So, our potty party started off great. Lots of energy. Lots of excitement (at least from us). And lots of coaxing to use the toilet. We had some successes and for each one he got to open a present. We definitely started off with more accidents. More cleaning rags and cleaning solution than cleaning up wrapping paper from all the gifts. But we tried hard to keep up our enthusiasm and to be encouraging to Micah. It was hard. It was draining. By the middle of the day when he took his first nap, I wanted to give up. To hide everything and let him wake up and pretend like it had been just any other day. Instead, we tried to figure out our next plan of attack. We had been given a good book before Micah was born and we went back to it for this. It's all about choice. The kids want to have a choice, but you still make the choices within your realms. But then the child will feel more in control. Will feel as though he gets to decide.
And so we tried.
After he woke from his nap, and the first time he said he had to pee, we immediately encouraged him to let us take his underwear off and to sit on the potty seat. He refused. NO. If you have to go, please sit on the potty. And right then, it dawned on me. I need to let him decide. So I asked if he wanted to use his potty seat or the "big potty" upstairs. And he immediately chose upstairs. And we ran up with him. And it worked!!
It made it a little harder for us. A little more running up and down the stairs. But he got to choose, and it was what he wanted. And it worked! We still had accidents that day, but we had many successes, got to open the rest of the presents, and my hope was renewed!
It was the trigger. The tipping point. The turning point. The change. Whatever you want to call it, something changed inside of Micah, and things have been looking up ever since.
We have still had challenges. It took a couple of days for him to want to poop in the potty. And it was day 9 before he pooped in the "big potty" so we are still having new experiences everyday right now. And every time, i mean EVERY time, it is so exciting!! Exciting that, for the most part, he knows when he needs to go and either tells us or just goes on his own. Granted, he prefers (and has made the choice most days when we are just around the house) to be bare-bottom, with just a shirt on, so we do not have to help him every time. Most often, he just wants to use his potty seat, and we keep it nearby, so it is going great. Again, these are the choices that he gets to make, and this made all the difference for us.
Within the past 3 days, all naps have been dry, we have made a dry trip to the grocery store and back, and there have not been any "pooping" accidents! Also, the weather has been great, and we have been able to take him outside to play and he still tells us when he needs to go and holds it until he gets to the toilet. We have also had a couple of sitters and he has done well with them too. These may seem like small things (especially if you haven't done this with a kid) but I get excited just thinking about it.
Our biggest challenges that we still have? Being away from the house for longer. Being willing to go in "bigger" toilets away from home, and just wearing clothes. I think the feeling of underwear and pants on gives him a feeling of "security" until he starts to have an accident and then he tries to hold it back. Thoughts on being away from home? And wearing clothes? And overnight? Still trying to work these things out, although overnight is the least of my worries right now.
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