playing!

out on the town

last friday (july 16th) matt and i celebrated our 5th wedding anniversary. we hadn't been out alone in a very long time - we really couldn't remember the last time. we weren't even alone on our anniversary last year because we had dinner with friends who share our anniversary. a great time though!

so the girls were dropped off at the grandparents' house. i was proud of myself for doing so well leaving sophie. she's a momma's girl and a bit finicky with a bottle so i was a little nervous. plus, i'd never left her for more than 30-45 minutes. she did great and had lots of fun playing with grandpa! molly enjoyed her one-on-one time with grandma.

meanwhile, matt and i were off to eat at fogo de chao on the plaza. it was a brazilian steakhouse that we were excited to try. before we even made it to the restaurant matt managed to do his first burn out in a mini van, jump a curb and almost hit a man carrying a little boy - the craziness of driving on the plaza and looking for a place to park. we finally found a spot a few blocks away on a side street. next time we'll just go straight for the side street!

once in the restaurant we were seated and explained how our dining experience would go. it started with a salad bar (huge by the way) and then when we were ready, we flipped a circular card and waiters with huge skewers of meat flocked to us. this restaurant is a vegetarians worst nightmare and a carnivores little piece of heaven on earth! there were about 15 cuts of meat to try (we didn't get to all of them). we leaned quickly that you must flip your card over to red when you don't want anymore meat. matt hadn't flipped his yet, saw three men coming and quickly flipped. they did an about face and searched for their next green-circled diner. it was hilarious!

hilarious kind of describes the dining experience (well, that and delicious!). whenever matt and i go to fancy restaurants we always laugh a lot. everything seems funny - from the weight of the silverware to understanding the menu. we think it's because we're not very fancy people and so when we try to be things get funny! matt said it's just a good thing we don't find applebees or chili's this funny!

after dinner we went to coldstone creamery. yum, yum, yum!! we'd never been there either and so were a bit confused on what to do there as well. the workers were getting a bit impatient with us and started singing a song while we were trying to decide! we walked out of there laughing too!

we ate our ice cream while riding around the plaza in a cinderella carriage. the night was beautiful and perfect for a carriage ride. what a wonderful way to celebrate 5 years of commitment to each other.

just when i think we've got it all figured out

molly's regressed a lot with her potty training these past few days. just when we thought she had nailed it, (we even bought her the toys she wanted as a reward) accidents have been happening quite frequently. we're not sure why she is having them either. she was doing so well telling us when she had to go or just going on her own. now, we're back to constant reminders and it's almost a battle sometimes.

part of the battle is pooping. she's eaten too much cheese these past few days and tried to poop on thursday but it hurt, so now, it's like she's afraid to poop - fear of pain. she will poop in her underwear though....maybe she thinks the toilet makes her hurt? not sure. we've laid off the cheese though and are pushing lots of fruit!

i'm hoping this little regression doesn't last too long. it was so nice to have her using the toilet, and messy underwear is worse than a diaper! we took away her toys that she got for using the toilet too and told her as soon as she's back on track she'll get them back. hoping this makes an impact as she was upset that the toys were taken away. she does understand why and knows that she got them for using the toilet and will get them back when she stops having so many accidents. now, i know accidents will happen - but they should be happening 3-4 times a day - especially when they weren't happening at all.

potty training

whoever said that the kid has to decide when they're ready to use the toilet and be finished with diapers is right! matt and i have been talking to molly for months now about using the toilet and being a big girl. she sat on it a few times, but mainly wasn't interested - to the point sometimes of throwing a huge fit when we mentioned it. she wasn't ready...

until thursday evening when she told matt she wanted to go to the bathroom - and she did! the rest of the evening in fact! matt, however, was the only one allowed to take her. this continued friday morning and early afternoon. we had a break through at the mall when she let me take her for the first time. yes, we let her wear underwear in public not even 24 hours after she started using the toilet. i thought it might be a bit crazy but she was doing so well and so we ran with it. so glad we did to because she did great.

molly's had a few accidents since thursday but not an overwhelming number and they're so spread out that i can deal with them. i will say that potty training can be exhausting. the girl goes all the time! just a little bit each time, but we'll take what we can get.

when she tries to use the bathroom and nothing comes out, she tells us, "nothing in my butt!" i love way toddlers form words and sentences!

my girl is growing up! this is one thing thoughi'm very grateful for. i don't want her to grow up too fast but potty training was one of those things i wanted to rush. check her out in her undies!

an emporia must see!

if you ever visit emporia, one of the must-sees is a special house that is uniquely decorated. it changes with the seasons and holidays - christmas time is especially entertaining when the statue moves to the front of the yard to play santa!

this house provided me with much entertainment the 5 years i lived in emporia. you just never knew what new item they were going to add or rearrange, or what color they would paint the house. today i snapped a picture (i can't believe i never did before). i hope it's still around when molly and sophie are old enough to appreciate it!

a child's mind

have you ever wondered what little kids think about? i do all the time - wondering what molly's thought process is, how she comes up with things, and goes about her pretend world. i was thinking about this again tonight as i was picking up her play house. she had people and animals arranged in it and around it. outside, fenced in, were a monkey and giraffe. inside the house showed the mommy and daddy sleeping in bed, the person she named alex on the toilet (are we surprised?), and a lion and elephant in the play room area. it made me giggle and wish as i was picking it up that i had taken a picture. what was she thinking about?