The Potty Training Saga

I envisioned cleaning up puddles on the kitchen floor and washing out poopy clothes by the hour...but it wasn't so bad.  I'm sorry to say that we didn't potty-train Noel because we were motivated, on-the-ball parents--we started because one night, I needed to get out of the house.  We had no plans, not a lot of money, and the girls' bedtime was in an hour.  Our solution?  We went to Wal-Mart and let Noel pick out "big-girl underwear".  And just like that, I was committed to potty-training the little munchkin.

We were stuck in the house because of a 3-day blizzard, so I made myself like the idea of having Noel sit on the potty every ten minutes.  I bribed her with chocolate chips and Hershey's kisses.  I put a sticker chart on the fridge and let her cover it in stars and rabbits.  We read books about Elmo using the potty, pretended the doll was using the potty, and watched Daniel the Tiger sing his "When you have to go...stop...and go right away!"  song.  We have immersed ourselves in the potty-training experience.  Just in time, too.  Noel turns 3 today, and I didn't want to have to face a lecture from the pediatrician about potty-training.  If only all trips to Wal-Mart could result in such life-changing decisions.

(This picture was taken February 12, 2012...just to show that we had good intentions for almost a year)