Just Rootin Tootin Fun

About this time every year, 13 groups of trail riders head into Houston to kick off the Houston Rodeo. This morning, we were lucky enough to find out that the Valley Lodge Trail Riders would be making a quick pit-stop near our house mid-morning. We rushed to meet up with some friends and ended up being the only ones there to greet the riders (the stops are not advertised). The riders were very friendly. The first cowboy we saw gave the kids orange juice and bandanas. Another guy offered to let the kids ride his old horse, Black Jack. A few others let the kids sit in their wagons. We all had a rootin tootin good time.

Sleeping Beauty

Last week, I was talking to a mom that has a nine month old. She told me that her daughter refuses to take naps during the day. She also said that it doesn’t bother her because her daughter sleeps from 7pm to 7 am. Being the nice person I am, I just smiled and said that it was great. I decided not to mention Lexi’s sleeping habits to her.

However, I will share this info on her blog so that all of you know that even when she is having an extremely bad "terrible two" day, I get a big break. Yes, this toddler girl naps/plays in her room from about 2pm to 5pm. Then, we put her down for the night at 8pm and usually don’t hear a peep until 7 am or a little after. She must have gotten the sleep gene from my mom, who until the last few years was convinced that she needed 10 hours to function. I am not like that and Steve isn’t like that, but we are happy that Lexi is.

Rodeo Queen

We went to the Katy Rodeo on Friday night and had a blast. There were two kids' events: stick horse racing and mutton bustin. Lexi participated in the stick horse race. Steve took her down to the arena and I video taped her from the stands. She has a purple stick horse and is wearing a white sweater, pink cowboy boots, and jeans like you can see in the picture below. It might not be easy to spot her in the beginning, but you can definitely see her in the end. Apparently, she was one of the youngest racers.





We went with friends and everyone had a good time. Unfortunately, the pictures on Steve's camera somehow got erased so I can't share more.

Fun at the Mall

It is a rainy day today, so we cut our time at the park short and headed to the mall to have fun in the play area. Lexi looks a little too at home in that convertable.

Captain Bunny

Quite often when Lexi's bath is almost over, Jordan starts whimpering from hunger. By the time I get her out of the tub, he is crying. I dry her off & put some panties on and then tend to him. She runs around upstairs having a ball. Today, she had her bunny towel. I managed to snap some pictures of her so we could all have a laugh.

Potty Time

Sunday night when I felt the stars lining up, I decided to start officially potty training Lexi. Ok, so I really just realized that she had been making a lot of progress on her own and it was time for me to catch up and bump it up a notch. Monday morning, we put on the big girl panties and haven't looked back even when going out in public for a couple of hours. She had a few accidents the first day, but none since except for one that was entirely my fault. I just couldn't act fast enough with Jordan and everything else going on at the time.

As impressed as I have been with her progress, I was more surprised about her willingness to go #2. She actually is even better about warning me that she must go caca (a little Spanish left in her). The idea of doing that in her panties just disturbs her more. Several moms I know have mentioned that potty training for BMs took longer.

She still has a few more hurtles like going in a toilet that isn't ours. She prefers to hold it, which I can't blame her. I am not fond of using other restrooms either. I have taken her many times this week, but she will not let loose. Other than that, I still put a pull-up on for nap time and a diaper for bedtime. Half the time it is just a safety procaution, because she doesn't use it.

As you can guess, I am thrilled with how well it has gone. I think procrastination worked on my side this time. Hopefully, we will continue to advance in this matter.

Valentines & Love

My goal this year is to take more family photos. It is so easy to snap millions of pictures of the kids without us, so I am trying to make an effort to get a few with us. Today, we had an excuse; Lexi wore her new Valentine dress to church. She was such an attention grabber in it. One of her older friends, Avery, showed her how to twirl. When we got home, we took a few minutes for pictures & videos.






Lexi loving on Jordan


Lexi Twirling

At the Park with Dad

Steve took Lexi to the park today to give me a breather. They laughed, played, walked, and enjoyed being together. Jordan and I loved have some quiet time. I used this break to clean the house.

2 Year Doctor Appt

Being a crazy mom that wants to get things over at once, I scheduled doctor appointments for Lexi and Jordan today knowing that they would both be getting shots. Needless to say, I wasn't really looking forward to this weekend.

Lexi weighed in at 28 lbs and is now 34" tall, which is in the 66th percentile for both. Her head measurement is actually in the 90th percentile. That made me laugh because she gets her big head from my side. My mom & brother both can't find hats that fit.

She easily performed all the tasks the doctor asked like jumping and touching her toes. Lexi even talked the doctors ear off so that when she got to the question about having a vocabulary of at least 50 words, there was no need to ask. Nobody could manage to talk non-stop with a small vocabulary. I doubt I could even count how many words she says.

When the appointment was winding down, I told her that the nurse was going to give her medicine in her leg and then it would be Jordan's turn. Lexi likes medicine for the most part, but she cried when they gave her the shot of course. She patted Jordan's head when he was getting his done. Then she cried with him until the nurse told her that she could have 2 stickers.

They both stopped crying rather quickly. That just reminded me that I am so glad to be away from the Miami doctors. They both did so well that we were even able to meet up with the Play Group at the new McDonalds. This story has a happy ending (so far).