Potty Training Moments

Ok, so we did it. Here's my method: I decorated the bathroom with crepe paper, balloons, and a princess banner hanging across the doorway. I planned to stay home the entire week getting this potty training done!! I put Hailee in only underwear, so she'd be able to do it herself and I set a timer for every hour. Every time the timer went off I did a dance and sang a song written by me..."it's a potty party! it's a potty party!" (If you want to see the live version, let me know), and ran Hailee into the bathroom. This method worked well because she wouldn't even sit on the potty before. She hated it and would scream and cry every time we tried (despite the potty charts, candy and reward box we had offered in the past). This "potty party" method made her excited and willing to give it a try. After she went, she'd get candy. The first day she had 4 accidents. That was a rough day. The next day she had 2. The next day she had 1. Oh my gosh! It's working! Each day they were fewer and further between.

Well, at the current time she is occasionally having accidents (I'd say once every 3-4 days or so) & she is actually telling us when she needs to go, which she has never done before. I only started this 3 weeks ago, so we've made great strides. We still use the timer when we are home so we don't forget. So, now that all is said and done, here's my theory. When a kid is ready to be potty trained, the parents have to be ready too and they have to committ! I just never dedicated myself to it, in fact I preferred she not be potty trained (we could spend all day at Lagoon without wasting any time going into nasty public restroom). We tried the other methods like potty charts and candy rewards and everything, but we were never consistent. We asked her if she needed to go when it was convenient for us. So that's it...when you know your kid is ready, make sure you're ready and then go for it. Do it 100% or don't waste your time doing it at all. Well, now that our kid is 75% potty trained, I can laugh about it a little bit. Here are a couple of potty training moments that have cracked us up during this ordeal.

Hailee had gone potty at her Grandma's house, so in keeping with our methods, she presented her with a little bag of gummy bears to take home. When Hailee got home, she was watching a little TV and eating her gummy bears and daddy suggested she go potty. She looked up at us with the most confused look on her face and said "but I 'ready have candy?!"

One time Hailee was standing by me looking like she really needed to go. She ran into the kitchen where we keep the timer and ran back to me frantically "mom, it's not beeping!" She thought she had to wait for the timer to go off before she could go! Talk about plan backfire!

Now see how happy this girl looks to be using her big girl potty! Hailee, we're so proud of you!