DVD player in the bathroom take 2

I tried again! I know there's poo in that tummy. He had another leaky pee, he was sneaking away for moments of quiet reflection, and I heard that sound. You know the one where you kind of hear them breathe kind of hard because they give a little push....By this time I'd had the battery charging for a little while. I seized my oppurtunity. I grabbed the DVD player and put in Baby Beethoven (his current absolute fave!). Very excitedly, I said, "Hey you wanna go sit on the potty and watch Baby BEETHOVEN!!!!" (Note: I did not scream it at him the caps are only to emphasize that I pretty much mumbled the rest of the sentence and said Beethoven with a flourish.) Beethoven? He said. Oh yes, let's go sit on the potty! Here he was...

You see? Happily sitting on the potty. Surely the poo was going to plop right out, right? Um.....after sitting a while, Jack had an idea. IRISH! Sure who doesn't need his faithful bestest ever friend to sit by while having a poop on the potty?

So Jack watched the DVD and spun Irish on his lap and listened to me say things like "Poo poo belongs in the potty" and "Poo poo likes to splash and swim in the potty (yes I said it and yes I already regret it because I'm wondering if Jack will try to splash and swim in the potty and have fun like I told him the poo poo has)" and "errr, errr go ahead and push out that poo poo err, err" for 20 something minutes before declaring, "All done."

Alright Poo Poo you have eluded me this time but this won't go on forever.

Portable DVD Player in the Bathroom--Genius Idea or ...

the crazy idea of a woman still on narcotic cough medication trying to get over bronchitis? Seriously. Here's the thing. 4 year old Jack still does not tell us consistently when he needs to use the bathroom. He can easily stand up to go pee pee in an adult potty. No problems there. I've got it down to a science. When we are indoors at home, he goes pee pee about every two hours. Take him to the potty every two hours and you're golden. He can even wear his regular underwear. If he goes pee pee anytime within that two hour window it's poo poo time. No. Really. Any leaky pee pee within those two hours mean a poo poo is about to come on out. Jack doesn't mind sitting on the potty and will happily do so while reading Potty Time with Elmo or Elmo's Play Day or a book made for him by Jessica, a sweet young student who was working with Jack's early intervention speech therapist. The problem is that he won't sit at the critical poo poo time. He doesn't want to sit and read when he's given those poo poo signs. You Mamas know the ones--the leaky pee pee, the running off for privacy, the "squat". So tonight, I decided to try the DVD player. Jack loves Baby Einstein and the videos run about thirty minutes. Surely he would relax enough during that time. He was all for it. He was excited. I was excited. Ack! The battery died and the cord would not reach from the water closet to the plug! Charging the battery now. So you've heard my crazy idea....got any better advice? He's not into rewards of any kind. Doesn't like stickers, no interest in charts, will cry if you exclaim Yay! and start clapping. Tried Elmo underwear and he seems to try not to get Elmo wet but poo poo just has to come when it comes. What else? If you want to know more about Jack hop over to www.allaccesspasstojack.blogspot.com. I'm ready! Send me those ideas. If you don't want to post here email me at empwrn(at)bellsouth(dot)net.

Behind on the Shred Updates

So I'm doing days 8, 9, 10, & 11 updates today. Day 8 was fab-O! I felt great. I shredded then took my sweet cherub over to a friends birthday party at one of those places with all the inflatable bounce houses and slides. We had a blast! I'm his biggest playmate. He's not yet able to jump in them by himself and he did not want anyone else to "hup" him. So jump jump jump, I sweated and puffed some more. After the party, we went to the park but we were really too tired to play a lot so it was time to swing and enjoy watching the other kids run around. The rest of the afternoon and evening we hung out with fam and both of us stayed up too late. Me, later than him.
Day 9 I woke up but never really woke up, know what I mean? I was truly exhausted so I took the day off. After all, it was the sabbath.
On Day 10, I was tired but I jumped up and did it. I even increased the weights I was using. Wooweee! My body ached but it woke me up and I felt good the rest of the day.
Day 11 was tough but I pushed through. I'm feeling the burn and I'm feeling changes taking place. I just need to make an effort to get more sleep and cut back on the junk.
What's your favorite tip for keeping yourself motivated to make the right changes?

Ouch! I just got smacked by the economy.

That was my tweet yesterday. The reason? The small little company I work for is being indirectly affected by the layoffs happening in other industries. Fortunately, we (the employees) are all rather busy so there's enough work for all of us to continue our employment. Unfortunately, the smaller the company the easier it is for cash flow to become a problem. Reserves must be maintained to keep the company afloat while waiting for payment to come in from those to whom we provide service. Since there's enough work, noone's salary is going to be taken to make up the reserves. I don't really know what options there are and how these decisions get made but, for now, our little company is no longer contributing to our retirement plans and no longer paying a portion of our group health insurance. Take a moment and surf on over to my other blog at www.allaccesspasstojack.blogspot.com and it won't take you long to realize why I'm grateful that they've chosen to continue to offer group health insurance even if they won't pay any portion of the premium any longer. Still today's announcement knocked the wind out of my sails.

Mommy Shoes and other fashion advice needed

I am one of "those mommies". You will find me in the tubes at McDonald's, Burger King, Chik Fil A, Chuck E Cheese, and anywhere else my kiddo wants to go play. I'm the mommy coming down the slide with my kiddo screaming "Wheeeeeeeeee!" so the kiddo will laugh and not be scared of the speed or height. I'm the mommy that stays on the playground in the rain because there's no thunder or lightning. I'm my son's biggest playmate. I do encourage independence and he's sharpening his social skills every day but I truly enjoy playing with him and any friends we happen to meet.
So needless to say, I am not one of the mommies running around in dresses or skirts wearing high heels. I keep thinking I'll spruce myself up a bit, though. You can still be fashionable AND an active play partner, right?
So, tell me, what do you wear all you other active mamas?
PS My feet are killing me from wearing my old "tennies" hence the shoe part of the title.

Day 7 of the Shred--Yipppeeee ki yi yay

Seven. Days. In. A. Row. For seven days in a row now, Jillian has gotten me to sweat and feel a burning, aching sensation in my muscles. There have been moments where I thought, for one reason or another, I might not shred that day. But each time I remembered it's only 20 minutes and I CAN fit it in. My sweet hubby who is always quick with the compliments was honest enough to say that he cannot see a difference yet. That's okay. I feel it. And soon enough we'll be able to see it.

Day 6 of The Shred--No Shame

This shredding is really going well. I feel tightening of my muscles all over. I'm NOT incredibly sore but then again I am used to having a lot of muscle tension and headacs so I take Advil on a fairly regular basis. I am really enjoying this.
My endurance is definitely improved over day 1 but the fact is, right now, I continue to struggle with doing all the jacks without modifying them some what. I'm not going to be ashamed about it. I am not "phoning it in". I am quite literally workin' my bootie off!
I am feeling much better today after Samantha and Dr. Turnley reminded just how important it is to drink plenty of water and remain hydrated.
I am pumped that I have managed to find the time to workout 6 days in a row!!!

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