A Terrifying Adventure: Potty Training

About a week ago, as I hefted my 36-pound, 38-inch newly three-year-old onto his changing table to change yet another horrendous diaper I realized that I had had enough. It was time to potty train.

Six months before I had tried with absolutely no success; after a week of running through over twenty pairs of pants a day it dawned on methat my son just didn't have the bladder control for it to work. So, we shelved the idea, and the "big boy pants," and I figured I'd revisit the idea sometime around three.

Well, on January 19 "three" arrived, and a week before the event itself I set a day to start potty training: January 28. I told my partner what I had planned, and we agreed that we'd spend a quiet weekend at home to work things through. I'd handle the constant trips to the potty and the laundry, and he'd handle the fifteen-month-old.

In the week leading up to the 28th the Big One surprised us by showing a sudden interest in the potty; on the 26th I caught him peeing in the bathtub, and told him that he couldn't pee in the tub, but he could pee in the potty. "Ok," he said, "potty?" So we set him on the toilet and he successfully peed on the potty for the very first time. We were shocked and thrilled and rewarded him with plenty of praise and a few M&Ms. He thought it was a pretty sweet deal, so the next day he asked to use the potty three times, and did so successfully each time. He really was ready.

The Plan:

• Switch to the stash of toddler training pants, and never look back. No pullups, no sleeping diapers, just underwear - and the promise of cool dinosaur big boy pants if he learned to keep them dry.
  
• It's January, so we'd keep a space heater running in the living room to keep him warm without wearing jeans.
• Ask him every thirty minutes if he had to use the potty, and rush him with smiles and an excited voice when he said yes. I didn't want to make him try if he said no, because I'd rather he learn to listen to his urges than the clock.
  
• When he pees successfully we'll reward him with 2-3 M&Ms and plenty of praise. Eventually we'll switch to a treat only when he poops in the potty.
  
• No potty chair. Personal opinion only: I find them revolting, and I don't really want him to learn to pee anywhere but the "proper" place. In one bathroom we have this step-up seat insert, and in the upstairs bathroom we have this Cars seat insert. He uses both very comfortably, although he certainly favors his "Cars potty."

I'm going to keep a running journal throughout the day to help me keep track of when he has problems. Wish us luck!