Slow down already!

First, a potty training update: Boom, Done! Lilah has been using the big girl potty for quite a while now and very rarely does she have an accident (like in the middle of the chick-fil-a play place *face palm*). Second, we are officially a family of 4 and I cannot believe how insanely blessed we are to have Violet Joy! It feels like she has always been here and yet time seems to have flown by. She is 2 and a half months old and is a sheer delight. Lilah is completely in love with her. It makes me tear up when I hear Lilah talking to her little sister with such sweet words and such genuine adoration. I know that they will bicker and fight one day but my mommy heart is full to bursting when I watch them together :) Violet is a great little eater and is pushing 12 pounds. She is super strong and we are constantly shaking our heads at how fast she is growing. When she smiles her entire face lights up and her eyes are something else! I LOVE her eyes. Phil is, rightfully so, smitten and enjoying his girls. Lilah adores her daddy and thinks that he hung the moon and stars :) I love sitting back and watching my family, so full of energy and love. I go to bed every night thanking the Lord for each of them and praying that He gives me one more day to love them. I can't fathom why He has given me such abundant grace but I will spend my days trying my best to show Him to my daughters. Well, that's all the update I have for now. All is good at the Collins' home!

Potty Training {so far}

Lilah Ann has understood the concept of using the "big girl potty" for a while now but I have been scared to take the plunge. I have NO IDEA what I am doing. I read a few articles, looked over some online tips, & stopped by half priced books in search of the perfect 'How-To' guide. I have since come to realize that I know my kid the best and we are just going to have to figure this thing out together! Our potty training journey actually began about 6 months ago when Lilah was 18 months old. I had a long weekend off of teaching and thought that we could just knock it out and get it over with. As a few of my Facebook status readers may recall it was a complete disaster. Lilah would joyfully sit on the potty and then get right up, take a few steps, and make a mess of my carpet... tile... nearby blankets... you get the point. We called it quits after two days. Lilah was frustrated and so was I, it just wasn't going to happen and there was no use trying to fight it. I realized at that point that she would be the one to decide when she was ready, not Mommy. So, this past Friday (the Friday after Christmas) I asked her if she wanted to use the big girl potty and she told me she did! I was terrified. We took the plunge together and it was a GREAT day! She loves her Dora panties and I was very cooperative when I asked her to take a break from playing to spend a couple of minutes on the potty. She only had one accident all day and lucky for me it was an easy clean up. *Side note- the best part of it for me was spending the entire day giving her my undivided attention and also, when she had her accident she let me know by saying "Ewwww! Gross Mommy, Gross!"* The most difficult part has been the inconsistency due to our foster children. Lilah does best when I let her run around with no bottoms on at all (just a long shirt or nightgown) and I am very uncomfortable doing that with a little boy in the house. Since "Doug" and "Kate" have been home a lot during the holidays we have had to take long breaks but she is still showing an interest and talks about it all the time. Any time she asks, we take a trip to the potty and whether she goes or not we let her know how proud we are that she used her words to tell us. I would love to have her exclusively using the potty by the time Violet Joy is born (due date March 18th) and I feel like that it totally doable if we continue on the path we are currently on. Any other mommas have a skiddish toddler when it came to going "poo-poo" in the potty?? It seems to terrify her so we aren't pushing it. I am so very proud of my big girl! She's just growing up too fast :)