The Benders: Potty Training

There are two words that bring fear into every mother – Potty Training!

These dreaded words have been slowly creeping into my vocabulary as we have inched our way to the beginning of 3-year-old preschool. Knowing that Jackson had to be out of diapers by September, I decided (why exactly, I am not sure) that the best time to conquer this task would be by myself while Wesley was in Jerusalem.

So, after our week in Nashville, I ventured home to prepare for…well, I wasn’t exactly sure. All I knew was I needed patience, prizes and liquid! After Jackson went to bed Thursday night, I set up his award station. Friday morning, we began.

I really had no idea what I was doing. Scared that my carpet was going to be completely destroyed, I rushed poor Jackson to the potty every 10 minutes. Even still, we had several accidents as Jackson learned what it felt like to go with out the familiar comfort of a diaper.

We survived day one and had amazing success day two. Sunday was a different story. After spending the day cleaning up accident after accident, I put both boys down at 6:30 and called my sister in tears. Had he forgotten everything I had drilled into his head the past two days?

Being the older, wiser, experienced sister (she trained two at once!) she told me to stop stressing and if need be, put the training on hold for a few days. Sensing that either Jackson or I would not survive another day in the house, she strongly encouraged me just to get out and celebrate the successes Jackson had had over the weekend. Yes, Sunday was bad, but Saturday was great.

It was really difficult to change directions in my potty training regimen. I had a goal – to have completely potty trained Jackson in four days – and I felt as if I left the house, I would not achieve my goal.

It was then I remembered this wasn’t really about me, was it? It was about Jackson and if my stress was stressing him out, we wouldn’t get anywhere! I decided to take her advice, and a trip to the mall for a ride on the train quickly went on the agenda for Monday. I put Jackson in a pull-up and vowed that if he had an accident, it was no big deal. It would happen eventually.

Well, it turns out removing the stress from the situation was a huge motivator for Jackson. We went to the mall, rode the train and carousel, and even attempted to tinkle in the mall potty (which he thought was a hoot!) He came home with a dry pull-up and went right back into the underwear. Wow! What a difference a day of low stress makes!

We had a great time at the mall and enjoyed the rest of our time together until Wesley returned home so proud of his little man!

Overall, I can honestly say the experience wasn't all that fun. We ended on a high note but I now know why potty training gets a bad rap. It is quite stressful, discouraging and down right miserable at times, but in the end, it is pretty amazing to see your child achieve such a milestone. He was proud of himself and I was so very very proud of him. He is doing so well and it was worth all the frustrations and tears those four days brought.

Now's the big question: will it be easier the second time around or should I just go on vacation in about two years and leave Philip's training to Wesley??