Regression

Hmmm.

Helen has this week decided that potty training isn’t really for her, and she’d just rather Mommy had to do lots of laundry to wash the pee out of at least three outfits a day.

So far today, I have taken away two things that matter greatly to her: I took away her box of crayons (horrors!) and refused to allow her to nap in Alice’s room. She will get to have her crayons back next time she is a big girl and goes in the bathroom instead of just peeing wherever she is. She will get to nap with Alice tomorrow if she goes all morning without an accident.

She had five accidents on Tuesday. At least two on Wednesday, several yesterday, and four so far today. And it’s definitely an attitude thing — she doesn’t want to stop whatever she’s doing, and if I ask her to go to the bathroom she gets MAD and stalls stalls stalls (pardon the pun). And usually, almost immediately (probably due to the power of suggestion), she’s wet, her socks and shoes are wet, and the carpet is wet.

Her birthday is Sunday. I wonder if all this discussion of her birthday is freaking her out. Otherwise, I don’t know what could be causing this… Nothing else has really changed for her; I think it’s just a neurotic phase. But I’ll be damned if I’m going to let her go back to diapers. We’ve made it since FEBRUARY and this is the worst week she’s had since the first one.

Maybe I should get the timer back out and I can send her to the bathroom every 30 minutes like I did at the beginning.

*sigh*

Dark

This morning, it was rainy. Thus, it was dark for longer.

Alice slept an hour longer than normal. Some of that could have been because she refused to nap yesterday. Some of that could have been the darkness.

SO. I went out today in search of room-darkening shades to fit the two windows in her room. Bed, Bath & Beyond didn’t have them. Target didn’t have them. I looked at Smith and Noble, who have custom-made lots of window treatments for us in the past. It would cost at least $66 per window plus shipping to have them custom-made for those windows.

While I do have tutoring money coming in at the moment, I would really rather not spend $66 per window for room-darkening shades.

I went to Hancock Fabrics this afternoon and purchased 3.5 yards of blackout fabric for window treatments. And I purchased fabrics for both girls’ windows (though I don’t like the selection I made for Helen now that I have it home; but at $1.29 a yard I think I can handle going back and getting something else)… I also got super heavyweight needles so I can sew through the blackout fabric.

Sum total, including the hardware to hang these things and the notions (rings and wire/strings) to make Roman shades for both rooms? Less than $66. Including tax.

I’m pleased with myself.

Of course, this is ANOTHER blasted project. Somebody please invent a way to get more hours in a day! 🙂

(Oh! and I got my sewing machine back today! Yayyyy!)