So you DO understand.

You can never be too sure with toddlers if what you are saying to them is actually getting through to them or if your disciplining techniques are actually working. And then I heard Lara say this while she was playing at her dollhouse:

"Time-OUT, Lara. Time-OUT. Broke the potty. Time-out." I looked over and shook with laughter as I watched Lara take one of the little chairs and place it facing the wall, then put her Lara-doll in it. When time-out was apparently over, Lara said a few soothing, instructional pieces of information to Lara-doll, and then let her get up to play. Lara-doll got another time out a little later for pushing Lucas, who was imaginative. (By the way, Lara has never been in time-out for breaking our potty.) PIC: Lara is wearing clothes that she picked out. It took her forever and she came up with a shirt that is too small and pajama pants. Certainly can't blame her for the pants.

And how funny it is when she takes her dolls to the potty. "Okay, mommy, time to go wet in the potty? Yeah? Otay! Otay, mommy, here it comes! Yay!! Mama go wet! Wanna heart candy? Here you go!" And from somewhere off the sink, Lara takes an imaginative heart candy and feeds it to her mommy-doll.

But the imaginative play is not always so easy for me. The other day, I was forced to construct a Lego Wal-Mart so Han Solo could drive his car up to the building where a stand would be waiting with milk and juice for him to buy.

Toddlers take a lot of work, but they are so much fun. Lara has felt her sibling moving and kicking aound the last couple of days. She always looks at me with surprise and curiosity when it happens. And then she scuttles away, as she often does with things that are strang-ish to her.