Fruit Inspection

I never thought I would have so much to say about this topic! As a matter of fact, it wasn’t so long ago that if something HAD to be said about the subject, I would have averted my eyes and used words like, “#2” or my grandma’s favorite term, “BM”. But as with so many things that have changed since having babies, I don’t think a day goes by without talking about poop at least once, if not more! I am no longer ashamed.

The reason for this post is because I was thinking today about how long it is taking to get S out of Pull-Ups. Her dad and I are partially responsible for the delay. She was totally into her potty chair when she turned 2. But between age 2 and 2 1/2 we managed to move twice AND give her a new baby brother! All the books said don’t try potty training during any type of change in a child’s normal routine. Well, I tried it anyways. I mean, c’mon! I was desperate and about to have TWO kids in diapers!!!

The begging, pleading, and crying (mine, not hers) were not enough to entice her to the big potty before the age of 3. Once SHE decided to wear panties all the time, there were very few accidents, even at night. But she did not want to poop in the potty. And still doesn’t.

I am baffled by this and I am sure tired of buying Pull-Ups for this one purpose. It’s not like she doesn’t know what to do. When she gets the urge, she very politely says, “Mommy, could you give me a Pull-Up please? I need to go to the Poopy Corner”.

I have had some ideas that I thought were quite brillant, starting with the day I told her we just didn’t have any more Pull-Ups. “Now she will HAVE TO use the potty”. Oh, not so! She held it. For 5 days. At that point I began to wonder how traumatic a trip to the hospital would be for her and after weighing my options, gave her a Pull-Up that I just happened to “find”.

Around this time we went for her yearly check up and I asked the doctor for advice. She suggested putting her on the toilet with a Pull-Up on or bringing out the little potty chair and putting that in the Poopy Corner. Both of those options caused hysterics in my daughter.

As her language skills have progressed, I have continued to probe her for information. This week I hit a gold mine!!! She and I had a chat in the Poopy Corner and she revealed that the reason she likes to use Pull-Ups is because they have princesses on them!!! You have got to be kidding! This is too easy!

The next time I went to Wal-Mart I bought her some new Pull-Ups. But not the princess ones. I was looking for Pull-Ups only a boy would be proud to wear to the Poopy Corner. Woody and Buzz? Nope. Bob the Builder? Ummm…not quite. Then I saw him…oh, yeah…Spider Man! Perfect!!!!

After breakfast the next morning she told me it was time for the Poopy Corner. I gave her good ole Spidey and calmly explained those were the only Pull-Ups left at the store. The look on her face was PRICELESS (I am talking Master Card commercial here). With her nose turned up and her forehead furrowed she said, “This is spiderman”. “Yeah”, I answered. “I’m sorry, that’s all they had”. Then, she actually glared at me! “These are for boys!”

I had to turn around and walk away to keep from laughing out loud. “Well, you don’t have to use Spiderman. You CAN go directly into the potty”, I reminded her. It got very quiet in my kitchen for several minutes, then I heard the words I never thought I would hear. With a big sigh and a breathless voice she shouted, “I LOVE Spiderman!”

I give up! I am completely out of ideas. Her Daddy has taken a completely different approach. Rewards. BIG TIME REWARDS! The first was a night out to Chuck E. Cheese. And she actually did produce something in the toilet not too long ago that we felt deserved the CEC award. We invited family and friends and made such a HUGE deal out of it we just knew she’d give up the Pull-Ups for good. Didn’t even last a day.

Since then Daddy has promised her a trip to Disney World and a kitten. So far she’s not biting. I can’t help but wonder if she is playing with us. Seeing how much she can rack up by the time she’s 4. How big do they make Pull-Ups, anyways? Is there any possibility of her getting a car out of it? Nah, certainly not! :)