Finally A Breakthrough!

Kade first peed in the potty in August 2008.  He usually does pretty good at telling mom his peeps are coming.  He went through a phase where he would say, “I don’t want to peeps anymore.”  Recently it has been, “I’m just gonna pee in my underwear.”  Like I said he usually does pretty good with peeps.  It is a completely different story with poops.  He absolutely will not go poops in the potty.  He thinks he can pee in his underwear because he is still wearing Pull-ups most of the time.  I won’t get rid of them because I am not cleaning up poo in big boy underwear everyday. 

When we first started trying to put him on the potty he would arch his back and flail around.  We decided it was too soon and let it go for a while.  We kept trying every once in a while and he would completely freak out.  It has been 6 months since we first started this potty training nightmare.

This is the light fixture in his bathroom.  We told him that if he went poo in the potty he could have this truck.  He cried for days because he wanted his truck.  I toughed out all the tantrums and would not give him the truck.  I did however let him play with it while he was sitting on the potty.  The truck is still sitting up on the light.

For a few days we decided we were being pushovers and he just needed to do it once so he knew it wasn’t scary.  I knew exactly when he had to go because he would shut his bedroom door.  As soon as I heard the door shut I would drag him kicking and screaming into the bathroom and sit in there for hours waiting for him to go.  He won the battle of wills and after 2 hours I would give up and not 2 minutes after he had his underwear back on he would go. 

I have also used emotional manipulation.  He hates it when mom is sad.  He is continually asking me if I am happy especially after he has just done something bad.  I told him that it makes mom sad when he goes poo in his underwear and that I would be so happy if he would go in the potty.  Now whenever he goes in his underwear he looks at me and says with the saddest little voice, “Mom you happy?” I tell him no that I am so sad and he says, “It’s ok mom it’s ok.”  I know I’m horrible but desperate times call for desperate measures. :o)

So Kade found a dollar the other day and has been playing with it.  Kris had to go to the dollar store to find me shovels for Kade’s valentines.  I told Kade he could go with him and spend his dollar.  He had a car and some Spiderman balls and he couldn’t decide which one to get.  He finally decided to get the car but was quite sad that he couldn’t get the Spiderman balls.  Mean mom decides this is a potty training moment.  I tell him that if he goes in the potty he can have a dollar to go buy his balls.  He thinks about that for a minute and says, “I think I need to go pee for a dollar.”  What a stink!  I said no you have to poo for a dollar.  He decided that this might just be a good deal and he actually went and sat on the potty and grunted.  A step forward!!  For 2 days I keep telling him that he can have his dollar and go get his Spiderman balls if he goes in the potty.  He tried to go 3 times!!  He gets a little frustrated and says, “I can’t ever do it”  but at least he is now trying.  I even made him a Potty Bank so when he goes he has somewhere to put his dollar and I now give him coins instead of chocolate for going peeps. 

One of the times he was trying to go I told him if he did it I would not only get him his Spiderman balls but that I would also buy him a Star Wars game for his Leapster.  He tried the same tactic and informed me he would go pee for a Star Wars game.  Well today after we got home from church he was whining that he wanted his Star Wars game.  I said as soon as you poo in the potty.  He said he wanted to go so we went and tried with no luck.  Later he was in his room and I heard him start to grunt.  I ran in to his room and tried to talk him in to going on the potty.  He started crying and tried to shut himself in his closet.  I reminded him about the Star Wars game and he reluctantly followed me to the bathroom.  He had already started but I got him on the potty and he finally after 6 months of bribes, threats, pleading, and manipulation he finally went poo in the potty.  When he was done he got off and said, “that wasn’t hard mom.”  Oh it wasn’t huh?  GRRR!!  He was so excited we had to go wake up dad to tell him and of course call Grandma.  02/15/09 is now a historical day for Kade and it looks like tomorrow we will be going to Toys R Us for his Star Wars game.