Children's Museum Daytrip

Summer's in the air, and so is walking! Clara took her first steps today!!! Gosh, are we really to that point already?! I swear I had her like yesterday! She really impressed us by taking 4-5 steps today. Her only hinderance in taking more was that she would giggle so hard that it would make her fall over. lol. Awww...that just makes my baby seem all grown up. Sniff. Sniff.

Today was a fun day. Took the girls to the Children's Museum for several hours. I'm so glad we broke down and got that pass! To be able to go there just whenever, especially and the not so nice days...and maybe when it gets too hot this summer, we'll have somewhere fun to go. Clara will have a blast when she's really walking. Kali LOVES the Grocery Store and the carts/cashering. Its so funny to see all these little people running around frantically, like its Supermarket Sweep. And when all the little people go to "pay" for their food, the food at the end of the conveyor belt is a mile high!!!! Someone forgot to tell the new guy to restock the store! ;) My favorite thing is the water discovery area. But that's just me. ;) Kali is too clean to stay there long, but I know that's where I'll have a hard time getting Clara out of when she gets older. lol. Clara enjoyed checking herself out in front of the mirror in the baby area. Fun times and great memories to be made there!

Between plastic filled easter eggs and frilly dresses, our Wilcox Easter was spent with family and a delicious salmon dinner with New Morning Bakery rolls (my fav, yum!) courtesy of nana and papa (the nana and papa with the kitty, as Kali would put it). Though the weather didn't really allow a traditional easter egg hunt outdoors, we improvised accordingly by hosting it inside. Kali got a kick out of it. Ahh..to be a kid again. :)



Kali's sunday school class sang a special song for the congregation in the morning. It was cute to see all the 2-5 yr olds in their special Easter clothes and of course the class clowns of the bunch "perform". ;) Clara proceeded to entertain the back pew with her version of "singing", so even if they couldn't see the sunday school class sing, they got a Tony award winning performance by miss Clarebears. We're all about free entertainment, here. ;) It was great to see Kali being exposed to the true meaning of Easter that day and being part of it through her Sunday school class.

Potty-Chair Diaries

So, for all you mommies out there that have yet to experience the wonderful journey of potty training or are about to embark on that journey shortly, I have words of wisdom, encouragement, and humor.

Kali was an easy potty trainer. Being a girl helped, but just being so eager to please her parents, also helped. Praise before and afterwards was all she needed. No candy, cookies, treats. Easy as easy goes. In four days, she was potty trained for the most part. We got off easy!!! Woohoo!!!

Fast forward 9 months. Not so easy. Between 'just potty trained' and '9 months later', Kali had some constipation here and there. It was sporadic enough to dub as not enough 'good foods/fiberous foods' in the diet, which definitely could have been the case since Kali is the pickiest eater known to mankind. Between October and December, Kali had a broken leg and we had an aweful start to our winter that her activities also decreased alot. That catapulted her constipation issues beyond the norm. Felt like we had gone back to the beginner days of potty training! Since the beginning of potty training, she would usually cry and protest and make going poo-poo a near death experience. I mean, who likes going 'poo-poo'?! It takes time out of our already hectic day, makes us HAVE to slow down when there are people to see, places to go, and is a downright pain in the butt (no pun intended). Can't it just disappear somewhere without coming out?! Well, I'm sure Kali must of thought of that. In the mind of a 2 yr old, right? So...the crying, protesting, etc. was nothing new to us...eventually after sitting for at least 5 minutes (our minimum when we knew she had to go-she was a fighter) she would present us with what we knew would conspire with a little coaching and cheerleading on our part. I'm sure our upstairs neighbors thought Steve and I had some real issues after WE went potty with the little poopy song and dance number we did after Kali's successful attempts! But nevertheless, she was excited after the deed was done through alligator tears and told herself "good jobbie" and would proceed wave to whatever contents that were being whisked away down to "poopy-doom".

Soon our concerns mounted to new highs when she hadn't gone in 4 days right after New Years Eve. Her appetite was going down and she always complained of an "owie tummy". She was seen by peditrician and our prognosis was that she needed an enema. I kinda panicked in a panicky way like I was the one getting it. Then a sickening feeling came over me. I felt horrible for Kali...but it needed to be done. The procedure went underway and...before I go on, I have to say, thank God I'm not a nurse...they have to do all the dirty work (no pun intended)...come 20 minutes later Kali underwent the potty of all mother of potty experiences. I felt like I was coaching my 3 yr old how to birth her poop. All my dancing and singing was anything but entertaining to the nurses out in hall. I pray on bended knee that I never have to go through that experience myself. After 3 hrs in the doc office, we were given the okay to go home and let Kali rest...with an apple juice box and sticker in hand as we left. Kali even waved to the doctor while feeling a bit on the "lighter" side. I think I was more tramuatized than Kali after that visit. As we were walking out of the office, I mentally vowed to myself that I would only eat lettuce, prunes and apples from there on out.

So if this story helps you in anyway, or makes your own situation seem like breeze...I'm delighted. She's been the child that you wonder if you shouldn't just open a tab at the emergency room or keep you peditrician's number on speed-dial #1. She's definitely given us a lot of memories to look back on and I'm sure more to come. But if anything, remember potty training is something that takes time, patience and a sense of humor...cuz potty training is boot camp for both of you.

Wilcox Clan Update

Wow...we are very much overdue for a current post, huh?! Its been about a year, and a busy one at that! Let's see...we added another clan member, Clara Rose, on June 27th, Kali is fully potty trained and has been for a year now, and we're onto another year of fun, excitement and unknowns.

Let's recap a little....

Clara joined us in June, Kali broke her lower leg on my birthday and was in a cast for a whole month, we had a winter storm in Mid-December that was WAY fun (hush, no comments from the peanut gallery) and we moved into our townhouse. I think that's a good synopsis. Right now, the girls are doing well for the most part. Clara has been plagued with varies viruses lately, as well as Kali, and with spring in the air, I'm hoping that its our last plague. Being my first "busy season" with two kids, I've definitely come to the realization on how hard it is on single mommies. I don't know how they do it year round. April 15th is around the corner, so I am grateful to busy season's end. I'm a little exhausted and can't wait to hang as a family again!

Miss Kali is a newly turned "3yrs" big girl. We celebrated her birthday with Ariel decor galore and I went all out with a homemade Little Mermaid cake. Clara just marked her 9month stepping stone and is cruising like a mad dog. Its only a matter of weeks, if not another month, that we bet she'll be walking, then .2 seconds later, sprinting. lol. She's our "Fearless" leader, as we say. They've both been extremely fun to watch grow individually and as siblings. They are definitely very different from each other: Kali, the clean, cautious, 'by the book' child; and Clara, the fearless, more laid back, beat to her own drum, kind. Yet they can giggle and play hours on end.

I have recently undergone a change in my life and that would be in going back to school. A little daunting and sometimes I question my motives in why I want to go to school, but I feel like I've changed as I've gotten older, and that the things I do in life should naturally also follow the same path. I've been looking for a change, and always will since that is who I am, and I know I should start now as I'm not getting younger and I have a long road in front of me to go still. I can't wait to see how I evolve as I take these steps, and anxiously awaiting to start my new path. I know my interests may change as I get fully into school, but whatever I end up doing, I know I will be satisfied doing something I know that I will regret later in life 'not doing'. Here's to new beginning! Cheers!

I'm amazed how far the Wilcox Clan has come in the last year. So many growths, changes and expansions. With the current economy and steve's job, we could face another big change...though I hope the change pertaining to steve's job doesn't come to light. Everything is in God's hands, what happens, happens. I think the 'Wilcox Fantastic Four' can endure anything that is to come our way...as we are the Wilcox Clan.