A step up to becoming a BIG girl...

Photo From: http://www.babiesadvantage.com

So I've been trying really hard to decide what Riann's first "big girl" step would be (potty training, giving up the paci, or moving into a big girl bed) and well...
in an upset tirant, both on Riann and my part, it was decided that the first thing to go would be her paci. I was little upset at her today because she woke up cranky and threw a couple of fits right when she woke up. By the time she was throwing her last one she had gone back into her bedroom and pulled her paci out of her bed and walked into the hall with it in her mouth while she was crying as loud as she could. When I saw her I gave her 3 warnings, saying "You need to go put that back in your bed", and then on her last warning I counted to 3 because she's normally good at responding at that point, at least by 2 she's moving because she knows that it's not worth the fight. Well with this particular fight she didn't put it back and she didn't move like she was going to put it back, so I decided it was time. Well... fast foward through some MAJOR frustration and her paci is now in pieces in the garbage. I knew I wanted to cut her off soon but I didn't plan on it being today. I just feel really bad because her paci was her favorite thing about bed time. She'd get giddy when it was time to wrap up in her blanket, hold her night-night doll and have her paci.

After we finally calmed down (you'd think she had just found out her favorite pet had just died) we talked it over and she seemed okay. She did alright with her nap but it took about an hour, and a few visits into her room, for her to get down.

A friend said to substitute a glass of warm milk or something like that, something that signals it's bed time and something that's soothing, so we're going to give that a shot for the next couple of nights and see how it goes.

I feel really bad about it because I can look at her and tell she's been crying all day over it. I don't know if that is just because I've been here all day with her as she's moaped about it or if she really is depressed about it but she just hasn't been herself. She's also been good at taking it out when we get her up and leaving it in her bed and so it's never really been that big of a deal to me but she likes to sneak in and go grab it and that's where the frustration was starting to kick in. I think we were in the habit of allowing her to go and grab it once or twice a day not realizing that she had it right away and then getting in tiny arguments as we tried to get her to put it back.

I hope I wasn't too hard on her but I wanted her to see that it was gone and that it wasn't coming back. I wish it had been more of a celebration of her growing up and moving onto the next step but I don't know if that would have worked. I hope that she does well over the next couple of nights and that she understands that it will really be okay.

A little update...

Hey there!! Things have been REALLY busy the last little bit. Paul is back in school and seems to really be enjoying it and Riann and I get to play all day until 7pm when I have to start work. I'm blessed at the moment because work has offered to let me work from home instead of having to quit. It's been hard but it truly has been helpful and we can't complain about the much needed money even if it isn't much. Because I now have more time at home I'm really going to try hard to make sure I update on here at least once a week. Not only is it nice to keep in touch with everyone but I need to make more of an effort to journal what's going on with us for our future. I've been looking into those blog books and keep thinking about how I want to do them SO bad but then think "what good is a book like that if I don't write down anything to put into it!!" Well it's time to start and what better time than at the beginning of the year. I REALLY wish I would have had at least one post last month but it's okay. It'll all workout...

So we haven't been up to much lately. With school starting Paul's been pretty busy getting home work in on time and maintaining good grades. We decided that before we buckled down for the next 2-3 years we needed to take a little mini vacation with some friends. While we wish the trip was to somewhere more exotic and WARM we can't complain about what we were given and we had a blast.

A good friend of ours owns a cabin up in Island Park, about 1.5 hrs north of where we live. In checking on her rates she offered us a REALLY good deal and we snatched it up as quickly as we could. She and her family own a beautiful cabin there that sleeps about 20-30 people comfortably. We went up with a few of our neighbors/good friends and spent a semi-relaxing (see the last picture below) weekend playing games and hanging out.

Here are a few pictures from the adventure...

The cabin from the front. No one really wanted to go into the deep snow so this is the closest we got to the front of the house.

The dad's and their burried children. We'd worry about charges here but the kids seemed to enjoy it more than their fathers did so it was all okay.

Riann and Taylor playing in the snow. Riann couldn't get enough of it and they all sat eating it most of the time we were outside.

Riann showing how much she loves the snow by blowing it a kiss...

Riann was playing on the sled we had out there with us and toppled off. She was kind enough to let me force a picture out of her before I jumped down to comfort her. She's a GREAT sport!!

The three of us before we were about to head inside to get warm.

This is where the semi-relaxing part comes in... We had the 4 toddlers shown below and 2 infants who all had to get along. They did a GREAT job though. I don't think we could ask for a better group of kids!!! From left to right: Taylor (18months), Claire (22 months), Riann (22 months), David (22 months). Not pictured: Nathan (8 months) and Kamdyn (4 months)

All-in-all it was a great time to get away and have fun. We're so grateful to have such wonderful friends and to be so close to all of our neighbors. We're excited for more adventures with all of these guys... I'm just hoping we choose a warmer month so we can get out a little more!!!

Until later... Goodnight!!!