on the potty train

It's been a week since we said goodbye to diapers, took Caleb by the hand and climbed aboard the potty train. Overall, he's done remarkably well, thanks to factors such as his personality, his grasp of language, and the fact that he's a second child with a big brother to watch and cheer him on. He quickly caught on to the concept on the first day, and since that time has learned to recognize the urge to go and complete the toileting process from start to finish all by himself. Even on the first day he had more successes than accidents, and though we have yet to make it through an entire day without an incident of one sort or another, his pants stay dry far more than they get wet.

Which isn't to say that teaching him hasn't been at times incredibly exasperating. He is ultra-sensitive to the need to go, which translates to a lot of unproductive visits to the potty. He also lacks the patience to sit long enough in order to fully finish what he starts, which, in addition to more unproductive visits, has resulted in more Poop on the Hallway Floor incidents than I care to clean up. All of this up and down is wearing out both my patience and my already exhausted, stretched-to-the-limits third trimester body. So while there is a definite appeal to potty training while pregnant -- who wants more than one in diapers if it can be avoided? -- I can't say that I recommend it.

Like I did with Garrett, I followed the method found in Toilet Training in Less Than a Day. While the title is optimistically deceiving, the approach it teaches makes a lot of sense. Caleb especially enjoyed teaching his dolly the toileting process, and he thought the practice runs to the potty that I made him do after he had an accident were lots of fun. He also loved hanging out at home in underwear, eating goldfish crackers and drinking juice boxes while he caught up on episodes of his new favorite show, Super WHY!, as he waited for the need to use the potty to present itself. But I think if you asked him, he'd say that the best part of all this growing up he's been doing this week has been the reward of a single M&M after he tinkles in the potty. "I get M&M!" he announces after finishing (and curiously examining) his business. After he's all cleaned up, I pull out the jar of chocolate candies for him to pick one, and he fishes through his options: "How 'bout...this one. Pink!" Red M&Ms are apparently his favorite, followed closely by brown, which is why those two colors are now all but absent from the candy jar.

While he can now independently toilet himself, we still have some kinks and quirks to work out. He's determined, though, and so are we, which is why every day there is progress. So here's to a luxury I did not get to enjoy when Caleb joined our family -- here's to at least a handful of weeks with no one in diapers, and only a baby (ONE baby!) in diapers after that.