Team work & be grateful.

Sometimes I wonder how grateful a little one can be. Do they fully understand some consequences right away or does it take a few times? With Heidi this week, we have been really working on the potty training and so far it's going.....well...ok. She still has some accidents which is completely fine for me to handle but I think it's a little harder on daddy when she has a accident. When Heidi is watching cartoons and she see's something advertised that she likes, she always says "mommy, I like. I need or want."   So I keep repeating to her that she can have something if she works harder on her potty training. It's alot of repeatingm but I think it's been working. Over the weekend, Heidi found some cowboy boots in her size that are really cute! They are brown boots with the Toy Story characters on them and they also light up. Oh boy are they fun. She also found a kids grocery cart that has princess labeled food items in it. So each time she says she needs something. I take a picture of it with my phone and tell her I will save a picture of it and if she does better on the potty training, I will think about getting one of them. So on the days she puts up a little fight about going to use the potty, I just take my phone out and show her the pictures on the phone. It seems to be working. I don't know if it's all toddlers, but she has to have a visual of what's on the line if she doesn't use the potty. I told her that Santa might be extra good to her this year if she no longer wears diapers. She's excited to say the least. She asks about santa constantly now. I really want to get her those boots so bad, because I even liked them, but I know she won't learn from always getting something she wants.
      This week we have also been working on the no screaming, hitting, or kicking when she has her 'meltdowns'. She can really be awful when she doesn't get her way. My little drama queen. Thankfully it only comes around once in a awhile and not all the time. Most of the time it's when she's tired and she's been told no. Yikes. My little angel can be a little devil on those days  Anyway, I have been repeating myself endlessly about this sort of behavior and the other day it really worked! I couldn't believe how much grocery's I got done and other errands I had to do without her fussing once.  So on our stop to walmart yesturday, Heidi really wanted her McQueen car that is a bubble bath container. It's a nice sized car and she already has Mater. The conversation went this way:
Heidi:"mommy can i get McQueen?"
Me: "No, not today honey."
Heidi: "Mater at home, misses McQueen. They good friends. He needs him"
Me: (well speechless)
Heidi: "Pweeeaassse mommy? No hitting, no scream, no throw."
Me: "You have to be good and use the potty also. Or he goes back to the store for another kid to play with."
Heidi: "ok mommy. Thank you! I good. I listen."

Today Heidi is playing non stop with her Mcqueen car and Mater car. Looks like the best buds are together and Heidi seems very thankful I got it for her. I told her that I like the Mcqueen car and she said "ya, I good. I no scream, hit or kick mommy."   So I guess sometimes toddlers do understand and they can be thankful or grateful for the things they get if they work hard for it. Just have to be a team like McQueen and Mater.

Thrift Store craft finds.

I really don't do Cross Stitching because it just takes to long for me to finish. But I found Garfield Christmas Cross Stitching. I must try these. My favorite is garfield riding on Odie. I think they were and will always be my favorite childhood cartoon. Who doesn't love a lazy fat cat who will only get up to push the family dog off of the table?

Rocking chair.

Getting ready to complete my little rocking chair project. I still have some sanding to do, but I am so much more excited to get it done, now that I found a really cute fabric piece for the cushions. It's going to look great in baby's room! It's a cute circus theme or zoo theme. The main part of the fabric is a tan or brown in color and then there are light color's in the pictures. I like the vintage look of it. I saw one similiar to this but the entire fabric was way to 'new' or bright for my house. :) 

Embroidery & Quilting.

I have been really loving doing embroidery and I am finding new patterns or making patterns of my own to do. I recently started on a quilt that I want to make Heidi. It has a sleeping bear on a moon with clouds and stars on it. I'm almost half way done and then onto another quilt for baby. So I really need to get working on these when I can. Deadline is January 15th if not sooner! ;)  Here's what I have so far done.

Rhubarb choppn'.

 There is always a cat in the picture. But Victoria was chasing a grasshopper by the Rhubarb.

 Just a few ingredients and there is yummy goodness later.

Kindof a messy picture b/c I wanted to take a picture before but forgot from all the yummyness.

My Rhubarb plant has gone crazy this year! I have so much of it and at first I didn't know what to do with it. So I started a new hobby of canning. YUM! I decided to start making all kinds of flavors of Jellies and Jams, since we go through so much of it anyway. I'm really getting tired of trying to keep up with buying the stuff in our house. Heidi loves her peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, and having it on just toast for a bedtime snack. I was so excited to see Heidi begging to taste the Jam I just made. She helped a little bit and she couldn't wait to taste some. When we finally got our canning done, and we had a taste test and the result was a A+++. I LOVE it! I had made a Blueberry Rhubarb Jam that it absolutly wonderful on French Toast! I think that's the way I will only french toast now; with homemade jam. I asked Brian if he liked it and he said it's SO SO good. A friend we had over for brunch also said it's amazing. So I think I will be chopping my Rhubarb plant up some more this summer to do some more canning. :) 

A little new junk.

 My parents find the neatest things and they are so great to let me do a little shopping in their garage and storage shed when I go home to visit. Last time I was home, I brought back with me a cute potato sack that was framed and now hangs high above my kitchen window. I also brought back a cute end table that I thought was going in my bedroom, but instead ended up in the kitchen. It looks so cute in the corner with a few pictures and decorations. I'm thinking of re-painting it, but I think it looks pretty cute the way it is. I might clean it up a bit with some new stain but for now it's fun. I still have to stain my very bare and plain church pew. I should probably do that before new baby comes or it will never ever get done.

Me, my baby, and my puppy.

Heidi is growing up so fast. I notice it even more when she plays pretend with her baby doll and her pull around puppy. She loves to stop and come over to tell me what her and baby are doing or her puppy. She also corrects me very quickly when I misunderstand her. Hand is waved in the air in front of my face with a "no, no mommy......"    Brian and I just love watching her play and what she says to her animals or other toys.  Yesturday when she was playing with her baby doll, this was some of her conversation: 

"ok, baby. Time for a nap. Sleep in your crib and here is your pacifier." 
   (Heidi walks to the crib to place baby in, and that's when she trips with baby in her arms and falls on the floor.)
"oh no! Baby, are you ok? Oh good. You ok. Time for a nap."
"Mommy, I tripped and baby cry."
(now Heidi goes and gets another item to play with while baby 'naps'. Heidi throws up the toys and makes a crying sound.)
"waaaa, waaa. Oh no. Baby cry. Mommy, where is baby's pacifer?"
"Oh there it is. All better."
"Night baby."

Here is Heidi's conversation with her pull along puppy while outside:
"puppy, you want treat?"
"Ok puppy. Sit. Staaaayyyy. Good puppy. Here's treat." (heidi makes pretend munching sounds for puppy)
"Puppy, you want to walk to the sprinkler?"
(She takes her puppy to sprinkler for awhile and comes back)
"Mommy, Puppy and me get wet!"
"Puppy want another treat? Ok. Here you go puppy."
"Ouch! Puppy bit me."
"I ok puppy, here's another treat."
"Staaaay, sit. Good puppy." 
"Come on puppy, go to Apple tree!" "Yaaaay!"