We had a big weekend here 2 weeks ago - potty training boot camp! Woot! Mama's been looking forward to this for a long time. :-)
Drew and I weren't sure what to expect so we were both pretty terrified of how it might go down. I made a plan for the weekend based around different ideas I've heard here and there, but really there wasn't too much theory at work. The main thing we knew was that once Asher put on the 1st pair of underwear there would be no going back. He would still wear a diaper for sleeping, but while awake underwear it would be!
We chose to put Asher in underwear after he woke up in the morning and hang out as a family in the playroom all weekend. Since we had NO clue how many or how messy the accidents might be we covered the carpet with painting drop cloths. Looked ridiculous, but I wasn't very interested in scrubbing the carpet. ha!
Naturally there were some accidents at first, but after getting wet a couple times Asher started to quickly understand what it meant to feel like he had to go. My goal was for
him to tell us when he had to go, so after the first few hours Drew and I resisted asking him if he had to go every 10 minutes and let A lead the way. We started our day around 7am and by lunchtime he was consistently telling us when he needed to go.
Whenever Asher used the potty he would get a piece of candy. Candy is a HUGE motivator for A!! I hate the idea of food based rewards, but decided that potty training is a very special, once-in-a-lifetime experience, so we made an exception. I'm glad we did, because it worked like a charm. ha!
That first day Asher did even better than I was expecting - he had a couple wet accidents, but many successful trips. My parents came over to visit and Asher loved showing off his new "big boy underwear".
On Sunday we stayed home from church and did a repeat of Saturday. Lots of movies, playing, and candy rewards.
{having the potty training kid sit on your lap is a thrill all its own! ha!}
Asher didn't poo at all on Saturday so we knew it was only a matter of time before we got to work out that little gem. At one point he was asking to pee-pee every few minutes and I had a feeling it was more than pee-pee at the heart of his need. Bless his heart, he was really scared. He asked to hold my hand, so we did. Let me tell you, holding hands with someone while he poops is a parent's love at its best. :-)
Since poop is such a harder feat for kids we made the reward for that extra big - a chocolate bunny! Woot! Crazy big, actually, but he deserved it...and it helped motivate him a lot.
By the end of Sunday Asher had had NO accidents, so we decided to risk playing outside for awhile. He did great at that and even interrupted his own play to tell us he needed to go. Drew went to work on Monday and things got a little more complicated since I had Hadley to care for as well as keeping track of Asher's potty time. At this point I started weaning away the candy, only giving him a piece every 3 or 4 trips.
On Tuesday Ash went to school in underwear! I sent him with 3 changes of clothes and a few diapers {just in case} and he did have a poopy accident - poor guy. That really is the hardest part to get and he just lost track. There was 1 other poopy accident later in the week, but that's been it. Since then he has become really great at telling me when he has to go. No wet accidents since Day 2! Last night he even completely went by himself, start to finish!
Hadley had fun during the potty training weekend too. :-)
Overall, I'm so, so proud of my boy. There was a time when I was afraid he'd be the kid heading to kindergarten in diapers, but really I just had to wait until he was ready. I'm SO glad I didn't try to rush him. There are definitely toddlers who have been trained since their 2nd birthday, but Asher wasn't ready then. I think he transitioned so easily because I did wait until he was ready.
I have an unopened box of diapers waiting to be returned to Target. I think Asher deserves a special treat with the money. :-)
Go Asher! Another milestone for my fantastic guy!
