Happy Mother's Day!

I'd like to wish a VERY Happy Mother's Day to all of you wonderful mothers!! I hope today is filled with much pampering and relaxation!

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Earth Day

Happy Earth Day!! I love this planet we live on and I love teaching my daughter about the Earth and why it's our job to take care of it.

There is a team in Germany working for an initiative called "Make it Green!". Their goal is to contribute their part in reducing the carbon footprint by raising awareness of the severe environmental damage caused by carbon emissions.

One of their activities is to raise awareness of the carbon emissions resulting from the use of the internet - specifically of blogs. Did you know that a blog with 15,000 visits a month has a yearly carbon dioxide emissions of 8lb? Who knew?

To demonstrate that I care about the environment (I mean, shouldn't we all?) and the carbon footprint of my blog, I have added a button on my sidebar. Just by my adding the button, they will neutralize my blog's carbon footprint by planting trees in cooperation with the Arbor Day Foundation in Plumas National Forest in Northern California. Thousands of wildfires burned down many national forests over the past ten years and 88.000 acres of Plumas' were destroyed by two fires in 2007. For every participating blog they plant a tree. One blog - one tree.

Why? They are a German-based company called kaufDA, which provides advertisement brochures of local stores online to help consumers search for specific products and find good deals in their neighborhood. This reduces the amount of brochures printed and so the project helps the environment by reducing unnecessary paper in mailboxes.

This is how I have decided to celebrate Earth Day!!

Please take a moment today to marvel at the wonder that is this planet we live on. Sit back and appreciate it, even if it's only for a moment. It's the only planet we have!




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Tax Day is Looming...

The last day to file your taxes is coming this Thursday. Did you know that nearly half of the households in America don't pay Federal Income Tax? "Either their incomes were too low, or they qualified for enough credits, deductions and exemptions to eliminate their liability. That's according to projections by the Tax Policy Center, a Washington research organization."

Make sure that you get all of the credits and deductions you deserve. This year, we made about $5,000 more in income, but we paid the same taxes as last year because we were able to take advantage of some of the credits that were enacted into law via the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 that was signed into law in February of last year. This legislation has lots of tax cuts for individuals including a new payroll tax credit, and an expansion of the child tax credit.

We were able to take advantage of the Home Energy Credit when we added an energy-efficient air conditioning and heating system to our home. Did you look for a job this year? Money you paid to look for work (resume printing, stamps), may be tax deductible.

The most efficient way to get your refund is to file electronically (e-file) and have the finds directly deposited into your bank account. Many individuals opt to do their own taxes. You can do them for FREE at H&R Block. If you find that you need help, a tax professional (accountant) will be able to assist you in determining what you can and cannot deduct.

Either way, make sure you don't miss the deadline and good luck!

More information from the Internal Revenue Service (IRS):
Tax Information for Individuals
Do you need to file?
Recent Tax changes for individuals
E-File for FREE
Miscellaneous Deductions


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Potty Training 101, Results Not Typical

First of all, sorry for the two-day lapse. I have been too busy to post until now. Anyway...back to the story.

I worked from home the Monday after starting "Potty Training Boot Camp" so that Willow had one more day to get it down pat before going back to daycare. She had ZERO accidents on Monday. Now, it's been a 10 days (and counting) since Willow has had any accidents, so I think she is doing just fine with using the potty. To say that the results we have had aren't "typical" is an understatement. Even the Center Director at her Daycare commented that she couldn't believe it. I still have trouble believing it and I am waiting for the relapse. But then Willow's personality is such that once she starts something, she doesn't go back. Especially when it's something she has learned. She LOVES to show us again and again that she is a "big girl" and can do it. "My did it Mommy!!" are some of the best words EVER.

So many parents suffer (right along with their kids) much frustration and setbacks when they decide to potty train. I have found that the following things helped tremendously with making the transition out of diapers smooth:

1. Wait until your child is ready. There are plenty of resources out there for helping you to determine whether or not your child is ready to potty train, least of which is the fact that you know your child better than a book.


2. Find a training method you like and STICK WITH IT. Consistency is the key to success, and believe me I had times when I wondered what the heck I had gotten myself into.


3. Don't give up.


4. Don't give up.


5. Don't give up.

Like any skill, potty training is something that needs to be learned. Your child will have to not only learn to recognize what it feels like when they have to use the potty, but they will have to get in the "habit" of going to the bathroom. Not to mention, they actually have to get undressed (to a certain extent) now. These are all big changes and they take time to set in, especially if you start the process before your child is ready, and will require a lot of repetition.

Quite honestly, I think the most useful book was Stress-Free Potty Training: A Commonsense Guide to Finding the Right Approach for Your Child because it gave me some good insight into my child's personality and what I could expect with respect to her learning to use the potty. When we finally made the decision to go for it, we didn't turn back. Once she was in real underwear, that was IT. We didn't want to create confusion for her by going back to diapers.

Although it seems like Willow learned to use the potty in two days, in reality it was a process that took many months of "seeding" to put in place. We bought her her own potty to play with at least 6 months (or more) ago. She had practiced sitting on it lots of times, wanting to imitate what we were doing. We were never shy of showing her what happened with the potty. One of the biggest things I think created success for us was planting the seed that "poop and pee live in the potty". When we would use the potty we would flush and say "bye bye pee (or poop)" and she would look in the toilet and watch it go down the drain (I know it sounds gross but it worked, especially when she got to do the flushing). There were a few times we had some trouble during formal training when I said "Don't you want the poop and pee to go to their home?" and it did the trick.

If you are about to embark on your own potty training journey, I wish you luck. If you are in the midst of your journey and feeling like it's never going to end, I assure you it will. One day your kid just "gets" it and then it's on to the next "thing" that has to be accomplished. I hope my journey has helped you.


Previously:
Potty Training 101, The Beginning
Potty Training 101, "Boot Camp"


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Potty Training 101, "Boot Camp"

The time had come. Willow seemed ready and eager to use the potty and give up diapers for good. As parents, we were as well. We were prepared for much frustration and many accidents. But we knew it would all be worth it in the end to be diaper-free. It was Saturday morning and time for "Potty Training Boot Camp" to begin.

Let me start off by saying that it was an incredible help to have a friend potty training her daughter at the same time (my stupendous friend Kate). It was great to be able to call or e-mail each other with how we were doing, and to be able to trade tips and suggestions. We also posted quite a bit to FaceBook about the whole experience as it was happening.

We started the morning off in pullups, like she had been wearing since the Tuesday before...

The method we chose was the one that was outlined in both Pottywise for Toddlers: A Developmental Readiness Approach to Potty Training and Toilet Training in Less Than a Day. That method is to use a doll to teach your toddler to stay dry by using the potty. The concept is that he/she can "learn by doing" in this manner.

So, we used the Raggedy Ann doll. I gave the doll a "sip" of Willow's drink (the book suggests you give the doll her own drink) and soon after that I said "Willow, I think that dolly has to use the potty". So, I asked dolly to check if she was dry (of course she was) and we went to the potty. I said "Yay dolly for staying dry!!" I asked her to show the doll how to use the potty. I told her the first step is to pull the pants down. Then we sit on the potty (I made a noise like dolly was peeing). After she was "done" I said "Yay dolly for using the potty to stay dry!!" Then we wiped with toilet paper (or paper towels as Willow like to call it). We then pull up our pants and flush the toilet. Then, lastly, we wash our hands.

I told dolly that she got a special treat for using the potty to stay dry. See, you want to reward your child for staying dry, not for using the potty. The ultimate goal is to stay dry (and clean) and the method by which you accomplish that is to use the potty. So, rewarding the act of staying dry is kind of like rewarding your kid for eating their dinner by using a fork. The ultimate goal is to eat the food. The way they do that is with the fork. Now, since the doll couldn't eat the treat, I asked Willow to. Then for the first part of the morning, we would periodically sit Willow on the potty (about once an hour) after asking if she was dry. If she had an accident, that was okay. She just didn't get a treat for using the potty to stay dry.

It was soon apparent that Willow needed more motivation and Kate already had Abby in real cotton underwear, so I went to Target and bought about 20 pairs. Willow was super excited to put on real underpants. Soon after she had them on, she had her first accident. No big deal. We cleaned it up and sat her on the potty. There is a specific method by which you should treat accidents.

The main thing is to stay calm and not get angry. They are still, after all, learning how to use the potty. But, they have to realize that there are consequences for accidents. So when she had an accident, we told her pee goes on the potty. We made her walk in her wet pants to the bathroom and sit on the potty (she obviously didn't have to pee and that's okay). She then had to carry the soiled pants and underpants up the stairs and put them in the hamper. We then changed her. She ended up having a total of two accidents on both Saturday and Sunday.

We put her in a pullup for naps and for overnight. That will continue until she can demonstrate dryness for at least a week. She can do it, because she has over the past two weeks many times, just not too consistently.

So all in all, "Potty Training Boot Camp" seemed to go quite well. Tune in tomorrow to see how she fared after the weekend. (HINT: I stayed home with her Monday to make sure she had it down)

Previously: Potty Training 101, The Beginning


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