Potty Training Phobia

I have had this crazy phobia of potty training Elizabeth.  And just like any good fear, it only magnified the more I tried to ignore it.  So this weekend, I decided I had procrastinated long enough and it was time to face it head on!

 After much over-analyzing with two of my best friends and mommies I know, I felt ready to go!  So when Bert went to Troy to cheer on his team, the girls stayed at home for potty training boot camp.  Can you see Elizabeth's reward still on her face?!

My biggest fear was how she would deal with #2.  And just as suspected, she started begging me for a pull-up as soon as she felt the urge.  I encouraged her to sit on the potty, and she actually did without crying.  Then she said, "Mommy, Go Hide!"  It took me a second to realize that she wanted me to get out of the bathroom.  She usually hides when she's going #2, so I guess she thought that if she couldn't hide, then I at least had to let her be by herself.  Of course I just stood right outside the door, and when she came running out yelling, "I did it!" I almost cried!  I'm not even kidding.

We needed a change of scenery, so we continued our boot camp in the basement.  That also let me relax a little since it's not new furniture down there.

This morning, only day 2, somehow I felt brave enough to go to church in her big girl panties.  I told the nursery workers that this was her first time in public without a pull-up, and to come get me if she had an accident.  They never came to get me so I was hopeful.  Not only had she pee-peed once, she also went #2!  In fact, she ran through the nursery halls yelling, "I went poo-poo!"  So I guess, now my phobia should be my child shouting about her bowel movements in public.

Because it was such a beautiful day, I took the girls to the park after nap time.  There is a port-a-potty on site (yuck) but I just had her pee before we left and did a lot of praying on our walk there.   We only stayed for an hour before we went home, and she stayed dry the whole time!

I knew I pushed my luck all day on Sunday, so it surprised me when she had her first accident right before dinner while standing 10 feet from our toilet!  It was just a little bit (didn't even get on the floor) and she caught herself doing it.  Which is how she stopped and got herself to the bathroom  Lesson learned: don't stop asking if she needs to go!

 Thankfully she's already stopped asking for a treat after each time, and we'll start rewarding her for "good days."  Tomorrow I'm sending her to school with a dozen panties and pants, so we'll see how this goes.

I couldn't leave out Elizabeth's biggest cheerleader who is almost sitting by herself!  She's also trying to get her knees up under her.  I'm not eager for her to start crawling, but it's fun to watch her get closer and closer to it.