Potty Training: Behind the Scenes

I have lots of photos from our potty training adventures.  I'll spare you some of them but I thought these ones below helped paint the picture of what potty training was like around here...

I stocked up on these usually forbidden sugary drinks so that Eleanor would have to go pee a lot, giving us lots of practicing opportunities.  Sadly, she over-squeezed the first one, got it all over herself and then didn't want them any more.  Bummer.

So I tried to get her drinking other stuff as much as possible.  And as you will see, there was lots of Eleanor hanging out pants-less.

Potty chart, Day 1

Ford, who only poops once a week, decided that his big weekly blow out would be at the EXACT SAME TIME that Eleanor had her first accident all over the kitchen floor.  How did he manage that? My look in the picture below is supposed to be a combination of "My life stinks right now" (literally and figuratively) and "I'm trying to find the humor in all of this but I'm kinda failing."

I tried to get Eleanor to sit by me that first day so I could watch her, so all TV watching limitations went out the door.

Facetiming with Nana and Molly to give a potty training update.

Eleanor was so sick of me hovering those first two days that she would stand by the door and say, "Mommy, I want my fwends!!"

She earned these sunglasses when she pooped on the potty.   She then went and put the headband on all by herself to complete the look.

I tried lots of tricks to get her to just sit happily on the toilet for extended periods of time.  Oatmeal was one such tactic.

And when I was really desparate, I'd let her watch Daniel Tiger or Frozen music videos.  This came back to bite me though when she wanted to watch something every time she went potty.  So I had to break her of that habit.

Fruit snacks were surprisingly successful at getting her to poop.

And there's just something so cute about seeing your baby in her big girl panties.  She looks so grown up these days!