Potty Party!

Sorry (yet again) for the long blogging hiatus. We've had a crazy three weeks between Ryan's sports, all three of us being sick, and (drumroll please)...potty training! We decided that it would be really nice to get Eli out of diapers before Abby arrives, and he's been going in the potty off and on for months. So, we checked out Potty Train Your Child in Just One Day from the library. We'd heard great things about this method from lots of other parents, and we have to agree with all of the great reviews we heard. I know that every child is different, so we can only speak to our own experience, but for us this was a great book and a great method! The whole premise is that your child first teaches a doll how to use the potty, and by doing so, learns the process himself. You make a big deal about the whole thing...the whole day is a "Potty Party," complete with decorations and a theme (Eli's was Thomas the Tank Engine, what else?!), and lots of positive reinforcement (i.e., treats!).

So, on February 7th, Eli woke up to a present...a little boy doll named Paul. Paul decided that he wanted to learn how to use to the potty that day, so Eli took off Paul's diaper and helped him into his very own Thomas the Tank Engine big boy underwear (custom-made by Nana - thank you!!). Eli spent the morning teaching Paul to use the potty...we watched DVDs and read books and spent lots of time in the bathroom (and yes, Paul is anatomically correct and pees in the potty!). I apologize to anyone who tried to check out a potty-training book or movie from our library system that weekend...I think they were all at our house! Here's Eli "studying" one of his potty books in the giant carboard Thomas I made...

When Eli woke up from his nap that day he received another present: his very own Thomas big boy underwear! He was really excited to put them on and have his own Potty Party. He spent the rest of the day in just a shirt and big boy underwear. We spent countless hours in the bathroom practicing, earning lots of stickers on the potty chart, and discovering all sorts of fun things you can do while sitting on the potty...

You can play the harmonica,or play trains,or color and make up songs (this video is 1 minute, 45 seconds, but the first 45 seconds are the best - feel free to skip the rest!).

That night we had a "Big Kid Celebration" to celebrate his success. Eli got to choose whatever he wanted for dinner that night, and what did he choose? Pancakes and pizza - and yes, we obliged him and made both!

He did a great job, and has been doing a great job ever since! I'll admit that on Sunday I was in tears by 8:30 a.m. because Eli did not want to sit on the potty, and every bit of research you read on the subject tells you not to force the issue. However, Sunday morning seems to have been a fluke, because our little boy has become quite a potty champ! Since then he's had no more than one accident a day! Eli has already gotten really good at knowing (and telling us) when he needs to go and when he doesn't. We're really thrilled by what a great job he's doing...and really excited that we haven't changed a diaper in two weeks! :) We can tell he's really proud of himself for his accomplishment, too. Now let's hope we don't see too much regression when his baby sister is born...especially in light of the 12-14 diaper changes we'll be doing each day for awhile! :)