Sim and the potty

It may be a bit hard to see in the photo, but Sim is playing with the Fisher Price potty.  This is by far the most popular part of the set we have.  Every kid loves that potty.  I think I’ve mentioned this before. 

Naomi, who also loves the Fisher Price potty, is now almost completely potty trained.  Praise the LORD!  We were beginning to wonder if we’d ever be able to say that.  Sim is very excited about it, as you can see. 

Sim has actually helped with this.  Because of the difficulty we’ve had with Naomi, I decided that something had to be different with Simeon.  I didn’t want to end up with another 3 1/2 year old who had no interest in going potty.  So I started to research elimination communication, which is basically a fancy way of saying, “Watch your kid and when he needs to go, take him to the potty.”  I got a book from the library, called Infant Potty Training.  Interesting ideas.  The author said that people generally start this process between 1 and 4 months. 

Well, even though Sim was about 9 months at the time, I decided to give it a go.  It has worked really, really well.  Overall, he probably uses the potty for over 50% of the times he goes.  Our aim wasn’t that he be totally potty-trained by a certain age, but that he realize that using the potty is a normal part of life.  We’re there. 

I should mention that we have not embraced what’s often called “diaper-free” living. I don’t have the time, energy, interest, or any of the other things that might be required to clean up messes around the house because of misses from a diaper-free baby.  I also think that Michael would not have been willing to try it.  I could be wrong.  Of course, I wasn’t willing to try it, so I didn’t need to try to convince him!

Also, Sim’s potty progress inspired Naomi to begin her potty-training adventure, so we’re getting two for one.  We’re not really sure why, but the fact that he was using the potty was what really seemed to get her into using it.  We didn’t ever pressure her with the information – potty training and pressure don’t seem to go together well – but she was definitely aware that he was going potty.  We don’t need to know why, we’re just glad! 

Sim doesn’t have the same qualms that Hannah does about “pit potties”  -- he’s willing to use them.  And he’s willing to use other public restrooms (try asking for a restroom for your 10-month-old some time – it’s very amusing!), friends’ restrooms, whatever.  On our recent camping trip, he learned about the great outdoor men’s room, too. 

Michael began by thinking this whole process was somewhat odd, but has been supportive and helpful.  Come to think of it, I began by thinking this process was somewhat odd, but, heck, it’s working!  And we’ve decreased our diaper usage and increased our chances of completely potty training easily.  Who can argue with that?