{12 in 13} Photo recap, January-April

Here is a photographic update of my monthly adventures! It's hard to believe we are almost halfway through the year 2013.

January: potty train Caleb

juice in hand, Caleb points to the success in the potty...

We spent three weeks working on this skill, and saw lots of progress! There were also lots of ups and downs... days with no misses, days with about 50/50 success, days with several misses.... then the day Caleb decided he'd rather go potty in his pants than stop playing to go sit on a toilet. Honestly, I got tired of wrangling the meltdowns and decided to take a break. I'd say, "Time to try and go potty!" He'd say, "NO!" and either fall down on the floor and scream/cry, or run away to the farthest corner of the room, or down the hall (which was actually almost funny, but not when it started happening several times a day). I got tired of spending so much of the day calming him down, talking through it, and finally sitting on the potty for a moment or two, then doing it over again an hour or two later. I was ready to be able to leave the house and buy groceries again! :)

So... he's in diapers again, for now. We know that he knows HOW to use the potty. He can definitely do it on command. I am just going to give it a rest and see if he's willing to try again in a month or two.

February: love deliveries

The love deliveries were a success! I had a couple good conversations with neighbors, and it has opened the door to more conversations with one neighbor named Carl who we see regularly, puttering in his garage. I was extremely excited to receive a couple of thank-you notes in the mail from people I didn't personally connect with, just left the little basket on their doorstep. It's very exhilarating to give love away, in even a minor way like a heart-shaped cookie and some cake balls. :)

March: start a garden

A few weeks ago, Caleb and I planted a bunch of flower seeds in an old egg carton. Our impatiens and alyssum seeds have just started to sprout, and we are waiting for the nasturtiums to appear. We also "adopted" four potted strawberry plants from Grammy and Papa's garden. There are several red berries on each plant, so we are excited to see how they taste in a few weeks!

Sometimes I forget what kids don't know, and specifically what Caleb doesn't know... When we were first getting familiar with the strawberries, I asked him to "water the strawberries" with our watering can. He poured water directly onto the biggest strawberry! I quickly realized I needed to clarify that the best way to water strawberries is to water the dirt beneath them. It was super cute. He responded very literally to my instructions.

April: read the Bible and pray for 30 days

Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.... 

 I am loving my morning quiet times! I've kept with it, even beyond April (which was sort of the goal). I'm starting to enjoy getting up early, after that initial groggy period. I can hardly believe I just wrote the words enjoy and early in the same sentence. I think it might be getting easier as my body gets conditioned to waking up at 6 every (week)day. It makes a HUGE difference in the rest of the day when I am able to spend time in the Word before Caleb gets up. Love him to pieces, but it's just not the same if I try to read after he is up and moving and talking. :) I read Matthew for the first 28 days of April, then moved on to Mark and started Luke about a week into May. It's really, really good to get in the Word, something I knew but just never quite got around to doing most of the time.

I promise not to ONLY blog about {12 in 13}! I just wanted to share a few photos to go along with the commentary. :)

COMING UP! 
May: complete Bull Canyon Run 5k
June: try a refined-sugar fast
July: sew, sew, sew
Aug: look into homeschooling resources
Sept: open Etsy shop
Oct: memorize a chapter of Scripture
Nov: prepare for Christmas/Advent season
Dec: make & execute a "giving list", not a getting list