The pee-pee diaries

6am JB and I, both awake, sit in the living room and go over our plan. Today is the day. We've decided we aren't reading any books or doing any research. We are just going to try this our way based on conversations we've had with other parents (mostly moms). I am not a "pee-pee" party sorta girl. But we think Isaac especially is ready to start toilet training. He gets very upset whenever his diaper is dirty or wet. Elijah has started retreating to corners, and, if prompted, will sit on the potty and go pee-pee in it. So we've decided to just jump in and see what happens.

6:16am We walk up the stairs and open the boys' bedroom door. They are jumping on the bed and throwing stuffed animals at each other. We joyfully announce that today is the day we wear big boy underpants. JB pulls out some dinosaur underwear Grama K. gave the boys about a year ago and some mader underpants Grama Di sent just a few weeks ago. Elijah gets very excited and quicly chooses a "mader" to wear. Isaac starts sobbing. "I don't want to wear big boy underpants. I want to wear a diaper," he weeps. I head downstairs with Elijah. Isaac and JB finally decided to put on a "Lightning" pair.

6:22am When Isaac joins us downstairs, he is pulling at Lightning and begging to have him off. So we take him off but tell him there are no diapers today. He sobs harder but decides to go naked instead of putting Lightning back on.

6:26am With the promise of M&Ms, Elijah quickly lets me help him take Mader off and beings trying to put pee-pee in the potty. Nothing comes, but he is quick to try over and over again.

6:40am Isaac, obviously having to go the bathroom very badly, dribbles on the floor in the kitchen. JB (who is better with Isaac overall) decides to go into the bathroom with him and have a joint bathroom seession. Suddenly Isaac looks up and smiles very big. He has gone pee-pee in the potty!

6:50am Isaac sits at the kitchen counter eating his bowl of Raisin Bran and his five Valentine's Day colored M&M's with giddy joy. He is still naked other than his shirt but doesn't seem to care at all. Elijah continues to try the potty again and again with no success. Mader comes on and off frequently.

7:15am Mom sets up the "Mickey Christmas" movie on the kids' table in the dining room which has no carpets and vinyl chairs so that accidents can be cleaned up easily. Other than the dribble on the kitchen floor, no accidents yet. Daddy begins his "Insanity" work-out in the living room while Mom mans the battle stations.

7:30am While drinking their third glass of water/juice, Isaac and Elijah continute to decline offers to go the bathroom. (Mom is asking nearly every 30 seconds and starting to drive them crazy.)

7:32am Isaac gets a panicked look on his face and tells me that he really has to go! This is the moment we have been waiting for! Feeling the sensation on his own and deciding he needs to go. We run to the bathroom and he instantly begins to go! Celebrations ensue! So very exciting. This is the first time either boy has made the decision on his own and followed through.

7:45am Boys return to their movie ...

7:59am Isaac stands up from the movie table and goes running to the bathroom without telling either of us. He sits down and goes! JB follows him and begins cheering.

8:00am As Isaac stands up, I hear something and turn to see that Elijah is peeing all over the floor under the table. I grab him and we run down the hallway (where rugs have already been rolled up) and run to the bathroom. I quickly empty potty from Isaac and pull off Elijah's wet Mader pants. He shuts the door and when JB walks in to check on Elijah, he has gone in the potty! He gets his own M&m's and a new pair of undewear. (The Lightning ones Isaac didn't want.)

8:03am Elijah is scarfing down his 5 M&M's and Isaac continues to eat about 1 every 6 minutes. So far, it appears that Isaac has gotten the sensation. Elijah doesn't seem to get the sensation part yet but is totally achieving the potty idea when prompted.

8:09am Isaac goes running back to the bathroom but I think it was only becaause he is out of M&Ms. He asks to sit on the little potty and then the big potty but nothing happens. He does ask me, "Are you too big to sit on the little potty Mommy." Ummm, yes I am.

8:10am Isaac asks to wear dinosaurs. Deciding to wear underwear instead of being naked is a good thing I think.

8:11am Isaac decides he prefers nudity and removes them! The movies seem to be helping us "contain" them so we decide we are going to continue watching them even as Mickey concludes.

8:22am "Does anyone need to do pee-pee in the potty?" is met with a "Yeah!" and a sweet giggle from Elijah as he goes running down the hall with JB at his heals. Success results. As he comes back and begins eating his M&Ms, Isaac takes off and does the same thing. Two successes in one minute. Way cool.

8:49am Isaac takes off with his little naked buns running to the potty and goes! Five more M&Ms. We are now worried about sugar highs.

8:50am When asked if he needs to go, Elijah heads down the hallway and successfully delivers the same result! He is still wearing Lightning underwear. (Isaac is still naked.)

8:51am Isaac runs back to the bathroom and says he has gone but I hadn't had a chance to empty Elijah's yet. Did he go? Did he not? We give him the benefit of the doubt and give M&Ms anyhow.

9:10am JB spots Elijah in a poop squat. By the time we have gotten him to the bathroom, he has gone a bit in his underwear, but he sits down and does a bunch more in the potty. Poop in the potty by the little brother! A major accomplishment. During this time, Isaac runs in saying he has to go so we get the second potty from upstairs which Isaac pees in. (He is still quite naked.)

9:45am Elijah pees on the floor. He definitely doesn't seem to get "I'm feeling this and have to go." It seems we have to get him to go sit on the potty before he feels the urge. Isaac has had no accidents but has not done #2 yet either. I am off to take Scrubs to "dog dayz" at the pool which means JB is going to be on his own. Not sure he will update the diaries.

11:00am We opt to move to diapers when I leave to take Scrubs to the pool for "dog dayz" (they let the dogs take over the outdoor pool one day a year -- Scrubby loved it!) and JB was busy booking our tickets to Spain. We'll try again post naps -- I think. Overall ... big success! Very happy with how things turned out for one mere morning.

4:00-7:00pm After a break in diapers for birthday party and naps, we returned to the world of underwear. Isaac put underwear on with his pants and went outside. He had an accident. I think it is harder for him to feel when to go when he isn't naked. However, for the rest of the night, he wore nothing but his birthday suit and the occasional underpants and did really well with no accidents. He even went on the big potty once, and, once he was in bed, asked JB to come get him up so he could go potty again in the big potty. (We did put them to bed in diapers.) Elijah stayed in underwear all evening and had no accidents and a few successes! Very exciting stuff. We'll see how tomorrow goes. And, Brittny, I have no idea what I am going to do come Monday when JB returns to work. Maybe I should have waited to start this until Veronica got here next week.

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