The Pee Pee Dance
I am amazed by how excited I got when Courtney first peed in her potty. It was a couple of weeks ago and she was soooo darned proud. Of course it was sort of a fluke that it happened but we jumped up and down and did the pee pee dance for a good five minutes. My eyes actually teared up. Then we had to call all her grandparents to break the exciting news. After all the hoopla, she turned to me and said "Mommy, I'm so prouded!". Mommy's so prouded of you too baby.
Since then, it's been a bit hit or miss. It's hard to efficiently potty train when you're a working mom. She won't attempt it with the babysitter right now, so I just have to do my best on evenings and weekends until she gets the hang of it. I'll have to take some time off from work soon to really drive the point home, but I'm still so afraid to force it. Last night was a milestone, though, because while she was in the bath, she told me she had to pee. So, I took her out and put her on the potty and she dribbled a little bit. Again, we did the pee pee dance and she ran down the hall naked and wet to tell her daddy. It was downright adorable.
Latest Courtneyisms:
"Hey, what did I just tell you?" She says this when we do something that's against her wishes. She gets that from me because I say that all the time when she disobeys me.
"You did that on purpose". Again, it's the drama queen in her.
"Ladies and Gentleman, Courtney Rose Houtz..." She has to announce herself when she walks into a room.
She loves, loves, loves Hannah Montana on the Disney Channel. Whenever it's on, she says, "mommy, I have to get up and dance!" You go girl. Then, she makes me say "Go, Courtney, Go, Courtney" for like 5 minutes while she does her "routine".
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Tuesday, April 10, 2007
Monday, April 09, 2007
We're back from Vacation!
Last week, we went on our first official family vacation (to a destination other than my in-laws in Palm Springs). We booked our timeshare in S CA, Casey, Court, my parents and I all piled into a rented Grand Caravan and drove to San Diego to enjoy some sun, golf and a 2-day pass to Legoland!
I admit, I was more than a little nervous. The long drive worried me. Spending 24-7 with my parents scared me. It didn't start out too well. Court woke up with a bad stuffy nose (which I'm positive she got from the germy kids next door). She is not a morning person as it is, and when we woke her up at 6AM (to beat the LA traffic in the afternoon), she was not a happy camper. But once we told her we were leaving on vacation, she got all excited and began to cooperate. She had no idea where we were going or why she should be so excited, but since my parents were there and we were all pumped up, she figured it was something she should like! So, we were off! About an hour into the trip, my mom spilled her grande mocha all over the floor of the rental van and Courtney threw up cranberry juice all over the place. This was not a good beginning! But we figured she wasn't actually sick and just choking on phlegm, so we powered on! We only had to stop twice for potty and food breaks. We brought snacks, a portable DVD player and my mom to entertain the little one, so it went surprisingly well.
The resort was beautiful. We just relaxed and reenergized. It was the first time my parents had had a real vacation in years, so it was nice to see them so relaxed. Below is a pic of 3 generations of Alexander women. A whole lot of trouble! I was beginning to feel bad for Casey and my dad!
After a nice dinner, where my carniverous daughter ate half of a steak dipped in mashed potatoes, we went to bed early to prepare ourselves for Legoland the next day!
Court was soooo excited and impatient to go to Legoland, though she had no idea what it was. She kept calling it "Neverland" and I didn't correct her, because I imagined it would be kind of like that for her. As soon as we got there, she ran in and I will never forget the look on her face as long as I live! She wanted to go on a ride immediately, so her and I got in line for a little jungle ride while everyone else went to get something to eat. She wasn't crazy about having to wait in line. She's not the most patient little girl in the world, to say the least. After about 15 minutes, she was done, so I called Casey over to play with legos in the play area while I waited in line. This, apparently, was highly entertaining for her! Check out this look of concentration.
After an hour of waiting in line and glowering at bratty 3 and 4 year olds, I was not in a good mood. I was surrounded by wealthy, stay at home moms, carrying their children's snacks in humongous Louis Vuitton bags, calling their children Spencer, Brandon and Carson. They were getting some dirty looks from me too. Finally, I was at the front of the line and my little booger of a daughter told me she wanted to go on the ride with her daddy and I was promptly kicked to the curb! I had to laugh and since we decided this trip was all about her, I didn't put up a fight. But no more rides! Instead, we spent the rest of the day playing on the structures and playing with legos. That's what she likes to do! At about 3pm, she pooped out and we went back to the resort to take a nap.
The next day didn't go as well. She got a bad rash from the new sunblock I used on her and was cranky after about 2 hours. We didn't do much new stuff with her. She went back to the playground and rode on the train. Casey tried standing in line with her for another ride for awhile, but she gave up on that after 15 minutes again. I spent a half hour climbing on this pirate ship thing with her and almost killed myself on the rope ladder, but it was a lot of fun and it tuckered her out! We were all cranky, hot and tired, so we bribed her with some toys at the gift shop and we left!
The next day was wonderful! Casey and my dad played golf and my mom watched the Little Monster while I went for a quick run around that gorgeous resort. After lunch, we played in the water. I was glad that Court wasn't afraid of the water and was content to wade around the steps. She was being her usual charming, LOUD self, announcing to everyone at the pool that I had water in my boobies! She then called me a drama queen and pranced around the sprinkler area like the little diva in training that she is. She's a constant source of amusement.
We went to the golf range after our afternoon nap and she, of course, had to be a part of everything and carried the bucket. When she thought we weren't looking, she would throw a golf ball out on the range as if she had hit it out there. She's such a cheater, but she had a lot of fun!
None of us wanted to go home the next day. We could have used about 3 extra days. It was good we came home, though, because her cold got worse and then I caught it real bad.
We made some great memories that I will treasure always! If she's happy, the whole world is a better place! It's really that simple!
Last week, we went on our first official family vacation (to a destination other than my in-laws in Palm Springs). We booked our timeshare in S CA, Casey, Court, my parents and I all piled into a rented Grand Caravan and drove to San Diego to enjoy some sun, golf and a 2-day pass to Legoland!
I admit, I was more than a little nervous. The long drive worried me. Spending 24-7 with my parents scared me. It didn't start out too well. Court woke up with a bad stuffy nose (which I'm positive she got from the germy kids next door). She is not a morning person as it is, and when we woke her up at 6AM (to beat the LA traffic in the afternoon), she was not a happy camper. But once we told her we were leaving on vacation, she got all excited and began to cooperate. She had no idea where we were going or why she should be so excited, but since my parents were there and we were all pumped up, she figured it was something she should like! So, we were off! About an hour into the trip, my mom spilled her grande mocha all over the floor of the rental van and Courtney threw up cranberry juice all over the place. This was not a good beginning! But we figured she wasn't actually sick and just choking on phlegm, so we powered on! We only had to stop twice for potty and food breaks. We brought snacks, a portable DVD player and my mom to entertain the little one, so it went surprisingly well.
The resort was beautiful. We just relaxed and reenergized. It was the first time my parents had had a real vacation in years, so it was nice to see them so relaxed. Below is a pic of 3 generations of Alexander women. A whole lot of trouble! I was beginning to feel bad for Casey and my dad!
After a nice dinner, where my carniverous daughter ate half of a steak dipped in mashed potatoes, we went to bed early to prepare ourselves for Legoland the next day!
Court was soooo excited and impatient to go to Legoland, though she had no idea what it was. She kept calling it "Neverland" and I didn't correct her, because I imagined it would be kind of like that for her. As soon as we got there, she ran in and I will never forget the look on her face as long as I live! She wanted to go on a ride immediately, so her and I got in line for a little jungle ride while everyone else went to get something to eat. She wasn't crazy about having to wait in line. She's not the most patient little girl in the world, to say the least. After about 15 minutes, she was done, so I called Casey over to play with legos in the play area while I waited in line. This, apparently, was highly entertaining for her! Check out this look of concentration.
After an hour of waiting in line and glowering at bratty 3 and 4 year olds, I was not in a good mood. I was surrounded by wealthy, stay at home moms, carrying their children's snacks in humongous Louis Vuitton bags, calling their children Spencer, Brandon and Carson. They were getting some dirty looks from me too. Finally, I was at the front of the line and my little booger of a daughter told me she wanted to go on the ride with her daddy and I was promptly kicked to the curb! I had to laugh and since we decided this trip was all about her, I didn't put up a fight. But no more rides! Instead, we spent the rest of the day playing on the structures and playing with legos. That's what she likes to do! At about 3pm, she pooped out and we went back to the resort to take a nap.
The next day didn't go as well. She got a bad rash from the new sunblock I used on her and was cranky after about 2 hours. We didn't do much new stuff with her. She went back to the playground and rode on the train. Casey tried standing in line with her for another ride for awhile, but she gave up on that after 15 minutes again. I spent a half hour climbing on this pirate ship thing with her and almost killed myself on the rope ladder, but it was a lot of fun and it tuckered her out! We were all cranky, hot and tired, so we bribed her with some toys at the gift shop and we left!
The next day was wonderful! Casey and my dad played golf and my mom watched the Little Monster while I went for a quick run around that gorgeous resort. After lunch, we played in the water. I was glad that Court wasn't afraid of the water and was content to wade around the steps. She was being her usual charming, LOUD self, announcing to everyone at the pool that I had water in my boobies! She then called me a drama queen and pranced around the sprinkler area like the little diva in training that she is. She's a constant source of amusement.
We went to the golf range after our afternoon nap and she, of course, had to be a part of everything and carried the bucket. When she thought we weren't looking, she would throw a golf ball out on the range as if she had hit it out there. She's such a cheater, but she had a lot of fun!
None of us wanted to go home the next day. We could have used about 3 extra days. It was good we came home, though, because her cold got worse and then I caught it real bad.
We made some great memories that I will treasure always! If she's happy, the whole world is a better place! It's really that simple!
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