Surviving Potty Training

YEAH FOR UNDERWEAR

     So I started a post called week one of potty training but I didn't get it ever posted or finished. I will tell you why. Potty training is exhausting. I have been collapsing every night. Ray and I watched Iron man 2 the other night so that I could watch the Avengers (I know it came out a million years ago but still). I made it all the way to the final battle and then fell asleep. Of course Ray harassed me about falling asleep at the most exciting part possible. I just told him it must have taken too long to get to that point and it just wasn’t that exciting if I fell asleep during it. (No offense Jon Favreau your movie was good it just can't compete with the exhaustion felt by a stay at home mom who is potty training three little boys all at the same time) With that being said here are our experiences.     


   I have read lots of ideas on potty training. I tried last year doing the 3 day method with James and it was an epic fail. James was not interested and we were also at the begging of our months of constipation issues with him. So here we are a year later. The main thing that most theories say is take some time and dedicate it to the child who is potty training, in the hopes that you always catch them and get them to the toilet quickly. Also, it is good if you just don't go anywhere for about several days until they really get the hang of it. Well it will never happen where I have three days in a row to purely dedicate to one child. I have four, three need to be potty trained and it’s just not going to happen. Also we have a lot of activities that we had scheduled but I was determined to start, otherwise it was going to keep getting pushed back further and further.     


    So Monday June 18th we started. In the morning I had them help me make sticker charts for the potty and I had them help me unwrap the packages of underwear. They were super excited about the characters on their pants. I don't quite understand because a lot of the characters they have never seen like aquaman. Around ten we were all set to start. All the boys had to go sit on the potty and try. SUCCESS, everyone went. Each boy got one sticker for their page, which made them so excited. Then they got their new underwear on and ran around like crazy. The rest of the day was a disaster of pee and poop everywhere.  Each time they went they got a sticker or two if they had stayed dry    

Joe showing off his stickers

Lilly has her chair outside the bathroom so I can keep and eye on her. 

 Tuesday morning we were going to my dad’s work for his last day of school. I told the boys when we left the house they are going to wear pull ups so that we don't have accidents but that they still need to tell me when they needed to go to the bathroom. They didn't. They just went in their pull ups. I didn't fight them on it I just changed their pants when we got home. Then we had a twin play date. Four of my mom friends who all have twins came over. I didn't want the boys peeing all over the place while their friends were playing. So Tuesday  they stayed in their pull ups. It wasn't my best effort at training, but it was so much less of a hassle to have them not peeing all over the floor

Even Darth vader needs to learn to use the potty

 Wednesday my dad wanted to take the boys for Sheldon’s (from the Big Bang Theory) train day. So into the pull ups they went and off to Travel Town. The boys did pretty good. They went several times in the public restroom but they also had accidents in their pull ups. We stopped for lunch at Carney's (restaurant in a train car) for hotdogs. They all wet their pull ups at that point. I was determined to go home and really get going again. James had other ideas.   
    
    We had several massive stand offs where he tested my will and was searching for lines that he could cross just to watch my head explode. I often felt like I was in a western during a duel at high noon. I at one end of the hall him at the other, staring at each other to see who would crack first. Many resulted in screaming fits and pee everywhere. One for example started with me telling each boy to go to the bathroom. After the twins ran in and used the toilet successfully I looked and James and told him to go. He screamed no, stomped his feet then threw himself on the floor. I told him that was unacceptable and he was going to have to go on time out then use the bathroom. He looked at me screamed at the top of his lungs and peed on the floor. I took him in the bathroom changed his underwear then put him on time out in his room. He then walked over and jumped on his bed. I told him to get off his bed and if he peed on his bed I would be mad, not that I wasn't already. He scowled at me and stood there and peed again. Seriously kid? For someone who said they didn't have to go to the bathroom he had an awful lot of pee in his bladder. I closed the door and did a little silent clenched fist scream. Then I walked in took his underwear and sheets and left him standing in the room naked screaming bloody murder. I'm sure if he had more pee in him he would have marked the entire room. We had several more like this throughout the afternoon until Ray got home. I learned from my mistakes and made him stay in the bathroom so even if he peed all over everything it would be easier to clean.    


    Wednesday night I thought I was never going to survive potty training. It was crazy. James was so stubborn. How was I ever going to get him to do it. I had horrific images of a 15 year old boy going off to high school still wearing diapers. Extreme I know but I had completely lost my mind. Luckily Thursday was a new day and I had my nice little boy back instead of the crazy nasty little man that I had the day before.

Lilly felt left out so we let her go around in her diaper.

  Over the next two days we had some great success.  The amount of times they made it increased and the accidents decreased.  We even had our first number 2's in the toilet.  In our house the incentive is a hot wheel car.  I know that this means I will have a lot of hot wheels by the time this is over but if they train then so be it.  Once one of them got a car then the race was on for who could get the next one.    We have spent a lot of days hanging out at home with the boys in the underwear.  Most of the boys conversations revolve around pee and poop and other such lovely topics.
    On Sunday we were brave enough to take on Disneyland. This is not for the faint of heart with potty training kids but we did it anyway. With the protection of pull ups we forged our way through the Disney crowds to take our first look at Cars Lands. I have to say the boys did great. James didn't wet his pull up once. Joe had one accident in line for the storybook ride. It made him so sad he almost had a meltdown but we talked him off the ledge. Nick had several wet pull ups but I wasn't too worried Disneyland is a hard place to remember about using the potty.

Disneyland while potty training, what an event

    We are now almost done with week two of potty training. The boys got a little tired of their stickers so we have moved on to M&Ms. One for going potty in the toilet and two if they stayed dry. I think I will make a return of the sticker charts soon and maybe have them earn extra prizes so they aren't getting too much candy. The hot wheels prizes are still good. The boys have deemed them poo poo cars and run around the house saying "I've got a poo poo car".     


    Our next hurdle is a trip to San Diego. We are visiting Rays parents for almost a week. I really hope the boys don't do anything horrible on my in laws carpets but we will see. The important thing is we are making progress and the horrible images of my sons being in high school and not potty trained have vanished from my brain.  We will do it, and I will survive!

Father's day

    Sometimes I have a hard time planning parties and celebrations for grown ups.  I am pretty good at doing fun themed parties for our kids but grown up days I am just plain bad at.  I wanted to do something special for both my dad and Ray this year but everyone just seemed to want to relax.  I am perfectly fine with that.  It is rare that we have a day where we just relax and play at home on the weekends.
    Since we weren't going to go any where I decided to make some nice meals for everyone.  I know how to cook pretty well so that's always an easy fall back.  I decided to make a big breakfast and dinner.   For breakfast we had biscuits and gravy, eggs and bacon.  Plus my mom cut up a bunch or fruit.  I had never made it before but sausage gravy wasn't all that hard, it turned out pretty good.  For dinner we had steaks, kale, and homemade Mac and Cheese.  That all turned out pretty good so the meal planning for the day was a success.  I felt full all day!

Breakfast time!

   After breakfast we let Ray and my dad open their presents.  The boys got my dad the book "I love my pirate papa."  I thought they would enjoy reading it together.  I also got him a new Disney Hawaiian shirt.  I got Ray the igrill which he had said that he wanted.  I also made him a photo book on shutterfly.  Each page gave a different reason why the kids loved their dad plus a bunch of pictures.  It didn't come yet so it was a bit of a let down but the boys also got their dad "Darth vader and Son"  Hopefully it comes soon so Ray can read it with the boys.

This was the front of Ray's picture book.

    We spent the day playing and swimming in my parents back yard.  I know its not the most relaxing day for a dad but I hope everyone had fun.  We also got to watch Polina fisnish up the mural in my dads backyard.  That was kinda of a present to my dad.  He wanted a big picture on his wall in his back yard to make it fun for the kids.

Just a small portion of the wall that Polina painted for my dad.

It's really hard to get everyone in one picture. But here they are!

    Really the main goal of the day is to make the dads in my life feel special.  I love my dad and I knew he was so excited about the mural.  I really wanted to make the day nice for Ray.  He is the greatest father there is.  I could not have picked a better man to be the head of our family.  I know we have difficult days because lets face it, four kids under four is outrageously crazy.  He does so well with them I can't even tell him how much The kids and I appreciate him.

The boys are getting creative with their mischief.

     So as the title of my blog states I am raising three boys and their sister.  Well the boy part of that equation has been giving me a run for my money  Each day last my husband came home and asked what he needs to get from Lowe's and what they broke.
    The first day was the door handle to our sliding glass door.  They have been hanging on it and it was breaking for awhile.  Well one good slam open and the handle finally broke.  The next day Ray came home to me asking him to go get a key lock for my laundry room.
    Here is why.  I was cleaning up lunch, which is simply bringing three plates and cups to the kitchen and wiping the table.  We are talking less than five minutes.  Nick comes running in screaming that James sprayed soap in his eyes.  I panicked for a second, and wanted to make sure I washed out his eye. When that was taken care of I had to figure out where in the world James was and what soap he was squirting.  So Nick said he was in the laundry room and I ran in there.  I was astonished at the mess I found.
    James was sitting on top of the dryer.  He had opened our washing machine and thrown a ton of stuff in there; a garbage bag, a life vest, a ton of clothes, some toys and some swim diapers.  He was holding my squirt bottle of shout stain remover.  He had sprayed it all over the walls, the washer and dryer, the floors, himself, and his brothers.  What a mess!  Whats worse is a few hours later when I ran to the bathroom he was up there doing it again.  Luckily Ray fixed it that night. and now there is a keyed lock on that door.
    The next day I had to run out into the office for a few minutes.  (I was trying to order Rays fathers day present)  All the kids were playing cars nicely in the playroom so I sneaked away.  All of a sudden I realized that it was very quiet.  Very quiet is ALWAYS a problem.  I ran into the house to find they had gone through my room and into our bathroom.  They had pumped soap all over the floor, turned on the sink and blocked it with a wash rag. Yes that means there were bubbles and soapy water all over the floor. 
   I decided since the floor was flooded and covered in bubbles I was not going to freak out because we would most likely all slip and fall into a huge mess so I calmly walked them out of the bathroom.  I went to make sure Lilly was OK in her sit and spin and then went off to clean up the mess.  I know the simple solution would be to keep all the doors locked but we are also trying to get the boys potty trained and that is the bathroom they usually use.  I guess Its time to get a bit creative.  Potty training three little boys is an adventure all in itself.
   There are some basics needs I have to satisfy during the day that usually invovle the boys being on their own for anywhere from 30 seconds to 10 miniutes.  On the 30 second side, I have to go to the bathroom.  I know any mom of multiples out there knows its a big no no but still I ahve found no way around this.  It take me abotu a minute to grab snacks or drinks for them througgout the day.  It takes about 5 to 10 minutes to make a meal and have it served.  These things I have found are also a must.  Apparently this parenting thing invovles feeding your children even though they like to play captain desctructo in the house the second you turn your back.    We will have to see how this week goes and what I will have to fix or replace.  Ray is out of town this week... by the time he comes home the kids might have me hog tied and hidden somewhere.  
 

Road Trip to Utah

     Ray and I had been trying to plan a trip back out to Utah for awhile.  We hadn't been in almost two years.  We had decided to drive out during memorial day weekend.  We originally intended to take the trip in order to see Rays grandfather.  His health had been failing so we packed up the kids and headed out.  Unfortunately we did not make it out in time.  When we stopped at State line Ray was looking on his phone and read his cousins post on Facebook.  Rays grandfather had passed away that morning.  The trip would now be for his funeral.  I felt terrible for Ray.  Luckily he had flown out a few weeks earlier to see his grandpa.
     Although our moods were a bit down we plugged along to get to Vegas.  We got a nice upgrade to our room so we had a great big suite with a great view.  I have to say that Vegas is the place to go to get giant rooms for a good price.  We were hoping to tire the boys out so we took them down to the pool.  I am pretty used to being a spectacle wherever we go, I am well aware that four kids under the age of four is a lot, but in Vegas we are a freak show.  People would stare and point and talk about our kids.   I know Vegas is not the place for toddlers but we seemed to keep them busy enough.  After the pool we took them on the tram from Mandalay bay to Excalibur in search of Knights.  Luckily we found a statue and we got the boys a shield and sword set which made them very excited.  With our busy day we certainly tired the boys out.  They went to bed fairly easy in their little travel sleeping bags.

We had a great view of the strip

I guess people aren't used to seeing this in Vegas

  The next day was a long haul into Park City Utah.  Ray found a fun park in Cedar City where we could let the kids play.  The bad part was how windy it was.   The wind gusts were so strong it actually knocked the boys back a bit as they ran around.    We had planned on letting the boys eat their subway sandwiches at the park but their lunches would have blown away so they had to learn the art of eating in the car.  We made it to Park City at dinner time.  Ray and I were both exhausted but the kids had been sleeping for awhile so they were hyper.  They were excited to see their Grammy and Grandpa but James was a little confused about seeing them not in San Diego.

Walking on the trails behind the condo

   The next day we had a busy day.  First we headed out to the outlet malls.  We needed to find appropriate clothes for a funeral so it wasn't exactly a fun shopping trip.  Ray was to be a pallbearer so we needed to get him dress clothes.  Luckily he found what he needed.  We then drove out to Fruitland to visit Aunt Bobbi's earth ship.  It's a very interesting house where the walls are made of old tires and beer cans.  The boys had a great time looking at and feeding sugar, her horse.  Even now they still are telling me that Aunt Bobbi has a horse and  her horse likes them.  In the Evening Rays cousin Jena came with her family to visit.  It is always great to spend time with Rays family.  We don't get to see them very often as it is difficult to haul all of these kids to Utah but we would like to be able to do it more

Aunt Bobbi and Sugar

Aunt Bobbi's Earth Ship

Jena and Romy meet Lilly

      Next we spent the day in Roy at Aunt Cathi's house.  The boys had a great time running up and down the stairs and playing on the trampoline.  Lilly of course was making her debut to the family.  She did very good but it seemed like she wanted to eat a lot that day.  I'm sure she is going through a growth spurt but it meant that I was nursing her all the time.  The family had to spend some time making funeral arrangements which is never easy to do.  Having lost all of my grandparents I know first hand it is not an easy process.  I felt bad that I couldn't help more but there wasn't much for me to do besides support Ray and make sure the kids were taken care of.

The boys and Thomas

    We found out that the town next to Park city was hosting a Thomas the train day so the next morning we drove out there.  The kids love trains so a day with Thomas was fantastic.  The kids started screaming as we drove past and saw Thomas hitched up to train cars.  We got to go on a 25 minutes train ride with Thomas leading the way.  The boys just sat and looked out the window the whole time.  It was a nice activity to keep our minds off of the next day.  We meet Rays family for a dinner at the Old Spaghetti factory.  I didn't really get to talk much with everyone because Joe was being super clingy plus I was feeding Lilly so I was a little busy but it was still nice.
    Finally Tuesday had arrived, we had to attend the funeral for Rays grandfather.  The boys did OK although I had to take them out during the service.  They still have trouble with the "be quiet" concept.  Ray said that the service was really nice.  He enjoyed listening to his Grandpa's stories again.  I wish I could have sat there with him to help him through the service but our little ones had a different plan.  So we sat out in front of the mortuary playing with their trucks and having snacks.  We were trying our best to be respectful but it is difficult for the boys to understand.  I did take them to the burial site where there was a dedication and the Military honors.  There was a nice reception at a church nearby that allowed everyone to visit with each other for awhile longer.  The boys of course ran around and played, like they usually do.   The day seemed like a very nice dedication.  I know that Ray's family is hurting right now and they are always in my prayers.

In front of Treasure Island

    We were planning on leaving early the next morning so we headed home after the lunch so we could get laundry and packing done.  It took a lot to get everything organized and ready to go again but we managed.  I tried to pack everything we needed to Vegas into one bag but its tricky, especially since the boys need their swim vests for the pool.  I did get it into one suitcase and a small bag.
    We left at six in the morning to that we could make it to Vegas early.  This time we were staying at Treasure Island.  The kids were so excited to be staying at the pirate hotel.  We had plenty of time to look around so we took them to the shark reef aquarium and the M&M factory.  The kids had a blast filling up their bags with all kinds of colors of M&Ms.  
    We also went to see the pirate show in front of Treasure island that night.  I figured since it was a Vegas thing the pirate woman would be in provocative pirate outfits.  I was not ready for them to come out in their underwear and bras.  I felt so silly standing their with my four children watching woman in their lingerie dancing around suggestively.  Oh well...they still had a great time watching the cannons and the ship sinking. They thought it was awesome and didn't even notice that the ladies were in their underwear.

The Secret Garden at the Mirage

  We spent a whole day in Vegas to give our family a nice happy vacation day.  We relaxed at the pool and let the boys get a fancy drink.  We also took the boys to see the dolphins and tigers and the mirage.  After that we thought that we would walk to the Bellagio to see the water show.  It didn't work out like we had planned.  As we started to walk down the strip we realized that the boys were falling asleep. Since we just had our sit and stands Nick and Joe were falling out of the back of their strollers as they nodded off.  We decided to take a little break in Caesars palace and let the boys nap.  People were staring at us with four kids all completely knocked out. At least Ray and I had a nice 30 minute break to sit and have an ice tea.  We finally made it to the Bellagio but the water show had just ended.  We decided to have some ice cream and wait for the next one.  Little did we know they were having some technical difficulties.  So after our adventure getting there and 30 minutes waiting there wasn' much of a show to see, so we headed back.  We tried to stay inside as much as  we could going from casino to casino to keep the kids cool.  The boys had fun stopping at every fountain and looking in the water.  At the last fountain in Caesar's palace Ray taught them how to make a wish

sitting on the ground waiting for the water show to start

Making a wish at Caesar's Palace

  We stayed the night and got ready to leave in the morning.  Joe insisted on carrying our huge suitcase all the way through the casino and all the way to the car.  It was pretty slow going but we made it.  We didn't hit much traffic until we got to LA so it wasn't too bad of a drive.  It was great to be home.  It was a difficult trip where we had to say goodbye to a wonderful and caring man but we also tried to fill it with fun times for the kids.  We are hoping to make it back out to visit sooner than two years.  The boys really want to play in the snow so maybe we will head back out in the winter.