The Big Potty

I know the blog has been rather Maverick-heavy lately, but with all the changes going on with him, it's hard not to want to document it all.  I just wanted to take some time today to say how proud I have been lately of Brighton.  

Potty-training here is not my favorite aspect of parenting.  We have great successes in some areas and in others, not so much.  Brighton can be so grown up and big in some ways, but in other ways he likes to be the "baby"  I guess that's a middle child for you!

Brighton has been potty trained for some time now, but has been lacking confidence in one area, and that's using a regular-size potty.  The little potty is great when you are first learning, but at some point you need to graduate to the regular ones.  Obviously I was ready for this much sooner than Brighton and it lead to much frustration (on my part).  

I think it was around December when I put the little potty up in the attic and said Brighton had to use the big potty for BMs.  We have a potty seat and a step stool, so I think it should be fine.  Well, after 3 months of accidents, pull-ups, and much aggravation, I decided to try a sticker chart with a reward of new underwear for 7 BMs in the big potty.  The sticker chart was up for one week before a single sticker was placed on the poop side.  I put a pee side just so he could do that, and it was filled up in one day as he had mastered that months, maybe a year?!? or so earlier.  One day it just clicked and the big potty was no longer scary.  He finally did a BM in the potty!  We were so proud.  Then it seemed he would go on demand.  If he wanted something (dessert, etc...) I would say, when you go poop on the big potty you can have it.  Would you not believe that he would then proceed to run to the potty and go?!?  It didn't matter when the last BM was that he had, he would just go.

It's been several weeks now, and he uses the big potty just fine now.  He is even using it at school and when we go to parks, etc....This makes it SO MUCH easier than always having to carry a little potty around with you.  He's still a little leery of the automatic flush ones, but we're working on that :)

Way to go, Brighton!