On With The Questions....

On the topic of potty training, what do you do when he doesn’t use the toilet? Do you Discipline? Do you ignore it? Do you make him clean it up?

Well, I’ve managed to get 3 kids through the potty training process but my 4th is by far the biggest challenge. So while I am experienced, I am NO authority on how to do it right. But I can tell you what we do. In the earlier stages of training, if one of the kids wet their pants, we helped them clean it up and made sure to let them know that even mommy and daddy have accidents some times. (Hmmm, again, TMI?) But in the later stages, when I know they have the muscle control to hold it until we get to the proper place and it’s just a matter of preference regarding the location of the deposit, they get the honor of cleaning up after themselves. I really have to stifle my need to “do it right” and make sure that their need of understanding the consequences prevails. Then when they run off to play, I break out the germ killer and wipe it up good. I think each situation is unique. There have been times when it has been downright rebellion and they’ve required a spanking for peeing on the floor, and other times I can see it’s just fear of something new.

Why do you live where you do and do you mind the rain?

Well, I live in the Pacific Northwest and yep it rains a ton. Not monsoons, but we’ve got quantity. In fact it pretty much rains from October to May or June with a few sunny dry days thrown in there for good measure. Sometimes we get a light sprinkle of snow, but usually we are just wet. I moved here from hot Northern California with my parents when I was a kid (job transfer) and I still remember thinking everyone was a kook when the sun would come out and the natives would put their shorts on and mow the lawn, whether it was 60 degrees or 80. My family would be wearing mittens and shivering in our down coats wondering what planet we had moved too. I’ve adapted though and it really doesn’t bother me much. We don’t take our sunny warm days for granted around here and now I’m one of the kooks. My hubby, who deals with “the blues” a little more than I do, has to really make sure he’s getting his exercise endorphins and every once in a while we hit the tanning beds to get some sunlight to boost our moods. The Pacific Northwest does a BIG business in indoor tanning.

What brand of tampons do you use?

Good grief! Bet you didn't think I'd answer this one, right? Tampax with cardboard applicators so I can flush the whole thing. I hate finding used applicators in the garbage can. That one even made me blush.

Moving on…..

What’s your favorite coffee drink? Do you like coffee ice cream and coffee flavored desserts?

It’s almost sacrilegious to admit this, being as I live in the land of Starbucks, but I’m not a big coffee drinker. Sometimes after a good meal with my dessert I’ll have a cup but it’s more like cream and sugar with a little coffee mixed in. I really like Starbucks Tazo Iced Chai (tea) lattes with skim milk and light on the ice. But too much caffeine does bad, bad things to my intestines. I LOVE coffee flavored things though. Mocha ice cream, coffee nips, tiramisu, it’s all good!

Well, I’m obviously getting the easier questions out of the way. You layed some deep-thinking stuff on me that I’m working hard on putting answers together for.

Stay tuned……