(mis)Adventures in potty training. Take one.

I've been feeling like I should attempt to potty train this summer since I'm home. Madeline may be showing some signs of readiness...although really this is another one of the (many) areas of parenting that I have no idea what I am doing

We bought some underwear last week. Elmo and Cinderella. She's been very excited about them. She likes to sit on the potty -- especially if other potty trained kiddos are doing so. She usually wakes up from her nap with a (fairly) dry diaper. BUT, she's never actually tinkled (I know, I know...I can bring myself to use the word "pee". I'm weird like that) on the potty.

After buying the new "underwears" (usually referred to in the plural) last Friday, we had a SMALL success. I told her we couldn't wear the underwears until (1) I washed them and (2) she tinkled on the potty. She was determined. We even moved the potty chair to the toy room. She sat there for like 20 minutes while continuing to play and there were like three drops of action in the potty. It was a small success (possibly unknown to her at the time that she actually tinkled in the potty), but celebrated in a big way with M&Ms.



Out of my own laziness and lack of knowledge on what I should actually do, we took the rest of this week off. Plus, we actually had some plans and I fear that potty training means that we'll be home-bound for a few days.

We tried again this morning.

Madeline was VERY excited about the underwears again. She picked out a pair of Elmo undies and then sat on the potty for probably 20 minutes while I read some books to her. She likes sitting there. She just doesn't produce. No tinkle. I figured she had gone in her diaper at breakfast.

Then I put some clothes on and got ready in my room while she played. In the five minutes she was off the potty, she had an accident in the hallway. Oops. We sat on the potty, put on clean clothes, Belle undies, and went outside for a second try.

At this point we were ready to go for a walk around the block(s). It went well. We were home 20 minutes later. I should have taken her straight in to go potty. I didn't. Darrin, who was working from home, came out to say hello and asked if she needed to potty as Madeline was sitting in her Cozy Coupe in the garage. She was awfully quiet. Her car moved and there was "an oil leak" dripping from under her seat. Darrin sprayed down the garage floor while Madeline and I went inside to sit on the potty for another 10 minutes. Apparently there was nothing left.

So, thus ended our short potty training attempt this morning. We went back to diapers for the day. We'll try again soon.