With Sweetness sneaking up on 2 years and 5 months, we decided it was high time she started to get serious with this potty training business. Last spring we got her her own potty – a pink Baby Bjorn thing that was just the right size for her. She sat on it with her clothes on, put her toy animals on it, talked about it and even used it once before a bath. Then, nothing.
After about six months of this we started sitting her on it in the mornings and evenings with her pants down, reading to her. She even has a few potty books, a quick $1 board book from Target and a fancy, push the buttons and Elmo laughs enough to put mommy one step away from the loony bin talking book. God knows I’ve listened to Elmo proclaim “Elmo can use the potty” enough that I’ve earned the chance to see my little female offspring unit try to copy the furry red Muppet from hell.
Then, suddenly last October, she used the potty one night. I gave her lots of hugs, told her that she must be so proud, helped her dump it out to the toilet and flush, and talked with her about what a big girl she was. Then she turned around and did it again the next morning. ‘Yes,’ I thought. ‘This is it. We’re on our way.’ Then, that very afternoon, she declared a potty strike. She used her new favorite word (‘no’) loudly and with the threat of a hurricane force tantrum at the mere mention that pottying just might be something she might like to dabble in before college. And it stayed that way until just after Christmas when she decided she was cool with sitting on the potty again and letting Elmo talk to her (which made me wonder what was worse, a teenager in diapers or listening to that freaking book again.) But nothing in the way of actually going potty.
So I decided I might up the stakes a bit. Yesterday I got her Highness some training pants. These little undies have some extra padding designed to help absorb a bit, giving you valuable minutes to get your little mess maker to a room with easily cleanable surfaces before it got really bad. Now we’d been talking about underwear, and she knew what it was. When I took them out of the bag, she said “underwear.” She let them sit on her changing table until she decided to give them a try after yesterday’s after-nap diaper change. We talked (and by we, I mean I) about how she had to use the potty and not go in her new underwear. Well, I could have talked until I turned blue. Every question of if she needed to use the potty was met with a ‘NO!’ Then she went to the front door under the guise that she was opening the door to let the dogs in. She just stood there looking out. She’s done that before. I thought she was waiting for the dogs. Then she turns and announced “poopy diaper.” Awww, crap, I thought. And I was right. But she didn’t stop there. She then wet herself profusely. The way she walked to the bathroom was almost worth the mess we had to clean up. She got an immediate bath and we ran the wash. I knew that would happen and would most likely again. It’s a learning thing.
So today after the nap I pull out the underwear and what should my waiting ears hear?
“NO!”
Sigh.
