It's fun to have fun friends

I love having friends that like to do fun things. We had a "Pomegranate Promenade" in November where everyone brought their favorite pomegranate dish and we voted on our favorite. I didn't have a pomegranate so I just brought pumpkin bread and sprinkled it with someone else's pomegranate and called it "Pompkin" bread. I didn't win.

Then for December Danielle hosted a fun Christmas Masquerade. And I did win best mask of the night. It was just an old mardi gras mask from my mom's costume closet, and I think I only won because I wore it almost the whole night.

It's nice to look forward to getting out of the house some nights- no kids allowed. Yesterday I thought I might die if I heard one more "NO WAY!" or "MINE!" Sometimes it feels like I'm in a constant battle of wills all day. And the best part about it is that as soon as Ty walks in the door Otis says, "Come on in, welcome home Dad, how was work?" Dr. Jekyl and Mr. Hyde.

6 months and potty training update

This was Milly at 5 months, I think I forgot to post this one

At 6 months Milly is as lovely as ever. She seems to be very laid back and mellow- slightly different than her older brother. She chews on anything she can get her hands on and is absolutely repulsed by any type of food or formula. She refuses to take a bottle and spits out food with disgust. Other than that, she goes with the flow and seems to be happy just to go along for the ride in whatever we do. She has good stretches of 10-12 hours of sleep a night but will occasionally wake up to eat a few times some nights, which is always fun.

15lbs- 30th%

26"- 60th%

44cm- 90th%

I think it's safe to say that it's a go with potty training. We're in big boy underwear all day everyday now (or just nothing as this picture shows Otis' favorite lounge wear).

Potty training was my worst nightmare- like the time groceries were loaded and both kids just in car seats when Otis told me he needed to go potty. Of course you do, my sweet child. So I get him out and am helping him pee by the side of the car when he looks up and me with a proud smile and says, "My poo poo is coming out". Bullets. Sweating bullets. But we got through it. Anyone who frowns upon a toddler peeing in a parking lot or anywhere in public has never attempted potty training. I'm still hoping to witness someone else tucked behind the door of their car with their toddler trying desperately not to let the pee run down onto their shoes so I can look at her with a smile and say "I salute you, I've been there and I survived".

"I'm a Winner" half-marathon

When my sisters and I were in middle school my Dad decided that it was important that we have high self esteem. So every morning he would wake us up at 5:30am and we would meet outside of our rooms and he would make us yell together, "I'M A WINNER! I'M A WINNER! I'M A WINNER" I'm serious. We really did this. Of course we hated it at the time. We whined and complained, but eventually grew to love it. And I have great memories of it and really feel like it taught me a life-long lesson.

So a few years ago we started the tradition of running a 1/2 marathon on Thanksgiving morning in honor of the old I'm a winner days. My mom even made us all "I'm a WINNER" sweatshirts one year. Ty even got a sweatshirt because he ran the whole thing with no training that year.
So with Betsy on her mission, Heidi in Virginia and everyone else with knee excuses, it was just me and Dad this year. My 54 year old Dad basically dragged me through the run, but was beautiful and fun and I survived.