There's Something About Our Houses

#1: Brent grew up just a few blocks away from me. When he was on his mission his parents moved down to AZ and sold their house. It traded hands a few times and ended up being owned by some good friends we met at school. They've owned it ever since. So it's been fun/weird for Brent to go back to the house he grew up in and have somebody else living there.

#2: The house we just moved out of a year ago was sold to one of Brent's friends from work. That was a huge blessing since we didn't even have to put our house on the market. And now we can go visit and see their cute family having fun in that awesome backyard!

#3: I recently found out that the house we lived in while in MI is now owned by some of our very best friends in the ward out there. They just moved in and have done an awesome job fixing it up. (It was a foreclosure and the previous owners had not been kind when leaving.) We are so happy for them!

So I'd just like to clarify that if anybody's hoping to buy our current house in a couple of years, you're going to be out of luck. We plan to stay here for a VERY LOOOOONNNNGGGG time.

(I was very hesitant to post that last sentence since every time I've said something similar out loud, God feels it's a great time for a good laugh and we end up moving for whatever reason. I'm hoping that since this is not "out loud" God will overlook it. ;) After owning 4 houses in 7 years, I'm ready to start letting my roots grow a bit.)

Note to Self

When running downstairs to the distressed cry from AJ that Lady has peed (and not in the intended receptacle), stop at the bottom stair before taking a step onto the tile. Or you may quickly find yourself on your back with a wrenched shoulder, soaking up a puddle of pee.

......And so begins day 3.

So it begins......

Yesterday was the first day of teaching Lady all about the benefits of the potty. After 2 days of nakedness from the waist down, this little girl is starting to grasp the concept. She's successfully done #1 and #2 a few times now and is quite proud of herself after the fact! Jen, your post couldn't have come at a better time. Along with the candy reward (one Smartie for #1 and a Hershey's Nugget for #2), she has been MOST excited about the potty-dance afterward. She demands we dance and twirl after each successful trip to the bathroom. I don't think I could sell my potty-song to a record label or anything, but she seems to think it's great!

If you notice her red bum, THAT is the reason I finally got fed up enough to start potty training. This child's skin is so sensitive, she breaks out ALL.THE.TIME. It's better in cloth diapers, but it even happens in those. Poor thing. She just needs breathable, cotton panties and her bum will thank me. She probably won't get those for another couple of days, though. That will be another sweet reward once I know she's got it down pat.

I can't believe I'm almost to only 1 in diapers again. What a glorious thing!

Changing Things Up.....Again

Since I haven't posted in a month and a half......

.....and since I have so many "fun" posts I want to do.....

.....and since the "serious" posts are stressing me out so much because it's incredibly hard to stay true to myself and my opinions and beliefs while also trying to word things in a way that won't completely offend the masses.....

.....and since I've had quite a few requests to "do some regular posts too"......

......I'm going to continue to do my "serious: this-is-why-we-do-what-we-do" posts, but I will sprinkle them between the fun-loving, "this-is-what's-going-on-in-our-lives" posts.

And please know that with the more serious posts, it is never my intention to offend. But I will be extremely surprised if we get through all of them without some people taking offense. Unfortunately I can't always help how others take the things I write. That's what's hard about the written word. It's sometimes extremely hard to interpret tone-of-voice. And sometimes my opinions are offensive to those who believe differently or those who have never questioned why they do the things they do.

Anyway, on to fun and lively posts with a dash of thoughtful, no-nonsense posts mixed in! (All of the "serious" posts will be labeled "different" for quick reference.)