Nico has always been a very intelligent and strong willed little guy. Once he decides he is ready for something, there is no stopping him. Though I have never wanted to rush him through milestones, I was not surprised when he took his first steps at 10 months, when he started climbing everything in sight at 12 months, or when he began to take an interest in the potty at 15 months. He began following my husband and I to the bathroom, flushing the toilet when he thought no one was looking, and telling me all about the contents of his dirty diaper. Though experts say these are all indicators of potty readiness, I still felt it was too early, and I didn't want to push my baby to grow up before his time. Instead we decided to take pre-potty steps.
A potty seat was the best option for our household because Nico was eager to sit on the toilet like mommy and daddy, and because we live in a single story house with easy bathroom access. I also liked the other benefits of the seat such as, portability, easy clean up, and space-saving storage. Each day, or maybe every other day, I would sit Nico on his potty seat (fully dressed) to get him used to the idea that one day he would be doing it all by himself.
Little did I know that day would come sooner rather than later.
Nico decided he was ready all on his own. At about 18 months, he started taking off his diaper during nap time. Sounds innocent enough, right? There is no harm in being silly and or figuring out how to work the tabs on a diaper, unless there is something in that diaper. Imagine my shock and disgust when I walk in on my 1 and a half year old happily smearing his feces all over himself and his crib. Unfortunately, this was not a one time thing. Over the next couple months, Nico continued to make monumental messes, no matter what my husband and I did, and he was beginning to do it more frequently. I began asking the older mothers in my church when they started the potty process and they all advised me to waited until Nico was ready.
Well, when you know, you know.
I still had my doubts since Nico was still 22 months old, not even 2 yet, but I couldn't take another nap time nightmare.
So, I made a potty plan:
- Stay home as much as possible during the day.
- Let Nico walk around with no diaper, and no pants. BIRTHDAY SUIT!
- Begin using undies when he has at least 2 days of no accidents in a row (this hasn't happened yet)
- Take the potty seat out with us when he finally does make the transition to undies.
Over the next few months I'll be writing a little series called Potty Diaries that will highlight misadventures of a first time mommy in Potty Land.
Follow us through all the ups and downs, and #1's and #2's!
