Update on za' boys

First, Joshua is doing AMAZINGLY well with the potty!!! We didn't have a single accident yesterday. He stayed dry during his nap and every time we left the house to go for a drive or do some Walmart shopping. We put a pull-up on overtop his big boy undies when we were out, but it was dry and so was he! Today he's stayed dressed the entire day, with his big boy undies underneath (and a pull-up just in case). We ask him about every hour if he's ready to sit on the potty. Many times he tells us no, but when he has to go, he gives in and goes to the little potty. He also has a difficult time relaxing to do #2 in the potty, but he was successful again today with Daddy's gentle coaxing. So, as a reward, we took him to the slides behind our house. We'll have some transition to get him to go in the big potty (our potty) and we have to work on him telling us he has to go instead of us asking him all the time. But, he doesn't have to sit on a long time anymore - he knows when he has to go and goes immediately. We are sooo excited for him! I don't give him 'choc-o-let' anymore (or very rarely when he specifically asks for it) ... the praise has been more than enough for him. He's so excited about his big boy undies, he tells everyone who calls our house that he's wearing them. He also tells us that we do a good job when we go to the potty, and when he's finished he'll proudly tell Caleb "I did a great job on the potty!" I'm so thankful that this has gone much better than I could have anticipated. Pray that it continues to go well!As Joshua is potty training, Caleb is learning to walk. Caleb has taken as many as six steps in a row. Shawn and I have been sitting across the floor from one another and encouraging him to walk to the other one with a toy, etc. The problem is getting him stable after he stands up. Then he tends to dive for whichever one of us he's after, but I think he's making progress. He also took about three steps into Joshua's room after his brother and then did his six steps in a row in the Bean's room (Daddy snapped a picture in motion below). I think soon he will take off! I also realize that most of our walker toys are outside, whereas with Joshua we had them all indoors. Joshua also wants the attention of walking from one parent to another, so it is somewhat difficult to focus on Caleb when both are so adorable.Caleb is also working on tooth #9. I can see the white pressing on his swollen gum, but it hasn't broken through yet. He loves to stick his tongue out and keep it there...something Shawn thinks is adorable and momma always tells him to put it back. He giggles then, so I think it's become a game. He is ALL personality these days. My little easygoing Caleb Luke has somehow gotten the 'tude of his brother. He throws himself down in fits to bang his head, just like his older brother used to do. I've noticed it's mostly when he's hungry or tired, but it drives me bananas! On the other hand, he also loves to squeel with delight and show his preferences, and it's so neat to see his personality take form. He says "mama" clear as day, and he'll occasionally say "hi!" which sounds more like "Haaaa!" He loves to play with shapes and actually has the patience to get some of them in the shape holder. He also loves to try and get the computer, which has started him getting his first spanks. When he looks at me with those devilish eyes, grins and then turns away until I look away and then heads right back for it, I know that he is defiantly disobeying since he knows better. For the most part, though, I think he's easier than the Bean was at this age, but I'm starting to realize that Joshua was an amazing kid...it was just a hard transition into parenthood for me. So, now that I'm 'broken in' with the first one, I can take things in stride a little easier.Caleb also had milk for the first time this week. He is really slowing down with nursing and only does it first thing in the morning and before bed. So, for lunch & supper, I started giving him milk since he's only a couple weeks away from turning one. He's doing really well with a sippy cup and with his eating. He loves peanut butter & jelly sandwiches, bread in general, waffles and peas (although, not all together, of course). He's not as fond of Cheerios as he once was, which is sad to me. But, maybe he'll aquire a taste for them again. Here's Caleb in the nursery, pulling down his beloved blankey to play peekaboo with Daddy.Another place he loves to play peekaboo is in our master bathroom shower. He loves to hang out in there for some reason. I actually don't mind that because it's helpful to have him close by when I'm getting ready. But, it does crack us up that he likes the cleaning thing-a-majig and will play peekaboo with the shower curtain and hide out in there. He's sooo funny!Finally, a funny Caleb story to end with... Daddy bought a lock for our one cabinet in the kitchen. Whereas we never bought locks but simply taught Joshua his boundaries, we realized that if we're going to entertain more, it's nicer for other parents if our house is a little more childproof. So, we have one lower kitchen cabinet with our dish detergent in, and we decided to buy a lock for that one with the type where you don't have to drill into the cabinets. Unfortunately, when we got home from Walmart, we discovered it was just under a quarter of an inch too small to fit the knobs. So, Shawn stuck it on another cabinet since we had already opened the package. He gave me a quick lesson on how to use it, and I thought to myself "I'll never be able to get into my mixer again." But, within seconds, Caleb went over, played with the lock, got it off the cabinet, threw it on the floor and open the cabinet doors proudly. That Caleb Luke! He's sneaky! I cracked up and told Daddy that cabinet locks are idiot-proof, not necessary baby-proof. We're also looking for a bigger gate that can extend across the entire first floor where the stairs are...they didn't sell any at Walmart like that, but we thought we might find a good deal at Amazon.com. It wasn't ever a problem for Joshua, but again, sometimes it's inconvenient for other parents, so we'll see what we can find!I know I said that was it, but I must end this post with a cute Bean story. Joshua has been saying "Happy Father's Day!" all day. At dinner tonight, he said "Happy Father's Day, Caleb!" Haaaa!!! I love my boys!