Things just got REAL!

We had another beautiful, break from Winter, kind of day today!

Of course, Ayden asked to go outside!

We had a couple of really fun things happen to us today.  After Ayden's monster nap (2 days in a row of 2+ hour naps!) we went to the court house and got the building permit for our house!!  Things just got REAL!  Now all of our daydreaming and planning can come to life and we are so ready.  

After dinner, my mom came over to play with Ayden while David and I went to a Gardeners and Homesteaders meet up group.  The topic was on Spring garden plans, seeds and such but there was a lot of great conversation to be had.  This was our first time at this meet up group and we were excited to make some contacts with some other aspiring homesteaders.  

When you are trying to move your life in a new direction, it is so important to surround yourself with inspiration and motivation to keep moving in your new direction.  Watching documentaries, reading blogs/articles and meeting people who are heading in the same direction are all really great ways to keep your eye on your future goals.  We have found that if we don't make effort to do these things regularly, we fall back into our old habits and then don't feel that great about it.  We left the meet up with a few business cards, plans to have some people over for paw paw foraging next season and a refreshed outlook on what it is we are working towards.  

Ayden waited up for us (per our request) and was SOOO sleepy and adorable when we got home.  We finished our bedtime routine and he clasped his little hands together (a new thing that he's discovered) and went right to sleep.  Man we love that boy!!

What do you do to keep inspired and motivated when trying to make a change in your life?  Do you find yourself falling back into old ruts even though you want change so badly?

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "This Is Not A Toy"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Budding Imagination

Ayden's imagination is really taking off!

"Look, Mommy, a hat!"

He is having elaborate phone "conversations" on anything that may resemble a phone, having his farm animals eat drink and even nurse, making hats out of plastic storage tubs and so much more. I can't wait to see all of the adventures on which his blooming imagination will take us!!

Where is the most exciting place that your toddler's imagination has taken you lately?

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "From Head To Toe"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Table Manners

What can we say?  Our kid has the best! 

haha!
Feel free to caption this...

We decided it was passed time for us to ditch Ayden's booster seat tray and pull him right up to the table with us.  He ate in normal chairs often over the holidays and did great. We still have to buckle him in or he tries to get down before we are ready for him to but he seems to enjoy being at the table with us.  All of those family dinners with us all around the table that I used to day dream about are here!  Everyday we have at least one moment when we look at Ayden and realize just how big he is getting.  Every age and every stage is truly amazing.

When did your toddler start sitting in their own chair at the table?

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "They Will Find You"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Bathroom Emergencies

Back when Ayden was about 18 or 19 months old and we introduced him to his little potty, potty books, and undies, we really did not expect him to catch on so quickly. In my experience as a preschool teacher and aunt, most boys graduate to undies somewhere around their 3rd birthday. I always told myself (and David), that was when it would happen. We just got the potty, the books and the undies as a foundation for him so that whenever he was ready, he could take off running with it. No pressure.

Of course we are proud of all of Ayden's accomolishments, big or small, and catching on to using the potty is no exception. It is something we have talked about, encouraged and celebrated with him for months now and he has jumped into it with no reservations.  On the other hand, as with anything in life, there are pros and cons to every situation. 

Pros to having a 2 year old (almost) in undies:
- No wiping smashed code browns off of his bum
- Carrying a smaller diaper bag
- Less diaper laundry
- No more spraying diapers (and sometimes ourselves and surrounding surfaces of the toilet)
- Getting to see his cute little booty sans bulky diapers

Cons to having a 2 year old (almost) in undies:
- He fights having to put on diapers for sleeping.  He loves his undies and wants to wear them all the time.  He wakes up dry sometimes, especially after naps, but not enough to "undie" it at this point.
- He "cries wolf" about every 2-5 minutes for an hour leading up to code browns and it. gets. old. (This is slowly getting better as he learns about the sensations.  Still can be frustrating, though).
- Sometimes after crying wolf for that hour he'll have a moment where he says, "OH, NO MOMMY/DADDY!" and that is when we know he's started going in his undies.

This seems to only happen in public and has happened twice now.  He went through a small phase where he would skip an entire day of #2 and now he seems to be going to the other extreme.  The first time it happened was yesterday at the library.  We were supposed to just be running in quickly to get a book David had put on hold but Ayden saw the kid area and wanted to play.  We had some extra time so why not?  The only problem is that I did not bring his bag in with us.  When he said, "OH NO, MOMMY!" I wisked him to the bathroom, hoping we'd make it in time only to find that we had not.  There we were in a bathroom that had a hand dryer instead of paper towels and cheap 1-ply toilet paper.  No wipes, no wet bag, no change of undies or pants.  All of that was in the car.  Up until now he had a 100% success rate for peeing in the potty in public and seemed to prefer holding #2s until he was at home or wearing a diaper.  Now we know he's transitioning to using the potty when he needs to for #2.  This, of course, is a wonderful emerging skill... when I am prepared for it!  I did my best to keep my cool (we try to make poop a non-issue) but I came away with a less than stellar performance in that department by the time we left the bathroom.  He squirmed and wiggled so much when I was removing his pants and undies that it became a much bigger mess than necessary and I did not have what I needed to clean it up.  I summoned the super-mom from within that we all seem to be able to access in crisis mode and did what I had to do.  I cleaned him up the best I could with the cheap toilet paper, put his pants back on him without his undies, checked out David's book as fast as I could and did the real clean up work when I got to the car and all of our supplies.

The same thing happened when we were out to dinner with friends tonight but this time, I was an old pro.  Once I knew what was going on, I went back to the table to grab our diaper bag, took it slowly and it was much less of a crisis. Ayden finished his business on the potty, which was a first, and everything was okay. Humans, parents especially it seems, are adaptable and every time we experience a similar situation it gets easier and less stressful to deal with.  Now I am learning that Ayden is becoming ready to go #2 on the potty when he needs to no matter where we are.  This is something to be celebrated and I just need to make sure I am prepared for the worst, even if we are just quickly running in some place.  Being prepared makes a world of difference in the toll an experience takes on you.  We want to continue making him feel comfortable with this potty business so I owe it to him to set us both up for low stress and success.

Our potty training-toddler bag items include:
- extra undies (keep a spare in the car too)
- extra pants (keep a spare in the car too)
- extra socks
- wipes
- wet bag or plastic grocery bag (for possible soiled clothes)
- entertainment (a tiny note pad/pens is usually enough for Ayden)
- water bottle
- snack(s)

This all easily fits into a small shoulder bag along with my keys, phone and wallet though I still use my cute diaper bag a lot of the time.  If I have all of this on me I can conquer any bathroom emergency with confidence and success all while keeping my cool and therefore Ayden's.  Without them, things are a mess... literally and figuratively speaking.

What are the essentials for your potty training toddler's bag?

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to on year ago today: "A Day of Focus"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Play Mates

As soon as David gets home in the afternoons Ayden is ready to play!  We play a lot during the day but there is something really special about playing with daddy.  Today's game was Ayden chasing David around the house, pointing the remote control at him like it was some sort of laser. David was pretending to freeze, or he'd scream and run the loop of the house. He'd hide in a closet or behind a counter and would jump out saying, "Boo!" when Ayden would run by. Ayden was laughing hysterically the whole time and it was, and always is, a joy to watch their games. 

Bedtime is always a fun time too. David got Ayden dressed in his jammies and you bet there was tickling and more giggling involved. 

I sure do love these boys!  They make life so wonderful. 

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "Happily Healthy"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Heat Wave

We had a heat wave today!  Well... after sub zero temps, a high in the mid 40s felt like a heat wave anyway.  We celebrated by getting outside for some fresh air and exercise!  It felt so good.

Tomorrow is supposed to get up to 50!  I think we are going to go to the playground a a nearby church. It's funny how in the Fall, the mid 40s seem so cold but in the winter it feels like a taste of Spring. I'm afraid we are already ready for Spring and February (typically our most wintery month) hasn't even come yet.  I think I need to find a way to embrace what Winter we have left so I'll make it through with my sanity in tact!  

A couple of positives to hold on to: 1) The days are beginning to get longer now.  2) At least in KY we have intermittent warm ups like we are having this week.  It is nice to get a little break once in a while.

Nothing like focusing on the positive to change your perspective!

Have you been able to get outside much this Winter? We haven't as much as we'd like and plan on changing that!

~Sarah

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.

Kid Stuff

I recently read a blog post that addresses the toll that too much stuff can take on kids.  While I feel like she has some valid points, I also feel like it was a little extreme.  Do I think that kids *need* toys to be happy and thrive?  No way. But I do think that there are a lot of great toys out there that are made just right to help facilitate some great thought processes and inspire imagination.

Ayden has been enjoying his new toys that he got for Christmas.  We enjoy using a toy rotation system at our house and the days that he has a fresh set of new toys is always a very peaceful day.  I don't have a specific schedule for this.  Whenever I notice days going by without him showing interest in a toy or days where he can't seem to keep himself occupied I realize these are clues that it is time to rotate.

Though we prefer toys and activities made from natural materials (wood, metal, leather, water, stone, etc.) he still has plenty of plastic and battery operated toys.  I don't think those do any harm per say, it is just my experience that they are more like one hit wonders.  They do one main thing and once he's figured it out and gotten his fill, it gets tossed aside. These are the items that need to be rotated the most. Other more open ended toys (blocks, instruments, art materials, books, etc.) offer constant entertainment.  Everyday they offer some different exploration and Ayden never tires of them.  They are the toys that are left available to him all the time.

The blog post I mentioned above has gotten me thinking about Ayden's toys and what we want to do about them during this downsize and purge we are trying to do this year.  I don't want to do anything extreme, but I also want to be able to make the most of the small space we will have in our new home.  I don't know that we would have the space to store as many toys while they are out of rotation.  Keeping everything out all the time is also not an option in my opinion.  Something else I have learned from experience is that too many toys to choose from prevents most children from playing with any of them appropriately which therefore prevents them from learning whatever it is they are supposed to from it.  It also just sets them up for making a mess that would be overwhelming for anyone to clean up.  We have a 9 cube shelf system downstairs as well as up in his play room with one toy on each shelf.  He also has access to books, blocks and art in both areas of the house at all times.  He will sometimes request a toy, or will want to bring one down from upstairs and in that case we just switch it out with one that was down there.  He has plenty of freedom to choose what he plays with.  Keeping toys a little more limited has allowed us to teach Ayden how to properly use each toy or activity and to clean up when he is done. This kind of system may not work for everyone but it is working great for us!  

In the end, I think toys are fun for kids and I don't see a deep reason to withhold them altogether.  On the other hand, I think it is important to set some limitations.  Only x amount of shelves and bins available and when they are full you have to use one in, one out to make room for anything new perhaps?  We are still working out the route we want to take.  All we know is that if something isn't worth keeping around, if it isn't going to contribute to Ayden's happiness or development, we shouldn't waste the space to do so.  

How do you manage toys and other kid stuff at your house?  Have you ever taken a minimalist approach like in the blog post above?  What did you take from it?

~Sarah

Flashback!  Here's what we were up to one year ago today: "Hunting for Treasures Part 2"

Thank you for stopping by Life With the Ladniers!

Please take a second to:

 Subscribe via email, like us on Facebook or follow us on Twitter so you'll know as soon as a new post is up!

Miss seeing what Ayden is up to everyday?  Follow us on Instagram!

You can find all of the links in the sidebar.