Am I Ready?

Some strange things have been happening in the Loughman household this summer. Our baby girl has decided she is ready to grow up, and this mama is not prepared.

To start with, Annie speaks in complete sentences now. It's the funniest, most disconcerting thing. It's so odd to be able to communicate with her now, and I'm still surprised every time a fully formed thought pops out of her mouth.

Annie is also obsessed with the potty (although as of press time, this interest seems to be waning a bit). I got so tired of lifting her on and off the toilet that I went a dug up Violet's old potty. She spent a good hour sitting down, standing up, looking inside, closing and opening the lid, and announcing to everyone in earshot that it was "Annie potty!" Then at one point she sat down and... she peed!

And as exciting as it was, I am not ready to potty train this summer. I don't want to dedicate the time, or laundry, that it takes, not in these remaining few weeks of freedom. Plus I'm not convinced she's actually ready. And while she did pee again the next day, already her interest appears to be fading and I'm honestly relieved. Still, it was fun while it lasted.

Who's ready to potty?!

Then Matt decided to take the plunge and convert Annie's crib into a toddler bed. I have no idea how old Violet was when we took this step, and I'm fairly certain it was way past Annie's current 21 months. But nevertheless, the crib is gone. I was off for a girls night out when we went to the toddler bed, so Matt was in charge of bedtime. He's so much better at getting Annie to bed anyway. Plus it was a no-nap day, so I figured it wouldn't be too hard. There were plenty of incredulous comments from my fellow toddler mamas once I posted our intentions, and I had my own doubts, but I also had a karaoke night to go to, so I peaced out.

Plotting her midnight escape route....

Sure enough, he sent me a picture proving his bedtime prowess while I returned my hearty congratulations and officially tendered my bedtime resignation. Matt can rule as King of Bedtime as long as he wants.

Snug in her bed... for now!

Ah, but what did my mama ears hear at 4 a.m.? The sounds of a little toddler, out of her bed and calling from the top of the stairs. I poked the King of Bedtime in the back and once more, peaced out. He got her back to bed and we were good to go until the following morning.

The jury is still out on whether this new bed will work. I'm thinking of paying Violet to intercept Annie when she wakes up, or just teaching Annie to wander into Violet's room if she's feeling lonely in the wee hours of the night. Or I'm gonna slap the side of the crib back on until she's four years old, who knows.

All I know is, I'm happy for the King of Bedtime to take over whenever he wants!

Girls Night Out!