So we are ECing on the road this week. We are in sunny Florida visiting a good, long-time friend of mine. She is on the road to having a baby around Levi's birthday, so they will be a year apart :) I'm totally excited about this and as I hear her different aches/pains and joys/excitement, I can totally relate. She talks about being hungry and I am reminded that I had this phrase: the beast within is growling! Ben said I shouldn't call our sweet little baby a beast and I told him that he could call it whatever he wanted I just needed some food! Especially Cheez-Its. :)

So we have been playing in the sand and the ocean. I've been trying to be careful about him not getting saltwater splashed in his face so he wouldn't hate it. He seems to absolutely LOVE the sand. When I sat him down in it he looked at it for a minute and then put his hands right in it and held it up to examine it. After doing this a few times he decided it was time for a taste-test. Um, no. I took his hand away from his mouth and said no. A few minutes later he tried it again so I thought, well, maybe if he tastes it he will see how bad it tastes and then not put it in again. Wrong! He loved the way it tasted and the way it chewed. Another mom was there and told me it wouldn't hurt him as long as he only ate a little bit.

After a while he got tired so I was able to just hold him in the shade of the umbrella in a towel and he slept amazingly. It was so peaceful with the breeze and the sound of the waves and in the shade it was the perfect temperature. Best of all, Levi was fast asleep in my arms. Yes, he was covered with sand, but he was sleeping perfectly. It was so peaceful and beautiful. I wish I had a picture I could post of it but I forgot my camera. Sad day.

Well, since we got here Levi has both pooped and peed in Leah's toilet 3 times. He only pooped in his diaper once or twice I think. I was truly amazed at this. He hasn't pooped at home on a toilet in a while and here he decides that he wants to do it. I would think that being on the road would have thrown him off, but it seems he is doing just the opposite.

He has also just been a really good baby in general. He is so good-natured with other people and just loves the social interaction. He was amazing on the plane. He nursed or sucked on a bottle all the way up, slept in the air and then nursed all the way down on both our flights. He pooped in his diaper during our layover. Right before we were supposed to board actually so I just threw all politeness out the window and changed him in the corner of the terminal area. I didn't want to waste my time with going to the bathroom. Glad I didn't have to change him on the plane :) That would have been rough!

Okay, so that's my EC experience. Levi is 8 months as of a few days ago. I'm so thankful for such a sweet little baby.

New post here! You all thought I had quit hadn't you? I decided I would do this blog so that I would have some good accountability and motivation to keep going even through the rough times of EC.

I seriously did think that Levi had no idea what was going on for a while there but then Sunday proved me wrong. We were traveling in the car all day long and in the middle stopped at my brother and sister-in-law's house in Fayetteville. I was nursing him in the back room and knew I needed to change him. I thought, why not? Why not just try to potty him? All I've got to lose is a few moments of walking over there and holding him over the potty. Well, his first full solid poop was on their toilet. I told them they should be proud! Haha! I don't even know what my family really thinks! They smile and laugh so I guess it's okay. For sure it kept him from pooping in his diaper in the car when it would really stink and be so uncomfortable for him. What's more is that when we finally got home that night he pooped on the potty again! I was amazed. So my EC energy is back and I'm working hard on him.

My newest problem is his strength. He likes to stiffen up like a board and refuse to bend his knees when I am trying to put him on the potty. This morning he absolutely refused to I gave in, thinking that he didn't need to go. A few seconds after I did so a little fountain came right out on my leg! I was so mad! What a little goober... I didn't get too mad at him I just told him that was inappropriate and went ahead and made his little sound, but I think he could tell I wasn't happy about WHERE he had peed. I try to be clear in my body language toward him in these times. When talking to kids I always try to communicate like they can understand but then give them the benefit of the doubt if they didn't fully seem to grasp something. I will often talk to children like they are adults using the same vocabulary and articulation. I do talk baby talk with Levi and babies just to be sweet though. But if I am going to communicate about something I want to always be clear, I want to challenge them in their understanding.

Okay, so that's my communication philosophy :) And this concludes this post of my EC experience. Hope you all enjoyed sharing my adventures.