Don't Tell Chad!

Spencer has been potty training for the past few weeks. My mom was teasing me that he would be in kindergarten before getting the hang of it, but by mid-June he was doing really well and it's going great. He's still wearing diapers at night just in case, but hasn't wet one in a couple of weeks. Swedish fish and stickers are his favorite rewards and I've been pleasantly surprised by Morgan and Mallorie's willingness to help him with the process. He and I have had many, many discussions about who poops, who goes potty, and where. Anatomy is also coming into play as he's asking if "insert name of friend/family member" has pizzle parts or not. (I've mentioned pizzle parts, right? Comes from a sheep shearer's term for the penis. Saw it on a YouTube video when learning to shear sheep last spring.)

My favorite question, which I hear multiple times per day, "Mom? Do I have undies?" It's his way of saying that he needs to go to the bathroom. As he told me one evening, he doesn't have to run to the bathroom when he's wearing a diaper, only when he's wearing undies or a pull up. Well, he's also been seen running through the house hollering, "the potty is coming!"

My favorite part about potty training a boy? There's the option of going potty on a rock outside. When he fights me to head to the toilet, it always works when I offer the outdoor option. He hasn't figured out the whole ordeal yet, and takes off his undies and shorts to do his #1 business. Then I help him get dressed and we move on with the day. However, his father wasn't so impressed when he dropped trau the other night and urinated facing our friend's car....Scott thought it was hilarious and his two daughters weren't paying attending. No harm, no foul right? Chadwick asked that I help Spencer find more appropriate places for urination than in front of friends.

And then there was today. We were invited to swim at the Well's backyard pool along with the Wards and Scotts. Toward the end of our time, I hear giggles from the other moms and look up on the edge of the pool to see a naked Spencer with the biggest grin on his face. "Mom! I went poop in the grass!" he proudly informed me. Burying my face in my hands and trying not to laugh, I asked if he was serious. Yup. He showed me the little pile he left near the swing set. The other moms were in stitches and I'm good enough friends with them not to be embarrassed. The second thought out of my mouth was "don't tell Chad!" The first questions was to ask where the poop shovel was located. They have a dog and I knew there would be one somewhere, I just never thought I would need it for my son's stool.

Okay, we need to work on appropriate bathroom etiquette. But it was still funny!

Hawley Mountain

We had a weekend open up for camping in the middle of June and we jumped at the chance to get our trailer out in the woods for a night....but we didn't know quite where to head. Chadwick's brother James suggested Hawley Mountain, between Horseshoe Bend and Placerville. It appealed to us for several reasons: 1-it wasn't far from home and since we weren't leaving until Saturday morning, we didn't want to spend the entire weekend in the car and 2-none of it requires reservations and in this part of Idaho, you can't get near an official campground without them. Several of the campgrounds which don't require them aren't open until the end of June, and since we wouldn't be arriving until mid morning Saturday, driving up to a place wasn't gonna work anyway.

One u-turn and several hours later, we found ourselves on the mountain with the task of finding a place to park the camper for the night. We wound up un-hitching the trailer to better explore the narrow, bumpy roads to find a spot. Once found, we returned and hitched up. Unfortunately, Chadwick took a bump too quickly and we bent the back fender of the trailer and ruined the lights on that side....my first thought was "don't tell my parents!" since that's who sold us the trailer. (For $1, but still.) The spot we chose was on a hill, which didn't seem to present a problem until it came time to raise the trailer. We had to dig a hole in the ground below the jack in order to move the handle enough to raise the roof. Thus began the weekend....

The area around us was deserted and the kids and Darwin quickly went to work exploring the surroundings. Camp went together nicely and the rest of the day was spent walking along the road nearby, playing horseshoes, and napping in the hammock.

The kids played 20-questions with Chadwick regarding the local flora. My favorite was this yellow flower with the impressive name "silver sulfa sinca foil." We repeated it over and over along the walk, giggling every time because it seems like such a ridiculous name! And I can still remember it, a month later.

Mallorie found a "secret forest" and Spencer happily climbed up the hill re-enacting the scene from Lion King when Scar throws king Mufasa off the cliff. For some reason, he and his sisters love to act out that scene!

I regretted not bringing a book as I found it hard to unwind and relax into the silence of the woods. S'mores finished off the night along with some board games.

We slept well and woke up to rain. Not just a trickle of rain, mind you, but a steady stream of rain that began in the wee hours of the morning. We dismissed the idea of a nice breakfast and dined on muffins and leftovers from dinner the night before. When it came time to take the camper down, we chucked the kids into the car. Both of us were soaked by the time we broke down the camp. Turns out, my ski jacket is not water proof....it was something of a wet ride home!

We made it home in time to shower, throw stuff into bags for church, and head out the door with lunch in the car. Not my favorite way to camp or rush back home and to another activity, but I'm glad we got out. The kids had a blast, Darwin was worn out, and I thought of the times I played horseshoes with my Bop-bop on camping trips. Morgan loved the game and was getting rather good by the end of the trip.