Our Potty Training Arsenal

     Ahhh potty training, it comes with so much advice and so many options.  My daughter is almost a year and a half so I thought it was time we started introducing the idea.  I know a lot of people would probably say it is too early but she can't learn if we don't try, right?  The first thing I needed was to buy the necessary supplies to start our potty training adventure.  There are a lot of options but here is what I went with.

     Everyone I talked to recommended the Baby Bjorn potty but I ended up going with a potty from Summer Infant.  I thought they looked awfully similar and the Baby Bjorn was $25 where Summer Infant was only $9.95.  I also found the cushioned Dreambaby Potty Seat for $9.99 for I was able to get both for less than the Baby Bjorn.  Since I can think of so many other things I would rather spend money on than potty seats I thought this was the better way to go ;).  That said there are some things I do not care for with the Summer Infant seat already.  First, it has no lid which has not been a problem yet but we do have dogs so hopefully they just leave it alone.  My other problem is that the splash guard isn't removable and it is high enough that my little girl has trouble sitting down on it herself.  If I get a second seat for the main level I will be looking for something a little smaller so it would be easier for her to use.

     My daughter loves books so I thought it would be a great idea to get a few potty books to introduce the idea.  These two books are completely different from each other and Amelia strongly prefers Leslie Patricelli's book.  This one is simple and to the point with one sentence per page and bright pictures.  I could see an older child preferring the Once Upon a Potty book since it has a lot more detail.  The books are doing their job and Amelia loves reading the Potty book and even takes it to the potty with her.   

     Finally I got some Green Sprouts training pants.  I think they are so cute and we will use them once she starts getting the hang of using the potty.  Since they are cotton she will be able to feel when she is wet (diapers are absorbent and wick the wetness away) and hopefully she wont like the feeling and it will help her keep dry.  They also have a little absorbent core themselves to help in the case of an accident.  We are not to the stage of actually using these yet but I am hoping we can go from diapers to these and just skip the pull ups.

     Now that we are armed with all the necessary potty training supplies I need to come up with a strategy!  Right now I am having her sit on the potty before baths and she has peed in the potty several times.  We get excited and say "hooray!", which she really likes so I think she is getting the idea.  I am going to hold off on buying rewards for using the potty since the praise seems to be enough for her at the moment.  I guess I need to decide when we are going to start the real training and then just be consistent.  I am a little hesitant just because I know it is going to be a lot of work!

What age did you start potty training your kids?  Do you have any advice for parents trying to potty train? Is there a strategy that worked well for your kids?  Please leave advice, experiences or tips you may have in the comments, I would love to hear them!


                   

Disclosure - All of these products were purchased by me and there are no affiliate links on this page.  This is just my opinion :)

Lessons from the Zoo

     Taking children anywhere can be an adventure, both for the kids and the adults.  This last weekend we took a trip to the zoo!  It was Amelia's first trip and we also had my sister and her three boys, my husband, my mom and dad, and my brother so it was quite the crew along.  Here are some of the lessons from our first zoo trip.

                         

You cannot feed the cheetahs.
Shortly after feeding the giraffes we walked by the cheetah enclosure where one of my nephews loudly announced "I want to feed the cheetahs!"  Have no fear, we explained that he probably didn't want to feed the cheetahs ;).

At times rocks and gophers are bound to steal the show.
I think the first third of the zoo was spent pointing out the gophers and asking gopher related questions, while Amelia gathered rocks.  It is so funny how little minds work, but in all fairness the kangaroos were just laying there and the gophers had a lot going on.

If you lift up your shirt and press it against the fence a duck will bite you.
First, I would like to say it was not a child with our group that discovered this little fact.  Secondly, the child while surprised was not injured.

Amelia LOVES the carousel.
Getting onto the carousel I was fully prepared for an epic meltdown when the ride started.  This is because the first few times I put her in a swing, let her feet touch the grass, and all trips to the pool have had that kind of an effect.  However I was pleasantly surprised to find she love, love, LOVES the carousel!  She kept yelling "Whoa, whoa, whoa!" and smiling and laughing, it was the highlight of my whole trip (well that and feeding the giraffes).

New York city is not located in Africa.
Walking away from the African section of the zoo one of my nephews asked "Is New York in Africa?"  I am not sure how New York popped into his mind but it was pretty cute.

No matter how hard you push, the turtle statue is not going to move.
After contemplating giving the turtle a kiss, Amelia spend a good five minutes trying as hard as she could to push that turtle.

Even the best toddler has their limits.
It was hot and we were there for a while so eventually someone ran out of steam.  She perked right up once we went inside.  All in all she was a trooper!

Flamingos are not born pink.  Their pink (or orange or white) color comes in a few months from the food they eat.
There you go, I threw in a zoo fact ;).

    There you have it, our first trip to the zoo.  I would call it a big success.  Everyone had so much fun and I can't wait to do it again!  Do you have any lessons from a memorable trip with your kids?  I would love to hear them, please leave your stories in the comments!

How to take better photos of your kids

     I am not a professional photographer by any means, however once I had Amelia, learning to improve my photography skills became very important to me.  I wanted to be able to capture all the our everyday moments and big milestones, and do it well.  Here are some tips that have helped me.  I am constantly learning more but these are super helpful basics everyone can use!

Catch them in the act.

Instead of trying to coax them into something, just wait and sneak your camera out while they are doing their thing.  Here I caught Amelia looking out the window and grabbed my camera and was able to get a bunch of cute pictures!  These pictures will not only show their personality but what they like to do.

Make it Fun.  
Kids do not enjoy standing in a certain spot and smiling for the camera (well most kids don't).  This is going to get you very forced smiles that don't really portray their personality.  Plan an activity they will love, or ask what they want to do.  Making it laid back and fun will probably get you farther and then you and your kids won't be stressed and mad by the end.  When they are playing you can make silly noises or say something funny to get them to look your way and/or smile.  That seems to work much better than saying "SMILE!"

Just say NO (to flash)!
If it is at all possible, turn your flash off!  If you are indoors try finding the room with the most light (this changes throughout the day so experiment).  Outdoors you are normally fine without a flash.  If you have a DSLR, keeping a wider aperture will let more light in.  There are times however when a flash can't be avoided.  If you have a DSLR I would definitely recommend looking into a cheap speed light.  This will enable you to bounce your flash or use a diffuser to create softer light.

Blinded by the flash.

Declutter
When photographing inside your house try to keep clutter out of the background.  Now some people might take them time to clean and organize all the toys but I usually just put everything out of the way quickly.

Distracting clutter in the background.

Ahhhh clean background!

Keep clicking.  
Snap as many pictures as you can.  Don't worry they won't all be masterpieces but you may catch some gems you would have otherwise missed!  Plus the more you practice, you will find what is working and improve!

She was coming for my camera!

Sometimes bribery works.
When Amelia was 3-6 months old as long as she had a prop to chew on and examine she was a happy camper.  Once she could move it got a little tougher.  For her one year pictures I put her on a blanket in the grass (she hated grass, like cried and wouldn't walk on it at the beginning of the summer) and to make her happy I scattered yogurt bites on her skirt.  She loves yogurt bites and this took her attention off the grass and kept her happy.  Now that she runs around always, it is a bit more difficult and I can't always bribe her with something.

What you can't see are the yogurt bites hanging out in her skirt.

Try new angles.
Don't be afraid to get down on the ground or move around while photographing your kids!  Try from above, the sides, eye level, or ground level.  You can also try changing your focus.  Try focusing on their little hands, next time on the toy with them in the background, or of course their cute faces!  The more you try, the better variety of photos you will have (plus you can always delete what doesn't work).

Invest in photo editing software.
I highly recommend having some kind of editing software and learn to use it. It doesn't have to be super expensive or fancy but some editing can make a world of difference.  I have Photoshop Elements 11 and I LOVE it!  It wasn't super spendy and it has different levels to help you learn (beginner, guided, and expert mode) plus there are lots of free tutorials for it!  You could also look into getting some free software and see how that help too.

Before

After some minor retouching.

Get your camera out!

Say this out loud, it is the MOST important one!  All the tips in the world will not help you if you don't get your camera out.  I am sure you have seen my photography 365 project if you are a regular at my blog, but that is another great way to get some photos!  I don't do it everyday but instead make it a weekly thing to fit better into my life.  You don't have to do a project but I would suggest setting some goals for taking your camera out.  After all you won't have any pictures at all if you don't get that camera out!

         I hope some of these tips help you.  If at any time I get stressed or frustrated because I am not getting what I wanted, I put my camera down.  Nobody is going to have fun if you are stressed so it is best to stop and come back later.  Do you have any tips you would like share?  Please leave a comment, I would love to hear from you!

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