On Our Way

Hi All,
A few weeks ago, I was pulling my hair out over potty training. A post I wanted to pen, but never quite made it was "Niagara Falls". Those were the early days of boot camp potty training. The kids went straight to underwear, (well in Drew's case, no bottoms because that's what he prefers). Too many times, I heard the sound of streaming "water" - except it wasn't water, and nobody was sitting on their training potty. Someone relieved themselves on the couch, and someone else went while standing and drawing at the Lego table. (As luck would have it, that there was a plastic lid used for one of the crayon bins underneath and catching much of the stream.) Those are just a few of the war stories. I knew it would be rough, and I knew there would be no immediate mastering of the toilet. But the real zinger of it all was at the point nobody was telling me they were peeing / had peed, etc. What I wanted to say: "Umm, hello, you can't stop what you are doing long enough to tell me there is another puddle to clean up?!?" Toilet skills are in process, but they can talk just fine.  To make matters worse, we have a house full of carpet. We even have carpet under our kitchen table, which always perplexes me as to why anyone would design a place with carpet in an eating area. We even have fabric on our chairs at our kitchen table. (We only have ourselves to blame for that one.) In case you are wondering, yes, someone took it upon themselves to christen that, too.
I reached a breaking point. I asked the kids if they wanted to wear diapers or big kid underwear, since they were not using the potty. Drew opted for diapers, and Bree was still very interested in the big girl underwear, in addition to waking up dry most mornings. So, I retreated with Drew and after a few day hiatus, persevered with Bree.
And then something wonderful happened. In a very short matter of time, Bree and I started working very well together to get her on the potty when she woke up, every few hours and after meals, and before bed. It only took a few successes for her to be totally excited about what she was learning. I spent about a week directing her to the potty with much success. We even left the house sans diaper - to Uncle D's carnival (where she used the big potty), to the movies, and shopping excursions with several stops.  Saturday was a big test - we sent her to daycare with Jim in her big girl underwear and, lo and behold, no accidents! (Jim checked in with her regularly and got her to the potty when needed.)
Monday was even more incredible. I was brushing my teeth, when Bree came running into the bathroom with potty in hand, dropped it down next to me, and did her business all by herself.  And it continued that way for the rest of the day and day after.
She was so proud, she had a conversation with our cat about one of her "sessions". It went like this, "I peed Slater, did you look at it? I peed all by myself!" He then meowed, at which point Bree turned to me and said, "He said, 'Good job, Bree Bree.' " It's all music to my ears.
Not to say we don't have accidents, do we ever! In fact, the day I began this post was an entire day of accidents. But we are back on the horse, and not looking back. And, someday soon, Drew will be back in the saddle. So, I'm happy to say we are well on our way to diaper free days!