Potty Training, Partnership, and Pregnancy

I'm sure many are wondering what has been taking me to long to update again . . . and well, we've been busy over here!! 

Potty Training:  We got off to a slow start, but after a couple of months Asher is potty trained!  It is always a dreaded project to undertake and I was hoping he was going to be a potty super star like his brother (who trained the week of his 2nd birthday and never needed pull ups!!--yep, he is my favorite).  Alas, Asher is more average and took awhile to catch on . . . and he still requires a pull up at night, but being diaper free is awesome!!

Partnership:  I joined my sister, Mindy, sewing for her business The Practical Mom Shop.  I am sewing soft soled baby shoes and hooded towels, she sews a variety of purses, wristlets, etc.  You can find our shop on FaceBook:  The Practical Mom Shop  It has been fun sewing so much, but keeps me busy during nap times and after the kids go to bed!

Pregnancy:  We are thrilled to be almost 18 weeks along and will have our fourth child in early May!!  Other than the exhaustion, I am feeling well.  The kids are SO excited, well Briella and Gideon are very excited about a new baby--she has convinced Gideon we need a girl so she can have a sister.  Asher may be sensing some change and is a little more clingy.

 I will also let you all know because of all of the above, the chances of a Christmas card getting mailed out in 2013 is looking slim!  We have already received a few and we love seeing them, but I'm afraid this is going to be a year off for the Postma Fam (please don't take us off your list!!)  I have no pictures this time, but maybe next week (haha) or another day this month, I will post a few pictures . . .

Thoroughly Clean

 It was very difficult to take a picture so that you could read the fine print here.  Sorry!  Don't worry I've been seeing it for over a month and never read it until today. It says "It is important to thoroughly clean this product after each use"  It says this in CAPS!  I am not sure what 20 year old punk thought this was appropriate instruction, but you've got to be kidding me!  Other than dishes, I am not sure if there is anything I clean after each use, much less this:

 A child's potty, each use, thoroughly. come on.  I have totally and completely failed to comply to these directions, I confess.  I hope there are not toilet cleaning authorities that plan to pursue justice in this case.  I did clean it today though, but I'm not admitting when I cleaned it last, mostly because I don't keep track . . .  hope you have some thorough cleaning to do this weekend.

Gideon's 2

It is so hard to believe how quickly the past two years have gone  . . . from this innocently sweet little boy to the rascal who gave me a little present for his birthday:

 His other mommy saw this and used my very words "Gideon, what did you do?!?" with the same tone of voice that went through my head when I saw the mess.  After wiping it up, Briella had so much fun that she gave him an orange marker to try again.  I guess we need to explain that sometimes sharing is a bad thing.  I was only a few feet away the whole time, but completely distracted by the birthday dump truck.  It turned out pretty well I thought . . . always a little more complicated than the  5 step instructions, but oh well.  Gideon was thrilled, especially when I let him try some of the 'dirt' in the truck.

T

This is Stephan's project for Gideon's birthday (isn't he talented?!? he just whipped this up on Saturday).  The tool bench isn't quite complete, but close.  I hear lots of banging in our future! 

Maybe you noticed the undies on the first picture, we are slowly working on potty training.  He has gone in the little potty several times and has even told me when he has to go more recently.  He loves his car underwear and we might be switching to undies only at home, but I'm a little reluctant chicken and keep putting it off.  He is so proud when he goes and we cheer, give high fives, call daddy, give bumps with fireworks, and act a little crazy.  (His other mommy is very proud too; she checks on his progress, discusses stats, and tells him good job repeatedly.)

Gideon is still a sweet boy, regardless of the messes he makes.  He is generous with hugs and smiles and is quite agreeable, too.  He definitely fits the meaning of his name "warrior" and shows his strength and toughness daily! We are thankful for the blessing he is in our lives and pray that he grows into a man after God's own heart.

Silly Girl

I found these headbands to keep Briella's hair out of her face. She wasn't a big fan when I put one on yesterday, but this morning after her bath, she gladly put one on herself. It is so handy that she can take care of herself this way ;)

In other news she has been wearing underwear for a week and averages one accident a day, so we're pretty excited about that (the dryness not the accident).
Briella also enjoys saying her ABC's. It goes like this: "A B C D E G H caterpillar Q S T U W Y Z know my ABCs caterpillar sing with me." I'm a little suspicious that the whole caterpillar came from this:

Ironic

So, this morning we are still working on the potty training . . . Briella is telling me, quite often, that she has to "go pee on potty" and it is working quite well. Although, I have realized the appeal of pull-ups, initially I thought that was a marketing ploy to get more money . . . But, our diaper is dry and she has 7 stickers in a few hours, along with lots of candy.
I was looking up constipation remedies for 2 year olds that pee on the potty, but haven't pooped recently. I hear "poop on the potty" for the fifth time and think, whatever, I'll be there in a minute. (She has frequently said this and only peed) Then I hear a more urgent "poop on the potty" so I head over to the bathroom. And, yes while I'm looking up constipation, my daughter did her deed in the diaper. unbelievable.
I think we're all glad there are no pictures for this one :)

Guess what we did yesterday?!?!?