Potty Training

Last week was one of the toughest weeks I have experienced as a mother.  We decided to conquer potty training.  So where do I begin.

I started by reading some articles about 3 day potty training.  I thought wow these moms make it seem so easy and their child is 21-22 months old.  Owen shows the signs of readiness, so let's do this!  LIARS!  It is not easy at all!  It is something horrific I think more so for the mom than the child.  They tell you to focus solely on your child for 3 days and that he/she will pick it up by the third day.  Owen was on the 4th.  But hey I will still give them credit.

Some things they don't tell you:

• You will feel like you are covered in pee.  Sorry if this grosses some of you out, but it is true.  And guess what you probably are covered in pee.  Your child starts to go so you pick them up and rush them to the toilet.   After they don't pee in the toilet, because they are being stubborn or just peed on the floor, you start to clean up the mess.  Oh and then guess what they are starting to pee again.  So back to the bathroom.  This a continuous cycle.  So the 100% focus to your child is already gone because you are just trying to clean up the mess before he decides water puddles are fun to play in.  
• You will be really close to having a break down on day 2 and will have one on day 3.  And if you haven't given up already then you will be praying for signs if you should quit by day 4.  
• The articles tell you not to bribe your child with if you do this then you get this but instead offer subtle prizes.  You stick to this at first and then totally cave and say you didn't potty so no sucker.  Yeah, mean I know!  But you get desperate.  
• You will need more stickers than you ever thought possible.  The bathroom and toilet are all stickered up!  
• You will start to let them watch tv on the ipad just so they will sit on the toilet for longer than a second.  No I am not exaggerating they will only sit for a second before telling you "all done!"  And then you realize they are just sitting there so they can watch tv and they are not actually trying.  So then you take it away and are back to frustration.  
• They tell you that you will need to give 100% attention or focus to your child and to play their favorite games or toys with them.  Yes very true but they forget to tell you that you are so busy staring at them that you can't really play because you are afraid you will miss an accident.  Oh and by the way 100% attention means no phone, no email, no tv, no eating, no cooking, no peeing, no nothing unless they are napping.  Oh and as soon as they are awake, quick to your feet to get them out of the crib so they can go pee and you don't have to change the sheets.  I lost all contact with civilization for 4 days.  
• The articles also tell you to go ahead and work on night time training.  This happened twice and then I grew tired of changing the sheets and having to get up early to wait for him to wake.  So we will worry about that another day.

One good thing about picking last week to potty train was that it was the week that the snow decided to come to Moscow.  So I missed this

photo courtesy of Shannon Davis

photo courtesy of Shannon Davis

photo courtesy of Shannon Davis

I tried to take this in the morning at about 8:30 

Oh there is so much snow!  So a good week to stay indoors.  And when I did try to get out it was tough to walk in and push the stroller.  Owen has been very good with his new big boy status.  Accidents are few and far between.  He has no fear of public toilets.  That is more me.  So I carry anti bacterial wipes with me to wipe down the seat first.  And we will see how he does on the long plane ride.  Prayers that it continues to improve are always welcome.  All in all it is worth it, just be patient and persevere.  If I can do it you can do it!