I can't believe I didn't post this months ago. This is Ivy, just after her second birthday, singing. I believe that she is singing The Wise Man and The Foolish Man (The wise man built his house upon the rock...)

I'm sure Freud would have plenty to say

I'm pretty sure we're crazy, but we started potty-training Ivy this week. I didn't set out to do this; she asked to sit on her potty one day, so I let her, and Shawn and I both got really excited about the idea that she could be done with diapers soon, so it sort of grew from there. We're trying to fit this in between the classes that I am now taking at two different schools, Shawn's grad-school research (USU or BYU? Feel free to weigh in), and the beginning of what will surely be a long and frustrating process of readying the house to sell.

I'm using the "potty party" approach I used to start training Kezie; basically it means that the kid runs around bare-bottomed for a few hours until she does her business without a diaper, and hopefully in her little potty. Ivy likes sitting on her special chair. She likes the attention she gets, and she definitely loves permission to run around naked all day. She does not yet like actually using the toilet; in fact, it seems to really bother her.

The first time, she came running to me in the next room screaming, "Broken! Broken!" and cried for five minutes. The second time, there was less shock and fewer tears, but she was obviously still disturbed by the whole process. I'm not sure what exactly the problem is, but it doesn't seem to have turned her off of the idea. Maybe this will work. *crosses fingers*

Things are looking up

It's been kind of a rough several months at the Averett house; illness, unemployment, and lots of unpleasant little things have made life a little bit difficult. This last week or so, though, things have been looking up:

Shawn was accepted to BYU's Physical Chemistry PhD program

Shawn was accepted into Utah State's chemistry PhD program (after initially being rejected. They changed their minds).

We got home Sunday night, and couldn't put the car in reverse. This is especially problematic because the car was in drive at the time, and reverse is in-between drive and park. We did finally get the car parked and turned off, but couldn't get it back out of park without using the manual shift release button, which seemed like a bad habit to get in to. So, I learned Ogden's bus system very well, a very nice neighbor picked me up from my night class, and we did okay for two days. The really good news; the car is still under warranty, and the repair was both quick ad FREE.

Even without a car, I've been able to get everywhere I needed to get by bus with my free student bus pass. This includes the WorkMed clinic out in Nowheresville where I had to go TODAY to get a drug test for my class, and the car dealership. The one place I couldn't go, a nice neighbor was available to come pick me up and take me home.

All of this public transit means I've been doing a lot of walking. This week's weigh-in should be a good one.

The weather was perfect for all of this walking around I've been doing.

Both girls slept all night. That's the first time that has happened in at least a month.

I started a CNA program this week. The hope is that, combined with a bachelor's degree and Gerontology major, I'll be able to find work soon. It's not something that's ever been on my list of life goals, but I'm excited about it.

All in all, things are looking up. Here's hoping they stay that way for a while.