Adventures in Potty Training and another thing

So, we have started the great adventure of potty training with the kids. Garrett refuses to have anything to do with the big potty, but will sit on the little potty -- with his pants up! -- and tell me what he is doing. Check his diapers and, sure enough, he has completed his business. However, ask him if he wants to sit on the potty and I believe the ear-shattering scream of "NOOOOOOOOOOO!!!!!!!" can be heard throughout the neighborhood. Hmm, guess we'll just keep telling him that we are going to the potty if he wants to join us and just wait for him to decide that he wants it. So much for using a checklist to see if it is time to start toilet training.

Elena, on the other hand, is a completely different story. She loves to be told what a big girl she is sitting on the potty. In fact, I even made up a silly little song to sing to her while she sits on the big potty on her Dora seat (now I don't have to hold her up). She gets a sticker to put on posterboard, taped to the wall right in front of the potty, every time she sits on the potty. She has picked out big girl undies, that based on the smile on her face she feels oh-so-proud to wear (behold the power of pretty, pretty princesses). If she actually pees or poos on the potty she gets chocolate. My kids are crazy about "choco" and this is a BIG incentive for them. Yes, I am big enough to admit that I believe in bribing my children in order to teach them a specific behavior and then fazing out that bribe. So far Elena has peed on the potty a few times and pooped once. Mostly we just sit on the potty and sing our silly song every twenty to thirty minutes. Occasionally Garrett gets jealous that his sister is getting all this positive attention and will sit on the big potty for a count of ten, but those times are few and far between.



The other adventure in our house currently is me in the kitchen. I have a confession -- I LOVE TO COOK! Those of you who know me might not believe it, but it is true. For years I didn't cook because I had a kitchen the size of a postage stamp. That, topped with the fact that I was working and never knew when Chris was going to be home from his work, kept me from doing much of anything in the kitchen. Now that we are settled in our new home and I am home all the time, I have gotten back into cooking. I am addicted to Yahoo!Foods website and stalk it for new recipes several times a day -- yeah, like new recipes are magically going to appear. :) I am slowly working my way through the two Rachael Ray cookbooks I have (Express Lane Meals and Just in Time). Yumm-o, as she would say. That topped with my birthday gifts from Chris of a new set of sharp knives and a food processor has contributed to lots of fun hours in the kitchen (only a few minutes at a time, mind you -- my specialty is 15-30 minute meals).

I've added a new section on our sidebar -- "What's Cookin?". Here I'm going to list our menu for the week (doing this has stream-lined grocery shopping, a challenging task anytime with two toddlers so all the help is appreciated). Most likely they are from the Rachael Ray cookbooks, but if they come from the internet I'll note it. If any of you out in blogger land have a recipe you'd like to pass, please let me know. If you want a recipe, post a comment or email me and I will see what I can do. A couple of months ago I tried a recipe exchange and received a whopping 2 recipes. Maybe this will net us more dinner ideas?

Speaking of recipes, I know most of us are getting our menu ready for Christmas dinner. For those of you who are interested in a new version of the traditional green bean casserole, and one that is completely made from fresh products, do I have the recipe for you! I tried this recipe out for Thanksgiving and it was a hit. 90% of the recipe is cooked on the stovetop, so it frees up the oven for your dressing and other goodies. Check it out at: http://allrecipes.com/Recipe/Absolutely-Delicious-Green-Bean-Casserole-from-Scratch/Detail.aspx. Chris is looking forward to my making this casserole again for Christmas and I'm looking forward to making it. My mouth is watering just thinking about it!