Potty Training

After two attempts at potty training I am now bound and determined to make it work this time... (my first two efforts were more trials to see how Jared did and if he was even close to ready... he wasn't!) I made up my mind we would start training again after labor day and I had no idea what to expect. But when we came home from a movie on Monday and got Jared ready for bed he ran around our front room without his diaper on and ran to his little toilet and said, "Potty" and sat on it and went! Chris and I looked at each other in surprise and I decided my timing would be perfect!

So as we started on Tuesday with this adventure I let Jared go around the house with just a shirt and nothing else on. I tried to keep him confined to the kitchen where clean-ups were more manageable but soon learned I would drive Jared and myself insane by staying in the kitchen all day. Jared right away told me when he had to go and in fact his first time going he went number 2!!! So all morning Jared would tell me when he needed to go and we'd run to the bathroom where he'd successfully go about 95% of the time. One time he brought me a diaper and wanted me to put it on. I instead tried big boy underwear. Well as soon as I put it on he wet his pants. I guess he doesn't really get the idea behind underwear and even if I explained it I don't think he'll get it. So for now I'll keep to the bare bum.

After his nap we didn't have as much success though. Jared first off didn't want me to take his diaper off and then for the first few hours he'd start going and then by reaction I'd yell his name he'd stop going look at me and then run to the restroom. By the time Chris got home Jared was back to telling me by himself when he needed to go. Then for about 30 mins he was telling me every 5 mins that he needed to poop. I'd run to the bathroom with him and he'd sit down and fart and say, "All done!" Not exactly productive but I guess he's getting the idea of holding back till he sits...

Today when he woke up he didn't want me to take off his diaper again. I had to distract him for awhile but he eventually forgot about it. For the first two hours he didn't do anything. I was getting really nervous and kept asking him if he had to go. I've learned not to push him and he'll let me know when he's ready, but I was nervous cause this was a new day and maybe he'd forget. Eventually I convinced him to try and he went. Feeewww. And later in the morning I heard him yell something and run away. I didn't think much of it but noticed he wasn't coming back so I went back to the bathroom and he was coming out. I asked him if he went potty and he said Yep! And he didn't just do number 1 but number 2 too!!! The only bad thing is as soon as he's done he jumps up from the potty and this time he hadn't quite deposited all of his droppings. Unfortunately I didn't realize he'd gone number 2 so I stepped in his little surprise, thank goodness only a little didn't land in the potty.

All in all I have to say I'm pretty proud of our little guy. Now I'm just wondering when I'll be able to take him out with underwear and not be worried. I think that will be a long time but I'm not sure how to go out with a diaper and still encourage him not to go in it. Hopefully we'll gradually adjust and hopefully we'll be able to get far enough along before the baby comes so he won't regress too much. If there's suggestions out there, I'm open to them!