So, we are starting to approach the time that all parents do. Two words: potty training. Yes, the time when we all get back to our basics and get very earthy in our language. If you are at all squeamish about excrement just skip this post (and having children) because as a rule, it will be talked about. Of course, as of right now potty training is more of a game to Isabelle and as such is one that is only periodically played. Some days we only want diapers and never even look, think, or make any move towards the potty. Other days we beg to wear "big girl panties" or pull ups, and we repeatedly sit on the potty.
The problem is that Isabelle is such an energetic child that getting her to actually alight on the potty for more than say..... two minutes is pretty much impossible. Picture a humming bird at a feeder and you have a pretty decent idea of how long she wants to sit. Because of this my darling daughter has yet to put anything in the potty. (Aside from one bowel movement, which I happened to "catch" about two months ago when reading her a book. Anyone who has a toddler is familar with the "push" face. Unfortunately, no such face appears for the liquid variety.) Now, I have some friends who have been able to essentially make their child stay on the potty until something is produced, but these friends do not have a child like Isabelle. Isabelle is not what one would call overly compliant, and while I am more than willing to pick a battle with her when I need to, having a test of wills over using the bathroom is not something I wish to engage in. I want very much for this to be her idea, and I know if I force the issue with her too quickly she will refuse just on principle.
Thus, I am actually finding myself in unfamiliar territory where I let Isabelle call the shots on something. We sit on the potty when she wants to (I try to get her to stay for more then a millisecond by plying her with books) and while I encourage and ask, I am doing my best to not turn into a nazi dictator over using the potty. Most of my fellow moms who have been down this road before me hold to the idea that kids will start using the potty when they are ready and trying to make it happen in my time frame will only result in more work and frustration on my part. And I think I tend to agree. After all, I don't recall anyone say in second grade still clad in diapers, right?
Plus, I sort of understand Isabelle and her wishy-washiness. Some days she tells me she is a big girl and wants to do it all herself, including using the potty, but other days she wants to be "Momma's baby" and be cuddled and hugged and ... well... babied. Hell, I am going to be thirty-two years old, and sometimes I still want my mommy! (Not to wipe my butt mind you, but to make it all better, make the decisions, and be the grown up so I do not have to) So, while I do not rank diaper changing among my favorite things to do it is really no big deal either. And lets face it: kids grow up so fast these days that I am not going to get worked up about Isabelle potty training now or 6 months from now. Even if she hasn't figured it out yet, she is always going to be my baby whether she is two or twenty-two. However, I will gladly take and cherish these times when I can still "fix" everything that is wrong in her world with a kiss and a hug. Sooner or later peeing in the potty will happen. In the meantime let her be my little baby.
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