Hard to believe it's August already.  Summer is slowly but surely winding down.

We started August by having Jonah wear underwear during the day instead of pull ups!  This is a major accomplishment!

We have been toilet training Jonah for the past 6 years.  Yes, you read that right- 6 years!  It has been a long frustrating process where we have tried every method and idea that was ever thought of for toilet training.  

What finally got us some success was a method Jonah's teacher used at school.  She did 3 intense days of toilet training and got Jonah to the point of going on demand with some self-initiating.  

Unfortunately Jonah still wets (usually slightly) between his "goes".  This is why wearing underwear has not been a possibility because of the constant clean up we would have to do.

However, this summer I came up with the idea of Jonah wearing underwear with an incontinence pad.  This way Jonah can be more like other boys his age by being underwear since the pads can be more discreet than pullups.

It's not the ultimate success I know, but to me it's a partial victory.  There have been many times in these past 6 years where I thought we would never even get to this point so I am celebrating!

It's been a real frustration for me because I feel so guilty like I am doing something terribly wrong that Jonah can't completely get toilet training.  I feel like it's my fault.  

However, after all the things I've tried and still not had complete success, I have to tell myself that perhaps Jonah just really has a difficult time completely understanding this process plus with his low muscle tone, I think he has a hard time controlling down there.  

On a different note, we went on a beautiful hike today at the state park nearby.  Ben was a determined hiker, staying on the path and having lots of energy to the very end of the .8 mile hike.  Jonah, on the other end, kept throwing himself to the ground acting out some movie in his head and kept saying he was tired and hot.  What a difference in personalities between these two!

Of interest in this next photo, many ash trees in our area have died due to the ash borer.  This photo shows how much of the state park is affected by this.  Look how many trees are dead.  The whole look of this state park will change as these trees come down.  We have an ash tree in our yard that is slowing dying from this.  Sad...

Emerald ash borer is an invasive wood-boring beetle that attacks all species of ash trees that exist in Wisconsin. ... In Wisconsin, the southeastern part of the state is generally infested.