I realize the topic of potty training doesn't appeal to all, but I definitely need to record this milestone so I don't forget what I've learned the next time around!
Challenges/ Solutions:
Not interested in potty/ Lots of potty propaganda. Demo potty skills with her fav animals. Big girl talk, movies, books, peer pressure (your friends and cousins use the potty!)
Fear of elimination and holding it too long/ encouraged ALL elimination at first even if it wasn't on the potty (only used this tactic first couple days to overcome fear).
She got sick with stomach flu symptoms/ put potty training on hold. We stopped all training for a couple days til better. It was ok to take a little break and go back to diapers for a while. She got right back on the horse when we started again.
Not wanting to go on the potty- She would actually run, hide, and try to pee into the air vents, corners, or closets/ this was after conquering her fear, midway through the process. Incentives were used big time- candy, and dollar store prized for successful potty time. If there was an accident- Love and Logic methods used. I'd say, "That's too bad. Next time you should use the potty." Then I would take away one of her "potty treats" and take back a potty prize I had previously given her.
The best strategy that I learned: Drop the pressure, incentives, and punishments in the beginning. Just encourage and help her to know this is a normal process. No pressure. Fun. Then, as she gets the hang of it and starts to disobey or regress, stronger incentives and punishments are needed.
This picture was taken right in the middle of her "refusing to go on the potty" phase of the training. She actually turned all the way around and crammed herself into the corner so that I couldn't take a picture of her.
This picture was taken right after bribing her with candy. She's sucking on a jelly bean. My potty training and photography training philosophies are very similar...
Then, after a long hard week of being stuck in the jail cell that is our downstairs bathroom, my charming husband brought home these beautiful roses. It was very sweet and thoughtful of him!
