Potty Training...

So we have been trying to potty train James on and off for the last year and 2 months. We have tried a number of different approches, and the only reaction we got was screaming and tantrums when ever the word "potty" was mentioned. Well, I have been thinking about this a lot the last couple of weeks, wondering what to try next. James has always required the correct motivation to do things. When he learned to crawl, it was because we made him crawl to get his bottle. To get him to eat his dinner, we offer him desserts. I have tried punishing bad behavior, and it just doen't work nearly as well a rewarding positive behavior...the only catch is that it has to be the right kind of reward, or it works as well as punishing.

So this morning I had a marvelous idea...James has been begging us to get him Thomas the train toys to go with his train set. Well, I asked him if he would learn to go potty on the toilet in order to have the train toys he so desprately wanted. He agreed, and before we could leave to go to the store to buy the rewards, we had to wait for him to go potty on the toilet. Today he has already sat on the potty 3 times and gone in the potty twice!!! Here's hoping that we finally found a good motivator that will last until he can learn to go potty! Pray for me! And it wouldn't hurt to keep your fingers crossed too!

Moving Day!

Moving day has come and gone. This is the last picture we took in our apartment before we cleared out all our stuff and left.



Now that we are all moved in let me show you the wonderful house we now live in. I know I should have picked everything up before taking pictures, but it seems that as soon as I get one room picked up and leave it the kids come in behind me and make the same messes all over again. I have been putting this off for over a week, so I just did it as is. So don't give me too much grief about the messes.

This is the front of our house in the dark...sorry about the sun going down thing.

So this is what you see when you walk in.

If you look to the left you see the stairs...and James on the stairs.

If you go straight you get our front room and office space...and more James, of course!

Next you turn and go through a door between these two room and this is what you will see, our table.

To the left is the family room with the T.V. and to the right is the wonderfully big kitchen, with appliances that don't have weird quirks...Have I mentioned how much I love my new kitchen, and all my cupboards!

On the other side of the blinds behind Sean with the remote is...Our back yard!!! WE LOVE the fenced yard! And James enjoys blowing bubbles outside too!

Then we go up the stairs and get the playroom/loft area.

To the right there's a hall with the laundry room (not pictured) and the kid's bathroom. Can you believe the two sinks? The toilet and bathtub are in their own separate area with a door (but in the picture it's open.

Then there are the three bedrooms. The spare room we haven't done anything to, so it's not really worth putting a picture of. Next is the boy's room, the boarder is little cars and trucks, just right for my little boys and their facination with things that go fast!

And last, but not least, here is the master bedroom and bath.

As you come into the bathroom there are two closets right where I am standing taking the picture. Then the shower is around the corner a head of us, and just like the other bathroom, the toilet has it's own door that is next to the closet on the right side of the bathroom.

I sure do love my new house!! I have been so blessed! During a time when the it seems that every one else is tightening their belts and down sizeing, we feel like things are getting better and better for us. I know the Lord loves us and is blessing us for trying to do what is right and for paying our tithe and fast offerings. Nothing else could explain our good fortune in almost every aspect of our lives! We love being here. Jamse does, however, miss playing regularly with his freinds Waren and Hayes...primary is a harder sell without his friends there. But we will make new friends in Primary, and we'll visit with our old friends as frequently as we can. Other than that, life is pretty much the same, for the moment! I start work next week though...