Making Good on a Promise

Dear Adelaide,

Last week I made good on a promise that I had made to you about a month ago. Oliver had to remind me about it but we went to Friendly's to celebrate you being fully potty trained. By fully potty trained, I mean you go pee-pee and poo-poo in the potty and wear underwear at night. The reason why I had forgotten the promise is because you made the transition with such ease and comfort that it was almost as though you had always been wearing underwear.

With Oliver, I felt an enormous amount of pressure to potty train him early. So I tried everything- putting him on the potty every hour, offering stickers and treats and nothing seemed to catch on. He was about 2 years and 5 months when I started. I had heard so many different things about potty training. Some people said it was the easiest thing they had ever done and others struggled with it. I know some parents who had their children potty trained at two and then others had their children potty trained at 3+ years. After doing some reading, I learned that children who potty train around three have less accidents and transition to underwear at night much quicker. I also took a deep breath and told myself that the chances of Oliver going to kindergarten wearing a diaper were slim to none so I just had to be patient and stop putting pressure on him and myself if he wasn't ready. Plus, I didn't want to sit at home for a whole week waiting for him to use the potty. So, at around 2 years and 11 months it just clicked with him. The day actually came where I asked him to use the potty and he totally got it. He started using the potty regularly and while going poo poo in the potty took a little longer, he eventually got there too! It was at about 3 years and 5 months that he stopped using a pull up at night and wore underwear. I am so glad I had the experience with him because it made me feel better knowing you'd hit that point.

Well, similar to everything else you've done (like walking), you felt it out, watched Oliver and then decided one day at around 2 years and 8 months that you were ready for the potty. You told us on a Saturday, we gave you underwear and the first few days you had a few accidents and then you were on your way going pee and poo in the potty. You wanted to wear underwear at night so we told you that you needed to stay dry for seven nights before you could wear underwear. You hit that milestone while we were in Maine and you've been wearing underwear since then.

I am proud of you for becoming a big girl but this whole experience has really made me realize just how different every child is in the potty training process. Some children are ready earlier, some later but everyone gets there. It's just my own experience too, so it can be taken with a grain of salt, but the process is so much more fun for both the parent and the child when the child actually understands the whole process and is ready to take the plunge! I am writing you this note so that I won't forget when you hit this milestone and so that I can remind myself that every child is different and cannot be treated the same way.

I love you,

Mommy