ShowOff ShowCase: The One That Should Have Done Better

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This weekend, I'd like you to link-up a post that you wrote that filled you with a sense of satisfaction. You typed that last full stop, pressed 'publish' and thought "yes, this will be a good one!" and waited. And waited.

But no bugger actually bothered to read it, or if they did they certainly didn't comment on it!

Why? I can still hear you shouting it at the stats counter/comments log.

Heaven only know why. They didn't deserve it, they were good posts. Don't leave those poor posts being teased and taunted in the corner of the blog-posts' playground by the stat-breakers. It's not their fault that they were published on a Bank Holiday or when people were experiencing blog-apathy. They don't deserve to feel inadequate, not when they've done nothing wrong.

This weekend, I'd like you to help that post to hold its head up high! Brush them off, stick my badge at the bottom of the post and show them off for everyone to see. Don't be ashamed of them, help them shout at everyone:

I SHOULD HAVE DONE BETTER!

ShowOff ShowCase

 

Dare I Whisper the Question?

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Today was a good day. A very good day!

It started when daddy picked him up from his cot after waking. He said "daddy, I do a wee-wee!" to which daddy thought 'aye well, you've got a nappy on mate, it's fine.' Daddy took his nappy off (The Boy's, not daddy's) to discover it was bone-dry and on the potty The Boy did the most enormous wee to ever come out of a two year old boy. That it the first time he has done it, but he was dry through the night!

By the time I cam downstairs he had taken himself off to the potty independently and done another tinkle after breakfast. During the course of the morning, he did this on a further two occasions! One of them was when he was excitedly playing with his adored cousins: just stopped and went to the potty, all by himself. At the moment I am staying with him and prompting him if needed, but he really seems to have got the idea of how to use the potty and each of the steps. He's even learnt how to put his shorts back on himself, even if he does pull them up to his armpits!

A couple of times I've tried to put him on the potty and he's got cross with me because he doesn't need to go, and he genuinely didn't. I guess the lesson there is that he now knows if he needs to or not!

After lunch today there was no poonami, you'll be pleased to hear! We followed the same pattern as onWednesday and he did a lovely big deposit for me. It's also interesting to see a pattern emerging of when he goes.

When he woke up from his afternoon nap, his nappy was bone dry again. Bone dry! Another enormous wee followed and then he lasted more than an hour and twenty minutes before he decided that he needed to go again. Playing in the garden after dinner, and building the Little Tikes house that Toys R Us have sent me him to review, he stopped playing and pulled his shorts down. The only problem there was that he was 15 ft from a potty and hubby and I were trying to screw the roof together. I've not moved so fast in an awful long time!

So basically, he is now going independently on his pot. Well, I say independently: decides when he wants a wee, pulls his shorts and pants down and goes, I give him tissue paper to wipe, he pulls up pants & shorts, we wash hands. That's independent isn't it?

As I'm typing this up, he has just called out to us in his sleep. He asked hubby to come in the room. Hubby went in and tweeted this message three minutes later:

Son just woke up. Wanted his potty. Straight back to sleep afterwards. #pottytraining

He just woke up and asked to go to the toilet!

So dare I? Dare I whisper it? Or shall I wait a few more days first?

TRU Review: Rainbow Aquadraw

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For The Boy's last birthday, and at Christmas time, I asked for some Aquadraw for him. You know the stuff; water pens and a special mat which when drawn on looks like you're actually using colours. At Christmas we had a similar version which paled in comparison to the real thing, and for his birthday a friend bought him some small Peppa Pig mats. He enjoyed them for a time but I knew that it wasn't really doing what it could for his enjoyment or development.

Therefore when we opened up our box for review and saw a huge Tomy Rainbow Aquadraw box, both of us were very chuffed! The mat is huge and what is even more special about this one is that it has a rainbow coloured backing so when The Boy draws it actually looks like he's using colours.

Included in the set are two pens and three stampers with a star, a cloud or raindrops on them. There is also a squeedgy style brush and small water pot. The water pot deserves a special mention as, very cleverly, it is no-spill. You put a small amount of water to cover the base and due to the smart design, the water does not come back out again. Perfect for when your little one knocks it over in eagerness.

The Boy adores this; he has completely ignored all other aqua drawing tools that he has in favour of it, and will go and seek it out in order to play with it. This is definitely because of the coloured backing and accesories. He's not interested in the pens for the most part, although he is only 2 and I'm sure as he experiments more with mark making then this will be of more interest.

At £24.97 it is quite pricey, but at the same time it has brought him a great deal of entertainment, and future learning opportunities are endless. If you only buy one Aquadraw, invest in this one!

For more reviews by the Toys R Us Toyologists, click on the image below.

We were provided this free of charge to review. My opinion is, as always, honest.

Listography: Guilty Pleasures

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It's been weeks since I've taken part in my one of my three favourite linkies, many apologies to the gorgeous KateTakes5. However, I can't let this one past: Guilty Pleasures.

  • Home and Away

Aside from a few random episodes a month or so ago, I've not seen this in well over six months, possibly even a year! For me it just hasn't been the same since the departure of this chap:

And no, before hubby looks at me and says "I always knew it!", it was not just about his cheeky grin and pecs but because he was funny, could act and actually brought some life to the programme. However, I may have to turn back on and enjoy the mannerisms of Alf and Marilyn soon, I need a little Summer Bay in my life.

  • Arctic Roll

Jesus, Mary and Joseph, it's gorgeous! Simple as!

  • Buffy the Vampire Slayer

Absolutely brilliant, at it's peak with Spike (phwoargh). Specifically the episode where everyone forgets who they are and he comes out with a torrent of typically 'English' swear words, and 'Once More With Feeling'.

  • Naff middle-of-the-road pop songs from the 90s

Let Loose "Crazy for You" and Steps were my all time favourites. Have both CDs and still listen to them. Don't care, deal with it.

  • Gossip Girl

Think what you will of me but it's bloody brilliant. If I was 14 years younger you wouldn't think so badly of me for fancying Chuck Bass, but he is a God and makes that programme amazing. Without him and Blair's on-again, off-again relationship, it would be just a Serena Van Der Woodsen fashion show!

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Now pop yourself over to KateTakes5 and check out the other 50+ entries

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TRU Review: Lettersaurus

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LeapFrog have done it again! Another fun, easy to use and educational toy to help your toddler/pre-schooler learn and consolidate their development. This time in the shape of a friendly, purple dinosaur (but not an irritating one like that the one that shall remain nameless on this blog!).

There are three modes on the Lettersaurus:

  • Alphabet: press a letter button and it will say the letter name and then a word that begins with it, followed by an associated item.
  • Colours: press a letter button and it says the name of that colour.
  • Musical: each of the 26 letter buttons has a different tune attached to it. In addition pressing the buttons on his head makes him sing the Alphabet song.
  • Oh, and its head turns around.

Set-up was easy as there were no ties, but three simple plastic 'screws' through the base of the packagin; turn them 90° and the Lettersaurus is released. The toy can be personalised by following the really simple instructions to select the initial letter of your child's name; it took me ten seconds to do this. The dinosaur then says, e.g. "L! That’s the first letter of your name!" There are also two volume settings on the toy.

The Boy likes it; it was the first toy that he took out of the box when it was delivered. He likes listening to the different songs, particularly the Alphabet song, and we play with the colours section together by finding all the reds or yellows. He's not interested in the letters at the moment, the sounds that come after the letter are amusing and he likes the laughter but he's too young to really get anything from this.

I think the colours mode could have been developed by having the dinosaur say "Can you find another red? Well done", as it would have promoted more interactivity with the toy. I'm also not overwhelmed with the alphabet mode. As a primary school teacher, I do think it should say the letter sound and not just the name. This is where I find the toy confusing; it's aimed at 12 months+, so why have letters on there at all? I know it's called a Lettersaurus but to fully promote that side of it, it should work with the phonics which is what pre-schoolers use to help them learn to read.

I find its purpose confusing and think it has a limited life with The Boy at the moment, when he has the LeapTop which does basically the same thing but so much better. Younger children (i.e. 12 months+) might enjoy it more, but for us it's not challenging enough in its learning or play purpose.

A simple, fun and engaging toy for 12months+ but there are better toys around for 2years+

(£14.99 – Toys R Us)

This toy was provided free for review as part of the TRU Toyology programme. My opinions are, as always, unbiased and honest.

Five and Six, Clean Up Stinks

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It was all going to so well. Probably it still is, but I'm the type of person that when you've been riding high on the crest of a wave (albeit a wee one), a minor stumble sends me crashing down into the murky, poohy waters.

Sorry, too many toileting references there? Get used to them because potty training is frank and all encompassing.

Yesterday was brilliant. The Boy really did superbly. In the morning he stopped playing, looked down at his pants and said "Oh no, they coming down!", pulled them down and took himself for a wee. I was astounded and so very proud of him. We might have had big kisses and cuddles, possibly a silly dance together too. Later on after lunch, he was a little windy and fragrant so I sat him down, told what I wanted him to do, explained how to help it happen and then read his potty training picture book to him. I was looking on the pictures on the penultimate page, debating if that was a potette travel potty the little boy was sitting on when a little hand gripped my leg and I saw The Boy was shaking with the effort. Well blow me down with a feather if he hadn't just managed a deposit! I was even more proud of him than for the wee, and we definitely did a silly little dance then.

Then he had a tiny little accident. Whoops! But it's ok because I explained to him that it was his willy's way of telling him that he had to sit down on the potty quickly. Success! He went the rest of the day with no accidents and visits every hour.

Today started with a delivery of our Buppy pads that we had ordered. I instantly felt a little more relieved about the prospect of travelling to Manchester next Friday with a child who will have only been training for, by then, a fortnight. Mid morning, we popped to Starbucks and then my mum's for lunch. Coming home I decided to try The Boy with the same routine as yesterday lunchtime. All he produced was a wee after a few minutes of trying. I took the potty to the downstairs loo to empty and clean when I heard an informative little cry…

"I done a poo-poo on the carpet mummy!"

My heart sank. Why, oh why, hadn't I just sat there with him for one minute longer. I knew he needed to go, all the signs were there? And why in God's name, hadn't I left one of the many potties that we have amassed within plain sight for him? What a fool I was. I raced in with wipes and nappy sack to discover yes, there was indeed a deposit on the carpet, but that he had done it in his pants because he had been distracted by the bloody television. I sorted it all out while reassuring him that it was all ok, went to the utility room to sort it out (giving him a spare potty first) and had a silent weep for 20 seconds to myself.

Going back into the living room, I discovered that his new pair of pants were damp. I hadn't even had time to finish cleaning out the poo-potty before having to empty and clean out this one! And then, the washing machine went on with a collection of pre-soaked pants from the past few days.

So, what have I learnt?

  • That I know when my son needs to go because nappies used to disguise pops and pants don't.
  • That he can produce when on the potty, I just need to be patient.
  • That a few minutes after he has performed, he will need to do a wee. It seems that the emptying of the bowel must relieve the pressure on The Boy's bladder.
  • I am knackered and need to go to bed earlier.
  • I don't have enough chocolate in the house.