Diary of a Potty-Training Mama

Rocco is going to be 3 in September. According to society, he definitely should not be wearing diapers anymore. As much as we want him to be potty-trained, I have a feeling he is not ready. Despite my gut instincts, I have decided to potty train him during Spring Break. We had read about and were suggested a 3-day crash course potty training method by many other parents, so we decided to commit to it and see how it goes.

Basically, on the morning of Day 1, you and the child throw away all diapers and Pull-Ups. From then on, it's underwear only. You do not take them to the toilet every 15 or 20 minutes, rather you keep encouraging them to keep their underwear dry and to tell you when they need to go. The hope is that the child starts taking the initiative to go to the bathroom, rather than the parents being trained to take their kid to the toilet every 15-20 minutes. With this method, there is only positive reinforcement - no discipline or negativity. Every little milestone is celebrated. Oh, and it's important that if you catch them "in the act" to rush them to the toilet. You can't leave their side for a second, in reality. Even at night time and nap time, children do not wear a diaper. By Day 4, children should, for the most part, be going on their own.

(If only it were this easy and fun...)

Here's how it went for us...

Day 1: Rocco woke up with a cold, but general happy attitude. He ate breakfast and woke up, then we took him into this room to throw away his diapers. He was happy to do so. We made a big deal about being a big boy, etc., etc. He then had an accident while sitting on the couch. We were unable to catch it in time to take him to the toilet. The next one, I was able to catch mid-pee, so I scooped him up and sat him on the toilet. He peed through his underwear into the toilet. We celebrated. The next one was a little accident in his underwear, then the rest in the toilet without underwear on-- we really, REALLY celebrated. My mom came over and Rocco proudly peed in the toilet for her-- we cheered, we danced, we sang, we gave him a cookie. He stayed dry throughout his nap, didn't have any accidents the rest of the afternoon/evening, and even stayed completely dry all night.

Day 2: Dry in the morning after going all night. We were in Seventh Heaven! He had his first pee of the day in the toilet. He then held it the rest of the morning. He refused-- REFUSED-- to go at all before his nap. We knew he'd have an accident for sure. So when he stayed dry for his entire nap, we were impressed. But, shortly after our happiness, he had an accident. I was able to catch him mid-pee, so I scooped him up and sat him on the toilet. He tried to pee more, but could not. He cried and felt bad. I hugged him, kissed him, told him that accidents happen, and put on dry underwear. He had one other accident before going to bed for the night... mostly because he refused, yet again, to have anything to do with the potty and also because Todd was helping me get Ruby ready for bed time. Anyway, as you can safely assume, Rocco peed the bed during the night and woke up wet. Oh, and he hasn't pooped since the day before Day 1.

Day 3: Feeling utterly frustrated and like a complete failure as a parent the morning of Day 3. Rocco woke up wet, but has new, dry underwear on. And... he continues to amaze me: He just looked at me and said, "Go pee in the potty?!?! Get cookies?!?!" So we RAN to the toilet, I plopped him down, and he peed! Again, another huge celebration, and, yes, we give him a mini-Oreo cookie bite for a reward. Maybe I'm not a complete failure! Uh, oh, spoke too soon. So, the next thing we know... Rocco has pooped in his underwear. I didn't leave his side for a second, so he must have done it very sneakily. Anyway, I caught him quickly after the doo-doo occurred, so we (it was a two-person job!) rushed him to the bathroom, emptied the poo from his pants to the toilet, flushed, and cleaned up. He cried the whole time-- not sure if it was because he felt ashamed, embarrassed, or scared to poop in the toilet. He is back in dry underpants... and we're playing Fireman Sam and Penny. Another victory in our corner-- he went pee in the potty again. Maybe we're onto something here! Potty training must be similar to being bi-polar... ultimate highs and lowest of lows. As evening nears on Day 3, I am feeling much more like a Super Mom than a utter failure, poor excuse for a mom. We have only had ONE ACCIDENT TODAY and it was a poop, so that doesn't really count, right? LOL!

Day 4: There is no set plan for today. The manual we read only talks about Days 1-3. I guess we say a prayer, keep prompting Rocco, stay positive, and roll with the punches. Wish us luck!