Back to Life. Back to Reality

So, I took the boys to the beach for two weeks. My parents rented a house for a month, and since Jack has been out of town (for what seems like ALWAYS), we decided to take advantage of it. It was a great trip. Tre got better and more confident at swimming, and William, well, he thinks he can swim. He jumps right in when no one is looking. Of course, we caught him everytime, but he didn't care one bit if he was under the water for longer than a few seconds. He'd always come up smiling! I think Tre is our runner (he runs EVERYWHERE) and possibly our biker, and William is our swimmer, and our dare devil.

Tre's been potty trained for about 6 months now, but I still put him in pull-ups for nap and bed time. I decided that last night was as good as any to try and rid him of that habit. He loves to drink water in the middle of the night and have been trying to rid him of that habit to prepare for the breaking of the pull-ups, but have struggled. I don't let him go to bed with it but if he asks for water in the middle of the night, I get it for him. That happened last night and then he called for me hours later. I was sure he had an accident, but he just wanted to tell me that he'd finished his water. I asked him to try and potty and he insisted that he didn't need to. Lo and behold, he woke up this morning (30 minutes later than usual...yay for sleeping in!) and his undies were slightly damp, but not big mess. I was happy and tried to make a big deal out of it.

Today they went back to school. This would make it their 3rd day since we've been gone for two weeks. Tre did great, but William's teacher said he had a rough day. Poor guy!

We're going to have a busy month. We have the Navy Ball this weekend (and I really love my dress), then two weeks from now I am a reader in my friend from high schools wedding (my ex-boyfriends brother, as odd as that sounds), then we have a party the following weekend, and then Jack leaves for Top Gun! I am anxious about that, but since he's been gone so much already, I almost feel prepared.

Bubbles and singing!

This is one of my favorite videos to date. We were experimenting with our new under water camera and William was being a hoot! He is FEARLESS in the water and fun to watch. He even shows off his singing, "Life is a highway, I want to ride it all night long!" Funny stuff!

Tre swimming with floaties!

Tre swam with floaties for the first time today. A couple of weeks ago (I think I posted a video) he finally let go of the side and swam with an inner tube, but today I finally convinced him to wear some floaties. I bribed with M&M's (the same thing I bribe him with for everything). He did sooo well and he seemed soo proud of himself. He only wanted to wear it for a few minutes a couple of different times today, but we'll be here for another week and a half so I have hope he'll get really good at it and realize he'd be free if wore them all of the time!

We're having fun on vacation. William is very clingy, but that is no surprise. Tre has been SOOOOOOO good and sharing with everyone. We've been here almost a week and he's only had to go in time out a handful of times. OH! And he's finally gotten to the point where he sits in his "timeout" chair quietly the whole time. YAY!

Tre's whistle

We are at the beach this week vacationing with my family. It's been fun, but Jack isn't here so I am sad! I do have to say that I can see a huge difference between ages 2 and 3. Tre is so much better behaved this year. He is sharing and playing happily. William is being good too, so I am actually getting to enjoy myself! :)

Last night my brother-in-law was whistling while Tre was trying to learn to play the Wii. Tre, unexpectedly, started imitating his whistle and we got a big kick out of it!

Kids first day of school

So it was the kids first day of school...Tre's second year, and Williams VERY first day!

I kind of feel bad because I wasn't nervous or emotional!? Is that bad? It seems like a lot of parents get that way, but I think they are gone for just 3 hours and it is good for them...AND ME! I've always said I am a better mother on school days!

Tre was REALLY excited about going. It wasn't until we got there that he really realized he was in a different classroom with a different teacher. He went straight to his old classroom and I had to steer him in another direction. I told him before that William was going to school too, so he was pulling on him to come in with him. I had to explain he was in a different classroom. He seemed disappointed and then shy with the other kids, but he quickly got busy playing and that was that.

William...my poor William! I brought him to his class handed him over and the teacher made it clear to just hug and kiss and leave quickly. He was screaming and reaching for me! I could see through the window that she was playing with him and he seemed to calm down quickly.

When I went to pick them up, Jack came too and the kids were very excited. Tre came running like every other school day and William was crying! I think he saw all the other parents coming to get their kids and was worried we weren't coming. Both teachers said they had good days.

It makes me laugh because so many people have asked what I was going to do with all my free time now! HA! I am so thankful for the time I am getting, don't get me wrong, but it's only 3 hours a day, 3 days a week. I plan to work out, which takes at least an hour, clean, grocery shop, and then that will probably be it before I have to pick them up. It takes 25 minutes for me to get there. Today I worked out, came home scoured the kitchen and living room (mopped and everything) and then RAN out the door because I was almost too late! I think I will have plenty of things to do with my time!

Tre and his bike

Tre impressed us today and rode his bike for 2 miles! I could hardly believe it! We are looking to get me a bike to ride along side, but haven't found one that I like enough. I think William will enjoy riding in back. He isn't a huge fan of the trike. He can't reach the pedals yet. We adjusted Tre's training wheels when we got home to make them higher. Hopefully, he will not even need them soon!

time outs

So time outs with Tre are VERY ineffective, so we are trying something new. I am using a chair that he has to sit in and he can't have a fit the whole time like he normally does. Now he has to sit in the chair for at least 3 minutes, but the last minute (or more) has to be quietly. NO more fits, no more crying. Today was our first try and it was a battle of wills. He sat there for over an hour. He cried and cried and cried and flailed and carried on. Jack wanted to get a video, so that Tre can look back and laugh at how ridiculous he was being. We won. He finally stopped crying and sat there for a minute quietly. Wish me luck as I am going to be VERY consistent about this!

Popsicles

William in the elevator

We finally got our camera cord and I'm finally uploading old video. This is from our vacation in Gulf Shores. We got a kick out of William in the elevator. I think because he is so small he could really feel the movement of going up or down and would say, "WHOOAAA!" every time. We tried to capture it in this video.

Tre Swimming...with a raft

This is a miracle...even with a raft. Tre has taken swimming lessons, but it didn't really help with his fear of the pool. He LOVES to go in it, but ALWAYS stays glued to the steps. That makes my life easier in the pool since William isn't scared at all and wants to swim and jump in every chance he gets...he'll even do it when I am not looking, so I have to be super alert with him. However, I do want Tre to get used to the water and increase his confidence. I've been trying to coax him to let go of the side and float in his raft but every time I would try, he'd scream in terror. This time, he actually did it on his own and then LOVED it. I was really, really proud of him!

William's haircut

I just can't get over how good William is for his haircuts. If you knew what we went through with Tre's haircuts, you would find it hard to believe too. Tre is almost 3.5 and he JUST NOW started sitting by himself and sitting still and not flailing and screaming his head off. William is only 18 months and he sits there peacefully and almost seems to enjoy it. I wonder if it's because he sees his brother enjoying it now!?! Whatever it is, I am thankful!

There isn't much to report lately and I still haven't found my camera cord, and blogs aren't that interesting with no pictures. We are going to buy a new cord this weekend.

Cute sayings and updates:

1. LSU football starts Saturday and we are SUPER excited. We're having people over to celebrate! They are playing Washington State! GEAUX TIGERS!

2. Becky and John (my twin and brother-in-law) are coming in this weekend. YAY!

3. We are going to a Sex Party on Monday! Get your mind out of the gutter PEOPLE! Frankie and Roger had the ultrasound tech but the sex of their baby in an envelope and they are having a party to open it up with everyone! We can't wait!

4. The kids and I are going to the beach for a couple of weeks a week from today. Jack will be out of town doing training for Top Gun.

5. William is officially off the pacie and it wasn't even painful. He never even cried. OH! He is so different from his brother.

6. Preschool starts for both boys on Wednesday. I think Tre is ready, but I don't think William will even know what to do with himself. He has attachment issues, which has been different and hard, because Tre never did!

5. Tre: Mommy, Where's daddy?

Me: Dad's at work.

Tre: Why does Daddy work?

Me: He needs to make money.

Tre: For my piggy bank?

ME: That AND for the groceries that we are about to buy!

It's hilarious that he already wants to steal his dad's money.

6. Daddy: What was your favorite part of the day, Tre?

Tre: Riding my bike.

Daddy: What was your favorite part of the day, William?

William: Mommy.

7. Daddy: What was your favorite part of the day, Tre? (as you can see this is our nightly routine)

Tre: When you got home.

Tre: What's geo trax favorite part?

Daddy: Playing with you!

Tre: What's Goggles/Bunson's favorite part? (William's favorite Geotrax train)

Daddy: I don't know.

Tre: Playing with William?!?

Okay, so maybe I had more to say than I thought! We all know I can talk!