Adventures in Potty Training: Weeks 4 and 5

Feel free to catch up on our potty training adventure here:

Introduction

Week 1
Week 2
Week 3

Weeks 4 and 5

I know, I know.  I was bad last week and didn't post on this.  Can you blame me?  Smack dab in the middle of the holidays and all of that?  You'll forgive me, won't you?  Look at it this way, in this post you'll get double the information and, err, follies.  :)

General Overview:

It's like Logan knows that I'm bragging about him and the minute I hit the "Post" button, he decides that it's time to get back at me.  Remember how I said that Logan was actually progressing while being out of town around family and the insanity of Christmas?  Well, as soon as Christmas Day actually hit, all bets were off.  He was WAY too overstimulated to acknowledge the potty and it went back to me asking, him throwing a fit, and all hopes (a tad dramatic, I realize) out the window.  That is how I felt at the time, anyway.  Looking back, the trip was a LONG one and difficult on all of us at times.  We all regressed.  Jake began to worry excessively about work.  I became preoccupied with everything I needed to do to get my act together (as I do most times I go home), and Logan just decided to pee pee in his pants a little more often.  So really, a little pee pee in the pants due to excitement versus anxiety crazed parents?  Logan really had the lesser of the two crimes, don't you think?

It wasn't as if he TOTALLY stopped using the potty.  He still did.  He just had a few more accidents than usual.  So it's not as if the world ended.  This will be addressed more in the "What Works" section below.  Look for the word normalization.

Since we've been home, we've gotten back on point.  Our routine has returned to normal (no more pushing midnight bedtimes!) and we've pretty much settled back in.  Actually, because of my new revelation in "What Works", I think we've been doing a lot better these past 4 days. 

What Works:

If you know me or have been reading my posts for awhile, you may know that I have just a small neurotic streak in me.  I want everything to be perfect and if it's not, it really bothers me until I can make it that way.  Even though I tried not to, it seems that I've approached potty training with the same mentality.  (You can reread Week 1 if you want an ugly-cry example of this!)  Well, being home around other people, has normalized this process for me in such a positive way.

Let me explain.  One of the downfalls of living away from family and friends is that I'm inside my own head a lot more than usual (on a side note, my usual is still probably way too much).  I convince myself of the way things should be.  For example, I should be able to do absolutely everything perfectly since I'm not working right now.  I should be able to work out every single day.  I should be able to potty train Logan in record time.  And so on and so forth.  It's nice to get input from family and friends of the actual R-E-A-L-I-T-Y of things.  Oh sure, there were the two people who explained how their children were potty trained 3 days after birth, but more often were the comments like:  "He's doing so well for only just turning two-and-a-half!  That's kind of young for a boy!" "I can't believe he's caught on so quickly...It took mine FOREVER." And of course the, "Relax, Stephanie.  He's doing great."

So in hearing all of these remarks, I have let this particular "should" fly out the window a bit.  Logan really is doing well.  Kids (for the most part!) are not potty trained overnight or in one week.  It takes time.  It's a process.  And in hearing these comments and looking back on where we have been, I'd say Logan is doing pretty darn good!  Struggles?  Sure, we have them.  For instance, besides today, Logan has reserved his #2s for naps and overnight.  But we'll tackle that and other struggles, no doubt. And so far, he successes FAR outweigh the struggles. 

What Doesn't Work:

I feel like I'm giving an answer that would only get me 1/2 points at best on a test by saying the opposite of what I have written above.  But it's worth saying again:  Sweating the smallest stuff does not help.  It make you (me) crazy and in turn causes anxiety and confusion in your little one (Logan).  So -- don't sweat it!  Concentrate on the bigger picture!

I wish I had more to write here (or wait...no I don't!), but I think that this is the single most important lesson I've learned through this process, so I will just leave it at that!

Goals:

My goals for this coming week include remembering that all important lesson mentioned above.  It may sound like such a simple, "DUH!" thing, but for me and my neurotic streak, it's a pretty big deal.  It's going to be tested this weekend because I will not find the help and relief I get from Jake being home.  He's got to work ALL weekend (yuck!). 

I'd also like to TRY to get Logan's #2s in order.  I think that he is just still adjusting to getting on schedule, as before, these were no problem at all.  Also, it seems that now, he's a little freaked out by them, lol.  Today we CELEBRATED like crazy when he landed one in the potty, lol.  I think some more crazy positive reinforcement and we will be back on track. 

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As always, I'd LOVE to hear from all of you veteran mommies on what works, what doesn't, etc.  I'd also love to hear from everyone else on any input and suggestions!  Just leave me a comment below!

Until next week... Happy Potty Training! :)

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Keep up with our adventure:

Week 6
Week 7 
Week 8
Week 9
Week 10  
Week 11