Lucas's Birthday Party

To make Lucas's birthday party extra special (for him) this year, he got to hand pick his own guests. This dude must be super popular because everyone he invited was able to come! He was so happy seeing everybody he liked there. I've never seen him greet people so enthusiastically and give such big bear hugs! This is probably the simplest and most low-key party I've had for any of the kids, but it seems to be the most enjoyable. All Lucas wanted was pizza, cake (with strawberries inside), his friends and cousins, and presents (surprise surprise).

So happy

Bromance hug, bros since 2011

 Fighting over the lone girl?

 Church friends

 Let's blow our fake candles (thank you breeze)

Happy 3rd Birthday!

 Blow blow blow

 Nom nom nom

 Pushing match with Uncle San?

So that was the weekend. Kids, they're content with the simple things in life. Since our normal play date got cancelled and it was super hot outside, we (Lucas) decided to spend our morning at Almaden Plaza. You can't go wrong with Petsmart, TJ Maxx, Yo Pop, and Barnes & Noble.

 Cutest siblings ever!

 Morning froyo

What kind of mother gives their kids froyo at 10:30 in the morning? This mother! Char has that face because she was surprised how cold the froyo was. Lu was just plain happy. So it continues, Lucas's birthday week! But honestly, I don't think homeboy even knows it's his birthday week. So why are we doing this?!

Crazy Week With Crazy Kids

This week has just been crazy for various reasons. Amidst the craziness, the kids have managed to enjoy summer and have fun. Char definitely had tons of fun this week. Her highlight of the week had to be playing with a wo-wo (dog) as well as wearing her bead necklaces.

 Char's faves: wo-wo, necklace, and homegirl H

Maybe we'll get a wo-wo when the kids are older...

 "Baby" Lucas

Char suddenly loves babies

Crazy group of toddlers

I foresee many ER trips in the future

Besties

I had a better picture with both of them smiling, but it turned out blurry. Curses!

Weekend Shinnanigans

First things first, Lucas is potty trained! The three-day method worked for our almost three year old boy! I'm so proud of him! He is capable of pooping (daily) on the potty, peeing at restaurants, and going to the potty without me asking anymore. 

Just listen to the dialogue...

This weekend consisted of berry picking, Ikea, and just hanging out.

 Shinn boys hard at work

 Looking for berries, berries for jam

 Char picking some berries

 $11 for 3 pounds of berries (INSANE!)

I can buy so much more at Sprouts for $11. Plus my shoes, shirt, and car won't get dirty. Oh well, it was for the kids. They had a fun time. Next up - Ikea! Ikea is a great place for kids to play. However, if you're in a time crunch and looking for specific things (or looking to get work done there), bringing kids with you might not be a good idea.

 Taking care of sissy poo @ Ikea

 I spy a Char dog

 Good night Lucas

Stylin' with Mommy's old sunglasses

A buncha crazies

... and now it's Monday, and I'm (still) beat!

Potty Training: Day 3

Mission accomplished! The three day of house arrest worked! I think the three of us are totally over being stuck at home the whole day now. Charlotte did well on the first day. But for some reason, she just doesn't seem to care anymore. There's also a language barrier between us. Maybe I'll wait a couple more months with her and try again. 

Am I glad that I waited so late with Lucas? Yes. It was frustrating the first day, but since he is older, it was easier for him to catch on to things. I was afraid that he wouldn't poop on the potty, but that doesn't seem to be a problem with him. Homeboy will do anything for m&m's! On day 3, he was able to pull down his undies and sit down on the potty by himself. I think it's time to go out tomorrow!

 Their make shift car (we all wanna leave the house)!

 What I built when both kids were attempting to pee

Apple using kids

And now, this is why we need to get these kid out of the house...

He's gonna get hurt one day...

Aiiii!!!

Potty Training: Day 2

Today was much better, sorta. In the morning, there were only two accidents (one from each kid), as opposed to probably ten accidents on the first day. Lucas is slowly getting the hang of telling me that he has to go before he actually does the deed. Of course, it helps that he gets a time out every time he has an accident. The biggest accomplishment today was that he actually pooped in the potty! After nap time, Char seemed to have completely lost it. She must've gone through five undies in the span of an hour. She no longer cared to pee in the potty and didn't care all that much when she got wet.

 Char pointing at all her hard earned stickers

Checking up on big bro

For those of you wondering, Lucas has socks on because he was saying his feet "hurt". I'm pretty sure he meant his feet were cold because he's been sitting on his green throne for so long. To make his feet not "hurt", I asked if he wanted to wear some socks and he said yes. And that is why he's dressed so awkwardly today.

 Entertaining themselves downstairs since I wouldn't let them go upstairs with underwear on

 "Potty training makes me tired" - Lucas

Pushing out the brown children

As soon as Lucas said "I pooping", I shouted "WAIT!", picked him up, threw his undies down and placed him on his throne. It took him maybe a good 30 minutes to finally push it out, but he did it! "I push poo poo like a button. Like a doorbell." Me - yes yes, whatever helps you. Pretty good analogy for a three year old, eh? He was super proud that he pooped in the potty and got TWO stickers and TWO m&ms. We also did a potty dance, crazy high fives, and whatever weird thing I could think of at the moment.

I think Lucas is getting the hang of it. We were able to go out for dinner and he was dry the entire time. When we came home, he pooped again and was super proud of his deed!

 Belated Father's Day dinner (no peace sign, just a three sign)

Last potty session of the night

Well, I'm looking forward to more improvement tomorrow. I think Lucas is on track with the three day potty training ordeal. But let's just hope I didn't jinx myself...

Potty Training: Day 1

I finally started it. I don't think there's anything else I dreaded more than potty training. I've been telling Lucas that once school ends, we are going to get potty trained. I'm more motivated to do this now because 1) his school in the Fall requires him to be potty trained and 2) he's nearly 3. It'll be great to have him 95% potty trained by the time he's 3. So, that gives me a mere two weeks for me to accomplish this task. 

I honestly did not plan to potty train Char at the same time. I jokingly talked about it, but never took anything too seriously. Even the morning of, I just placed her on the potty to see if she was interested. Since she stayed on there, I made a quick decision to put together a potty chart for her and potty train them at the same time! I might as well get over this much dreaded stage of life once and for all rather than do this twice, right? I decided to toy with the idea of killing two birds with one stone. And boy was I in for a shocking surprise!

 How the morning started

 Look who peed first!

 His and hers: iPad & iTouch

 Pretty much how we spent the majority of the day

Day 1: Potty Chart

The unexpected underdog, Charlotte, was victorious! When she needed to pee, she would walk to the potty and point at it. She had two accidents in the morning because I didn't think she could pee 15 minutes apart. But once I got the hang of her "language", I was able to put her on the potty before she had to go. Lucas, on the other hand, was a piece of work. I think he had five accidents and really didn't care to try that much. I had to put him on a time out for him to get his act together.

I have NEVER been so happy to put diapers on them during nap time. After nap time turned out a little better, both didn't mind sitting on the potty for long periods of time with their Apple devices. Char actually didn't want to get off her potty because she was too into the videos. I put on a diaper for both of them when we left the house for an hour because I didn't want to deal with any accidents. I decided to put them back in underwear after dinner and realized that they both stayed relatively dry for two hours! I think we're on to something here people! 

And now, on to day 2...

BFFs

My born BFFs are at it again! Spoiler alert: My IG will most likely have TONS of pictures and videos of the rugrats since we have no set plans the entire summer. 

 Maybe I should make my own Lego table for them

The little lady is developing much faster than big bro. Part of this is because she wants to do everything big bro is doing! Here she is, mighty proud of herself for being able to drink out of a regular cup. The last time we were at B&N (a week ago), she tried doing this and water spilled all over her shirt. A week later, she had already mastered this skill! Next up: chopsticks?!

 Proud lady

 "I see you Char" "I see you Lucas"

 I wonder what kinda wish they're making

 Throwing a pretend coin into the water

Deep in thought

Lucas has been ordering Charlotte around (as usual). "Charlotte, come upstairs. CHAR, COME UPSTAIRS!!!!" wah wah wah. (True story.) When Charlotte finally listens and goes upstairs, I hear silence. "Good morning, Char!". Silence. Then I hear both kids laughing like hyenas.

Oh boy...

Well, I'm glad these two are having so much fun together. We're going to have an interesting/crazy summer together. Yup, Mommy and the hyenas. I'm glad they have so much fun together. And although they drive me crazy, I'm glad they're so close in age too.