlyn is a very laid back baby, just like Audree was. She very rarely cries unless she is hungry or she wants your attention haha. She normally gives you a warning cry when she's hungry, its very soft and just a little whiney, then she gives you another warning, its a tad bit louder, then she says thats it i gave you a warning now listen and screams its hilarious! She does it everytime shes hungry, so I try to have her food ready!

Ashyln is just the sweetest baby. She loves to be cuddled, held, rocked, loved on, and anything you do to her she is just okay with it. When she starts to get fussy normally all I have to do is start talking to her and hum a song and she stops whats she doing. She looks up at me with those big beautiful blue eyes and its like she is at peace. It just melts my heart to know that we can do that for her.

I ♥ being home with her and Audree and its going to be so hard going back to work. Im already upset over it and its 2 weeks away. Being able to be with them all the time is just the most amazing feeling, i dont have to miss out on ANYTHING! But the truth is I have to go back so Im soaking up every last minute of it while I can. Ill never get this opportunity again, since daddy is getting fixed Friday.

Here are some updates on how my little stinker pot is doing:

* Drinks 3.5 oz every 3-4 hours
* Holds her head up for periods of time
* Turns her head when she hears us talking (recognizing our voices)
* ♥ her baths
* Holds her passy in her mouth (she doesn't want anyone to steal it, HINT TO BIG SISSY)
* Loves laying on my chest and listening to my ♥ beating
* Likes to be rocked to sleep
* Sleeps VERY good
* Smiling more & more
* Grabbing at things, like her mobile. She tries to hit to animals
* ♥ being in her swing

Ashlyn on her 1 month birthday!

Field Day

Friday was my neice's field day at her school, so I took the girls up to watch her! I met my sister in law and mother in law up there and we had so much fun! Audree wanted to do everything the "big" kids did and we had to keep telling her she couldn't. We made due and she had her own little "games" to play.

They had inflatable bouncy houses, tug of war, obstacle course, water games and relay races. Gosh it brought back all my memories from elementary school! It was so fun to watch the kids play and just have tons of fun!

Here are some pics from the day!

cousins

audree running her "obstacle" course

Laura running hers

Audree ♥ watching them do the parachute


Laura doing the water games

Audree playing on the playground

Drive Thru Safari

On Mothers Day weekend we decided to take the girls to a 9.5 mile drive thru safari. The place is about a hr and a half away from where we live, but we thought it would be so fun and nice to do! So we woke up bright & early Sat morning, loaded the girls up and off we went! Audree watched "Wonder Pets" the entire way there and little miss Ashlyn slept like a rock!

When we got there Audree was soooo excited! I had been telling her we were going to see animals so when we finally got there she was ready! Brett bought our tickets and us a big bag of food so we could feed the animals. We started the drive and we were all amazed! I mean there were zebras, deer, giraffes, rams, moose, ostrich's, emu's, etc you name it they had it! The animals would walk right up to your car so you could touch them and feed them! They said to only feed the giraffe's but nobody listened haha

Halfway thru the drive you have the option to stop and eat. So we packed a picnic and ate on the top of the cliff. It had an overlook so you could see the entire wild life area and it was BEAUTIFUL! After lunch we continued on with the drive and it took us about 3 hours to get through.

We all laughed so hard to the point I was in tears at times! It was such a nice & fun relaxing day with just our sweet little family of four! If you live in Texas and dont mind a little drive, google Fossil Rim and DEF go there!! Its so much fun even if you dont have little ones!

Audree driving us thru the safari

The ostrich totally freaked me & audree out, Brett was a little freaked too haha

I ♥ all the animals

Eating right out of our hands

The many faces of Audree

they were so beautiful

My big girl having fun

Mother's Day

Well I had a FANTABULOUS Mothers Day and I hope everyone did as well!

We decided we were going to make the weekend for Mother's Day! Saturday we woke up, got both girls loaded in the car and headed to Glen Rose to a place called Fossil Rim! It is a 9.5 mile drive thru safari.. It was SOOOO much fun and we had such a good time! We laughed so hard and it was some much needed good quality family fun! That is whole 'nother post in itself!! Itll be coming soon, theres quite a bit of pics from that! After our all day adventure there, we headed to my grandmother's for a cookout. My uncle made some amazing fajitas Ive ever tasted! Audree loved playing for Delaney & Colton and Ashlyn got to meet the family (they live in Pflugerville). The kids had a good time and we loved watching them play together. We headed home around 10:30 that evening and we were POOPED!! We had been going ALL day! BTW we watched SNL with Betty White, she was so funny!!

Audree kicked back watching the kids play baseball

Being a goofy girl climbing the slide

I woke up Sunday to the most 2 precious girls in the entire world oh and the amazing hubby :) He let me sleep in which was greatly appreciated!! They quickly went into the other room and came back with a present!! Audree helped me open it and they got me a 3 hour Ultimate Escape Mom's package! WHOOOOOO HOOOOO!! I can't tell you how excited I was to receive this gift! I have been wanting a spa get away for quite some time. Brett let me relax (the best I could haha) all day and was so sweet!

We spent our Mothers Day at home and had a cook-out for all the momma's here! Brett grilled us some chicken, sausage & hot dogs. His dad made his ever so famous homemade mac n cheese & baked beans. His sister brought over her homemade potato salad & I made some delicious banana pudding for dessert. We all sat outside & talked and watch the kiddos play. It felt really good out there and it was nice to sit back and just relax! After everyone left, we just hung out and I savored every minute I had with my 2 girls!

Audree coloring on the sidewalk

My beautiful neice Laura

The hubby grilling us food

Our Little Family (best pic we could get at the end of the day, dont you love Ashlyn crying?)

My beautiful little Aud

Giving me her sugars

Sweet little Ashlyn

Me & Aud again