Potty Training

Potty training.

If there was a magic trick that worked for every kid, that would be spectacular.  (And just think how much parents would be willing to pay for it!)  But, alas, every kid is different.

Shortly before our son’s 2nd birthday he started showing an interest in the potty.  So, we gave it a try.  He was successful at peeing on it every.single.time.  Seriously.  I figured it would go fast with him.

But here we are 5 or 6 months later.

Now, I have to admit, we were going to Florida shortly after his birthday, so I didn’t want to get into any major potty training until after that.  And then the summer heat came.  It seems the heat does awful things to Monkey’s tummy.  Ooey, gooey, stinky things.  He would get upset that he wasn’t “dry” when we took him to the potty, so I decided to step it back a notch and not worry about “staying dry” until it got cooler.

So here we are.  With our daughter I used a “potty chart” where she got a sticker each time she pottied and was dry.  Every few days she’d earn some small reward.  Over the summer I tried that with Monkey, and it worked a little, but like I said, he would get all upset when his tummy messed up his success.

This time around I’m starting a little differently.  “Potty treats” for EVERY time he is dry.  (Hey, the boy has a sweet tooth, and it’s time I use it to my advantage!) And boy, did I find the perfect potty treats – Veggie Tales gummies!  (He is constantly singing the Veggie Tale theme song lately…)

I do want some long-term success, too, though…  So, since he is starting to like Thomas the Train, I told him if he stays dry for 7 days he could get the aquarium cars (with a shark, which he loves).  We have a little mini chart on the fridge to X off the days. 

The first 2 days he stayed dry.  Then we took a trip to the aquarium, and he stayed dry there, but he was sooo tired when we got home, it just didn’t happen.  (I know staying home would have helped big time, but Daddy was off that day and we had promised the kids we’d go…)

But since he stayed dry all that time, I’m thinking he can do it, he just needs to want to stay dry.  With our preschooler cloth training pants helped her learn that real fast.  So, this weekend, I’m taking the leap.  We’re staying home and he’s wearing his cloth “big boy” pants!

He had a couple solid days with pull-ups and we’ve been using the potty for a few good months… Cross your fingers, people, because it could be a wild, wet weekend at There’s Just One Mommy’s house!