The Captain is always ready to recognize the kids being ready for the next thing, while I swear up and down that he's wrong. The most recent example of this unfolded this week.
For quite some time the Captain has been bugging me telling me that he thinks The Sprout is ready for toilet training. No, I say. No. no. no. And by no I mean two things: I don't think she's ready, and I don't currently have the energy to clean up accidents on the floor, the rug, and to wash lots of bedding and extra clothes.
He didn't budge when I showed him my degree, with its concentration in child development, and said snootily patiently, "I know the signs of readiness and she just not showing them yet. I'll let you know when she is." Well he was merciless persistent, and when he started talking to other people about it I decided to buy some panties and training pants for her, just to make him think I was considering it, even though I wasn't planning on doing anything with said potty training items for at least another month or two.
I was unpacking the goods from my shopping trip when he calls from the other room, "Sprout wants to wear her panties so I'm going to put them on her, okay?" "Okay" was not so much of a question as an "I dare you to interfere with me doing this." I patiently (I know, I'm so patient!) said, "well, she's not ready but you can try. When if it doesn't work we can just try again in a couple months." I decided it would be best if he saw for himself how not-ready she was. That would teach him.
Well, that was a week ago and The Sprout has had three accidents in a week of wearing panties (including naptimes and most outings). I'd heard of these miraculous, easy to train girl-children before, but she's only two and a little years old. And really, she wasn't showing any signs of readiness! But he was right all the same. He graciously told me, "I don't want to say 'I told you so', but I was TOTALLY right on this one."
What really hurts is that about two months ago he told me that Small Sun needed to go to bed in underwear. I protested at length saying "the sign of readiness is that he wakes up with a dry diaper. He is soaking a diaper every night! I'll let you know when he's ready." Well, you can probably guess how that one went, too.
So rather than hang my head in shame, I'm putting my Bachelors to use. I'm cutting it up into squares to put next to the potty. We ought to get some kind of use out of it, eh?
Yeah. That's amazing. I'm soooo impressed. Does the Captain (or you) have any advice on how to get a little boy to sit on the potty to poop? He can pee like a champ, but I'm not so anxious to be cleaning poop out of underwear.
Posted by: Wendy | 11 January 2009 at 12:37 PM
Wow!!! Big prize to the amazing Sproutie! I wouldn't be surprised if this is just the beginning of many other such pleasant surprises from her unique little self.
And way to go, Captain, in his quiet steady way. Isn't marriage so full of great learning curves?! So hold on tight and keep that wonderful and honest sense of humor! I love it!
Posted by: quietstream | 11 January 2009 at 07:50 PM