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In case you needed one more reason to visit my blog today, I had to post these adorable little videos as soon as I got them uploaded!  In the curriculum we’re using, it suggests making a first day of school interview with your child, and then following it up on the last day of school to see what answers have changed.  I thought that was the cutest idea, so me and Zion did it first thing Wednesday morning!  We were talking about it later that day at lunchtime, and Phoenix said he wanted to make a video too, so I included his “interview” as well! :-)

{Excuse my weirdly worded question in the middle of this interview…it was early, is the only excuse I have ha!}

Love how Phoenix says “I spaceship!” at the end of his video…would just love to know what’s going on in that little 2 year old mind when he says random stuff like that!

Paul started his new job yesterday, yay!  However, with his return to full-time work, it kind of feels like the summer days are over.  We’ll be enjoying the hot weather for a few more months down here in NC, but the carefree days of summer 2012 will live on only in memory as our little family gets into the full swing of a new way of living! 

I wanted to share a whole bunch of pictures from this summer, a “highlight reel”, if you will, of some of my favorite moments both big and small.  It’ll be photo-heavy, but I wanted to document some of these special times we had anyway!  

{Zion before his first T-ball game!}

{Bored in the outfield…}

{My precious boy resting on Daddy on a hot afternoon}

{Working on his writing skills by showering me with x’s and o’s!}

{Celebrating 5 years of marriage in June}

{Lazy days in the sun}

{And here he is at the plate for his final t-ball game…}

{Love that sweet face…he’s growing up so much}

{So proud of his first trophy!}

{These two practiced endless hours together…Zion really improved so much}

{We brake for bunnies!  Saw these on the side of the highway & had to stop}

{Zion is completely enthralled with bunnies still. This was a slice of heaven for him}

{Phoenix, mesmerized by the parade on July 4th}

{Me & my first boy}

{The boys’ first pony ride.  Phoenix was LOVING it!}

{Watching the fireworks…}

{Beautiful full moon behind the fireworks…perfect way to end the 4th of July}

Two words: Painfully. Cute.

Just enjoying a hot summer day with my boys in our sandbox turned baby pool! 

                                 {Mr. Pheeny on the 4th of July}

Short story for your Sunday night:

Just when I thought this kid couldn’t get any funnier, he’s decided to take up beatboxing.  I think this might have stemmed from an episode of “The Electric Company” on PBS Kids (the only television shows they watch).  He started his repertoire with two words beatboxed over and over “Boots. Cuts. Boots. Cuts, etc., etc., etc”

But this evening…he decided to put a different spin on things.  Probably about the time he was filling his diaper for the second time today he started beatboxing “Poops out poops out poops out poops out…” ad nauseum.  Must get video of this ASAP, because you really must see this to believe it.  This may or may not be a good argument for not allowing two year old’s to watch TV.  Ever.

{I added a few pictures to this post that my sister, Susanna, took at Phoenix’s birthday party last month.  I can’t believe this kid is 2 already!}

I have never been one to feel the need to push my kids into potty training.  I know some people choose to do elimination communication or some other method of training really young, but I preferred a “wait and see when they show their own interest” approach.   I worried about it, of course, when it was time for Zion to be moving in that direction, but I had read enough to know it would do me no good to turn it into a stressful event (especially before he was ready).  So, armed with the little bit of knowledge I had gleaned from books and around the internet, when Zion was getting close to 3 years old, we took about a week to just do it.  He had practiced on the potty a few times and seemed interested.  He was especially enamored with his new “big boy undies”.  So I stuck him in underwear and set the timer for every 20 minutes.  When it beeped I took him into the bathroom for him to give the potty a try.  If he did “#1” I gave him one M&M as a reward, for “#2” he got 2 M&Ms.  A week and a few accidents later, he was potty trained!  It was one of those transitions that ended up being way easier than I thought it would be (though at the time I’m sure I did my fair share of grumbling..don’t we all?)

Now, here we are with another 2 year old.  Up until the last week or so, Phoenix really hasn’t shown much interest in the potty.  Then out of the blue one day, he got up from nap and said “I go pee pee in potty?”  and kind of gave a little laugh.  One thing I have to remember about this kid is he’s our jokester!  Part of me felt like he was just being funny, and trying to imitate his big brother who always goes to the bathroom as soon as he gets up in the morning.  But I figured, what the heck, I’d give it a try!  Of course, nothing happened, but now everyday he wants to do this. 

So my question is…do I try and capitalize on this interest now, and do the same method I did with Zion?  Or should I wait till he’s a few months older?  He’s only 25 months now.  And of course there’s the issue of the baby being born when he’s around 2.5.  If I potty-train him now, will he just regress once the baby is here?  Zion didn’t regress when Phoenix was born, but I firmly believe it’s because he was old enough (just at 3 years old) and completely ready for the change. 

I know every child is different, but I guess I’m just worried about pushing Phoenix to potty-train too young, and then having a lot of issues to deal with over the next few months. 

Anyone else potty train a little boy just over 2 years old?