It would appear that our 21 month old is done with diapers.
But I am not ready to potty train him.
I don’t want to.
I won’t.
You can’t make me.
With Olivia, she was willing and able to go in the potty until the novelty of the chore wore off. When it was no longer Shiny, she was no longer interested. And then it become Work. Mostly for me. We went back and forth between diapers and underwear. Largely based on what she wanted to do that day. But I was definitely encouraging her towards underwear!
It was all a big long blur of potty prizes, bribing, crying, giving up. And lots of laundry. I don’t even remember when it clicked for her. I remember thinking that it had clicked several times only to be proven wrong moments later. In fact, I wouldn’t even allow myself to tell friends and family about any progress she made. It seems to invoke bad Potty Karma.
With Benjamin, I did Potty Training in Under a Day. I had an almost four-year-old Olivia and a 4 week old Levi. I spent as much of a whole day as I could teaching him, encouraging him, rewarding him, loading him up with fun beverages, and asking the current state of his underpants. It was hard work, but it DID work.
Now Levi wants to go in the potty. But I’m not ready! I don’t want to! I remember the prizes, the bribing, the laundry, the crying, the work, the laundry, the rewards, the treats, the messes, and… the laundry! I’d rather wash diapers. At least I don’t have to scrub diapers. At least the dog doesn’t lick up diapers off the floor. Diapers are easy.
Plus! I’ve been changing diapers since July 2005 without pause. At one time, I had all three in diapers!* But never, since birthing my first, have I had none in diapers. I identify with diapers and I am identified by diapers.**
*Olivia was only in night-time diapers. But it counts!
**Ouch, yes, I think we’ve touched on the real issue here.
But Levi apparently isn’t waiting for me to be ready.
He cries and tells me when his diaper is wet. When I try to put a clean diaper on him, he struggles to get up, explaining, “Pee pee potty! Pee Pee Potty!” And when I put him down, he makes a bee-line for the little potty, sits, and goes!
The first time he did this, I was amazed. Then he promptly got up, went to the big potty, made me put a stool in place, stood there, and went again! He stopped for our applause, grinned, then concentrated and went some more!
Not only are we impressed that he can pee on command, but he can already pee standing up?! I have yet to teach Benjamin how to pee standing up. (Not that I am very experienced in this matter.) I was hoping my boys wouldn’t find out that they could do this until much, much later. Sitting down makes less messes.
We still try to keep him in diapers. But sometimes he just refuses. So we let him go pantsless, every now and then calling out, “Levi, pee pee potty?” Sometimes he says, “No.” Sometimes he jumps up and runs to the bathroom. He even empties his little potty all by himself.
The other morning, he was pantsless and I was dressing Benjamin for bed. We went in the bathroom to brush Benjamin’s teeth and there was Levi, standing at his little potty, looking down at the POOPY he had just made there.*
Well. I guess I should admit it. He’s getting potty trained. Just… not… by me.
*Definitely not 100% yet. We’ve had some misses. Some messy misses. Maybe he’ll get bored with it and want to go back in diapers soon.
Or…
Maybe this whole, “I don’t want you to!” attitude is what’s making him WANT to go in the potty.
Stinker.
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How have your kids pottytrained? Were they all the same? Is this usual behavior for a third child?
I know they’re only two months apart, but Levi always seems to me SO much older than Savannah! 🙂 He seems to mentally be at a comprehension level (and verbally) much higher.
I have been wondering when to get a little potty. I think when she starts walking I might introduce the concept.
I don’t know if HIS behavior is typical of a third child, but yours definitely is 🙂 I was the same way with my third…felt like I’d rather wait forever than start something and have to work at it. Everyone thought I was crazy. I think part of it was knowing (after forcing it with the first two) that’s it’s much easier when they want to do it, and part of it was probably a little like you said….diapers was just one more thing to let go of. One less link to babies. 🙂
My 3rd was actually my most challenging. Wait, I take that back. He totally led the way with potty training, was out of diapers for a couple of months. And then baby #4 arrived, and we had a slow regression, then a long, slow uphill re-learning. Blah. But I *think* we’re good now!
My first two were LATE potty trainers… so when G sat on her potty at 16 months and went, I was beyond shocked. I’ve compromised by putting her in pull-ups during the day… if she wants to go in and use her potty, she’s welcome to, but I’m totally not ready to push the issue. When it gets warmer and she turns 2, perhaps we’ll try ditching the pull-ups, but it’s working for now. 🙂 (btw, my boy NEVER peed sitting down. Ever. I think some boys are just pre-wired as standers. ;))
lol, you crack me up!
Lexi refused to potty train until I just took away her diapers, then it was pretty easy, aside from about 8 months ago when she decided she wanted to start peeing all over the floor…. we wont go there.
Caylee just decided one day she was done with diapers and that was it, then at the same time Lexi started peeing all over the floor so did Caylee.
and Josiah… well, he’s been potty trained for months..
Ha ha! I completely agree with you about not wanting them to find out that standing is an option. =)
I was able to succeed with my first boy! Four years old and prefers to sit. A momma’s dream come true. 🙂
Haha, Josiah, already, huh? What’s your secret?!
Maybe it is a pre-wired thing! I mean, Levi does HATE to sit! We have to strap him down to keep from eating his meals standing in his high chair! And I bet when they have two older siblings, going in the potty seems more normal than diapers. That’s my 1:36a.m. logic, anyway!
Oh, the regression! I’ve heard so much about it, but luckily, haven’t experienced it. Olivia was so late with potty training, Benjamin was probably a year old already! And I purposefully waited until AFTER Levi was born before I did any kind of training with Benjamin. Levi was only 4 weeks old! I remember laying him on my lap while helping Benjamin unzip his pants! Such a tiny boy he was then…
Yay! I’m not crazy! And I am going to miss those diapers… Here’s hoping God gives us another one soon! Baby withdrawl!!
You could do EC… babies who can’t walk have gone without diapers before. NOT MINE, THOUGH. 🙂 I’d say wait til she can walk. And, remember, Levi is my third! He’s doing things Olivia didn’t do until she was THREE! She was my timid, unsure, gonna-wait-til-I’m-absolutely-ready kinda girl. Levi, well, he jumps off coffee tables. He has no fear of anything – failure OR gravity!
Paul’s dad put an end to the standing-while-peeing when they were little… But I guess with *three* boys you do what you have to do. 🙂