Potty Training. Today I started working with my 5th learner, Oliver. I fully believe he is ready to leave diapers behind for the daytime, but he’s not decided if he agrees with me yet.
Yesterday I re-read The No-Cry Potty Training Solution by Elizabeth Pantley. It was a wonderful reminder that this is a process, not a one day event, and that my attitude and responses will be of utmost importance for the duration. There are chapters full of information for setting up and many options for your potty learning time.
Last night I set up the downstairs ahead of time because I plan to keep Oliver downstairs with me all day to focus on this new activity. Here are the preparations I made:
- I put several changes of clothing, wash cloths, and underwear beside the bathroom downstairs.
- I put 1 or two towels in each room downstairs to make cleaning up accidents easy.
- I put a towel on the couch that is his “spot to sit” so furniture stays dry.
- I put a stack of books beside the bathroom so we have lots of reading options when he’s sitting on the potty.
I also took the time to go back in my blog archives to re-read the post about Daniel’s first day of potty training because he was the last child through this stage. That was just a year and 3 months ago! I had forgotten how many accidents he had that first day and got a chuckle remembering that one was while he was standing on the back of my couch. It was also a good reminder that each child is different, and so learning to use the potty will be different each time.
Our morning began with an excited Oliver, happy to sit on the potty (we use a cushioned seat that fits on the regular toilet, with a footstool to climb up). He had me read Brown Bear, Brown Bear 5 times in a row, then a few other books.
As the day has progressed he’s not as excited about sitting, so we make it through 1-2 stories before he’s ready to move on. One of the stories is always Brown Bear, Brown Bear What Do You See? He’s happy to be wearing underwear, which is great. He’s thrilled with all the focused attention from mommy. He’s only slightly miffed that I won’t let him go play upstairs.
Oliver accidents today: 6
Successes today: 1
Oh, and I have Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See? memorized already. Completely.
2 comments:
Potty training... Ehhh... Something I can do without. I keep consoling myself with the thought that no one goes to college in diapers. Someday I won't be cleaning up pee from every surface of my house. Right?
I have my 2 year old, Joseph doing that this week. I have been sitting him on the potty chair every morning with a sippy cup and making him stay there until he goes once. Potty training is definitely a trying experience. This is my 7th time going through this process. It is never fun.
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