Family Portrait – August 2011 (Oh well, at least I look great)

This is one of those blog posts you do out of guilt. I was chatting with a fellow blogger friend the other day and she shared with me that she missed my updates.  She wondered how the boys were doing… had they started school yet? How is their relationship, are they closer now that Bryce is a little older? In general, what the heck is going on with all of us?

I definitely owe everyone a detailed and thorough catch-up post. Unfortunately, this won’t be that. But I will update ya’all on a few things because I miss you guys and want you to know I haven’t disappeared for good. I’m just in the middle of so many projects and I’m really having to prioritize how and wear I spend my free time online, ya know?

Okay, so here are the important things:

• Right now I’m enjoying teaching Chase to read. Okay, well we’re not there quite yet.  So let me back up a little. Right now he’s learning to identify his upper case letters. Once he’s got that, we’ll move on to lower case letters… then phonemes. I’ve been a lazy parent up til now, but my mom and dad taught me and my sisters to read by 3 years old, and my older sister Nab’s son, Garvey, was reading by 3 as well. Both my parents and my sisters worked with us/him, which is how it happened. So I realized that if I want Chase to have a head start as well I’ve gotta do more than what I was doing… which was nothing. So he is taking to it surprisingly well. This is only Week 2 and he already knows letters A-D.  Yeaaah!!! We’re having fun with it, and I’m trying hard to keep it light and pressure-free. I’m hoping by his 3rd birthday, in January, he’s got his upper and lower case letters down, and beginning to learn their associated sounds. Tips anybody? (And don’t you DARE mention that “My Baby Can Read” bologna. #HatedIt)
• Potty training updates.  So… yeah. I’ve pretty much given up on that with Chase. They can do what they do at day care, and when he feels like going at home, he’ll go. *throwing up hands in defeat* I was finding that I was losing my patience, because I know that he is capable of going physically… like, he can feel the urge, stop what he’s doing, walk to his potty in the bathroom, pull down his pants, sit and use it, then call for help. I know because, when he feels like it, he does it. So knowing that he can do it was causing me to feel really frustrated, annoyed even, when he wouldn’t do that. So I stopped “trying” to potty train and have just accepted that he’ll start going regularly when he’s ready. Just because someone is capable physically doesn’t mean they’re emotionally there. And Im sure me being angry about it wasn’t helping him. Derek really wasn’t doing anything anyway, so nothing really will have to change there. (Derek, don’t shake your head in disbelief as you read that… you know you weren’t! lol)
• Most of my “leisure time” (and I use that phrase loosely) has been channeled into Style Me Prissy.  I’ve loved transitioning into a fashion/style blogger… it just feels right, I’m really excited about it, and it’s going well, in terms of readership and traffic-wise… but I’m still trying to decide where I want to ultimately take it. I see so much potential in Style Me Prissy, and I’m excited about that. But right now it’s a tossed salad of personal style, celebrity style, looks for less, and random fashion photos and commentary that peak my interest. I guess there’s nothing wrong with a blog that is a potpourri of sorts. But I feel like, in order to take it to the next level, I really need to map out where I’m going exactly. A business plan, of sorts. So I’m working on that.
• Bryce is cute and sweet as can be.  I love that his personality is so calm and laid back and chill.  His brother, on the other hand…. Chase has his days where he is a great listener and so considerate and lovely.  He loves to give Bryce hugs and make him laugh. And then there are days when he is testing the limits like crazy… leaping across furniture like an animal…. wrestling with his friends at school…. and pinching or swinging at Bryce on the sly. *smh* So we just have to keep our eyes on the boys when they play. But I will say that their relationship has come a long way. They laugh so much when they’re together, and that makes me happy. I just can’t wait til Bryce gets a little more height and weight on him so that he can hold his own with his big brother.
• You’ll remember from the video of Bryce’s first steps that I was wearing Lasik goggles.  Well, yes, I did have the surgery and am so far extremely pleased with it. My vision is now 20/15 and everyday I still can’t believe that I no longer need glasses or contacts. Although it’s been over a month, I still find that I’m pushing my “glasses” up the bridge of my nose, out of habit, or still thinking I need to take my contacts out before I go to sleep.  Aaaah yes, it’s a beautiful thing. Makes me wonder why I waited this long. Anyhoo, I’d definitely recommend it if you’re on the fence. Who knew it could be so great to open up your eyes, in the middle of the night, and actually be able to read the alarm clock on the night stand?