Wow!

Our family has experienced some pretty exciting milestones in the last few days, so I thought it appropriate to share them here.

Fair warning: if you are not a fan of reading about potties or toilet training adventures of toddlers, this post is not for you. I never thought I'd be "that Mom" sharing my kid's personal bathroom behaviors on the internet -- but let me just add this to the list of things I said I'd never do as a Mom :) I digress...

Andrew peed in the potty THREE TIMES yesterday!

Wow!

He is the youngest one in his class at school, and has several classmates who are partially potty-trained, meaning they only pee in the potty. He has also had some first-hand experience at home, since we sometimes allow him in the restroom when are using it, so he can see what exactly that big white scary toilet is there for :) Seeing as how kids love to mimic others, over the last few weeks he has said several times, "I pee! I pee!" and gone to stand in front of the toilet, hips thrust out, like he is trying to pee. It is the cutest thing because he says it with such vigor!

Lance and I weren't sure that he knew exactly what that meant, but figured we'd go ahead and buy him his own personal training potty to test out. I hadn't planned on initiating potty training of any kind for him until he was 2 or 2.5, so this was a fun fast track for me, getting to see him start something on his own schedule.

We brought the seat home Sunday night, and he sat on it a few times with his diaper on just to get a feel for it. Lance was home for a half-day with him yesterday (Andrew was getting over a virus) and in the morning, Lance asked Andrew if he needed to go pee. He said yes, then sat on the potty and peed just like a big boy! He was so excited! Before I got home at noon to take over for Lance, Andrew had done it a second time. He did it again last night before bed. He came running out of the bathroom to me and said, "Momma! I pee! I pee!!!!" He was super proud and it made me so stinkin' happy to see :)

Okay, so that was pretty darn exciting.

Then... this morning, as I was sitting down with Andrew as he ate his breakfast, he asked for milk. I brought it to him in his regular sippy cup. He began to grunt (which usually means, to my OCD child, that I've placed something in the wrong spot on his tray or something like that). But instead of whining and pointing and me not having a clue what was wrong, he said, "Straw!"

Yes! I knew exactly what was going on in that little brain of his. I took the lid off his sippy cup, put in a bendy straw, and sat back down.

He immediately yelled, "Cup!" and pointed to the dishwasher where we had just washed a load of dishes. I asked him, "Do you want another cup Andrew?" He smiled giddily and said, "Elmo cup!"

I got his Elmo cup out of the dishwasher, poured the milk from his sippy cup into it, replaced the straw, then sat down yet again.

But of course, there was still one thing a little off. He pointed again to the straw. I asked him if he wanted another color straw and he said, "Blue!" Who knew a yellow straw would be so un-enticing? :) So I replaced the yellow straw with a blue one, and the smile my son gave me could've lit up an entire Christmas tree.

This may not seem like a big deal to anybody else, but this was just the epitome of how amazing it is to have a child who is really beginning to communicate. Instead of grunts and whines and frustration on his part, he is finally able to articulate to me what exactly he wants -- and I am thrilled that I finally know what's going on in that head of his!

Lance told me later that after he took over on breakfast duty (while I showered), Andrew pointed to the fridge and said, "Grapes!" Lance brought him several and put them on Andrew's tray, but that was not the way he wanted it. Andrew said, "Bowl!" and laughed. Silly Daddy, bringing him his grapes without putting them in a bowl first :)

I know these are milestones every parent gets to enjoy, and you may be reading this thinking, "Big whoop. Your kid is average. Wait til he is actually potty trained or can say actual sentences before you share your stories with us, m'kay?"

Well, these are the moments that my life is made for. I love every second of being a Momma (even during the temper tantrums and "No!"s and whining fits) -- and I could not be happier being in this place at this time with my amazing son and precious husband.

I am so blessed that God gave me these small moments to appreciate. Besides, it's the small things that make the big picture so amazingly beautiful, right? :)

Kisses kisses, my sweet boy!