Muffin Man

Here we are trying out a weird toy at Claire's favorite park. Stay with it; the last part is funny.

I Did a Poo!

Claire did her first poo in the potty at home!

Right before her bath tonight, Claire got real quiet and just stood still, looking a little red in the face. This means she is about to poo.

I picked her up and set her on the toilet in our bedroom. After about two seconds, she said, "I'm done!", which is pretty much the normal routine. But she obviously still had to poo, so I told her I would read a book to her if she would stay on the potty. She agreed, and I read her Goodnight, Texas twice. Around the end of the second reading, she did her poo and then got a happy smile on her face and said, "I'm done!"

Kit and I clapped and hollered and hopped aroound and told her we were so proud. She seemed a little surprised by all the attention. She has purportedly done this particular "trick" numerous times at school, I assume without receiving this kind of attention.

We went downstairs and picked out a special sticker for her potty sticker poster. Since this was an extra special case, we also gave her a little bit of lemon sorbet as a treat. For some reason, this ended up being called simply "flavor" later, as in, "I want a flavor!" Anyways, she liked it a lot and went off to bed proud and happy.

Claire has done the same trick a few more times, but usually in her pants. Afterwards, she sometimes asks for a sticker and "lemon flavor", so maybe she is missing some of the point about using the actual potty. Or maybe it is just wishful thinking, and it can't hurt to ask, right?

Chrysanthemum

Claire's favorite book these days is Chrysanthemum. It has become the book she always wants to read, and she still enjoys it no matter how many times you read it to her. She even likes to "read" it to us. She does a pretty good job at it too, considering that she has some sections of the book memorized. There is a page in the book with pictures of about 16 kids, and a name above each. Claire has all the names on that page memorized.

When Claire reads to us, she starts out, "Chrysanthemum, by Kevin Henkes. The day she was born was the best day in her mother and father's life..." then she needs some gentle reminders past that. Kevin Henkes is the author of another past favorite, Lilly's Purple Plastic Purse. Both books feature mice dealing with tough times at school and ultimately coming out better in the end. I am sure our little mouse is going through the same process every weekday.

Here is some footage of Claire reading Chrysanthemum.

In the Shadow of the Taj Mahal

This is Claire commenting on the architecture near her playground at school.



As she runs off, she is yelling, "Little Einsteins!", who had visited the Taj Mahal in one of their books.

Reign of the Croc

Claire has worn her little pink Crocs almost every day for as long as I can remember. I think she got those Crocs as a present from Grammy last year for Christmas or her birthday, so she has been wearing them for close to a year straight. These little pink rubber Mary Janes have gone from a little big too to a little small for her feet, but they still work great, and after a good rinse they look like new.

But the reign cannot last forever. The venerable shoes finally have a challenger, or two. Claire was looking through her clothes the other day when she discovered a pair of brand new Dora the Explorer shoes we got her a few months ago on sale. They were too big for Claire until now. Claire now likes to wear her Dora shoes as often as her Crocs. She also got a pair of golden slippers -- yes, golden slippers -- at a consignment sale this weekend. These may be her new favorites! She insists on wearing them with a dress, and loves to dance in them.

With all of this rapid shoe change, I just wanted to give those Crocs a tip of the hat before we forgot about them. It is hard to imagine a better shoe for a little kid, and they seemed like a perfect match for Claire.

Potty Update

The potty training has been progressing slowly but steadily. Claire can use the potty, and apparently does at school, but she does not yet have confidence in her control.

Claire's basic cry for help is, "I don't want to pee!" The morning routine can involve 5 or 6 panicked trips to the potty, often running downstairs with shaving cream on my face or a mouth full of toothpaste. Dinners out often involve 3 or 4 trips to a smelly public bathroom. Sometimes we have to pull Claire out of the bath, slippery and covered in soap, to use the potty. We even have to make trips to the bathroom in the middle of story time right before putting her in bed.

Now, I don't mean to complain or sound sour about this. Kit and I know this is all part of the process, and we all just have to soldier through. Part of the reason for this blog is to look back in a few years and remember the strange phases we went through with Claire and the little ways it affected our days.  (Ok, to tell you the truth, it is very tiresome.)