Friday, June 3, 2011
Alden misses Sophie
I was trying to figure out what to do this morning, and Alden found his hat and shoes. He tried so hard to put his shoes on, and after like 20 minutes, I had successfully convinced him to put on socks in his shoes. In another 5 minutes, he was ready with his socks and shoes on. Then he stood up and said, "Sophie!!" I had told him earlier today that we'll be going to see Sophie later tonight, and I guess he was ready to go (keep in mind, he's still in his pajamas...). So I told him we had to wait for daddy to come home before we could go. We ran to the door to the garage and opened it and said, "daddy's gone! Where's the black car? Find black car, mommy!" ha ha. Then he ran around the empty garage for a minute and sat on the steps and occupied himself with his umbrella. I told him to come inside so we could shut the door. He said, "No! Daddy home!" I guess he was waiting for Joe to come home so we could go see Sophie.... Ha ha ha. (I got him to come in finally by telling him we could watch sponge bob.)
Monday, May 30, 2011
Memorial Day Weekend
My dad got to visit this weekend, and it's been so fun having him around. Alden just loves playing with 할아버지 (grandpa). His flight came in at 4pm on Friday, so Joe got off work early so we could all go up together. I had a doctor's appoint at noon for a regular check up, so we dropped by at the hospital before driving up to Bountiful. We got there around 2pm and found out that Sophie was at the park, so we went to the park so Alden could play with Sophie at the playground. After that, we went up to grandma's house. We told Al that we had to leave the park to go to grandma's house, and he said, "Sophie, too." And when we told Sophie that we had to leave, she said, "I'm coming, too." (after which Laura said, "I guess we could come.")
Sophie and Alden played really well taking turns with the toys and the little rocking chair. And Grandma even game them popsicles!
When we got to the airport, and my dad got in the car, Al said, "할아버지!" This made my dad so happy and he was surprised that Alden remembered him. :) We've been telling my dad about how good fishing has been up at Vivian Park since we've discovered the trick of fishing there, and so after a quick dinner, we went up to Vivian Park to catch up fish. We caught 6 fish in 20 minutes, and was back home within an hour!
We came home and grilled the fish right away, and they tasted so good. :) My dad was so excited that he wanted to go back the next day. So we decided to go to Walmart to buy fishing licenses for him and my brother. Since my dad was here, we let Alden stay up later (we got to Walmart at 10pm). We had fun looking around and both kids fell asleep on the way home (as in as soon as we left the store).
After relaxing and playing in the morning (star, heart, and moon shaped pancakes for breakfast), we had a quick lunch and were off to go fishing again at Vivian Park. We were only there for an hour and a half, and everyone caught 2 each. We came back home and grilled the fish again and got ready for dinner. Jonathan's parents came over for dinner, so we ate the freshly caught fish and pork ribs for dinner. Jonathan's parents are such fun people to talk to, and his dad gave us a lot of tips on how to better take care of our garden.
On Sunday, Alden got to go to nursery with my mom and dad. He had so much fun and had so much to tell us about after church. We figured out what was wrong with the bubble machine I bought from the DI long time ago (turns out it just needed new batteries after we took it apart several times), and enjoyed some bubbles in the rain. After putting the kids to sleep earlier, Joe and I watched Secretariat with Yeagi and Jonathan.
Joe had to go to work on Memorial Day, but for some reason, I was so tired in the morning and could not get up to play with Alden (he woke up at like 6 and was begging me to go upstairs with him by 7). So Joe took over and took him upstairs. I got up just before 9 so Joe could go to work, and just crashed on the couch upstairs and turned the tv for Al. Fortunately, my parents got up soon and were able to watch the kids until 11 when I was finally able to get up. My parents were planning to go visit their friends who have a frozen yogurt shop in Park City, so I decided to go with them. Dohyup and Jisil came too. Alden wanted to ride in their car, so he played Angry Birds on their iphone on the way up. After enjoying lunch and some frozen yogurt, Dohyup and Jisil were going to go shopping. I left Ellie with my parents, but Alden wanted to go shopping, too.
We went to the outlet mall, and I found some good deals. I bought a lot of clothes for Ellie, a shirt for Joe, and a shirt for me. (Sorry, Al) On the way home from Park City, we dropped by Vivian Park again to go fishing. Dohyup drove home to drop off Jisil and picked up Joe and the fishing equipment. It was a little cold, so mom stayed in the car with the kids while dad, Dohyup, Joe and I fished. 10 minutes before we were going to leave, Al came running from the car and wanted to join us. He helped catch 2 fish. We caught a lot of big ones (way more bigger ones than last couple times) and came home and had fish for dinner again. Alden ate a lot of fish and made me happy. :)
Too bad my dad has to leave again tomorrow, but he'll be back in July to have more fun with us! :D
Sophie and Alden played really well taking turns with the toys and the little rocking chair. And Grandma even game them popsicles!
When we got to the airport, and my dad got in the car, Al said, "할아버지!" This made my dad so happy and he was surprised that Alden remembered him. :) We've been telling my dad about how good fishing has been up at Vivian Park since we've discovered the trick of fishing there, and so after a quick dinner, we went up to Vivian Park to catch up fish. We caught 6 fish in 20 minutes, and was back home within an hour!
We came home and grilled the fish right away, and they tasted so good. :) My dad was so excited that he wanted to go back the next day. So we decided to go to Walmart to buy fishing licenses for him and my brother. Since my dad was here, we let Alden stay up later (we got to Walmart at 10pm). We had fun looking around and both kids fell asleep on the way home (as in as soon as we left the store).
After relaxing and playing in the morning (star, heart, and moon shaped pancakes for breakfast), we had a quick lunch and were off to go fishing again at Vivian Park. We were only there for an hour and a half, and everyone caught 2 each. We came back home and grilled the fish again and got ready for dinner. Jonathan's parents came over for dinner, so we ate the freshly caught fish and pork ribs for dinner. Jonathan's parents are such fun people to talk to, and his dad gave us a lot of tips on how to better take care of our garden.
On Sunday, Alden got to go to nursery with my mom and dad. He had so much fun and had so much to tell us about after church. We figured out what was wrong with the bubble machine I bought from the DI long time ago (turns out it just needed new batteries after we took it apart several times), and enjoyed some bubbles in the rain. After putting the kids to sleep earlier, Joe and I watched Secretariat with Yeagi and Jonathan.
Joe had to go to work on Memorial Day, but for some reason, I was so tired in the morning and could not get up to play with Alden (he woke up at like 6 and was begging me to go upstairs with him by 7). So Joe took over and took him upstairs. I got up just before 9 so Joe could go to work, and just crashed on the couch upstairs and turned the tv for Al. Fortunately, my parents got up soon and were able to watch the kids until 11 when I was finally able to get up. My parents were planning to go visit their friends who have a frozen yogurt shop in Park City, so I decided to go with them. Dohyup and Jisil came too. Alden wanted to ride in their car, so he played Angry Birds on their iphone on the way up. After enjoying lunch and some frozen yogurt, Dohyup and Jisil were going to go shopping. I left Ellie with my parents, but Alden wanted to go shopping, too.
We went to the outlet mall, and I found some good deals. I bought a lot of clothes for Ellie, a shirt for Joe, and a shirt for me. (Sorry, Al) On the way home from Park City, we dropped by Vivian Park again to go fishing. Dohyup drove home to drop off Jisil and picked up Joe and the fishing equipment. It was a little cold, so mom stayed in the car with the kids while dad, Dohyup, Joe and I fished. 10 minutes before we were going to leave, Al came running from the car and wanted to join us. He helped catch 2 fish. We caught a lot of big ones (way more bigger ones than last couple times) and came home and had fish for dinner again. Alden ate a lot of fish and made me happy. :)
Too bad my dad has to leave again tomorrow, but he'll be back in July to have more fun with us! :D
My dad loves his grandkids!
On the way back from Park City.
Alden's big catch!
Saturday, May 28, 2011
Latest updates on the kids
I realized that i haven't talked much about how the kids are doing lately, so I'm gonna write a post on how much they've grown since the last post.
Alden surprises everyday with new vocabulary and phrases. It's so fun to see him learn how to speak and express himself now. He doesn't whine too much anymore since he can tell us what he wants (although we have to remind him to ask for things more politely than he usually does). Potty training has been going okay. He went two full days without wetting himself, but today pooped in the pants once and peed his pants towice in a two hours period. Last couple days, he's done really good with peeing in the toilet, but he hasn't been able to go poop in the toilet. He'll hold his butt like he'd want to go, and when I ask him if he wants to go, he'll say yes, but as soon as i put him on the toilet, he says, "All done! No poo poo!" My guess is that he's gotten too used to peeing in the toilet (quick and easy) that he doesn't really want to work for the poop. So he just gives up instantly. Well, i guess he couldn't hold it anymore, and he came to tell me that he wanted to go to the bathroom only to leave me to discover the poop in his underwear. :( But in the last week, he's made a big progress, I think he'll get it soon. (By the way, he calls pee pee, "Yellow 쉬 (pee in Korean)."
Because of the potty training, i haven't been able to really get out of the house to do anything or had time to teach him any new things. He's been spending an awful lot of time on the iPad, and has mastered Angry Birds. It's actually quite impressive to watch him play. He can shoot the birds and correct his aim if they fly too far or close. He's also gotten really good at memory games and mazes.
We've recently been trying to get him to speak more Korean. He can understand a lot, but he prefers to speak in English, probably because Joe and i always talk in English, he watches tv in English, and his babysitters and friends speak English. He'll say, "Open, please" in English to me, and I say, "That's what you say to daddy. What do you say to mommy? (in Korean)" Then he says, "Daddy say 'open.'" So I'll say, "So what should you say to mommy?" Then he says, "열어주세요." A lot of times, I have to remind him what to say, but he's getting better at saying things in Korean to me because he understands now that I'm willing to do things for him if he asks me in Korean.
He still loves reading/watching Green Eggs and Ham. Whenever he's eating something good, he'll offer it to me and say, "Do you like ***?" "Could you, could you, in a car?" If I ask him, "Do you like green eggs and ham?" He answers, "No. I do not green eggs and ham." "Would you like them in a house? With a mouse?" "No. Not house. Not mouse."
Ellie's made a lot of progress too. Now she just does not like to be lying down. So I usually put her in an exersaucer, which she loves to play in. Alden loves to peek-a-boo her when she's sitting there, and he teaches her how to play with the toys on the exersaucer. She is now tall enough to actually be able to stand up on it instead of hang down from the seat. She loves to smile at people, and she's started to squeal a little bit. She is turning 6 months old in a couple days, and I've started on some real foods. She's had some fruit (just the juice from grapes, oranges, and watermelon), and she loves eating cheerios. She'll literally be crying one minute and just stop and do a content sigh the next minute if she gets a cheerio in her mouth. Alden's good at sharing them with her. She can't pick them up and feed herself yet (which Alden has fully capable of at her age) but she's getting better at recognizing real food and will grab your had and pull towards her mouth if she spots a cheerio.
She has turned over a couple times but unfortunately she doesn't really lie down anymore, so I don't know how she's going to practice that... But she's getting really good at tummy time and be on her tummy for extended periods of time. Her legs are also very strong and she tries to stand if we hold her up.
If we can catch her at a good time, she can be put down and will go to sleep on her own. She loves the sound of a rattle, so i'll just lay her down and make rattling sounds with her toys while she stares. Then she eventually falls asleep. When she is too tired or cranky to fall asleep on her own, I'll put her to sleep then put her down. Sometimes she isn't asleep deeply enough and wakes up and starts to cry, so I'll shake a toy and calm her down and make her fall back asleep (I've only recently discovered this trick, and it's worked most of the time).
We are excited for Ellie to try more foods and Alden to get good at going to the bathroom. Maybe someday, he'll be tall enough to go by himself....
Alden surprises everyday with new vocabulary and phrases. It's so fun to see him learn how to speak and express himself now. He doesn't whine too much anymore since he can tell us what he wants (although we have to remind him to ask for things more politely than he usually does). Potty training has been going okay. He went two full days without wetting himself, but today pooped in the pants once and peed his pants towice in a two hours period. Last couple days, he's done really good with peeing in the toilet, but he hasn't been able to go poop in the toilet. He'll hold his butt like he'd want to go, and when I ask him if he wants to go, he'll say yes, but as soon as i put him on the toilet, he says, "All done! No poo poo!" My guess is that he's gotten too used to peeing in the toilet (quick and easy) that he doesn't really want to work for the poop. So he just gives up instantly. Well, i guess he couldn't hold it anymore, and he came to tell me that he wanted to go to the bathroom only to leave me to discover the poop in his underwear. :( But in the last week, he's made a big progress, I think he'll get it soon. (By the way, he calls pee pee, "Yellow 쉬 (pee in Korean)."
Because of the potty training, i haven't been able to really get out of the house to do anything or had time to teach him any new things. He's been spending an awful lot of time on the iPad, and has mastered Angry Birds. It's actually quite impressive to watch him play. He can shoot the birds and correct his aim if they fly too far or close. He's also gotten really good at memory games and mazes.
We've recently been trying to get him to speak more Korean. He can understand a lot, but he prefers to speak in English, probably because Joe and i always talk in English, he watches tv in English, and his babysitters and friends speak English. He'll say, "Open, please" in English to me, and I say, "That's what you say to daddy. What do you say to mommy? (in Korean)" Then he says, "Daddy say 'open.'" So I'll say, "So what should you say to mommy?" Then he says, "열어주세요." A lot of times, I have to remind him what to say, but he's getting better at saying things in Korean to me because he understands now that I'm willing to do things for him if he asks me in Korean.
He still loves reading/watching Green Eggs and Ham. Whenever he's eating something good, he'll offer it to me and say, "Do you like ***?" "Could you, could you, in a car?" If I ask him, "Do you like green eggs and ham?" He answers, "No. I do not green eggs and ham." "Would you like them in a house? With a mouse?" "No. Not house. Not mouse."
Ellie's made a lot of progress too. Now she just does not like to be lying down. So I usually put her in an exersaucer, which she loves to play in. Alden loves to peek-a-boo her when she's sitting there, and he teaches her how to play with the toys on the exersaucer. She is now tall enough to actually be able to stand up on it instead of hang down from the seat. She loves to smile at people, and she's started to squeal a little bit. She is turning 6 months old in a couple days, and I've started on some real foods. She's had some fruit (just the juice from grapes, oranges, and watermelon), and she loves eating cheerios. She'll literally be crying one minute and just stop and do a content sigh the next minute if she gets a cheerio in her mouth. Alden's good at sharing them with her. She can't pick them up and feed herself yet (which Alden has fully capable of at her age) but she's getting better at recognizing real food and will grab your had and pull towards her mouth if she spots a cheerio.
She has turned over a couple times but unfortunately she doesn't really lie down anymore, so I don't know how she's going to practice that... But she's getting really good at tummy time and be on her tummy for extended periods of time. Her legs are also very strong and she tries to stand if we hold her up.
If we can catch her at a good time, she can be put down and will go to sleep on her own. She loves the sound of a rattle, so i'll just lay her down and make rattling sounds with her toys while she stares. Then she eventually falls asleep. When she is too tired or cranky to fall asleep on her own, I'll put her to sleep then put her down. Sometimes she isn't asleep deeply enough and wakes up and starts to cry, so I'll shake a toy and calm her down and make her fall back asleep (I've only recently discovered this trick, and it's worked most of the time).
We are excited for Ellie to try more foods and Alden to get good at going to the bathroom. Maybe someday, he'll be tall enough to go by himself....
Thursday, May 26, 2011
Potty training journey
Oh, so I think I mentioned that we got an iPad. W got it as a treat for not being able to go to disneyland, and we've been excited at the prospect of what it could do for us. One of the plans I had for the iPad was to use it to motivate Alden to use to toilet since he didn't seem to be motivated enough by other things we have used, starting with compliments, candy, ice cream, even the chance to play the wii.
After letting him play on the iPad for a couple days, we told him that he could now only use it while he was sitting on the potty. And that started our on-going journey of potty training. After we got back from our vacation, I started trying t get him to sit on the toilet more. For the first few days, I'd get lucky and get him to sit on the toilet once or twice a day. He wouldn't pee right away, however, and I'd have to hang out in the bathroom with him for a long time before he eventually couldn't hold anymore. But with the help of the iPad, Alden was more open to the idea of sitting on the toilet, something that he'd hated before and run away from.
On the fourth night, we were doing our routine sitting session, and i was explaining to Alden that since he is a big boy now, he has to go in the toilet and not use the diaper anymore. Surprisingly, he asked to put on an underwear instead of a diaper. It was right before bedtime, and we were nervous that we would have to sound the whole night changing him and fighting with him. On the other hand, we were hopeful that this would be the beginning of him being out of diapers. Joe put a mattress cover on alden's bed, and we put him away for the night. At 5 in the morning, Ellie woke up to eat, and after feeding her, I checked on al to see if he was wet. And he was DRY!
Usually, in the morning, after Alden wakes up, he calls out for me. I usually sleep in longer and go into get him when I start to feel a little guilty or if I think alden's gonna wake Ellie up. But that morning, I rushed in as soon as he woke up. Gave him a quick hug, made sure he was still dry, and took him to the bathroom. He peed right away! We were so excited and Alden got to play on the iPad. Well, I guess I was too hopeful, because the rest of the morning was spent changing his clothes, forcing him to sit in the toilet, encouraging, coercing, and even threatening him to get him to go in the toilet, not to mention the soiled underwear I had to hand wash before I put it in the washer. He did go twice in the toilet that afternoon, but by the evening, I was so exhausted and was on the verge of giving up. Joe picked up BYU creamery ice cream to cheer me up, and we got Alden to pee in the toilet again after waiting for 2 hours before putting him to bed.
We had another dry night, and he peed again, right away, in the toilet after he woke up. About 2 hours later, I got him to pee in the toilet again. I was so excited that the day was starting out so much better than the day before. However, I was mistaken. I had to change him three times, one of them being another soiled one. And I did get him to pee again in the toilet after having him sit there for another 2 hours. I had the babysitter coming that day for just an hour so I could get a little break (I couldn't handle another day like the day before), and I had to get Alden to pee again before she came so he wouldn't go while playing with her. Well, he refused to pee and I didn't want to let him down when he was so close to going, so he ended up spending the whole time on the toilet and didn't get to play with her at all. And I didn't get to enjoy my break either... I got him down so that he could say bye to her and put him back on the toilet right after she left. Well, he decided to go pee just then, and my patience was wearing thin. I had to get him to pee one more time before bed, so I put him back on around 8:30. We went through the usual routine of encouragement, coercion, threat, promises of treats, etc, and by the time Joe got home at 9:45, he still hadn't gone. We kept going with him, reading him books, telling him stories, even dancing to keep him entertained, but Alden just wouldn't pee. We had to eventually give up and put a diaper on him for the first time in two days (he still asked for the underwear to be put on top of the diaper). I'm sure the diaper was full before he fell asleep but I didn't bother to check because I was so tired.
Yesterday, we had another successful morning pee after he woke up. That morning, he wet his pants a couple times but also went in the toilet a couple times too. After I gave up trying to put him down for a nap, he even asked to go to the bathroom to pee. I could tell that he was feeling more comfortable about peeing in the toilet. I even got Ellie to poop in the toilet! Which got Alden to say, "it's my turn!" That night, Joe and I had to go grocery shopping, so after asking him if he wanted to go pee, he just put a diaper on him and put him to bed.
This morning, he woke up happy, and more importantly, dry, and peed in the toilet. After breakfast, we went to his room to play, I fell asleep on the recliner. Joe got me a blanket before he left to work, and Alden brought me a pillow. About an hour later, al woke me up and said, "poo." I woke right up and asked if he wanted to go potty. He said yes, and I out him on the toilet. He pushed for a coupled times and produced a good size poop! I was so excited that he had actually asked to go use the toilet. He got to play on the iPad for a little bit, and I even gave him a Popsicle because I was so happy. A couple hours later, he came up to me with his legs crossed and said, "pee pee." we ran over to the bathroom, and he peed in the toilet! Another hour passed by and I found him squatting, so I put him on the toilet but he said he wasn't ready, so I let him down. He didn't want to go again before his nap, which he is taking right now, so I put a diaper on him. So far, he hasn't wet his pants yet today, and I am very hopeful that the trend will continue. Hopefully he will be completely diaper free soon.
*Okay, I'm updating this post since both kids are in bed now. Alden woke up from his nap dry, and peed in the toilet right after. After playing with his babysitter, we had dinner, and I suggested that he go pee again. He asked to go to the downstairs bathroom, and did it! So now, he's in bed with a diaper, but hopefully it'll be dry again tomorrow morning!
A few funny things I forgot to mention because I got too intense on writing about the experience... If I put him on the toilet when he's not ready, he says, "No poo. It's gone." and when we get him to try to push, he tries a couple times and says, "I can't do it" or "It's not working." it's so cute!
After letting him play on the iPad for a couple days, we told him that he could now only use it while he was sitting on the potty. And that started our on-going journey of potty training. After we got back from our vacation, I started trying t get him to sit on the toilet more. For the first few days, I'd get lucky and get him to sit on the toilet once or twice a day. He wouldn't pee right away, however, and I'd have to hang out in the bathroom with him for a long time before he eventually couldn't hold anymore. But with the help of the iPad, Alden was more open to the idea of sitting on the toilet, something that he'd hated before and run away from.
On the fourth night, we were doing our routine sitting session, and i was explaining to Alden that since he is a big boy now, he has to go in the toilet and not use the diaper anymore. Surprisingly, he asked to put on an underwear instead of a diaper. It was right before bedtime, and we were nervous that we would have to sound the whole night changing him and fighting with him. On the other hand, we were hopeful that this would be the beginning of him being out of diapers. Joe put a mattress cover on alden's bed, and we put him away for the night. At 5 in the morning, Ellie woke up to eat, and after feeding her, I checked on al to see if he was wet. And he was DRY!
Usually, in the morning, after Alden wakes up, he calls out for me. I usually sleep in longer and go into get him when I start to feel a little guilty or if I think alden's gonna wake Ellie up. But that morning, I rushed in as soon as he woke up. Gave him a quick hug, made sure he was still dry, and took him to the bathroom. He peed right away! We were so excited and Alden got to play on the iPad. Well, I guess I was too hopeful, because the rest of the morning was spent changing his clothes, forcing him to sit in the toilet, encouraging, coercing, and even threatening him to get him to go in the toilet, not to mention the soiled underwear I had to hand wash before I put it in the washer. He did go twice in the toilet that afternoon, but by the evening, I was so exhausted and was on the verge of giving up. Joe picked up BYU creamery ice cream to cheer me up, and we got Alden to pee in the toilet again after waiting for 2 hours before putting him to bed.
We had another dry night, and he peed again, right away, in the toilet after he woke up. About 2 hours later, I got him to pee in the toilet again. I was so excited that the day was starting out so much better than the day before. However, I was mistaken. I had to change him three times, one of them being another soiled one. And I did get him to pee again in the toilet after having him sit there for another 2 hours. I had the babysitter coming that day for just an hour so I could get a little break (I couldn't handle another day like the day before), and I had to get Alden to pee again before she came so he wouldn't go while playing with her. Well, he refused to pee and I didn't want to let him down when he was so close to going, so he ended up spending the whole time on the toilet and didn't get to play with her at all. And I didn't get to enjoy my break either... I got him down so that he could say bye to her and put him back on the toilet right after she left. Well, he decided to go pee just then, and my patience was wearing thin. I had to get him to pee one more time before bed, so I put him back on around 8:30. We went through the usual routine of encouragement, coercion, threat, promises of treats, etc, and by the time Joe got home at 9:45, he still hadn't gone. We kept going with him, reading him books, telling him stories, even dancing to keep him entertained, but Alden just wouldn't pee. We had to eventually give up and put a diaper on him for the first time in two days (he still asked for the underwear to be put on top of the diaper). I'm sure the diaper was full before he fell asleep but I didn't bother to check because I was so tired.
Yesterday, we had another successful morning pee after he woke up. That morning, he wet his pants a couple times but also went in the toilet a couple times too. After I gave up trying to put him down for a nap, he even asked to go to the bathroom to pee. I could tell that he was feeling more comfortable about peeing in the toilet. I even got Ellie to poop in the toilet! Which got Alden to say, "it's my turn!" That night, Joe and I had to go grocery shopping, so after asking him if he wanted to go pee, he just put a diaper on him and put him to bed.
This morning, he woke up happy, and more importantly, dry, and peed in the toilet. After breakfast, we went to his room to play, I fell asleep on the recliner. Joe got me a blanket before he left to work, and Alden brought me a pillow. About an hour later, al woke me up and said, "poo." I woke right up and asked if he wanted to go potty. He said yes, and I out him on the toilet. He pushed for a coupled times and produced a good size poop! I was so excited that he had actually asked to go use the toilet. He got to play on the iPad for a little bit, and I even gave him a Popsicle because I was so happy. A couple hours later, he came up to me with his legs crossed and said, "pee pee." we ran over to the bathroom, and he peed in the toilet! Another hour passed by and I found him squatting, so I put him on the toilet but he said he wasn't ready, so I let him down. He didn't want to go again before his nap, which he is taking right now, so I put a diaper on him. So far, he hasn't wet his pants yet today, and I am very hopeful that the trend will continue. Hopefully he will be completely diaper free soon.
*Okay, I'm updating this post since both kids are in bed now. Alden woke up from his nap dry, and peed in the toilet right after. After playing with his babysitter, we had dinner, and I suggested that he go pee again. He asked to go to the downstairs bathroom, and did it! So now, he's in bed with a diaper, but hopefully it'll be dry again tomorrow morning!
A few funny things I forgot to mention because I got too intense on writing about the experience... If I put him on the toilet when he's not ready, he says, "No poo. It's gone." and when we get him to try to push, he tries a couple times and says, "I can't do it" or "It's not working." it's so cute!
Family staycation part 2
My mom went to Moab a few weeks ago, and Hotwire screwed up her reservation and booked her a room in moab for the wrong date (a Wednesday night). And since our week-long vacation was turned into an extended weekend getaway, we decided to take another weekend off and go down to Moab. My mom had to work, so we invited joe's mom to come with us to Moab.
Our original plan was to stay in the hotel for one night and camp the next night. Joe loves camping and we haven't tried camping with the kids, so we wanted to try this week down in Moab where it's warmer. Well, it turned out to be the wettest week in Utah, and everywhere, there was rain and storm warnings. We decided to cut our trip short.
Two nights before we were supposed to go down to Moab, we were so disappointed that our trio was yet cut short. W tried to think of alternatives or extentions to our trip and looked into going to other national parks, even grand canyon. However, there was rain all over Utah for the rest of the week, and the closest place without rain was las Vegas. We got excited over the idea of driving down to Vegas from moab on the second day, and looked into family friendly activities in the areas. We planned out the days and looked up hotels. We we surprised that Vegas isn's as cheap as it used to be, but we found a really nice place with a decent price that we could stay. We even decided that it was probably better to skip Moab wend gi straight down to Moab. Well, we hadn't talked to Joe's mom about the changes but we decided to book the room and explained to her the changes next day since it was well past midnight. After the room was booked, we started to add up the numbers to see how much it would cost us to go to Vegas. Ater taking one look at the numbers, Joe said, "we could buy another iPad with that money. A better one, too." then we looked at each other and said, "let's cancel."
Despite the weather and the low-key activities compared to what we would have done in Vegas, we actually had a lot of fun in Moab. I didn't really plan much on what to eat and figured wi could just eat out, but joe's mon came very prepared and she brought snack, lunch, dinner, and breakfast for the next day. We enjoyed the ride down very much, with Ellie sleeping most of the way, alden and mom playing games on the nintendo ds. Before we got to moab, we stopped off at Dead Horse Point. Alden thOut the view was really cool and enjoyed running on the trail a lot. I also got to take quite a few pictures that turned out very nice. But it was too cold to stay long and it had started raining, so we headed over to the hotel.
Surprisingly, the hotel was very nice and cozy. They even and a very nice pack-and-play for Ellie to sleep in. We had a very good dinner, and I was so happy to see Alden eat so much, especially after eating so much snack in the car. We watched tv and relaxed for the rest of the night.
We slept in the next morning. It was still raining a lot, and we had planned to go fishing at Ken's lake. We knew that the lake was recently stocked with 5000+ fish but since it was raining, we decided to give it up. Instead, we went to the Hole N The Rock. Some guy blasted a hole in the rock and had built a 5000 sq ft house, so we went on a tour to see the house. It was pretty interesing and we even ran into a couple that was from a couple blocks south of us.
On the way up to the Hole, Joe suggested that we give fishing a try, even in the rain. W just couldn't pass up the opportunity to catch a few of those 5000 fish. So like the adventurous fisherman we are, Joe and I went out in the rain ti try and fish. However, after 10 minutes in the freezing cold weather and harsh wind, we had to admit defeat and give up. We drove back to town and had lunch at pizza hut.
The drive back was a li ttle harder than we expected. Ellie was sick of being in the car, and kept crying and crying and crying. It was very difficult for all of us (except Al who was enjoying the unlimited playing time on the ds). We barely made it back home around 8:30.
It was short and we didn't really get to do anything we had planned to do, but it was a very nice family trip. I'm excited to go on more famly trips in the future, and maybe someday, we'll actually get to go camping...
Our original plan was to stay in the hotel for one night and camp the next night. Joe loves camping and we haven't tried camping with the kids, so we wanted to try this week down in Moab where it's warmer. Well, it turned out to be the wettest week in Utah, and everywhere, there was rain and storm warnings. We decided to cut our trip short.
Two nights before we were supposed to go down to Moab, we were so disappointed that our trio was yet cut short. W tried to think of alternatives or extentions to our trip and looked into going to other national parks, even grand canyon. However, there was rain all over Utah for the rest of the week, and the closest place without rain was las Vegas. We got excited over the idea of driving down to Vegas from moab on the second day, and looked into family friendly activities in the areas. We planned out the days and looked up hotels. We we surprised that Vegas isn's as cheap as it used to be, but we found a really nice place with a decent price that we could stay. We even decided that it was probably better to skip Moab wend gi straight down to Moab. Well, we hadn't talked to Joe's mom about the changes but we decided to book the room and explained to her the changes next day since it was well past midnight. After the room was booked, we started to add up the numbers to see how much it would cost us to go to Vegas. Ater taking one look at the numbers, Joe said, "we could buy another iPad with that money. A better one, too." then we looked at each other and said, "let's cancel."
Despite the weather and the low-key activities compared to what we would have done in Vegas, we actually had a lot of fun in Moab. I didn't really plan much on what to eat and figured wi could just eat out, but joe's mon came very prepared and she brought snack, lunch, dinner, and breakfast for the next day. We enjoyed the ride down very much, with Ellie sleeping most of the way, alden and mom playing games on the nintendo ds. Before we got to moab, we stopped off at Dead Horse Point. Alden thOut the view was really cool and enjoyed running on the trail a lot. I also got to take quite a few pictures that turned out very nice. But it was too cold to stay long and it had started raining, so we headed over to the hotel.
At the Dead Horse Point Visitor Center
What a hansome guy!
It was so cold...
We slept in the next morning. It was still raining a lot, and we had planned to go fishing at Ken's lake. We knew that the lake was recently stocked with 5000+ fish but since it was raining, we decided to give it up. Instead, we went to the Hole N The Rock. Some guy blasted a hole in the rock and had built a 5000 sq ft house, so we went on a tour to see the house. It was pretty interesing and we even ran into a couple that was from a couple blocks south of us.
On the way up to the Hole, Joe suggested that we give fishing a try, even in the rain. W just couldn't pass up the opportunity to catch a few of those 5000 fish. So like the adventurous fisherman we are, Joe and I went out in the rain ti try and fish. However, after 10 minutes in the freezing cold weather and harsh wind, we had to admit defeat and give up. We drove back to town and had lunch at pizza hut.
The drive back was a li ttle harder than we expected. Ellie was sick of being in the car, and kept crying and crying and crying. It was very difficult for all of us (except Al who was enjoying the unlimited playing time on the ds). We barely made it back home around 8:30.
It was short and we didn't really get to do anything we had planned to do, but it was a very nice family trip. I'm excited to go on more famly trips in the future, and maybe someday, we'll actually get to go camping...
The best picture from this trip by far...
Tuesday, May 24, 2011
Family staycation part 1
Since our trip to Disneyland was canceled, we've been trying to think of something inexpensive and close to home. We decided to enjoy local attractions and the company of the family at home.
On Thusday, we went to the Bountiful park to have a picnic. Tom, Laura, Sophie, joe's mom, john, and jamie all came. I marinated some Kalbi and everyone else brought drinks, treats, desserts, etc. Sophie and Al got to play at the playground (they probably had almost as much fun as they would've at Disneyland). The food was great, especially when we got to enjoy it with the family. After that, we visited grandma and grandpa for a littler bit. Joe and dad helped them with a little bit of yard work, and Alden showed off his kicking skills in their front yard. Then dad and Faye watched Sophie and Alden while the parents along with john and mom got to go to the movies. We hadn't been to the movies in the long time, so it was a good treat. After we picked up the kids, we went over to mom's house for a sleepover. We had somme food and turned on Iron Man. The kids fell asleep pretty quick, and so did joe and I.
Friday morning, the dads got to sleep in quite a bit. They don't usually get to because of work, so it was nice that they could just rest. The moms, however, were awaken by the kids,ha ha. Sophie woke Laura up at 7, and Alden woke me up at 8. Mom woke up sometime in between. We were planning to go swimming around noon at the Bubble, but we found out that it didn't open until 4pm. So while Tom and Joe played video games, mom, Laura, and I went to gateway to shop. We didn't end up buying anything there and it was getting pretty hot. W drove back to bountiful and went to tjmaxx. Laura got a diaper bag, and mom bought some arm floaties for the kids. We didn't get to the pool until 6. The water was pretty warm, and Alden did really well with swimming with just the arm floaties. Ellie was very content and happy in the water, and even though Sophie was tired, she had fun for the first little while. Alden didn't want to go home at all and wanted to keep swimming. We had to half force him to leave the water. Our original plan was to at out that night. We wanted to go to texas roadhouse, which apparently has peanuts, so we were gonna have dad and Faye babysit again. But Sophie was too tired, and it was pretty late after we got out of the pool, so we called it a night and came home after dropping by at dad's house.
Saturday, we met up at Cabela's to watch the fish being fed. They have a giant fish tank filled with freshwater fish, and they feed them with little goldfish everyday. After that, the kids got to feed the fish at a little pond, and they had so much fun together riding in a cart and looking at all the stuffed animals. For lunch, we decided to go to walmart since I had forgotten to bring extra diapers, so we just went to eat at McDonald's. Then we went to Thanksgiving point to go to the ancient history museum, aka the dinosaur museum. The kids had tons of fun. There was water sandbox and a regular sandbox that the kids spent forever in, and the exhibits were very interesting. I got a lot of pictures of Alden and Sophie together. For dinner, since we couldn't get a babysitter, we decided to go to Cheesecake factory. Turns out to be a great choice because everyone enjoyed their food, including Sophie and Alden. John and Jamie also came to join us for dinner.
Even though we didn't get to go to the magical place called Disneyland, we had so much fun together and didn't have to exhaust ourselves either. It turned out to be a good thing that we did't go because Sophie wasn't feeling so good, and Ellie would never haves survived the drive down to california.
I will upload the pictus later when it's more convenient (right now, I'm typing on the iPad while the kids are taking a nap).
On Thusday, we went to the Bountiful park to have a picnic. Tom, Laura, Sophie, joe's mom, john, and jamie all came. I marinated some Kalbi and everyone else brought drinks, treats, desserts, etc. Sophie and Al got to play at the playground (they probably had almost as much fun as they would've at Disneyland). The food was great, especially when we got to enjoy it with the family. After that, we visited grandma and grandpa for a littler bit. Joe and dad helped them with a little bit of yard work, and Alden showed off his kicking skills in their front yard. Then dad and Faye watched Sophie and Alden while the parents along with john and mom got to go to the movies. We hadn't been to the movies in the long time, so it was a good treat. After we picked up the kids, we went over to mom's house for a sleepover. We had somme food and turned on Iron Man. The kids fell asleep pretty quick, and so did joe and I.
Saturday, we met up at Cabela's to watch the fish being fed. They have a giant fish tank filled with freshwater fish, and they feed them with little goldfish everyday. After that, the kids got to feed the fish at a little pond, and they had so much fun together riding in a cart and looking at all the stuffed animals. For lunch, we decided to go to walmart since I had forgotten to bring extra diapers, so we just went to eat at McDonald's. Then we went to Thanksgiving point to go to the ancient history museum, aka the dinosaur museum. The kids had tons of fun. There was water sandbox and a regular sandbox that the kids spent forever in, and the exhibits were very interesting. I got a lot of pictures of Alden and Sophie together. For dinner, since we couldn't get a babysitter, we decided to go to Cheesecake factory. Turns out to be a great choice because everyone enjoyed their food, including Sophie and Alden. John and Jamie also came to join us for dinner.
Even though we didn't get to go to the magical place called Disneyland, we had so much fun together and didn't have to exhaust ourselves either. It turned out to be a good thing that we did't go because Sophie wasn't feeling so good, and Ellie would never haves survived the drive down to california.
I will upload the pictus later when it's more convenient (right now, I'm typing on the iPad while the kids are taking a nap).
Family Staycation
Okay.. I know I'm way behind in posts... I'll post when I have more time and when I don't have to change Al's pants every other hour and rush him to the bathroom the other hour....
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