Adventures in Potty Training

(Only read on if you are not bothered by potty words!  There, now you are warned...)


I have hesitated to blog about our adventures this past week because so many people have so many different thoughts about the great white throne (aka "da potty" in our house), so I knew I may be opening myself up to (gasp) someone thinking we weren't doing it right.  But then I thought, eh, heck with it, we can do this any way we want to.  I figured it might supply someone with some good laughs anyway as we navigate this very new stage of parenting for us.  So here we go... dun duh-duh dun!  (that's supposed to be a dramatic introduction... if you didn't know.)

Months ago I bought Lailey a little potty chair so she could get used to the sight of it and sitting on it if she wanted to.  She basically just carried it around and played with it for months.  She knows what the potty is for since she typically follows me in the bathroom so she can be familiar with the whole process, which is absolutely fascinating if you're that little.  With a new baby brother or sister coming this summer, I had thought about the work involved with two in diapers, but I was definitely sure I wasn't going to push her to try to use the toilet unless she was ready.  I figured sometime around her birthday, when the weather was warmer (so less clothes to pull on and off), ya know, she might get interested.  I was really laid back about it.  I did hope she didn't decide she was ready right before the baby came since that would be a lot of life changes for her all at once.  Nonetheless, I wasn't worried about it.

About a month ago she wanted to sit on her little potty before a bath or something so I let her try.  She wasn't willing to sit for more than a second because she acted like it wasn't comfortable.  But she got really upset when I put her diaper back on and would cry about going potty.  I knew if she wouldn't sit then there was not much hope for getting her to actually go.  Then two weeks or so ago, she started saying "I wan' go potty."  I'd casually say something like "ok, well go sit on your little potty then." She'd sit for a second with clothes on and then resort to playing with it.  One evening though she said it and then a few minutes later actually went #2 in her diaper.  I was surprised and thought "maybe she really does know if she needs to go."  Come to find out, her sitter (love ya Madison!) had been letting her sit on the potty the day before but was going to surprise us.  I started thinking maybe we should try this.

So, I acquired a potty seat that fits on the big toilet since it's much cushier and that's what she'd already been using.  We tried it several times and she didn't go but she liked sitting there and reading books or singing or whatever.  I figured that was a step in the right direction.  Then after talking with a couple of friends who have already done this successfully, I got brave.  I stripped her down and let her run around with no pants on.   The first time I confined her to our very tiny kitchen with some toys.  She'd start to go on the floor but then I'd excitedly encourage her to use the little potty seat, once again with no success.  She just won't sit on that thing.  So I stuck it back on the shelf in the bathroom.  

Eventually it became a bit inconvenient to keep her only on the hard floor since our kitchen is very small.  So I got really brave.  If you had visited our house in the past week you'd have seen a cute little bare bottom running around happily.  To keep her warm I cut the toes off some old striped socks of mine to make her some little leg warmers which are so silly and cute. She's quite happy to be "natid" as she says.  [Sidenote: This method is not for the faint at heart.  It requires an enormous amount of parental attention and focus, as well as patience and a little carpet cleaner.  We have to continually watch for her cues that she's about to pee (typically, she stands still and gets this funny look on her face like "uh...I think I'm about to do something."  But for me, it's much easier if she's bare to catch her in the act immediately (if she doesn't go to the toilet first) and encourage her to run to the potty, which she does so quickly and can then finish on the toilet.]   

Our first success came last Sunday.  A friend had recommended a potty training book to me so I looked up a bit about the method online.  One of the principles is to role play with a doll to teach your kid how to use the toilet.  Enter knock-off Barbie.  

Back up one night... The pharmacist at Kroger gave it to us the night before for free since they literally could not get people to buy them, despite multiple mark-downs on the already low starting price of $1.99.  Upon getting in the car after shopping I gave it to Lailey and she almost immediately popped her left arm off.  Hmmm, and I wonder why they couldn't sell them.  The doll almost went AWOL (thanks to me) after Lailey went to bed since I couldn't find her arm anymore and the shoes didn't even go on her feet.  But for some reason, after photographing the carnage, I didn't chunk her in the trash.  Now I know.  The next day it dawned on me to use Barbie for potty training (who's missing arm had been found in Lailey's room the next morning and reattached, thanks to me).  I proceeded to show Lailey how knock-off Barbie climbs up, pulls up her dress, sits on the potty, and then (using a small cup of water, held strategically behind Barbie) goes pee pee in the potty.  She was thrilled!  She kept saying "again!" every time we'd do it.  Eventually Barbie would be relocated to other parts of the house and I'd tell her Barbie had to go potty, what should she do?  She'd run her into the potty, go through the steps with some help, and be delighted when Barbie - and the plastic cup - were successful at tinkling in the potty.  

Well, after many trial runs, I stripped her down to no pants and told her to tell me if she had to go.  I don't remember exactly how many accidents (mostly on the hard floor, thankfully) it took, but at one point she said "potty" and I told her to run in the bathroom where I put her on the toilet and she went!  She was thrilled!  Especially since then she got to flush, wash her hands, and get an M&M.  

Davey had been sick all this time so I didn't know how much he had grasped (again, this is new for both of us).  On Monday morning when I went to work he was a little hesitant about no diapers, so I just figured we'd resume that afternoon when I got home.  However, he got brave and emailed me later that day that Lailey had in fact, gone pee-pee on the potty!  He cutely signed the email "your potty training partner."  Aww, bonding over pee pee.  The things you do as parents.  Slowly, over the next few days, she would miss less and make it to the potty more.  Then on Thursday she didn't have any accidents and was successful all day, so that evening we decided to be brave and take her to the playground with a travel potty seat and no diaper.  Don't worry, she wore panties and pants.  We're not that weird.  Well, she didn't make it and didn't seem to notice.  I had padded her carseat with towels and she was wet when we got there (10 min. drive).  I think it was the excitement of the playground and the change of environment.  Oh well.  

I should add here that she is still in diapers at naptime and bedtime.  I figure that will follow when she can have enough bladder control to wake up dry.  She's still only 22 months, so I'm not worried.  Also, she's only gone pee pee so far.  She has been having dirty diapers when she wakes up, either in the morning and/or after a nap, and the first thing she tells me when I come it to get her out of her crib is "poopy diaper" with a big grin.  So I may have to catch her at the end of her nap and get her on the potty before it happens.  

Today the weather is beautiful and now that my horrible first-migraine-headache-ever-hopefully-never-to-be-repeated from Thursday/Friday is gone, I was dying to get outside and into the sunshine.  Lailey had no accidents this morning and recently has even gone to the potty without help a couple times, so it was a perfect opportunity to practice staying dry outside the house. She picked her big-girl panties, donned some pants and out we went.  We played outside for a little while, walked to Nick and Julie's house, came back, ate lunch, and she had a quick bath.  Throughout the whole outing I occasionally asked her if she needed to go potty.  She would either say "no" or be distracted.  After she got out of the bath she climbed up on the step to the potty and went all by herself.  Every time she promptly reminds me gleefully "I get an M&M!"  

So, maybe the thing I keep hearing about "girls being easier" is true.  I don't know since I've now only partially trained one kid ever and she's a girl, so I have nothing to compare it to.  But she's pretty proud of herself and Davey and I are proud of her.  Next week will be interesting since we'll be traveling.  Not sure how that's going to go, but that's okay.  Honestly, if she hadn't been so enthusiastic to try the potty I would have waited until after this trip to TN.  I guess it's true: when they're ready, they're ready.  

Sorry about the location of this video, but if you've made it to the end of this long post then you know much of our life has revolved around the bathroom this past week.