It's the little things!

First let me start by saying, I love my life! I would not trade where I am and what I am doing for anything! Nothing brings me greater joy than being there for Greg and Maria's firsts. Whether it's the first time sitting up or the first time jumping off of the coffee table...I treasure every moment! I am completely cool with many of the changes motherhood has brought into my life. I don't mind trading the Today Show for Mickey Mouse and Sesame Street, hot coffee for mildly warm/cool coffee because little hands want to be all over my cup, nice clothes for casual clothes with vomit, snot, dirt, etc,., pretty hair for ponytails, adult conversation for baby talk and big boy learning new words conversations, healthy food for chicken nuggets and hot dogs, staying up late for waking up early, etc. I may not know what is going on in the world today, but I know every little bruise, every little like and dislike, and don't miss a moment of my children growing up!

To be honest there is just this one, tiny, little thing I miss...

...going to the bathroom ALONE! Yes, that's it! If I could just pee by myself that would be great!

Going to the bathroom has become quite the event. It is no longer just something I do as a human, but could be considered an Olympic event with Greg. If I don't let him into the bathroom I listen to screaming, pounding on the door, and perhaps the occasional run and slam the whole body on the door! Apparently, Greg thinks I am doing something super cool and he would like to be a part of it...sign of potty training??? Yeah...I wish!! HA! Then there is the issue of Maria's safety. If Mom won't let me in...I will make the baby cry and then she will HAVE to come out of the super cool bathroom. It doesn't matter where I put her...swing, floor, pack n play...this crafty little man can get into everything! He creates towers of toys and crawls on them to hoist himself into ANY.THING!!!! If I let him, it's a little crazy...I mean it's like he KNOWS I am unable to get up and remove him from what he is doing wrong. For starters when it is just me with the kiddos I only go into the powder room bathroom downstairs. I cannot even imagine the things Greg would get into in the master bathroom...actually...I can imagine! In the powder room is this: toilet, sink, mirror, toilet paper holder, and trash can...THAT IS IT! So what's a boy to do: he can climb the sink like a monkey (this is out of reach to me when using the toilet...and he just laughs when I tell him no...AWESOME! He has now learned to turn the trash can over and use it as a step for climbing practically into the sink, that at any moment might rip away from the wall. Lovely. He is also quick with the toilet paper. We have learned this and we don't even keep the tp on the holder any more...so now he just takes the holder and pretends it is a microphone. He likes to try and twist it off of the wall as well! He also LOVES to flush toilets...whether you are on or not! He will go for that handle multiple times...this, thankfully is something I can pry his hands off! Our metal trash can also makes cool noises (and by cool, I mean terribly loud and annoying) when you throw it on the floor of the bathroom. It's also a lot of fun to take trash out...YUCK! What does he do with trash...runs...and throws it around my house.

Now here's the thing. The above listed things do not sound like a huge deal...but...he does all of these in the under 1 minute time it takes me to pee! It's crazy! I can only say no and stop so many times...he knows he has me beat...I cannot get up!

So really...it's the little things! I treasure my potty time when I have visitors, when hubby Greg is awake, or when I am at other people's homes. You know your a mom when you are at a rest stop with your family and you go into the bathroom ALONE and feel at peace and relaxed, despite the somewhat questionable conditions of the bathroom!

But in the end, these faces make it okay that using the bathroom has turned into something I look forward to doing alone...again...someday...