Big Girl Bed

We did it - Wednesday night Kirch took apart Quinn's crib and we introduced her to her "big girl bed," which is a double bed mattress on the floor. No box spring, no frame. We figured we'd start small - if she rolls off, she's only got 6 inches to fall. Hell, she could sleep through it - half on, half off!

I was SO excited to get her into a big bed. But I have to admit, as the crib came apart and we got her new bed made and were getting ready for her first night in it, i was a little bit sad. It was the end of the "baby" era. She is never going to sleep in a crib again! How is it that my child is 2 years old already?

She really has done a great job in her own bed these past 2 nights. On Wednesday night, Kirch and I both put her to bed. Usually we switch off every other night. But we both laid on her new bed with her and read her a couple of stories to get her comfortable. She was so excited all day about it, but when the moment of truth came, I could hear the anxiousness in her little voice. After story #2, Kirch did step out so I could turn out the light and lay with her to make her comfortable. Once I left, it didn't take long for her to stand at her closed bedroom door and cry, "Mommy! Mommyeeeeeee!" She doesn't try to open her door, which surprises me, because she always tries to open my closet doors and the bathroom doors all the time. Anyway, after about 5 rounds of this, the last time I tucked her in, that was it. She'd fallen alseep, and it didn't take me laying in there with her! All told, the whole process took about an hour. Not bad for Night #1.

Me and all my favorite things!

Last night I had my last work softball game, so Kirch had the duty all to himself. He said it took about 4 or 5 tries, but only a total of about 45 minutes for her to fall asleep. She did wake up at about 3am, so I went in to lay with her. Less than 10 minutes later, she was back out and I headed back to bed until I heard her calling for me at 20-to-7 this morning. We're gonna be fine...

A bunch of doll babies!

So she's potty trained (save a couple of accidents here and there) and in a big girl bed. We are heading home to MI next week, and Poppy and Manka are going to see a whole different side of their granddaughter!!!

Sacked out - it's a beautiful thing!

1st Camping Trip as a Family

Friday afternoon, Quinn, Kirch and I headed up to Rocky Gap State Park for our first camping trip as a family. Now, granted, we stayed in a little cabin that had electricity and air conditioning, but I have accepted that as I get older I don't like sleeping in tents.

The weekend consisted of about 20 adults and 10 kids - it really was a great time. We shared the cabin with the Kastbergs and everyone else pitched their tents in the field we had rented. This has been a tradition that Donna Scheleur and Don May have been holding for 10 years now. It was great - albiet VERY hot! It was mid to high 90's every day we were there - and without a shower, you can imagine how rank we all were by Sunday afternoon when we got home!

Friday afternoon, after everyone pitched their tents and we removed a family of mice from the bed Quinn and I would be sharing over the weekend (oh yes - a family), the kids played like crazy with the bubble machine and other toys everyone brought. Quinn immediately started digging in the dirt and filling up buckets (a task that every 2 year old is familiar with). When we finally all got our children down for bed about 10pm-ish, the adults partook in some beers and smores by the campfire. Ahh, nature...

Saturday we all headed to Lake Habeeb and went swimming. Quinn had a blast! She is not a fan of going under water, but really enjoyed playing in the sand and floating on the innertube. After a nice long nap, we all began preparing for the pot luck dinner. There was lots of - meat. Lots of it. Chili, steaks, chicken, meatballs, and so on. We all enjoyed fruit, dessert and drinks and especially everyone's company.

Quinn refused to go to sleep on Saturday night. She finally konked out at 11:30pm and I headed out to the campfire for about an hour. Boy, we can't party like we used to. Everyone was very laid back Saturday night at the fire - very much unlike Friday night's festivities!

Sunday, when we got home, we all enjoyed the best baths/showers of our lifetimes, I think. It was a laid back Sunday afternoon, and we all stayed inside. Kirch and I had had enough of the heat, and with Quinn recovering from her 2nd ear infection in 3 weeks, we thought it a good idea to just keep her busy in the house.

We already have our spot picked out for June, 09. It is a treehouse campground near Harper's Ferry, so it should be lots of fun. It's always fun with our group of friends!

Diaper Exit!

Oh the time is so near. Quinn is really potty training now. And I'm not sad ONE SINGLE BIT that she will be leaving the diaper stage behind very shortly. We have given up regular diapers. Yay! One less thing to have to buy and then promptly throw away, adding to the nation's garbage problem. She now can go on short excursions with undies on (to and from daycare - that's as brave as we've gotten) and longer outings with pull-ups without making a mistake. Last night Quinn and I went to Target and she went potty in the bathroom twice, leaving her pull-up dry! It's no fun lining the public toilets with TP and telling her over and over not to touch anything (especially when I have a fold-up potty seat that I left in my car!), but it's that much closer to being out of diapers forever! I actually made a bold move and left the diaper bag home last night, too. Big step for me - I bring that thing everywhere. I really need to stop and put more faith in the fact that my little one gets that pee-pee and poo-poo are for the potty now.

Getting prepared to launch...

I don't know why it is, but poo-poo is always a bit more challenging for toddlers on the potty. They have to be ready for that one. Well, 2 weekends ago, Quinn just said, out of the blue, "I go poo-poo on the potty." OH HAPPY DAY!!! I knew we were on our way.

So proud!!!

We've had our accidents, but now that daycare is on board and letting her run around in underwear, we are veeeerrryy close. The real test will be on Friday when we head up to Rocky Gap for the weekend to go camping. Quinn insists on sitting on the big toilet without a seat - so I hope it won't be a problem for her to use her portable potty seat for the weekend. I guess we'll see. But I have a feeling that she will be fine - and out of diapers completely before she and I go home to MI for 4th-of-July weekend!

Off I go! Yay for me!

It Didn't Happen

Oh my gosh, what a let down! The Wings lost in triple overtime to a great goal on the Penguins' power play. In Detroit. They stole our home-overtime-huge celebration-take-back-Stanley-in-our-own-house win!!! At about 1:15am, no less, which makes this morning quite brutal since I now have nothing fond to remember why I stayed up that late in the first place...

Oh well, shake it off, boys. Next game is tomorrow night in Philly. Guess we can settle for an on-the-road win...

This is not about Quinn

It is 12:19am on Tuesday morning and the Wings just WON'T win the game! We are going into a 3rd overtime in Detroit, with the Wings and the Penguins tied at 3... Seriously, I can't take this kind of pressure. Stanley could be ours with just one little goal!

GO WINGS!

...and here are a few new pictures of my cutie... Spring is in the air!