Potty Land, Part 3

Warning: This entry is about poop.

I had a moment of clarity this weekend regarding this whole potty training business--  
I realized that potty training is not necessarily an all or nothing type thing.
Violet, I would say, is now completely absolutely partially potty trained.
She wears her special underpants all day (except during naps, when we put the diaper back on), and pees in her kid potty whenever she feels the urge (or in the grown up people toilets at the zoo, park, grocery store, etc.... if we happen to be out)---  but going the big #2 in the potty is not quite happening yet.  She went a few times, and afterwards, turned around and stared at her little turd in the potty with a bit of surprise and horror -- pointing, and yelling "not that!!"....  and ever since then has conveniently gone poo in her diaper as she is waking up from a nap or nighttime sleep.
The internet tells me that going #2 in the toilet is a bit advanced for a toddler compared to going #1, and I would definitely say that it is proving to be true.  At this point, #2 is just a little too much.  --too much smelly, too much weirdness all around, too much letting go.

So I've decided that I'm not going to push the deed on her (no pun intended).  She's proven to me so far that she's a sensible little thing, and that she needs to take this thing at her own pace.
Sooner or later I figure, just like a cat, she'll realize that pooping where she sleeps isn't really such a great idea, and maybe then we can say goodbye to diapers for good (and mommy can use the extra $$ every month to get an i-phone ;)  Ha ha!  

Potty Land, part 2

Ok, moms and grandparents:   More Potty News!

A few months ago, in May, Violet used the potty.  And then Mr. Potato Head used it, and then G-Raffe used it, and then Dolly used it, and Elephant used it, and Rainbow Bear used it.  And that was the end of the story.  Our little tot made it quite clear that she did not want to go near her potty any more.
So, after trying to convince her, we decided to drop it for a while.

Well, yesterday, quite out of the blue, I decided to give it a try again.  Violet had been running around outside in her swimsuit playing with a water bucket, and had (somewhat to my surprise), not had any sort of accident whatsoever.  So when we went back in, I decided to put some underpants on her, and told her, quite casually (but somewhat sternly), that it was time to go sit on the potty.

And she did.

She did as if it was quite the normal and natural thing to do.  And after she went, she was so incredibly excited and kept saying that she needed to "call Grandpa Eldon and tell him!"
Then she went to the sink and washed her hands, and reminded me that "when Violet uses the potty she gets so many blueberries and candies and cupcakes and treats!"-- a bribe that used to do nothing.    


I don't know what has changed from a few months ago, but now Violet is WAY excited about using the potty and wants to try to go every 15 minutes.  It used to be kind of a scary thing for her, but now it's as though she's conquered that fear, and is just beaming with pride.  She keeps telling me that she's "such a big girl now" and is "doing so well!".  
Is this the same child that was clinging to me and crying in June, begging to put a diaper on?  She probably used the potty about 23 times yesterday, and every time managed to squeeze enough out to warrant a chocolate-coated sunflower seed.  

Then, when we went to FredMeyer in the afternoon, she told me point blank, "Mama, I want to pick out some special underpants".  Fair enough, small child.  Whatever you want!  I'm just happy we're on the road to Potty Land again!

We'll see how the afternoon goes today;  her enthusiasm is refreshing; she continues to surprise me every day.