January 14, 2007
Katie has been getting up during the night to potty for the past couple of months. Once she eventually made the decision to do it, she virtually mastered this new skill with only the occasional accident.
Up until a few days ago, Katie would awaken Melissa every time to ask for permission to use the potty. Melissa, being a nice mommy, never refused Katie's request. So since Melissa always grants permission for Katie to use the potty, Melissa started giving a nighttime lecture in which she would repeat "And remember, if you have to go potty, you can just get up and go. You don't have to wake up Mommy to ask for permission." In time, Katie learned to get up and go on her own without permission.
But did the awakenings stop? Nope.
The new routine metamorphosed into something like this:
Katie gets up. Goes to the potty without first asking for permission.
Then...
Katie: "Uh, Mommy?"
Melissa (groggy): "Yes?"
Katie: "Is it OK if I flush? Is it going to bother you if I flush?"
Monday, January 14, 2008
Sunday, January 13, 2008
Little Gamer
January 13, 2007
A week or so ago, Katie told me that she wanted more games. In particular, she wanted a Hi Ho Cherry-O! game, like the one the kids were playing at one of the recent Christmas parties she had attended. And, because it's now a quick trip (2.6 miles away), the two of us went to the Wal-Mart and purchased that aforementioned game, plus a Chutes and Ladders game.
I had never before played Chutes and Ladders. Amazing, I know.
Back home, we broke out the Cherry-O game and played it again and again. She loved it. I then convinced her to give Chutes a try, to which she agreed. We played it a couple of times, but she didn't love it like Cherry-O.
For the next three or four days, it seemed like we were in a Cherry-O marathon. With some tweaking of the rules to benefit Katie, she regularly kicked our tales.
Then, Melissa suggested that we give Katie's newly acquired UNO game a try. Even though the game was the children's version, I thought she might still be a bit too young for it. But after reading the modified rules, it seemed that she might just be able to understand it.
Turns out that I underestimated her. Turns out that Katie LOVES Uno.
We play a version of Uno that is undocumented in the official game rules. After dealing the cards, we play with them face up on the table. Yep, as in everyone can see everyone's cards. It has taken Katie a few days to understand some of the most basic game concepts and strategies, but as she becomes better at comparing her hand with the discard pile - which dictates how the game is played - then we'll graduate to actually holding the cards.
Barely inside a week of gaming, the Cherry-O marathons have been replaced with Uno marathons, but the three of us are having a lot of fun sitting around the kitchen table and doing one of the things that happy families do.
A week or so ago, Katie told me that she wanted more games. In particular, she wanted a Hi Ho Cherry-O! game, like the one the kids were playing at one of the recent Christmas parties she had attended. And, because it's now a quick trip (2.6 miles away), the two of us went to the Wal-Mart and purchased that aforementioned game, plus a Chutes and Ladders game.
I had never before played Chutes and Ladders. Amazing, I know.
Back home, we broke out the Cherry-O game and played it again and again. She loved it. I then convinced her to give Chutes a try, to which she agreed. We played it a couple of times, but she didn't love it like Cherry-O.
For the next three or four days, it seemed like we were in a Cherry-O marathon. With some tweaking of the rules to benefit Katie, she regularly kicked our tales.
Then, Melissa suggested that we give Katie's newly acquired UNO game a try. Even though the game was the children's version, I thought she might still be a bit too young for it. But after reading the modified rules, it seemed that she might just be able to understand it.
Turns out that I underestimated her. Turns out that Katie LOVES Uno.
We play a version of Uno that is undocumented in the official game rules. After dealing the cards, we play with them face up on the table. Yep, as in everyone can see everyone's cards. It has taken Katie a few days to understand some of the most basic game concepts and strategies, but as she becomes better at comparing her hand with the discard pile - which dictates how the game is played - then we'll graduate to actually holding the cards.
Barely inside a week of gaming, the Cherry-O marathons have been replaced with Uno marathons, but the three of us are having a lot of fun sitting around the kitchen table and doing one of the things that happy families do.
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