Treats!

Apparently the nudge that Animalia needed wasn't the Potty Gods nudging her. It was Nana and a couple of M&Ms. I swear she's just squeezing it out when she doesn't even really need to go. Just to get an M&M.

She's just like her Uncle Buncle. Nana had to bribe him when he was Animalia's age. But I guess it works. He's 28 and still using the potty. And he doesn't even have to be bribed.

Potty update

Shortly after I made my potty training update, Animalia started showing interested in the potty again. Today she even pooped in it.

Apparently all I had to do was say it out loud and the potty training gods would step in and nudge her. So. There it is. Wherever they are, whoever they are: Thank you.

TWO! Birthday party, part 1.

Yesterday, 12:36pm, Animalia turned two. Two. TWO!!!!

We celebrated with:
A long walk to Roma Imports with Daht, Nana, and Tata, where we purchased lasagna and bread for dinner. We walked back home a different route and hit a small park and Dairy Queen for ice cream. At DQ, Animalia got a little vanilla ice cream in a cup and sat, legs crossed, like a lady to eat it. When we arrived back at Nana's house, Nina's sister was there to deliver some balloons from Nina. Animalia giggled happily when she saw them. Then she asked if they were Adelina's or Lito's. We told her no and she wandered around holding her ballons "by self" and saying that they weren't Adelina's or Lito's.
After our walk, we baked a cake (from cake mix) at Nana's house. Animalia stirred it "by self" and also said "hold the bowl so I can stir it." "Stir it" sounded like steeew it. It was cute.
After our cake baking we took her home and took naps.
After our naps, we picked up Tío Javier (Animalia now calls him Javiert) and went to the mall. Animalia got some chocolate brown Converse All Stars. Then we went to Build-A-Bear. She was given a name tag stating her name and that it was her second birthday. After loving on all of the empty shells, she chose a bear. We were asked if we wanted to add sound and pressed a few buttons with Animalia, trying them out, but we elected not to add sound after one of them said "What's up, girlfriend?" and we decided we couldn't listen to that over and over again. Animalia was scared by the stuffing machine as it was almost as loud as a vaccuum cleaner (and she hates those). She liked the beating heart, so we added one. Then she became distracted by a little red convertible. We chose a couple dresses and had her choose one. She went back to trying to climb into the little car. It was time to finish up, so she helped me press the buttons on the computer, until she became distracted by a different computer. I panicked and chose the name "Petunia" for the bear. And so it was. The birth of Petunia.
After the bear building, we went back to Nana and Tata's house for dinner with Tío and April. Animalia laughed hysterically and forcefully every time anyone said "Petunia" and played with her balloons some more and finally, when we asked whose birthday it was, answered "It's MY birthday!" We ate dinner and cake and unwrapped presents. She got clothes and a book and Robin Hood and a Tee Ball set and a baby doll that has a tuberculosis cough and comes with a play doctor set and a miniture grill along with wooden shish kebab and s'mores. She was impressed and happy. We were happy and tired.
After her small birthday party, we went home.
After we got home, we relaxed and, finally, slept.
After Animalia woke up in the morning, she asked for Petunia. And laughed.

Birthday party, part 2 will be posted sometime after her October 11 party. Pray for my sanity. Please.

Mi Animalia in a Wordle

Potty training strike

There's this unpublished post, a long one, that details our trials and travails with potty training. It was long. It was detailed. It remains unfinished.

The basic story is this. Animalia started potty training on her own initiative somewhere around 18 months. She just decided that she wanted to go and she did. Not all the time, but regularly enough. Then a little more than a month ago, she was going at Nana's house once or twice a day and most of the time when she was at home. "Wooohooooo!!" I thought. "We'll be out of diapers by two!!!"

And then, a little less than two weeks ago, she quit. She now refuses to go to the potty. She's on strike.

Crap.

Cupcakes

"Aya needs a cupcake," Animalia says, peering into Nana's refrigerator.
"There are no cupcakes," Nana and Mama both say, almost in unison.
"No cupcakes, " she whispers, almost as if she's giving herself a reminder. "The cupcakes are at Nina's house."

Nina bought her a cupcake during our visit in August and apparently it's made it into her long term memory.

Potions.

I'm watching Animalia in the shower. She has appropriated a couple of shampoo bottles, empty ones, and some plastic containers to pour water from one to another. Then she delicately mixes it with her finger. She's very busy.

All I can think about is when we were young, me and Nina and Uncle Buncle (Tío Javier). Nina and I used to lock ourselves in the bathroom and mix potions from random liquids we found in the bathroom cabinet. Nasty stuff-- alcohol and hydrogen peroxide and various shampoos. Javier would be banging on the door, begging to play with us, and after the potion was ready, we'd open the door. We'd tell him he could play with us if he drank our potion. He'd drink the stuff. And then we'd lock him out again. We were rotten. In retrospect I'm surprised we didn't kill or poison him.

So I'm watching Animalia play with this water and I imagine her with siblings. I laugh.