Connor is now 2 years, 10 months old. He's slowly transitioning into size 3T clothes. Does this mean he's actually growing?! He wears a size 7 1/2-8 shoe, depending on the style and brand of shoe.
He is now potty trained!! Woohoo!! We tried it back in May and was somewhat successful for threeish months. Then, he decided that he was no longer going to use the potty (this was also when I found out I was pregnant with number three), so we went back to diapers and decided that it was best to not push it. I began again the beginning of December. This time, it took one week for him to begin telling me he needed to go potty and actually going on his own to his potty. He was more successful when he was naked from the waist down. I gradually put his underwear on him and it took a few days for him to understand that going in his underwear was a "no-no" and that he needed to go to the bathroom to potty. Ever since, he's been really good about going. When he goes a long period of time between pees, Cameron and I ask him and/or remind him to go. If we put him on the potty without it being his idea, he screams and hollers. So, we've just learned to let him take the lead (as it probably should be). Pooping in the potty took a little longer, but he's finally getting the hang of it and has been for the past couple of weeks.
He is also no longer wearing pull-ups at night. I started with pull-ups just at night when he was asleep. It would take him forever to fall asleep and I was beginning to think it was the pull-ups. I was then advised to not put him in pull-ups at night by a friend of mine (who also has a potty trained little boy). She explained to me that some children need to wet the bed to understand that they need to get up and use the potty at night, and pull-ups are keeping them from realizing when they pee. I took it to heart and decided to give it a try. Two weeks into it and he has only wet the bed three times. He wakes me up in the middle of the night when he feels the urge to go, and has occasionally made it the entire night without waking up or having an accident. So, we are pull-up free!! It doesn't happen overnight for most kids, so we're just taking it one day at a time. And we're thankful he's catching on so much better this time around. I'm glad he's out of diapers before his little brother arrives ;)
He really loves all sports! His favorite right now are Hockey and Basketball. We went to a Swamp Rabbit hockey game one night just to get out of the house, and he absolutely LOVED it. He always asks to go back, so we've been a few more times. He gets so into it and says "Oh no! He fell down!" when the players get knocked down. It's funny to see how he reacts to stuff like that. We also took him to the USC vs. Clemson basketball game a few weeks ago. He really enjoyed it too. He had a lot of fun cheering and saying "Shoot it!!" Since that game he's been to a Furman basketball game and the USC vs. Missouri games. He is so much fun to take!
He loves to play with his sister, and helps me out a lot. They get into a lot of trouble together, but there is always a lot of giggling involved. He also just loves to play in our playroom with whatever. He asked Santa Claus for a "red bicycle" for Christmas, and Santa brought him a red Radio Flyer tricycle. He loves that thing too. He likes to ride down our driveway really fast in it. We aren't quite ready for the street yet because Cameron and I know we will be hauling that thing back, so we are waiting for him to get better with it before taking it on the big road. I'm sure it won't be long though.
Maddie is now 17 months old, and will go to her 18 month check-up on Feb 4th. She is still in size 4 diapers and 12-18 month clothes. I'm beginning to transition her to size 18-24 month clothes because some of her 18 month clothes are getting a little short on her. She's been in this size for almost 6 months now, so it's fun to get new clothes!! She is in size 5 shoes, and it looks like she will be in them for a little bit longer. But, I'm not exactly the best judge when it comes to shoes, so we will see there.
She is full of herself! She runs around the place like she owns it, and even starts most of the mischief she and her brother get into. She is RUNNING everywhere these days, it's almost hard to catch her. Her most favorite thing to do is to grab things from tables and counters. This causes lots of accidents and time-outs. We've learned what we can and can't leave unattended. Her favorite is bringing us our drinks from off the table. So much fun and messy.
She is still very chatty. She is picking up words slowly but surely. She says "yes" and "no" when we ask her things. She also is beginning to follow some simple requests. She doesn't always listen, especially when we ask her to "come here," but we can only expect so much from such a little girl. She now says "love you" and it's heart-melting every time. She is full of hugs and kisses when she is doing something bad. We used to fall for it, but now we're getting better about standing our ground.
She is now paci-free! We were just doing paci and naptime and bedtime, but I thought that taking the paci away now rather than when we have 3 would be better for all of us. So, we just took it away the beginning of the year and she cried for a while before falling asleep. Then she woke up at 2am hunting for it and continued to put up a good fight for about an hour and fifteen minutes. Not sure how I didn't give it to her, but I stayed strong and refused to do it. She screamed so loud that it even woke Connor up. So not only did I have a screaming little girl, but I also had a little boy in my bed wanting to watch PJ Masks. Somehow we made it through, and all fell back asleep around 3:30. Then the next day, she fussed some when going down for her nap but it was minimal. That night, she hardly made a peep and slept the entire night without it. So, we are now paci-free! I know it's okay for her to have one up until the age of 2, and I know plenty of people who have children who have one when they are older than 2, but I thought when she began asking for it at night it was time to begin taking it away. Just a personal preference and nothing else.
She now has 3, maybe all 4, of her canine teeth. This means we are DONE with teething for now! These canines were really making her miserable, especially at night. A few nights of ibuprofen and teething tablets and she was good to go. I'm quite relieved that they are in before her little brother gets here. A teething toddler and a newborn don't exactly mix. I've been there and done that when she was born and Connor was only 17 months old. Not exactly my type of fun.
She is a girly girl. She loves her baby dolls, and all the Disney princesses. She got the Belle castle for Christmas and will play with it, making the people dance, for hours. Santa brought her a pack n play, diaper bag, carrier, high chair, and bouncy seat for her baby doll. She loves to put her babies in the carrier and pack n play. She gives them hugs and kisses, and the occasional throw. She also loves purses and jewelry. She wears one of my necklaces all the time, and she finally got one of her own in her stocking from Santa. She got this cute little purse from Dee for Christmas and carries that thing around the house all the time. She likes to put her lovey in it and then open it up and pull it out with a huge gasp as to say "look what I found!" It's absolutely precious.
Here are some pictures of them.
Enjoying a hockey game
"Cheese!!"
A picture from our snow day January 23rd
Watching his dada and Maddie sled down the hill
Our nameless snowman (Maddie clearly isn't impressed)
