Dads, Babies, and Potty Training

I hope this doesn't turn out to be one of those blogs that never gets updated. It has been a busy few days, but then again, when isn't it busy?

Father's Day approaches! I am very thankful for my Dad, who as far as I'm concerned is an above-and-beyond father and an amazing Grandfather. The Boy adores him and likes nothing more than spending time with "Papa."

This last vacation included some strenuous, physically challenging activities, and marked the first time Jake and I worked to keep an eye on Dad as opposed to the last 30+ years when he's kept an eye on us. Our family has reached the age of the cardiologist, and from our point of view Dad doesn't take said person's advice seriously enough. I may be the mother of a child old enough to "read" his letters off of anything in English, but I'm not ready to be the Adult yet. I enjoy getting guidance and advice from my parents, and knowing they're always there for me. Selfishly, I want to keep that for as long as I can. I don't always take the advice, mind you, but I'm happy it's there. And I love my daddy (and mom too).

Speaking of parental advice, I am experiencing some pressure from my parents on the potty front. Not much pressure, as they are usually very good at staying out of our lives unless invited to interfere. But apparently our kids are way behind where we were at this age, from a toilet-training point of view. I admit I am not sure how to proceed, and my usual research methods have not been very helpful, since there are too many contradictory opinions on exactly how you absolutely must toilet-train a child. I need to take the time to narrow all this info down into one method and go from there, otherwise I'm going to be very confused and so is my poor Boy. So far most of my parenting decisions have been pretty easy. Nursing was better than formula, co-sleeping meant we all got more sleep, etc. But there seems to be no clear-cut best method for this stage. Time to wing it, I guess.

Crystal has recommended bribery with Skittles (good idea!), and I think I may adapt that and use stickers instead. Boy is very fond of stickers. I've also heard that providing Cheerios as target practice is very helpful. Again, I must narrow it down.

Also, I must admit to putting things off just a little for my own convenience. After all, it's much easier to change a diaper when I get a chance than it is to frantically hunt out a decent bathroom for an overflowing toddler. Another reason I'm thankful to have a boy!

Phrases the Boy has been using lately that I love:
"Deewishus"
"Hi Mommy!! I'm happy to see you."
"Oh, I'm tired. I go night night."
"I can't do it. It's too hard." (this one is used when I tell him to put his toys away)
"Okay I love you. I see you later." (when I'm leaving for work)
"Oh, ABCs! I read it."