Dante missed something...

Unless I skipped over a section of the Inferno, I truly think Dante neglected a key element in detailing the various circles of hell. If you really want to stick it to somebody for all eternity, forget about the wailing and gnashing of teeth...force them to attempt to potty train a "spirited" 3 yr. old 'til the end of time!

As you may note, my sarcastic sense of humor is just now beginning to return, as hopefully (pray, knock on wood, do that catholic cross-y thing) the worst of it is behind us. After pulling out all the stops...every trick in the book (and there were several) consulting with the pediatrician 3 times, bribing, cajoling, guilting, etc...etc...we finally took drastic measures...threw out the pull-ups, locked ourselves in the house and tried the "Jen Denton Hell or Highwater Method" (tm) :)

She's doing great and hasn't had an accident in 4 days! Of course we haven't taken this show on the road very much yet, so I may be counting my chickens about now. But she will proudly tell you, "I pee-peed at Target!" :) So...we shall see. Regardless, she earned enough stickers on her potty chart for her "red fishy from smartpets." She named the fish, Ariel.

Here's a pic of Gracen and her new friend.

Thankfully, Pavin is just about the easiest going kid around...otherwise he'd go nutty putting up with his two favorite women all day long, especially after being under lockdown with us for 5 days. Speaking of, he's got a new trick...


You know those pendulum clock things at museums that have a big ball that swings and knocks down the dominos to tell time? Pavin has his own (much cuter) version. He lays under his Baby Einstien gym and slowly works his way around in a circle, little by little. If I could figure out his average speed and consistency, I'm sure I could use it for time keeping purposes. "What time is it, Jen?" "Oh, just a bit past the red cardinal."

While he continues to hone his skills as a human watch, his sister has become an artistic genius. When Gracen first drew the following pictures on her easel, I thought it was a fluke. So I asked her to erase and recreate them. She did exactly the same thing. This was what she drew.

Mommy: "Yous a lady. Yous have long hair"

Daddy: "Hims gots curly hair on hims head. And hims got scratchy hair all over hims face."