You know you're a parent when...

... You've had a legitimate argument with your spouse over whether "Map" on Dora the Explorer always stays inside "Backpack" or not.

... You get unbelievably excited for pee in the potty. You get ecstatic for poop.

... You actually hope that you get stopped by a train or stuck behind a garbage truck, as it would totally make your four-year-old's day

... You've mindlessly served your spouse food cut into small, un-chokable peices

... You know precisely how much time elapses between "peaceful quiet" and "trouble quiet"

... You hear someone say a bad word (i.e., "stupid") in a public place and audibly gasp, even though your children are not with you

... You cannot stand in one place and hold any inanimate object without thoughtlessly rocking it in your arms

Well, 50% of my children have been diaper-free for a week now! WOOHOO! Even better, Dominic has been pee-free (well, you know... except for in the appropriate places) for three days now, going on four. I don't think anyone can quite understand (unless, of course, you too have had a child un-potty trained til age 4) how excited this makes me.

In other news, Adrian now has two bottom teeth and is looking more like a big boy everyday. He is growing entirely too quickly!

And, in breaking news... Dominic just came downstairs with lotion all over his clothes and smelling like [expensive] perfume. This is not indicative of good things happening upstairs. I knew it was too quiet.

Oy vey...

Rasta mon...

Well, I am happy to report that I am now the mother of a four-year-old (remind me again how that happened!?) and "Project: No More Diapers" is underway! (So far, so good... stay posted.)

We are not having Dominic's birthday party until the 23rd, but we had a fun little family outing yesterday. We ate lunch out and Dominic got a peice of chocolate cake the size of his head (no exaggeration). And, no, he did not finish it. It was, however, pretty hilarious to see him mentally process the realization that we'd just put the head-sized peice of cake in front of him and he was really allowed to have as much of it as he wanted! After lunch, we headed to Build-A-Bear Workshop. The bear Dominic picked, "John", (no idea where that came from, but D was adamant that his name was John) is sportin' a blue t-shirt and big boy underwear! Can you believe it?! I have never seen a cuter waste of money than big boy bear underwear complete with tail hole! Naturally, we weren't passing on ANYTHING, though, that encourages "Project: No More Diapers." John is pretty adorable - not nearly as adorable as my 4-year-old BIG boy though! :)

9 am......

... And so far this morning I have:

- Changed numerous diapers
- Dealt with one pee "blowout" that escaped the diaper
- Reminded Dominic numerous times that once he turns 4, we are throwing his diapers AWAY and he is using the potty!!!
- Doled out boobies, bottles, Cheerios, and cheese
- Processed two loads of puke and poop stained laundry
- Windexed suspicious Dominic-sized handprints off surfaces too high for him to reach without "assistance"
- Wiped half a tube of Dora the Explorer toothpaste off the bathroom counter
- Bathed and dressed both boys after finding an "approved" outfit for my fashion diva son
- Reiterated to Dominic that diapers are going in the trash when he turns 4
- Unloaded dishwasher, rewashed STILL dirty dishes, and 87 bottles
- Changed baby clothes AGAIN and scrubbed barf out of the carpet

And the day is just beginning, my friends! :)

We introduced Adrian to the Exersaucer yesterday. He is a big fan already. :)