DISCLAIMER: This post is about potty training, so if that type of thing is not of interest, feel free to read this post about my sister and my dad terrorizing me in the 1980s.
Potty training isn't always a fiesta!
Molly is doing amazing in her potty training. Last week she had two days in a row at daycare with no accidents, including nap time and she's been fairly successful at home and on weekends in "big girl underwear".* We were told to bring in Pull-Up diapers this week and that the training wheels are almost ready to come off.
We've taken it slow and are using guidance from our ECE workers, and adopting a diaper free existence at Molly and Jack's pace. We have a stack of children's books piled beside the toilet upstairs and a on the main floor for emergencies.
We've been regularly reading a couple of potty training story books to the minions that seem to be helping:
My Big Boy Potty seems to be both Molly and Jack's favourite. There is also a Big Girl Potty version if you prefer.
Yesterday, after nap, we set Molly diaper free and reminded her that she needed to let us know when she had to go. Unfortunately, within 20 minutes we had gone through three outfits, had several unsuccessful trips to the potty, followed by immediate accidents. Tears rolled down Molly's face as she said, "Daddy, I peed my pants, again." after the third incident. We put her back into a diaper, told her we'd try with underwear again tomorrow. We cuddled her and assured her that we were not angry with her, that everyone has accidents and that she could still go to the potty the rest of the day even though she was wearing a diaper. For the rest of the day there was not a single accident. We praised her and gave her stickers and hugs to congratulate her for her efforts and she was thrilled.
When we put her to bed I had a twinge of parental guilt. Was saving a few pairs of pants worth switching back to diapers and essentially showing her that we didn't believe in her? Was that the message we were sending, or was I over-reacting? At what point do you pack it in for the day and start the next with a clean slate? Sure she was ripping through pants like they were Kleenex, yes I had to scrub urine out of the carpet in the nursery, but maybe we should have given her another chance. Chris thought Molly needed a break because she was putting too much pressure on herself and getting upset when she did not succeed. Maybe we are on track with the three strikes and you're out method of potty training for the day.
To read more about our experiences in toilet training click here for a list of 5 things that we didn't know, but probably should have guessed, about the early stages of potty training.
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*Whenever I say that, my mind automatically goes to Bridget Jones and her granny panties. I don't know why.
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