Cutest little boy - and little boy butt - ever, right? |
A few months later we tried again, this time using the three-day potty training bootcamp system. At the end of the prescribed three days, Will was essentially 100% potty trained during the day, 80% potty trained during nap time, and 60% potty trained at night. So while potty training Will wasn't exactly "fun", it wasn't all that rough either. In my opinion, six hours, three days, and a few months of sporadic accidents in exchange for a potty trained little boy was a pretty good deal.
Bucky Badger meets Minnie Mouse. On the potty. |
After a particularly stressful week - at least with regard to bathroom activities - I explained to Hallie's teachers that I'd decided to temporarily walk away from potty training because I thought Hallie just wasn't ready. I didn't realize Hallie'd been listening to our conversation until later that afternoon, when she commented on how she'd wear her Minnie Mouse underwear when she was finally ready to "put her pee in the potty". I thought nothing of it, since I'd already decided to temporarily wash my hands of potty training, and moved on to talking about Hallie's day at school.
The next morning, Hallie woke up, took off her diaper, put on a pair of underwear, and declared herself potty trained. And you know what? SHE WAS. It was like she needed to prove me wrong. "You think I can't put my pee in the potty? Just watch me, woman!" Typical Hallie.
So while potty training Will and Hallie was thoroughly time-consuming and challenging, I don't remember the process as particularly painful or frustrating. I will admit, however, that time seems to have warped my memories (It's like giving birth... During labor: "THERE'S ABSOLUTELY NO WAY IN HELL I'M EVER DOING THIS AGAIN!" 20 minutes after giving birth: "Let's have another baby!") because last week I was reminded of how mentally and physically exhausting potty training can be...
Last Monday mom, sister, two-year-old niece, Lily, and infant nephew, Carter, surprised us with a visit from the cold, snowy North. My sister, Sara, had put Lily through the three-day potty training bootcamp about a week before their visit, and while Lily'd done well at home, she wasn't yet fully potty trained and certainly wasn't ready for a 20-hour car trip and a week-long stay in someone else's house. Lily pooped and peed throughout my house - on the kitchen chairs, on the couch, on the bathroom floor - and "left her mark", if you will, at Brazos Valley Gymnastics and Old Navy.
I can assure you that if Lily was my kid, I'd have instinctually run after her. But because Lily isn't my kid, I instinctually just smiled, rolled my eyes, and watched her little butt wiggle as she ran away. I honestly considered taking a picture.
But then I snapped back to reality and frantically alerted Sara to the situation.
It's always good to be prepared while sitting on the potty. |
Eventually the three of us returned to the Clinique counter, met up with my mom and Carter, and finished our shopping. We stopped to pick up Hallie, but then we headed home instead of risking another disastrous accident at the last stop on our list. There was no way I was taking Lily to the public library.
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