Potty Training

There is no fancy title that can be thrown to the subject of Potty Training.  It's merely what it is.  Although, as a parent I could toss some serious sarcasm towards the efforts that is teaching a mini human how to use the toilet.  Stressful, frustrating, flat out annoying doesn't even begin to cover the emotions that come out from both parent and child during the process.

Disclaimer, I do not know what its like to potty train a child as a stay at home mom.  So all my opinions here are based on what I experience and what I imagine are some stark differences between a working mom and a stay at home mom. 

As with everything about child rearing, every parent has an opinion, a method or trick.  What I came to find was it was really rare to find a parent that just said, "it sucks."  So I'm here today to say. It sucks. You can use whatever method you think will work.  You can try six or seven different tricks.  Bribing, begging and black mailing are not off limits.  All that said.  The child, this little mini version of you, will not do it unless she or he is ready.  Mind blowing, isn't it? The power rests in a small person who can't possibly decide between the strawberry or blueberry pop tart at 10 minutes past the time you needed to leave to be at work on time. 

As a control freak, this was my largest obstacle.  I was ready to potty train.  Heck, everybody around us was ready to potty train.  To the point that despite my general urging not to, some took it upon themselves to begin training when Charlie was in their care.  Here's where I envy the stay at home mom's.  While I'm so grateful to the "village" of friends, family and our daycare for caring for Charlie when we cannot, its hard to give up parenting control.  For a working mom, it makes it a tad difficult.  As said before, it just sucks.  Because potty training was introduced, in my opinion, too early we dealt with a lot of confusion on the subject.  She would pee on the potty just fine for a few weeks, then revert back to diapers/pullups.  There was months of this, with little to no pooping on the potty. 

I have to admit, because there was so much back and forth with her decision, I eventually stopped keeping track.  In fact, my method at this point, around the age of 3,  I just did whatever she asked.  I was tired of methods, tricks, the scorn of other parents because she wasn't trained yet.  I merely just didn't care at that point.  If she asked to go, I would take her.  I'd occasionally ask her if she had to go.  But I let her lead.  And I conveyed this thought process to all involved with her daily care.  Eventually she was consistently peeing on the potty at the age of 3 1/2 with occasional poops on the potty.  There were a few weeks that she refused to poop at all, terrified to go on the potty.  That wasn't pleasant for all involved.  Now we're one day away from the age of 4 and she is strictly, fully potty trained. 

Looking back, I wish I had stood firm in my decision to go with the flow.  I didn't honestly feel the pressures of potty training from myself as much as from other parents and family.  When I started listening to them and not to the one who was ultimately going to decide, thats when it went down hill.