Milestones

Oh, no! The wee boy must have grown just enough. He can officially open all the doors in the house on his own. Ugh. I rather enjoyed being able to shut a door and know he couldn't get in/out. And we all had some good laughs when, during sibling chases, he would run into our bedroom and slam the door to hide, then a minute later we would hear him yelling for help because he couldn't get out. (He also did this in the kitchen pantry several times). And we would all chuckle and say "You go let him out." "No YOU go let him out." Good times. The laugh was on us this week when he was stuck in the room and when we didn't jump up to let him out, he opened the door himself and stood there with a grin from ear to ear. I foresee much more child-proofing to be done this weekend. We do have those doorknob protector things that prevent kids from turning a knob. We half-heartedly used them for Liam and Natalie, but I think perhaps they will be used more purposefully now.

The other milestone is that two days in a row, Owen asked to use the potty, and then sat on it and tinkled. Of course I made such a big fuss about it that I may have scared him. He wouldn't really look at me, and he didn't smile at all. I think he is a little embarrassed by the whole idea. I have not been pushing this milestone in the least. After exerting so much effort trying to start early with the other two, I was really not in the least worried if this one wasn't trained until Kindergarten. I finally realized (took me a while - I'm a little slow) that it is actually a lot easier with diapers, especially when you are in the car, or restaurant, or anywhere other than standing in your restroom at home. So lately when Owen has asked to use the potty (OK, before you judge, you should know it has usually been in a restaurant when he sees the big kids leaving the table to go, or before bed when he's trying to delay), I'll say "Oh, you can just go in your diaper - you don't need to use the potty!!" But I'll celebrate the milestone anyway, even though I know it means more work is around the corner. Bravo Owen!