According to my mom, potty training us wasn’t hard. Kids are usually fully potty trained at two years old in my country. My mom often shares funny stories of how I’d refuse to sit on the chimmy (as we call it in Jamaica). “You used to sit in that chair and rock until you piss up yourself,” she’d say in her thick Jamaican accent. I was clearly a stubborn child, and I passed that trait along to my daughter.
Princess understands the concept of going to the potty. But if she doesn’t feel like going, it’s a wrap.
Since her introduction to the throne at 18 months, she’s picked up on the routine of doing her business when she would wake up in the morning, after school, after dinner, and before bedtime. On weekends we exchange pull-ups for big girl panties (except for when we go out).
When she’s at daycare, Princess would go sometimes. She also has moments when she’d rather go on a potty strike. Many have told me, “She’ll go when she’s ready.” But, that’s not necessarily true.
I think that’s an excuse for laziness, quite frankly. Potty training is one of the many things I signed up for when I made the decision to enter motherhood. So I’ve decided to enroll Princess in what I call, potty bootcamp.
With the help of a friend, I’m kicking things into high gear. Jen has chosen to have her cutie pie go commando the entire day to make getting on and off the potty easy breezy. It makes total sense!! Before you start with the cruel mommy comments, read on. You never know, you may get inspired to try a new training technique too.
Since Princess and I were both home and feeling under the weather, I figured this would be the perfect opportunity to give this potty bootcamp idea a try. As soon as she got out of bed, it was bye-bye training pants. I couldn’t have her running around completely naked, so I grabbed one of her daddy’s tanks which she sported most of the day. The key is to be her shadow the entire day.
I’ve been on her like white on rice. She sits on the potty every half hour to an hour (sometimes more often because she drinks lots of water).
Everything was going smoothly until I got a phone call. The talkaholic that I am stayed on the darn thing a little too long. I completely lost track of time. I looked up and saw pee all over the chair. “Why didn’t you tell me you had to potty?” I asked.
“I have to potty,” she replied.
I had to try my hardest not to laugh. Luckily, the pee was contained. Clean up was a snap.
About an hour later Princess ran out of the room screaming, “I potty mommy!”
Ugh. I went into the room and saw liquid EVERYWHERE. It was on the table, chair, floor, and there were even droplets in her hair and all over her shirt. After looking closely, I realized she’d mix her water with pee.
Anyway, there were a couple of other minor accidents, including a carpet spill.
But that’s what potty bootcamp is all about. Overall, my baby girl did pretty well. She only wore training pants during naptime and bedtime. We went for a walk with without them too.
We have a ways to go. But, I’m hoping to have this potty thing down pat in five days. Hey, I was potty trained at two years old. She can do it too. Stay tuned to find out what happens at daycare. This should be interesting.
Please share your kiddos potty training experience.
