Adventures in Potty Training

I am happy to report that my darling Austin has not worn a diaper in almost two weeks! This is a big accomplishment for him, and it has meant a lot of work for me (and Ryan when he's home). I decided a couple of weeks ago that he totally knows what is going on with using the potty and I was being lazy by waiting to potty train him. The thought of going to public toilets with him climbing all over the place made me shudder, but I knew it was time, and I just put him in "big boy underwear" one day after a playdate with my friend Kristin and her daughter, Hannah. Both kids had successfully taken care of business in the potty that morning, and with encouragement from her, I decided to take the plunge. With a couple of bad days as exceptions, he has done amazingly well. Last week, he even started going in the bathroom without asking me for help and going #2 - all by himself! Woo hoo! You should see him beam with pride when Ryan and I celebrate and do the "potty dance." He'll walk around for 20 minutes saying, "I went poopie in the potty!" It is really funny. Yesterday, we (Austin, Wyatt, and I) flew to St. Louis to visit my in-laws, and that was a rough day for the potty training, but we're back on it today and he's done great. I have to say, I am so impressed by his ability to just keep at it. Way to go, Austin! :) Speaking of St. Louis, we're having a great time here. It is funny, I have not been here before without Ryan. Of course, I am close enough to his family that it is completely comfortable for me to be here, but that was just an interesting realization! He joins us here late Friday night, and we're looking forward to a great long weekend with his family - Kevin came into town, too, so now the only ones who can't make it are Rachael, Brian, and their kids. Stay tuned for some photos, which I'll try to post when we get home. Anyway, it is lovely here, and I so enjoy the change of scenery and all the help with the boys. Austin is over the moon to be around everyone, but especially uncles Kevin and Marty. I enjoyed some time this afternoon with Cathy, going through some of the pictures from her childhood which she recently had put on a DVD. She's had quite an interesting, adventurous life between growing up in the Phillipines as the daughter of missionaries and all of her travels with Gary. I love learning more about her. What a blessing to have such fun and loving family!