4H Speech Competition

Holden competed in the county-wide 4H Speech Competition Tuesday night. We knew that the competition would include all the 4th grade speech winners from all the elementary schools in the county, but we weren't anticipating such a crowd. The contest was held at the middle school nearest to us and the parking lot was packed! There were two 4th grade groups and two 5th grade groups. Holden's group had 23 students plus parents and other onlookers.

Holden was surprised to say the least. Getting up in front of 75+ people to do anything is not his thing. He is very well-spoken and poised, but he suffers from a bit of stage fright. Besides his speech was supposed to be only one minute long not even enough time to warm up. Even though he was reluctant to do it once he realized the circumstances, we convinced him to try. And he did it! In front of all those people and a table of judges, he spoke his own words about what he wants to be when he grows up.

We were very proud of him for getting to the county-wide contest. We are super proud of him for standing before all those strangers when he really did not want to. It's an experience he'll never forget and does not regret even though he did not place among the top three.

After the competition was over, Ben, Holden and I went to eat at Outback Steakhouse (Holden's choice) to celebrate. We enjoyed being together just the three of us (the original family members, as Holden said). It's been so long since we have spent one-on-one time with Holden and he relishes in one-on-one attention from anyone. His sweet personality really shines when you spend that individual time with him.

Up next for Holden is 4H Poster contest and Science Fair.

O is for Oreo

Owen had his first taste of Oreo cookies today. I was preparing Dirt Cake this morning (going-away party at work). The main ingredient is cream filled chocolate sandwich cookies. Everybody's favorite cookie. Well, at least milk's favorite cookie. And maybe Owen's favorite cookie.

It started as a curiosity for him. Perched on the kitchen chair watching me drop the cookies into the food processor and grind them into a fine powder. "Doo-kie, yum." Then the fingers started poking into the bag of Oreos. Since it was morning I was trying to be the "good mom" and not feed my 18-month old cookies for breakfast. But then there was a piece that wouldn't break up so I just let him have that piece. "Dank you mama."

Well, as you can imagine that just wasn't enough for him. How much can one little Oreo fill up Owen's tummy? I reasoned with myself. I let him have another. Which he proceeded to twist apart, admire the creamy inside and promptly devour. After the cream was gone he sat down the chocolate wafers and then reached for the bag to grab another.

I know that people eat Oreos differently. Some dunk, some pull apart and eat the cream then the chocolate, some do as Owen did and eat the cream but leave the cookies and some do as I do and enjoy the delicious combination as it was meant to be eaten... all together. But how does an 18-month old know to pull the Oreo apart? This was his very first (but definitely not last) Oreo. Ever. Is the way you eat Oreos predetermined in your DNA? Ben pulls his Oreos apart. Is that one trait Ben can proudly chalk up to himself... "that's my boy!"

By the way, Owen did save room for another circular staple... Cheerios for breakfast!

Open Call for Addresses

I have some new pictures of the kids that I would like to send out to friends and family, but first I'd like to be sure I have current address for all of you. Please email me your current address (or if you don't have my email address you can post it here... I moderate all comments so it will not appear to the public).

Thank you!!!

Pictures arriving soon...

Blackmail

When you are child number three the blackmail starts early. It must be the influence of your older sibs (cousins too!). You see them doing all of sorts of interesting, grown-up things and you have to try them out for yourself.

For instance, Owen is keenly interested in the potty. He loves walking up to it and pointing in it loudly proclaiming "pee-pee" and "poop". He's a pro and tearing off bits of toilet paper and dropping them in. Emeline has banned him from the bathroom when she's using it because he tries to give her toilet paper even occasionally trying to wipe for her.

It was only a matter of time before Owen begged to try it out for himself. Several months ago he was doing just that. Pulling on his diaper while standing in front of the toilet and proclaiming "Pee-pee! Poop!". For whatever reason I did not think he was trying to tell me that he wanted to use the potty for the very things he was yelling, but moments later a messy diaper told me otherwise. I am ashamed to say that I didn't take advantage of that moment, but at the time he was only 16 months old. I have never experienced a baby at that tender age show the interest or ability to potty train. From that moment on, however, I vowed to seize every opportunity that Owen gave me to let him try it out.

One such opportunity arose earlier this week. Diaper off and cushioned potty seat on, Owen climbed up on that porcelain throne as proud and mature as any 18 month old I've ever seen. He was there for a while and I thought it was all just an act, but then "plop". He did it! To my amazement the little stinker pooped in the potty. A diaper free future flashed before my eyes. We all clapped and sang Owen's praises. He beamed. And then it was over. I barely flashed this pic before he scampered off the pot to resume his apprenticeship as Tasmanian Devil.

The Blackmail Begins!

P.S. - I am not getting my hopes up too high. Of course, I want all my children to succeed even excel and I will forever encourage them to those ends. But I also realize that kids go through phases and what they seek to do one month completely changes the next (one month it's "I can do it myself" and the next "Hold me Mommy"). And I am not going to be a slave to Owen's bathroom habits. I know many old-school moms (OSM) will tell me that when they had babies they were potty trained by 12 months. (I was late being trained - closer to 16 or 18 months - and what shame my mom experienced as a result!) In fact, just this past weekend a OSM asked me if we were potty training to which I gave a quick, no-excuses negative reply. But really were these babies trained or was it the moms? Maybe OSMs were more tuned into their kids, but I have times when I forget to go to the bathroom! We'll keep you posted... about Owen that is!