Sturm Haus:

Thankfully, the last two days have gone better. While I was changing him Thursday night Otto told me that using the potty at school is about "following the rules." I said "Really? OK." Hopefully this little break can help us figure out how to make the leap from following rules, which is helpful to a point, to knowing when he needs to go and what to do about it. I'll re-read Sears and Brazelton this week for ideas.

I've decided that spring is the ultimate drug for Michiganders. Everyone in our subdivision has their windows open. You hear people laughing and talking well past dark, with lights on in living rooms until midnight. Dogs I'd swear I've never seen before are getting walked twice a day. Spontaneous backyard parties pop up as people rediscover their decks, and everyone seems to be doing yard work or starting a new home improvement project. I don't think happy pills in the water supply could have a more dramatic effect.

Yesterday I got home and there was a miniature parade heading down the street to the neighborhood playground. Otto was riding his trike, Noah was driving his miniature Chevy Silverado with his little sister riding shotgun, and Chris and Ryan were on scooters. We ended up spending a good hour or so at the park getting caught up with our neighbors while the kids chased each other around.

Otto finally allowed Noah to give him a ride. Last summer he was fascinated by Noah's truck, but wouldn't sit in it let alone let Noah drive him around. As the passenger last night he was in charge of communications and kept talking into the little CB radio. Noah's quite the showboat driver for a 5 year old, and Otto laughed and laughed while bouncing over the ground at 5 mph. We got home late, sunburned and sweaty and dusty, and fell asleep almost before our heads hit their respective pillows.

Today we've been busy running errands - haircuts for the boys, hazardous waste to the recycling place, returning bottles for deposits, etc. Tonight I think we'll go have dinner with Grandma.

Tomorrow I want to go to yoga, though it means missing church, and some housecleaning definitely needs to get done. And with two months, 17 days to go until the baby's arrival (or at least her due date), we'd better do some baby work. Like getting the room somewhat ready (though she'll sleep in the co-sleeper and get changed on our bathroom counter for the first couple of months). And picking a name -- a name would be a good thing to have before we go to the hospital. I browsed Borders for a bit on Wednesday, looking for a new potty training book (no luck) and a new name book (picked the Baby Name Wizard).

But who wants to do homework of any sort when it's 70 and sunny outside?