Life is good. It's just hard work!

Two weeks from today and we will be gathering for Tim & Jen's rehearsal dinner. How the time flies! We are super excited about being with family and celebrating the occasion and I think the next few weeks will be short. But there are some things I wish I had more time for and in some ways I wish the wedding was tomorrow.

We have had some successful potty time these days. Nathan has gotten good at just going to use the bathroom when he needs. He even cleans up his own messes from time to time, which of course sends me over the moon I'm so happy. We have some accidents but for the most part the pee process is working well. I don't miss changing diapers all day! The #2 issue continues to remain just that - an issue. I've scoured the internet looking for helpful ideas that stay within our standards. We are trying not to give rewards for doing something he should do anyway (this is hard but the best way in the long run). And I'm trying not to put too much pressure and emotion into accidents when they do happen(which is even harder). This process is sooooo not fun. But we try to keep track of the positive and praise the good stuff when we can. He actually really likes when we say "Yay Nathan!" and will some times remind me to say it if I don't.

I wish the wedding was tomorrow b/c I know for sure my dress fits right now. The way I'm growing though scares me. I'm on a strict regimen of lots of water and walks when I can and healthy snacks whenever the hunger strikes. No dieting for me of course. But I have to stay away from that Halloween candy! This is a bad time to refrain! Otherwise, baby is doing just fine and is kicking all the time to remind me he is here. It's funny when you already have one running around the house. You truly almost forget there's another bun in the oven when you are too busy to think about it. He reminds me often though with karate chops to the bladder and left hooks to whatever causes heartburn. I think I'm going to be handling another active little boy.

Anyway, it's a good thing we are not facing a wedding tomorrow as we would be shivering in our shoes - NY is expecting snow this weekend!

We will not be expecting any snow for Halloween here(although it went from pleasant 70's to crummy 50's in 24 hours) but it looks like it will be a bit chilly. Nathan will be cozy in his homemade costume though. Ask him and he will proudly tell you he will be a "blue crayon!" It was a fairly simple costume to assemble and one that won't last long I fear. But he's all set up to be a skeleton underneath his cardboard getup so he can still be festive when the has to take it off. I have a super easy plan for myself and Leo doesn't much care either way I think. It's much more fun to focus on the kids this time of year. Yes, that does mean there will not be a mohawk this time! Pictures to come soon.

Other than potty training woes mixed in with fun holiday festivities we are dealing with new bedtime drama nightly. Our Nathan has been such a good sleeper for so long that we aren't sure where to start now that we have something to fix again. I don't know if it's his defiance against potty training, a time to change his sleeping habits overall or his newly realized power over both. But what once was a peaceful separation around 9p has become a daily struggle and yelling match that consists of "I don't wanna go to bed" over and over and alternately "MOMMY!" and "DADDY!" at the top of his lungs, depending on who is up next. He alternates. He's very fair about his annoying behaviors. This even ensued at 5am when he decided he was done sleeping. Yeah right, my rear! We ended up giving in to him joining us in bed (sneaky brat) but we slept past 9a which rarely happens around here. ~Sigh~ The power struggle gets worse the older and smarter he gets. It's no joke when people say 3 is worse than 2. You don't hear it much though b/c the parents that have gone through it just want to forget it ever happened. I can't wait to be past it myself and pretend my child was always an angel.

Well, it's about that time of day so dinnertime here I come. (Another not so fun struggle if you ask me. Between multiple meals to make everyone happy, Nathan not sitting still long enough to consume enough calories to make me happy and the fact that I have to cook every stinkin' day of my life other than pizza take out, it's TIRING!) Despite all the not so fun aspects though - I can't complain. Life is good. It's just hard work!