Potty Training Update

Over the last month Jonathon has been giving me problems with certain public restrooms. Here is a list of our issues: Echo ~ not good

Blow dryers ~Life threatning

Automatic Flushers ~ Life threatning

And when I say Life Threatning, I really mean it. He will cringe, his face will get that look"HELP ME MOMMY" and the tears and screams will begin. And he won't go!

I do not want Jonathon to be "afraid" to use the public restrooms, and I especially do not want him to get an infection from holding "all" day when we are not home.

My biggest wake up call was the Detroit Zoo visit. EVERY bathroom we visited was sooo traumatic to him. He knew as soon as I said potty and the tears began. I felt sooo bad. And there was nothing I could do because he had to go. I ended up holding my hands over his ears to help with the terrible echo and loud blow dryers.(I just wanted to cry myself).

Soooo I put on "my mommy to the rescue" thinking cap and this is what I came up with..... By the way ~ IT WORKS!!!!! We tested it out at the mall last week. He did not give me a problem AND he never heard the blow dryers go off while he was peeing!!!!! AND it only cost me $2.50.....

Once again I have a happy Jonathon!

Two year Check up

Jonathon had his 2 yr. check up appt./shots today. Everything went very well. He now weighs 25lbs and is 33 inches tall. He got 2 shots and did great(no crying).

We have to go Monday and get his thyroid checked~nothing to worry about, just checking to make sure all is still o.k.

Appointment is being made to go back and get eyes rechecked also. Nothing to worry about, just a regular check up.

Dr. Pediatrician was very happy!

And Mommy is very happy too!

Update on what's new with us.....

I guess I have lost days again on blogging. I get so busy with all 3 boys that I just don't find the time to even turn on my computer and we have been very busy these last few days.

On Sunday August 23rd we traveled out to the Detroit Zoo. We figured out half way through that next year we will do some things differently. At the beginning of the zoo there is mostly inside animals(reptiles, butterflies, birds)etc.

We love to feed the giraffe(which are at the other end)and feeding time is 1p.m. Last year AND this year we literally had to run to get to the feeding on time.....plus eat OUR lunch. When we noticed that if we take the train when we first arrive and ride to the back of the park we can take our time seeing ALL the big outside animals(tiger,lion,zebra)etc. and be there for the morning feeding of the giraffe AND Jonathon won't be sleeping and miss some of the big animals(yes he took a nap on schedule and missed lots).

It started to mist(rain)around 1:30p.m. and continued off and on for the remainder of our visit. I was pretty bummed out~the animals went in AND it wasn't supposed to rain at all. I am very glad that I took the stroller this year instead of the wagon. Jonathon was able to nap comfortably AND I was able to cover him from the rain.

Kenny got to go in the dinosaur simulator with Randy, Andrew and Gilbert.(Jonathon and I stayed out). Kenny said it was very cool and really enjoyed the ride. I was told that I would never make it......(ok, no dinosaur simulator for me...). Further through the zoo Kenny did some one on one time with Dad(Gilbert). They walked thru Dinotopia(dinosaur exhibit). Was told that it was interesting too. Maybe next year we will take Jonathon through that one.(noise issue this year).

Monday evening Jonathon had an ENT appt.(check up). Alot of wax build up in his ears~we do peroxide drops once per month~no, not anymore, Dr. ENT thinks it is making his ears worse and drying them out really bad~we need to pick up sweet oil, 1-2 drops per ear once per week until our next visit. Tympanogram was taken~Right ear:Type A -Normal(Hooray!!) Left ear: Type B -Flat(Bummer!) Difficulty obtaining a hermetic seal bilaterally (L-R). SOOO Dr. ENT thinks that there could be some fluid. We go back in 6 weeks for a recheck. He is not too concerned just yet. I also asked him about Jonathon's noise issue~it was terrrible at the zoo. He informed me that it's not b/c of him having Down Syndrome, it's not an ear problem, some children just have noise issues.....Ok. Still makes me wonder. Just certain noises really bother him. I helped him out though(different post to come).

And I took my boys out to eat dinner at Olive Garden. Expensive? Yes. Did I NEED to go to Olive Garden? No. Did I WANT to go to Olive Garden? Yes. It was my dinner to my son who will be starting highschool in 2 weeks. It was my I love you for all you do and want you to have a great first year in highschool. It was my I am very proud of you and know you will do just fine. DINNER! (and of course Jonathon loves spaghetti too)

Tuesday - Took the boys school shopping. Left at 9:30a.m. and got back home at 4p.m. Terrible terrible shopping day. Kenny is ridiculous this year(no, don't like that)ALL DAY Long! I bought him one pair of jeans on sale for 16.99 and one tshirt on sale for 7.99. 1 pair of gym shorts for 6.00. Done ~ that's it ALL DAY LONG!!!!! I practically went to every store in the mall. And on this trip Jonathon threw his shoe out of the stroller, I did not notice til it was too late.....We backed tracked,we checked lost and found, we asked passers by......SANDAL is gone!!!!! Good thing summer is almost over. I guess I did get my $15.00 worth out of them.

Wednesday - seen Jc Penny was having a huge sale and it was on the $16.99 jeans I just bought Kenny, plus I had a 15% off discount for filling out survery. Decided I would go back and get" picky" Kenny more jeans that he does like.

First we had to run to Richmond ~ I sold my high chair on Craigslist and needed to meet up with lady who was buying it.(Hooray!!!) Then we ran to Krogers really quick to get a few items. Then I went to Kmart real quick ~ I have officially started Christmas shopping! I cannot believe I just said that, but it's true. I put some stuff in layaway. Then off to the mall AGAIN(crazzzzzy....)Go to JC Penny, get the jeans for Kenny and Andrew also got 2 pair. Soooo for 4 pairs of jeans I paid 64.00. Now these jeans were normally 36.00 per pair so I say thats a deal and my 2 oldest boys are done. I just have to get them gym bags for their clothes. Jonathon has been done since June. He was easy. one garage sale ~27 items for $27.00. All like brand new and name brand too.

OOOOHHHH , by the way, I was sooo stressed about going back to the mall that after JC Penny I walked down to younkers and Sears really quick to see if they had rain coats for Jonathon or winter coats. Of course nothing. So we get ready to leave the mall and Andrew says" WHERE ARE THE JEANS"!!!!!!!?????? OMG! I left them at JC Penny........ Thank Goodness I had my receipt and they remembered me AND I didn't drive all the way home first.

Which brings me to today! Cleaning, laundry washing and drying. Playing with Jonathon, movie watching with Jonathon, catching up on my computer, paperwork and RELAXING!!!!

A Day at the Fair

Hi Mr. Cow!

Ohhhh I like this sheep!

Mama Goat and her babies(born this morning)

Meeting the Goat

Lots of Ducks

Quick hello to a Big Horse

Jonathon DID NOT like the piggies........

Taking a quick break

By Far~Jonathons favorite.....He kept clapping!

As always......My 3 Angels........

Lunch Time

Going fishing for a Duckie.......

Got to meet Bugs Bunny! How Fun!

Jonathons favorite pastime~The Carousel

Tired Little Boy after a Busy Day.....

As always Jonathon

We started potty training back in Feb. 08. Actually I started thinking about it and Jonathon let me know that "Yes" he was ready. So when we first started I actually was not "prepared" (no pull-ups, no big boy undies) but trust me, I hurried out the next day and got pull-ups for him. We call them big boy pants. During the day he wore big boy pants(pull-ups) and nap time and bed time I put him in a diaper.

Potty training started off very well~so well I was shocked. I never had to change another "poopy" diaper since Feb 21st. I just started to take him potty every hour and asked him every time if he had to go poop.Eventually through out the day of going every hour he would need and go "poop"(I never had a problem with him holding it). Another funny thing is that we never rewarded him either. Well not with candy or any type of food. Our reward was/is clapping hands and saying "What a good boy" You are such a big boy". "YEAH"!!! Sometimes we sat in the bathroom for 30 min, sometimes 3 minutes. Jonathon and I learned together.

He never liked the "big potty" (that scared him). So we started out with a potty chair and then I picked up a spongebob toilet seat that goes onto the toilet for when we went visiting. Eventually I took the potty chair away and to this day he uses the spongebob seat. I also picked up a foldable potty seat to take with us when we are out shopping or visiting(in case he ever has to poop). Spongebob stays home now.

I also taught Jonathon how to pee standing up when we were/are out in "public". I just hold him up. Works great. And alot of the times at home now we just go in there, I hold him up to pee. He likes it because it is alot quicker. And now that he is 2, I really want him to start standing to pee all the time. I have just been lazy and have to go back downstairs to get the potty chair back out;the bottom is a stool, which he needs to reach the toilet.(gotta do that). Now Jonathon is very funny(different), he will not "poop" out in public. He just doesn't~at least not yet. He waits until we get home. Ok. That works. I paid "very" close attention to his routine and things have worked out fine.

We also have some big boy undies that we wear every once in awhile around the house. We have made it up to 4 hours with no accidents. And I know that one day he will wear those big boy undies ALL the time and no more pull-ups. But for now mommy will wait.

As the months have gone by he has done excellent. He has never had a major accident;well ok he has had one, recently, but believe me it was NOT his fault at all. And I still feel bad, but I was trying to prove a point to my husband. After an outing a few weeks ago, Jonathon fell asleep on the way home;when we got home, my husband took him out of the van,(usually I do) so I told him that Jonathon needs to go potty. I continued to unload the van and he came back out quickly. I asked him what happen to taking Jonathon potty? He said "oh he is sitting on couch, I am letting him wake up first" Now I KNEW there would be a problem, but I ignored my husband, continued what I was doing and after about 15 minutes I went in the house. "To a whimpering Jonathon" I told Jonathon I was sorry and hurried him into the bathroom to pee. Too late~his pull-up was DRENCHED. AND I WAS MAD!!!!! And I let my husband have it!!!!! Needless to say he doesn't do that anymore. Not to get off subject, but there are times when I have to do little things to prove to people THAT I DO KNOW what I am doing and I am only looking out for my son.(no different than when Andrew and Kenny were little) Yes some things are approached differently, but my values ARE the same. Anyway~back to my story.

So potty training has been going great! He is such a big boy~I just can't believe it, it seems like it was just yesterday when he was born!

I have noticed over the last 2 weeks that he is changing on me again(all about growing up, I guess). His diet has changed a little;he is now eating more non soft foods(which is great in itself) so his potty routine has changed too. But its working. He is actually to the point that when we use the potty I am able to ask him if he has to go "poop" and he will tell me yes or no. AWESOME! We have just lately in the past couple of days started waiting 1 1/2 hours to almost 2 hours before using the potty. Why? Well he is still drinking the same amount of liquids during the day, but when I was taking him every hour he was barely going;telling me he can hold it longer now. So that is where we are at on that. Tonight I waited 50 minutes and still good and dry! And yes he has to GO!

Also for about 2 months now he has been waking up from his nap dry and waking up in the morning dry. And I have not been racing him off to the potty either time (nap or morning). I have let him take his time waking up(about 10 minutes) and then we go right away to the potty and he goes.(And his diaper is always dry). So we just save and reuse for next time. And sometimes he wakes me up in the middle of the night~usually 2:30a.m. to go. And he does go and then he goes right back to sleep.

The last couple of days he has been yelling at me when its naptime or bedtime when I pull out that "DIAPER". I was getting ready to let him wear big boy(pull-ups) at naptime and bedtime. We have 1/2 pack of diapers left and then I wasn't going to buy anymore. I wanted to pick up some nighttime pull-ups. Nope he is not waiting for that. He is ready. So he is telling me. Today for naptime I left him in his pull-up. He napped for 2 hours and woke up dry. Tonight for bedtime he is wearing a pull-up. Let me tell you, he was one happy little boy when he was finished in the bathroom and I told him he could wear his big boy(pull-up)to bed. He thoroughly liked being able to go to the bedroom and get his pajamas on "STANDING" up. I could just see the joy in his little eyes!!!! And that goes to tell you the meaning for my title "As always Jonathon will let me know" when he is ready.

Trust me I know I have a LONG way to go. But so far he is doing excellent. I must take him; he will not tell me. If I ask and sign potty, he will sign potty back to me. If I wait for him to tell me on his own it won't happen. He will have an accident. These are things that we will work on.

I just wanted to share with everyone how "OUR" potty experience is going so far. Thanks for reading. I am one PROUD mommy.

Wordless Wednesday

Helping Mommy

Jonathon helped me pick the vegetables out of the garden yesterday morning. We usually do not allow him anywhere near it, but seems how we are almost finished I figured "What the Heck" He did really well and did not step on any of the plants. He helped put items in the basket AND then took them back out.(too funny)

We shredded 11 qts of zuchinni and placed in freezer for future bread. We also processed 9 qts of freezer green beans. I also made an Almond Pound Cake for Kenny AND did 4 loads of laundry AND manage to make a nice dinner. And then by Jonathon's bedtime I was exhausted. But we had a fun day. Thanks for helping mommy Jonathon.

Aug 16th 1991 ~ Aug 16th 2009

Eighteen years......Wow.... For some odd reason I cannot believe it's been that long already. Doesn't feel like it... I still remember the day we got married like it was yesterday. I love my husband very much even though most days I would like to hit him upside the head with a baseball bat! (Polish Polish Polish)

This is how we spent our day celebrating our anniversary and I wouldn't have wanted it any other way!

We took the boys to the 2009 Annual Down Syndrome Support Group Picnic.

We met alot of wonderful people through out the day. Cathy with her 7yr. old daughter Molly.(Molly was so pretty). Taylanda and her husband(sorry I forgot his name) and their 8yr. old son Shane. He was so funny, really outgoing and great to watch in the pool. Cheri(who threw the party) and her 11 yr. old son Jacob. Jacob was very quiet, but also was great to watch in the pool. Shane and Jacob and Molly really love the water. I got to see my friend Jamie with her 2 1/2 yr. old son Bryson. We met Jamie and Bryson last summer and I love when we get the chance to see them and say hello. And a little girl who is 9. Her name is Gracie and her mom adopted her from Equador.(How awesome is that) I think pretty awesome! I didn't get her moms name though. Hopefully next time.

We were able to sit and talk about our upcoming Buddy Walk in October~which I am very excited about. This will be our first walk. We were able to hear stories about school; the dentist;when parents were first told of their child having DS. All in all it was a perfect day for a picnic, perfect day to meet some new friends and a perfect way to spend our Anniversary! Life is good.

Giveaway

I was on Facebook this morning and seen an ad off to the side about Blogs by Mandy~blogs for a cause and seen the words "Ronald McDonald House. So I went to check it out. Blogs by Mandy looks interesting and I was looking at some of her work and ran across Sweet as Punkin Pie.

Sweet as Punkin Pie is having a great toy giveaway sponsored byAllChildrensFurniture.com, who carries everything from kids furniture to toys. Giveaway ends August 28th! Go check it out. I did and I thought it was pretty darn cool. Maybe I will get lucky and win something for Jonathon. I really like the Little Tikes Handiworker Workhorse Workshop.

Summer Activities

Spent the day at the Marysville Train Park/Water Park with Early On and they provided lunch. We had alot of fun.

I also met a new mom today who has started Northern Western Area Group for families of children with Special Needs. We got invited out to a different local park tomorrow morning in Emmett. I think Jonathon and I will go. It would be nice to meet and become friends with other people that have some things in common with us.

Here are some pictures of our day today.

Wordless Wednesday

Hand Me Downs are Great

What ya got brothers?
OOOOHHH A Tent for ME!
Ok Andrew, Let me get in here
This is fun Kenny!
Huh? What?
Thank you Kenny! What a great Big Brother!

Some people may say that we are pack rats, but we say that we just know how to hang onto special items that one day will come to good use and make someone very happy!!!!!

This tent has been in our family since Kenny was 2 years old! And he just decided that it was time for Jonathon to enjoy and start exploring the world of IMAGINATION.

Beach Day!

Spent Sunday at the beach celebrating August Birthdays with family and friends. Here are some pictures of Jonathon enjoying the day.

Our garage sale days

I packed up all of Jonathon's clothes and toys that he is done with and we decided to have a garage sale. This started yesterday AND needless to say we did not do well at all.

We had one customer all day AND that was my neighbor who bought a huge coffee cup for $1.

This is our weekend for the 4 day Memphis Days. (which is garage/yard sales everywhere) Now last year I was able to be right in the middle of the event uptown at Gilbert's grandmas house. But this year she is recovering from major surgery and just wasn't up to us taking over her front yard.....So I decided to hang signs up around town and down a few roads out here in the country. It's not going very well. We are about 1/4 mile out of town, down a dirt road about 1/2 mile.

Hoping that today will be a better day since it's friday. We are trying to make money to take Jonathon to the zoo before summer is over.