The Adventures of August

Well, it is that time again.  Potty training time.  I'm tired of changing two kids' diapers everyday and, while I didn't want to push Gus, I felt he was ready when he could successfully make it through the day when he was wearing his bathing suit.  Why not try with underwear?  So, I bought my last box of diapers and, as I opened the box, I told Gus that when these diapers were gone they were gone, and he needed to be a big boy.  He was reminded everyday so I feel as though he had ample notice. There was just a little bit of resistance on his part in the beginning but things seem to be going well now.

I am absolutely horrible about reminding him to go.  This whole training thing for him is also a training thing for me.  Usually when I remember to tell him to go it has been a few hours and I'm rushing him to get on the potty.  Gus does not like to be rushed.  Gus will resist any rushing attempts.  The other day I totally forgot about the potty training for several hours and I was just remembering when I heard, "Mom! Mom!" coming from John downstairs. I went downstairs expecting an accident and I found Gus hitting John and yelling, "NO!!  I'M NOT POOPY!"  To which John says, "Okay, but you sure look like you are and you sure smell like you are."  This made Gus hit and scream again.  Needless to say one of them was right and one of them was wrong.  I kind of wish John had been wrong.  Gus is still adamant that he was right...this is a great teaching opportunity about looking at the facts in front of you.

While I don't want to rush Gus, I also don't want him to have an accident.  He really hasn't had that many but a couple of times he's cut it really close.  Yesterday I knew he hadn't been in a long while and I was urging him to go.  Gus goes when he feels like it and not a minute sooner.  He's a stubborn little two year old.  After resisting my suggestion that he go (he does a lot of resisting), he runs into the bathroom and barely, and I mean barely, makes it on time.  After he is done, he comes out of the bathroom and says, "See I told you I not pee in my underwear!"  He was right.  And, while this was a little too close for comfort for me, I'll let him potty train the way he wants.  As long as I'm not picking up multiple accidents I shouldn't care about how long he goes between potty breaks. 

Yay for John

Now that I sit here and look at dates, I find this whole blog entry pretty amusing.  I wrote in an entry on 9/13 that my big frustration with John at this time was potty training.  As I said in that entry it was all a battle of wills and while I have a strong will, I wasn't going to win that battle.  I think John sensed my defeat because the next morning he woke up and wanted to start using the potty.  It took John three of four days and only a couple of accidents to figure it all out.

 

 Having a house with all hardwood floors isn't so bad when you're potty training.

Only on the first day could you lay on the bathroom floor.  I'm thinking it will take a gallon of bleach to get the lovely pee smell out of our bathroom.

Now that John is potty trained he can go to school.  Three days a week I work at a Lutheran preschool and today I took John with me for his first day!  I was very nervous...very, very nervous.  I couldn't guarantee that John would come out of the bathroom with his pants on, or put his toys away without a fit or even sit in circle time and listen, but he did pretty well.  He made some new friends, had a blast playing, ate his whole lunch and didn't want to leave when it was time to go; I even got a good two hour nap out of him when we got home.  Isn't it funny how fast things change?