Potty Training - for real this time!

Potty TrainingI have tried a number of times in the past to potty train Nick - to no avail.

We are always so busy and out of the house almost every day of the week. It's hard to stop what you're doing and find a bathroom in 2 minutes or less (and especially hard when you have 5 kids and it's 20 below zero out!)

So, I gave up for a while, but I've known that he was ready.
This week is a slow one. We are doing schoolwork (because Andy will be home soon and we want to spend some much-needed time with him!), but there are no classes or meetings to attend. Besides a trip to the grocery store, I don't think that I will be going anywhere. It's almost negative 40 degrees out this entire week anyway - and who wants to leave the house when it's that cold? Definitely not me!

So, this seemed like the right time. I put him in underwear right when he woke up.

At first, I couldn't get him to wear just one pair. He was so excited, that he thought he needed to wear about 5 pairs at a time. This would not make for quick bathroom trips :) I finally talked him out of that and I'm happy to say that he has gone about 10 times in his little mini-man urinal! We did have one major accident though and he was very uncomfortable. Thank God for wood floors.

Let's hope that I succeed this time and I get a diaper-free little boy by the end of the week!

Nick has hopped aboard the potty train!!!

Yes, Nick actually went on the toilet tonight!! We lavished congratulations on him and I rewarded him with the above train (Donald). I wanted to make a big deal out of it so that he would realize how cool it is to be a big boy. I just hope he doesn't expect me to get him a train every time he goes. That could get expensive :)

I know that this is just the beginning of our potty training journey, but at least we've made a step in the right direction!

All Aboard the Potty Train!

Thomas and Friends, All Aboard
I have still yet to potty train Nick. I believe that he is capable and probably ready, but I haven't taken the time to make it happen. I need to get him interested in using the potty.

Today, while I was able to shop without kids, I found the PERFECT book for Nick. It is called The Potty Train. He lives and breathes trains right now, so it couldn't get any better than this! I had to buy it of course.

"When you feel like you have to go, climb aboard the Potty Train. All Aboard!"
"Chugga Chugga Poooo-poooo!" Yes, I'm serious. Those are lines from the book. He absolutely loves it though. Of course, I could do without all of the kids chuckling and repeating that over and over again....

Let's hope he decides to buy a ticket and jump aboard the potty train. :)

Time to Potty Train

It's time to potty train Nick. I have been putting it off since it is so time-consuming and I didn't think I would have the time and patience to spend 10 minutes of every hour sitting in the bathroom with him. I have to spend that entire time keeping him focused on the task at hand. He would much rather pull out the whole roll of toilet paper, flush the toilet 500 times in a row, overflow the sink with water, or jump into the bathtub fully clothed. After 3 girls, I have been dreading potty training a boy.

It is becoming very evident though that he is ready. He has started going in his mini urinal more often (this is the coolest thing!) I was so afraid of him trying to stand on a stepstool at the toilet and falling in. Now he can stand up like a big boy. It even has a little tank to fill so that you can flush it :)



I just have to start asking him if he has to go and take the time to sit with him in there. I should probably be doing that right now while we're off from schoolwork.

Anyway, it is also becoming evident that he no longer wants to do #2 in his pants. This morning, when I went into his bedroom, he was standing on top of his dresser (yes with a broken toe) completely naked, with a bazillion baby wipes all over the place. He had taken his diaper off and gone poo on the floor (yes on the white carpet). He was then cleaning himself off and had already pulled out new clothes to put on. So thoughtful of him :) Apparently the thought of going in his diaper is so gross that he would rather go on his bedroom floor. This was not a mess that was fun to clean up!