3-Day Potty Training Method- DAY 1

Today has been interesting to say the least! She is loving wearing her undies! This morning we started with a whole grain breakfast and a lot of juice and water. She then sat on the potty and I talked about being a big girl today and using her potty. She was really excited!! Even her big brothers cheered her on and encouraged her!

Well, we had two accidents in the first two hours. The second one was hilarious. We were in the kitchen getting more water and she peed on the floor. Then she started to freak out and slipped in the puddle. I wanted to laugh but I just played it off and we ran to the potty. Then the cues started coming. She would start to pee a little and then grab herself. The first time she did it, I ran her to the potty and she sat there but didn't pee. She stood up and started peeing next to her potty so I quickly sat her on the potty and that's where the trouble started. 

She FLIPPED out!!!

She started to cry, but I held her on the potty while she was still peeing and I cheered her on and celebrated her doing it. After she was finished she just sat there. I handed her toilet paper because she likes to wipe herself and isn't bad at it, and then I gave her a small baggy of M&M's and then the incident was forgotten. We dumped her pee in the potty and she flushed the toilet and said bye bye pee pee!! 

We had an exact same incident a little while later with her peeing a little, us running to the potty, her crying about peeing in the potty, and this time M&M's weren't enough, so I treated her with fruit snacks. 

Then came nap time. The program suggests NOT putting them in a diaper or pull up, but baby ducklings crib is not yet a toddler bed so there is no way she could get up and go. So I decided to put her in a cloth diaper. This way she'd still feel the wetness but it wouldn't be such a big mess. 

After her nap I felt like we made a big step forward. We sat on the potty and then put undies on. I was putting pizza on a plate for us when she ran to the bathroom and I heard her potty move. I ran in there and her undies were damp but not soaked so we sat on the potty for about 10 minutes and nothing... So before our dinner got cold we put new undies on... And she peed within a few minutes. I was just proud she ran to the bathroom on her own. It was a good sign. Then after we ate we sat down and watched Barney and she dampened again so we ran to the potty and again with the crying and trying to stand up while peeing and this time fruit snacks nor M&M's worked... But she finished and we did the flushing routine and she got some fruit snacks and 3 M&M's and all was calm. We went back to watch Barney and she was playing in her toy area and I was watching her. She ran over by me and grunted and I scooped her up and ran to the bathroom, but we were too late. She was crying and I was trying to reassure her but she didn't want me to take her undies off and she got poop all over her legs because of it but I finally got them off and wiped her down. I then put her poop in her potty and explained that's where poop goes. Then I  put it in the toilet and we flushed it. I cleaned out her potty and then stuck her in the bath. After bath time she had one more accident and no more peeing in the potty. She's CD'd and in bed. 

I have all her soiled undies in the wash now, which I need to go put in the dryer. So for the first day it wasn't too bad!! I'm really hoping the next two days go well and she keeps getting better at it!!

I have some kind of stomach bug and it made the day more interesting and my mom didn't get here until noon to pick the boys up, but it wasn't a bad experience at all. Wish us luck for the next two days!

3-Day Potty Training Technique

Well here goes nothing. I signed up and got the ebook for the 3-Day potty training technique. The princess duckling turns two in one week and I'd say she's been ready for about two months. I just haven't been able to find 3 straight days of being able to practice this technique (this weekend we had to cancel plans because of illness striking again), so I've been working on preparing her.  She likes to flush the toilet and say "bye bye pee pee" and she LOVES to wear undies, especially over her diaper (because she doesn't like the feeling of peeing on herself). So I am really hoping we will be successful and get potty training going the next three days. She's had a fever the last 24 hours and a stuffy nose but she seems to be in good spirits and she was so excited to pick out her new potty and undies! We also have plenty of snacks, juice, water, and high fiber snacks. We also picked up some rewards like stickers, M&M's, and fruit snacks. 

My worries are:

1. She's sick so she may not be interested in this at all

And

2. We move in a month to Hawaii, so I'm afraid we'll regress. But She seems really ready to do this so my fingers are crossed. 

Today was the final day of preparations. 

We picked out her new potty and undies,

Stocked the house with fun things like coloring books and cookies to bake! We have movies picked out and the tea party set ready to go!

I also am in the process of preparing meals for the next 3 days and making sure laundry and cleaning are done. The older boy ducklings are going to be spending the weekend at my moms so I can focus on little duckling and potty training. 

I have been talking to her all day about being a big girl and putting her poop and pee in the potty. It also helps that she has a slight rash down there right now and I explained to her that by not wearing diapers anymore she won't get owwies there no more (and she took her diaper off and put undies on all by herself!) so I am hoping these are all good signs of what's to come! 

I was telling the soldier about all of this and I kept using the word "panties" and he kept telling me that's not allowed! He said panties are the sassy underwear I wear and his daughter is not allowed to wear those kind of underwear until she moves out lol. He cracks me up!!! He will be home from training in just under two weeks so I'm hoping to have her trained before then!!! 

I will keep you posted day by day!!!

And because I'm in my phone I can't type the link in as usual, so here's the web address for the 3-day program:

www.startpottytraining.com

Army Move - OCONUS

So I am really upset because I just spent the last hour typing this up on my iPhone, only for my phone to decide to shut down the Blogger app on its own and NOT save my post... Le sigh.... So hopefully this one will turn out as good as, if not better than the first one!!!

So here's my deal... My soldier just got his written orders to Hawaii about 3 weeks ago.  So I am going to do my best to tell you about what I know already and how our process of getting the ducklings and I added to his orders so we can go with him is going!

**I added a part below about getting your pet to Hawaii**

Any army move is challenging... er so I hear.  I feel like getting an OCONUS (off continental US) location as a FDS (first duty station) is a little more overwhelming because there is so much more to stress over! But again, I have nothing to compare it to... I am going to make you a simple list off the top of my head of what you can do to get the process started -- even if your soldier has not received projected or written orders yet, get this stuff done ASAP so it's less of a stress later if his orders do end up being for an OCONUS location!!! I will delve into details after!

1. And this may be the most important to make this whole process go smoother... MAKE SURE YOUR SOLDIER IS ON TOP OF THEIR CRAP!! Seriously! I know no one wants to be a nagging spouse, but I genuinely believe this is crucial to not being another horror story! If they have questions, they can ask their sergeants, it's one of the things they are there for!

2. All dependents (spouse and kids) must have a physical done! And ladies, if you haven't had a lady check done in the last 12 months... well get 'er done! It's a requirement!

3. After all the physicals are done, order ALL medical records.  This could save you from having to hunt down a military doctor if they question something from your physical!!

4. If you have a cat or a dog, get the rabies blood test done ASAP!!! If you go to HAWAII your pet has to wait 120 days from the day the lab receives their blood work before entering Hawaii otherwise they will be quarantined!  *More on this below!*

When your soldier gets to AIT they should fill out an EFMP form.  This form will identify whether their dependents have any special medical needs or not. When they get their written orders for an OCONUS location, you should mail your soldier your medical records and physical results. They will then contact the EFMP office on their base (usually located in the hospital) and set up an appointment to bring over the paper work and records.  They should also go to the hospital ASAP and register you and any children!  After the appointment they will review your physical results and any part of your records that is needed.  Upon approval they will pass the information along to your soldiers new duty station and that duty station (in our case Hawaii) will grant command sponsorship. They will add your name(s) to your soldiers orders and present him with those new orders. --we have not completed this part yet, my soldiers appointment is scheduled in 2 weeks which is nerve wracking because that doesn't leave us much time until his report date!

So in short, you need to be medically cleared to get command sponsorship, and you need command sponsorship to get your name on their orders, and you need your name(s) on their orders in order to set up housing and movers. Yes, it's a heck of a process!!!

While this is all being done, you can start figuring things out at home.  If you have a loan on your car you need to get written consent from the loan provider to move your car "overseas".  We still have a loan on our Odyssey through Wells Fargo.  They require that we provide a letter stating where we are moving, how long we will be there, proof of insurance with "Wells Fargo" listed on the insurance information, and a copy of the soldiers orders.  It's really not that big of a hassle compared to some of the other stuff! Also, start purging your home of anything you don't need or have not used in at least a year. Depending on your soldiers pay grade there is a weight allotment for shipping.  I know an E4 with dependents is 8,000lbs. Start trashing, donating, and hosting a rummage sale.  If you have a second vehicle, you may want to consider selling it.  The Army only pays to ship one vehicle, the other one is your out of pocket expense!!
***Speaking of out of pocket expenses, you should also know that when you get to your OCONUS duty station, if you do not have a house waiting for you, you will have to stay in a hotel.  You will more than likely be paying for that out of pocket, and then the Army will reimburse you AFTER, for up to 10 days.  It takes 3-5 weeks for your belongings to get there, including your vehicle, so you may have to rent a car for your soldier to get to and from work. This is all out of pocket expenses that you need to prepare for which is another reason I suggest selling your second vehicle and having a rummage sale!

The best advice I can give is to stay calm and try to turn everything over to God (or whichever higher power you believe in) because stressing over it will not change a thing! Be careful what you read, I read sooo much information on the Army FIC forum including horror stories that I stressed to the point of getting shingles! It's not been fun.  But I decided that I am going to turn it over to God and accept that whatever happens, happens, and that's the way it's meant to be!! Good luck and don't hesitate to ask questions! I will update more as I finish going through this whole process!!


**MOVING YOUR PET TO HAWAII**
If you haven't already looked into how to get your pet to Hawaii... well just a FYI... it's uber stressful!! Hawaii has some of the strictest quarantine laws because the Islands DO NOT have rabies on them, so they take extra precautions to make sure they don't start now! I will tell you more about our plan with our precious boy Capone after I type this out, but here's a simple break down on the process to get your pet ( a dog in our case) to Hawaii!

The Hawaii State Department of Agriculture gives in lengthy detail the process of getting your pet into Hawaii, but here is a rough break down! Here is the website for the Animal Quarantine Information Page for Hawaii.  I got the information below from this website, which provides even more great information!

• Allow at least five months, even though the waiting period is 120 days. The waiting period starts after all the shots and blood work is done and received.
• Dogs and cats will need original records of vaccinations signed by a veterinarian, and this can be hard to obtain if you have been lax about shots or have moved.
• After the animals have two rabies vaccinations at least 30 days apart, the blood work is sent to the lab to be checked, and the results are then sent to Hawaii.  At that point you can find out online when the first day your pet is allowed into the state.
• No more than 14 days before the pets arrive in Hawaii a veterinarian must apply a certain flea/tick preparation to the animals, and no more than 10 days before the vets must prepare a health certificate. Note that these are for the dates you are actually traveling.
• Pets must arrive by 3:30 pm in order for them to be released directly, otherwise they are transferred to the quarantine site and held up to 5 days (for the “five days or less” option, which costs $225).

This is our plan as of right now... I was sooo overwhelmed with everything and this move, we were going to give our dog up.  It broke my heart because he is my 4th child.  I love him so much.  I posted it online (FB) and was very particular about what kind of home we wanted for him.  Well my sister-in-law called me and said they would take him.  Well our eldest duckling had a break down over leaving Capone behind.  I talked to the hubster and my sister-in-law and this is what we are going to do: I am going to set up to have his blood work done next week.  We will get it sent in and everything ready to go. My sister-in-law is going to keep him for about 6 months while we move and get situated in our new home.  Then we will start working to get him over there.  This will get us through the 120 day wait period and allow us to get settled without dealing with a puppy dog on top of things. Oh and if  your pet does need to be quarantined, the Army will help pay for up to $500 of the quarantine cost, which for a full 6 month quarantine is less than half...

So I think this about wraps it all up.  I will update as our journey continues, but I hope this helps!

5 months... --->SLACKER<--- UPDATE on us!!!

Wow, sorry about that guys, it's been almost exactly five months since my last post!! Crazy!! Life has been crazy!! 

Over the past 5 months we have gone to Florida for two weeks, came home for a week and left for our soldiers BCT graduation. While in South Carolina for the graduation, the little girl of the family pulled a freshly brewed cup of coffee over on herself giving her second degree burns, two of them border lined third degree. Of course we rushed her to the ER, where they decided that since the Burns covered 10% of her body she needed to be transported down to the Augusta, GA burn center... The complication with this, is that we needed to have our soldier to Virginia by midnight the next night.... He called his 1st sergeant who totally understood and told him to get there when he could and bring a letter from the doctor to verify. The doctors were great and worked with  us and got our baby girl all cleaned up and bandaged within a few hours and we were ready to head to Virginia by noon the next day (accident happened on a Thursday and we were released on Friday). 

In the ER in Columbia, SC

Being transported to Augusta, GA

Waiting to be discharged after being bandaged

Her burns two weeks after the accident

She healed up beautifully!!!

We got our soldier to Virginia by 9pm and then he was granted a weekend pass so we got to enjoy another day with him! Aside from the little accident it was a great trip and it was soooooo emotional to see him. The kids were crying, he teared up and I just wanted to hug him and never let go!

It was so amazing. And then... AIT started. And one thing they don't warn you about is hold backs to get classed. His graduation date from AIT should have been July 31, and well it's August 6, and he's still there... He waited 7 weeks to get put in classes. In other words, he sat at AIT cleaning alllll day until his name was finally called to be put in a class. They also don't tell you that they have 1st, 2nd, and 3rd shift classes. He was put in a 2nd shift class which has worked out well!! In the middle of July he was finally handed written orders and my jaw dropped when I learned where we are going.... HAWAII!!! I never thought we'd end up with an OCONUS location but I was very excited... At first.  I will write another post of how to prepare for an OCONUS move, particularly to Hawaii since that is the only place I've moved to with the Army lol. Well am about to move to...

It's been a crazy journey, but I know it's soooo going to be worth it!!!