Potty Training Boot Camp

We're happy to say that we "broke on through to the other side!" Noah is potty trained, and we are darn proud of him!

On Jan. 21, we kicked off Potty Training Boot Camp at the Haag house. Here's a breakdown of how the weekend went:

Day 1: Friday, Jan. 21 - Tyra was at home with the boys and kept Noah in big boy underwear all day. He had four pee accidents and didn't really want to sit on the potty each time he was asked. It got pretty frustrating because he KNEW when he needed to go, but just wouldn't.

Day 2: Saturday, Jan. 22 - Tyra decided to make the whole experience a game to deflect the request of mommy and daddy telling Noah to go potty to a cool beeping timer that tells Noah when to go instead. She took our Kitchen Aid timer and set it to go off every 1.5 to 2 hours. We told Noah it was the "pee pee timer" and every time it went off, it meant he had to go potty.  We allowed him to press the button and help re-set the clock. After a while, he'd hear the beep and go, "It's pee pee time!" On the flip side, whenever the oven, microwave or anything else in our house beeped, Noah would say, "It's pee pee time!" HAHA! We unknowingly had our own little Pavlov's Dog experiment in our own house!

Day 3: Sunday, Jan. 23 - Needless to say this whole "pee pee timer" idea worked like a charm. Noah really got into going potty. We made a big deal out of it too, like he'd won the Heisman or something -- lots of singing, clapping, dancing and praise for our little guy.

Day 4: This was Noah's first day at school in big boy underwear. He did great and had no accidents.

It's been almost two weeks now since he's been potty trained and other than some hesitation to have BM's in the potty, it's been a breeze. Of course, the best part is not having to buy diapers for him anymore! He does wear pull-ups at night, but we don't call them that. We call them his "nighttime underwear" so that he doesn't think he's wearing a diaper still. Going to underwear for 11-12 hours of sleep at night is a little much to ask, so we're not pushing Noah to wear big boy undewear until he's ready.

Let it snow!

2011 has gotten off to a snowy start! We've had so much snow and Noah really enjoys playing in it.

Sledding with daddy

Don't think that smile could have gotten any bigger!

Our side yard looked like a winter wonderland!

Making snow angels

Where's Waldo?

I don't think Brenton could have been any more bundled up!

Poor thing looks like a tick about to pop!

Christmas with TWO boys!

Christmas with two boys was so much fun this year! Here's a glimpse of what we were up to:

Dec. 23 -- the boys got to celebrate Christmas a little early with Gigi, Papa Dave and Maggie.

Dec. 24 -- Here's Noah after we got home from the Christmas Eve children's service at church. He was mad at us because he didn't want to take a picture! He looked awfully cute in that sweater vest from Uncle Greg and Aunt Susan though! After a few photos, we made  hot chocolate, got in the car and drove around some local neighborhoods to look at Christmas lights.





'Lil Haag with Daddy Haag





Noah was finally coaxed into taking a picture when we said we could tackle each other! Boys will be boys right?

Dec. 25 - Christmas morning has finally arrived! By the way, those cute, oversized ornaments from Pottery Barn that Eric so creatively hung on the railing quickly became sports equipment for Noah to slap each trip up and down the stairs!

This moment, we'll never forget. After we came downstairs, Noah immediately saw that Santa had left a few cookie crumbs and didn't drink all of his milk, so Noah helped himself!

Since we didn't want the boys to see their Santa gifts before opening stockings in the den, we hung this quilt up to block their view.

Noah has always loved his miniature toy figures, so Santa left some Sesame Street and Super Why friends in his stocking.

Mommy insisted on the matching PJs :)

Noah's big gift was a train table, trains and tracks. He played there most of the day and loved saying, "Choo, choo!"

Brenton enjoyed his goodies too.

"Brenton's First Christmas" - super cute jammies from Gigi. Noah had a pair on his first Christmas too.

Dec. 26 - We drove to Hendersonville and the boys got to celebrate Christmas again at JenMommy's house!

We got to visit our great friends, the Leas, in Nashville. Noah and Emery always have fun and play really well together.

Thomas the Train PJ buddies

This was as close to a good picture with Santa we could get. Noah was pretty scared and had no desire to even sit next to him. He finally warmed up to him with the help of a sugar cookie.

Brenton's first picture with Santa at Smart Toys and Books -- best toy store around!

It was such a blessing to see friends and family during our brief trip to Hendersonville. It's never long enough though because we always feel like we're rushing from one place to the next. I guess that's how it is for everyone who is visiting out-of-town family! We really love being in Knoxville, but really wish we could see our family and friends more often.

Merry Christmas!!

From our family to yours...MERRY CHRISTMAS! May God bless you today with the joy of knowing that Christ is born! How blessed we all are!

Holiday Express at UT Gardens

On Sunday, Dec. 19, Noah and I had a mommy/son day at the Holiday Express at UT Gardens. We had such a great time and Noah was in awe of the model trains zipping by. It took nine men and seven days to put it all together. Parts of the city were replicas of historic Knoxville. The toughest part was reminding him to not touch the trains. One kid accidentally derailed a train, but the owner was so nice about it and said, "That's just part of it." After watching the trains, Noah made magic reindeer food, got a candy cane from Santa and warmed up next to a fire pit in the gardens. We'll definitely be back next year!

I thought this sign was kind of funny.

We've also had a great start to winter! The snow and chilly temps have been welcome...the ice, not so much since schools were out for three days.

I love to watch the relationship between Noah and Brenton. Noah is Brenton's favorite thing to watch. He makes him smile (and sometimes cry when he gets too rough), but for the most part they love each other dearly. When Brenton wakes up in the morning, Noah always asks to hold him. Here they are relaxing on the couch together.

Noah is always concerned about Brenton -- his whereabouts, needs, etc. When Brenton cries, Noah will say, "It's okay, brother. No need to cry" or will start singing him the Barney song. You know, the one that goes, "I love you, you love me. We're a happy family with a great big hug and a kiss from me to you, won't you say you love me too?" It actually quiets Brenton down (usually) if he does get fussy which is pretty rare. I sang that song a lot to Noah before naps and bedtime when I was pregnant with Brenton, so maybe that's why he likes it so much. All I can say is that I'm quite content in a house full of boys!

Halloween Weekend

Whoops! Here's a post we meant to publish, but forgot to...The boys had a big Halloween weekend. Noah's went to his first birthday party at The Little Gym for his friend Ella Kate's 3rd birthday. He wasn't sure what to think at first, but loved it after he realized he could climb, jump and pull up on just about anything.

Noah got in Brenton's bouncer and said, "I'm Brenton." Too sweet.

Noah tasted s'mores for the first time and didn't get as messy as I thought he would. After s'mores, we watched "It's the Great Pumpkin, Charlie Brown" or "Punkin' Movie" as Noah calls it. He's officially a huge Charlie Brown fan now.

And here's our little monkey, Brenton, and alligator, Noah.

Some former neighbors stopped by before we went Trick or Treating. Noah misses his buddy Caroline being across the street.

One of our neighbors really gets into holidays. Noah loved his yard the best.