Kate's a bit busy this week setting up the marvellous Parent Blogger Network on Netmums, so our apprentice Listographer extraordinaire Keith is hosting the Listography for her. Not content with running such a tight-ship as he does, he has decided to set himself five challenges for the Summer holidays with his children.
I have been counting down the days 'til the Summer holidays start since Easter. It's now only three more weeks to go (or six days in school, one on a course and one as INSET. See told you I'd been counting them down. Do you want it in minutes?) until I get to have six fantabulous weeks with my gorgeous bundle of mischief and I can't wait. We have a few necessary items to do and some fun things as well.
Here goes:
- Potty-train The Boy.
I know! I'm a bit worried about this, and also thinking 'ewww' a lot. Guess I'm going to be getting very familiar with poo over the next few months hey?
- Tidy the spare bedroom.
It is an abyss of detritus. I now open the door, stand in the two square foot that are clear because the door pushes the stuff out of the way, and sigh. Then I close the door and declare to hubby that we need to tidy it soon. It is horrendous. There is a computer in the corner that we don't use anymore because we have the laptop. It's only use is as a print server and storage device for some photos. There is a bed-settee covered in The Boy's outgrown clothes that need to be boxed and put in the attic. A step-machine and abdominal roll doo-dah, both pointless and serving as a clothes rail at the moment. Countless cardboard boxes that are either from The Boy's toys (keep the boxes, the toys sell for more at a nearly new sale in the original packaging!) or from review items (they might come in useful!) and jiffy bags. Plus a gigantic wooden bowl that's about three foot across which my dad made, but now I have a baby it is impractical to keep on the dining table or it gets covered in playdough, paint and Dairylea. The room needs sorting out for God's sake!
- Make a start on losing some weight.
I'm contemplating the possibility of a sibling for The Boy at some point. I was fortunate not to gain any weight (at all!) with The Boy, but I can't be so certain next time around. I want four stone gone by November 24th (my 10th wedding anniversay). Or else!
- Family Time
I do not want the weeks to whizz by and not have done anything in them. Weekends will be spent doing things as a family unit. Week days will hopefully be filled with socialisation (for him and me), craft activities and playing in the garden.
- Retrain our sleep habits
We are rubbish at going to bed before midnight and our son wakes up at half past six. It is impossible to survive on that, it needs to stop now! Along with this, we need to get The Boy off the habit of being cuddled to sleep. I think I've built it up into a bigger thing than it is, but he will learn how to go down by himself. Won't he?
That sounds like a busy summer. I don't envy you the potty training. Or the spare room tidying. Family time and more sleeping definitely sound good though 🙂
An ambitious and impressive list but sounds like the prospect of a new lil' one migh tbe just the incentive you need to tick each one off! Save the packaging for nearly new sales – thanks for such a handy tip!
Amen on the sleep thing. I also cuddle Moo to sleep and she USUALLY ends up in bed next to me as well, sometime during the wee hours of the morning. Bad habit, bad bad habit – as I keep being told whose children still come in with them and they're 8 yrs old…! Eek!
PS everyone needs a spare room/dumping ground. It's human nature.
potty training always seemed remarkably easy for my three but i never did the whole nappies today thing, more of a slowly slowly approach and it worked fab all mine were dry before they were 2.5 and next to no accidents because I used to leave nappies on until they were using the potty throughout the day, good luck with the sleep re training too I must admit i was never great at that and Mikey still likes me to sit with him when he falls asleep :o/ my eldest two however are fab so it can't last forever can it?
Some great goals there. Hope you achieve them all. The most life-changing one is the potty training. But with boys it will be harder than losing four stone (well, it was with mine). Cover the bathroom floor with tarpaulin and always keep a mop handy 🙂 Thanks for taking part this week. Very much appreciated.
Great list 🙂
ooooo potty training. Good luck. I hated it, much more yuk than changing nappies. I couldn't wait for him to get the hang of the toilet rather than the potty. Still, when else do you get to sit and do your business when watching Octonauts on the telly?