Potty Training 101

you've wondered where we've been these days??? well...a big salute goes out to all you ladies who write about potty training your girl in a day. maybe my someday girl will be that way, but for my little boy, it was about as tough as college statistics! after our trip, my mom and sister encouraged me to just put my foot down and get to it on potty training bentley. well, last week, i talked a lot about it with him, including some bribery tactics, then one morning, while natalie was down watching him while i worked in the office, he told her he had to go pee pee before he could put on his swim shorts...and he went in his potty! i jumped on the moment and began from there full force! we went to town and got pull ups and frog, potty treats and went to work. let's just say days 1 and 2 were some of the toughest of my so-far parental career! i thought i might lose my mind with cleaning up accidents and he was not himself being grouchy, hitting, and crying that he was scared. i was about to give up, but i wondered how we could go back to diapers...then, the next day, things got better! today, sunday, he has gone all day and even went on the big toilet in the ladies room at church. what a good boy, i knew he could do it!!!

this week, ben and i got to go to the caldwell nite rodeo on thursday...we even had vip passes for a steak dinner before, compliments of campbell tractor. go green! anyway, this marks the 5th anniversary of our first date together when we went to the cnr in 2003. how time has flown by!!! it has been the best five years of my life! but i also remember those first days getting to know each other and when love is new, you know that feeling, just the excitment and newness?!! we took bridon with us, and he was such a good boy. he can laugh now, and he especially gets going when ben holds him and tickles him. he is growing so much! i put on an outfit that bentley wore in aug/sept when he was a baby, and bridon is almost grown out of it and he is two months behind him!

we're busy with 3rd crop and straw now, and i've been running ben around and taking the boys on 'picnics' to the field. i am not a motivated cook as it is in the summer, and so packing up everything and 2 kids is a hassle, but well worth it to see our daddy and get out of the house a little bit! we usually strap bentley down to the umbrella stroller and, luckily, don't have a mess to clean up off the floor when we're done, cause we're in the great outdoors! i complain a little, but i wouldn't trade the opportunity to farm for anything. it is the life i love!

we finished those apples, me and my little helpers...got 33 pints of applesauce and it pretty much took all day, but it is so delicious and now we're set for a couple of years! nothing better than summer apples! i did some dry pack canning and am working on green beans this week and pickles. we met daddy one nite over in homedale for the owyhee county fair and saw all the animals and tractors, plus ate yummy fair food. we also have enjoyed a few dinners and such with friends and family. we'll put up a collage of our happenings sometime this week...until then!