Time for Potty Training?

Caden went poop in the potty today. We have been asking ourselves if we should start potty training Caden. He has said poo twice this week prior to actually going poop. Today he was at Grandma Herrscher's house and he said poo. She asked him if he needed to go poo and he just looked at her. Then she asked him if he wanted to go to the toilet and he nodded yes. She put him on the toilet and within a minute he had went poop on the potty for the first time. I was so excited when I heard the news, but was a little disappointed I missed the first time.

I actually bought him a potty chair on Monday night but all he wanted to do is take it apart and play. Today may have been a coincidence but I figure if he says he needs to go either pee pee or poo I will ask if he wants to use the big boy potty. By no means am I plan to begin potty training but I figure if he shows interest I may as well offer him the potty.

What a big boy I have. He is growing more and more each day.

Signs of Spring

Here are some signs that Spring is just around the corner:

1. Two garbage sacks full of dog poo. Brian and I scooped poop for over two hours on Sunday. It was the highlight of the weekend. Brian already threw one bag away before I could get a pic.
2. The snow is gone. That white stuff that can be found on the ground during the winter months is now gone. Yahoo!



3. My flowers, plants, shrubs and trees are all growing. I can see green again.




4. It is kite flying weather




5. It is also nice enough to play at the park
   

Fun at the Pool

Last weekend we tended our nephews. We were all going stir crazy inside so we decided to take them swimming. What a blast! Because Brooklyn and Kaleb are only two days apart, they play really good togeher. We invited Brooklyn swimming, but unfortunately they did not play much. She was a little scared of the water whereas Kaleb was jumping, diving and running all over the place.

Caden and Daddy

Brian, Brooklyn, Caden & Kaleb

Brinton

Goofy Boy

Because we have had some nice weather this last week I have been in the mood for some spring cleaning. When Caden was born my grandma bought us a baby swing. Please keep in mind he is now 19 months old. We are not expecting another baby anytime soon so I thought it was finally time to put the swing away. Brian stated to disassemble the swing to put it in a box, but Caden had an even better plan. He sat in the swing and played with the toys for quite a while until he kept tipping himself over. What a GOOFY BOY!

What a Day

March 8th turned out to be a very busy day for our family.

First off, it was my step-mom's birthday. She was out of town so we were not able to celebrate but we were able to sing her a lovely song. Happy Birthday Barb we hope you had a great day.

Second, Caden got tubes in his ears. He had six ear infections in approx. five months so the doc finally thought it was time for tubes. I know this is a minor surgery but it is scary to leave your baby and have them under anesthesia. Needless to say all went well. He recovered quickly and so far so good. No ear infections in almost two weeks =). Here are some pics of Caden at the hospital.







Third, my Poppy had open heart surgery. He had an aortic valve replaced. The surgery was pretty risky so we were all saying our prayers that he would do well. After approx. six hours of surgery we received word that he had successfully made it through surgery. He now has a pig valve and can't quit oinking. He said he picked a good one from the slaughter house so he should feel much better now.

Aloha - Our Trip to Hawaii

Our family had the opportunity to vacation in Hawaii at the end of February. It was a last minute trip, which made it that much more exciting. Here are some of the highlights of our trip:

• Delayed flight from home which caused us to miss our connecting flight to Hawaii. We had a 5 1/2 hour layover in LA. It was an extremely long travel day, but Caden did exceptionally well. This is a pic of us after landing in Hawaii. We were sooo relieved to be on the ground. Lesson learned - DO NOT FLY UNITED AIRLINES!!!

• Tsunami Scare - The first morning we were in Hawaii, we were woken up by blaring alarms warning of a Tsunami that was to hit the Hawaiian islands at 11:37 AM. How exciting!! We were told all guests staying above the third floor were to return to their rooms at 10 AM and not leave until further notice. We received word, over the loud speaker in our room again, that all was okay at 1:45 PM. Because Brian and I are so adventurous we decided to have breakfast on the beach. After breakfast we got to see the Coast Guard helicopter yell at people to get out of the water. We also let Caden play by the pool for a little while. Here are some pics of our trip.

View from our room, we were on the 7th floor

View from the restaurant we ate breakfast at

Helicopter telling swimmers to get out of the water

Caden playing in the sand at the swimming pool

While in Hawaii we spent a lot of time relaxing. We visited the North Shore to see the huge waves, went snorkeling (Brian saw a turtle), swimming, hiking at Makapu'u (hoping to see whales) and on a whale watching boat. We also went to the Fia Fia Luau at our hotel - it was wonderful. Caden slept the whole time so both Brian and I were able to enjoy the night.

Caden was ready for the beach

Brian and Caden hanging out at Sandy beach. Unfortunately it wasn't very sandy.

Caden at the fish feeding. Each morning at 07:30 you could go watch the resort feed the fish in the lagoons. It was neat to see the fish come so close to shore.

Our family at Makapu'u - it was a 1 1/2 mile hike or so. It was beautiful when we got to the top, but was really windy.

Caden getting his first tattoo

Hanging on the beach

Herrschers on a whale watching trip. We actually saw six whales and one large turtle.

Caden and me hanging out on the catamaran

Brian buried Caden in the sand. As you can see he loved it =).

It was so nice to get away as a family and spend some quality time together. We all had such a wonderful time.

Caden's 18 Month Appt

Caden is still growing...

Weight = 28 lbs 12 oz (75%)
Height = 33 inches (75%)
Head = 19.5 inches (75%)

Our little boy is growing up so fast. He shocks us daily with his vocabulary and behaviors. Caden knows a number of animal sounds including dog, cat, cow, horse, dinosaur, bunny, rooster, crow, sheep, lion, monkey, fish and snake. It is so cute when he does the fish and snake.

He is full of life and is always up to something. He still loves to play in the dog water and make a mess from mommy to clean up. He no longer calls me momma, but rather mommy. I'm not sure of the reason for the change, but I will take either. Caden is also speaking in sentences. Lately, I have been giving him choices when appropriate. The problem is he always picks the hot dog = ). Caden is no longer just walking, but now running. Unfortunately his head is a little large so he is top heavy.