Writer's Workshop: Your Poop Wants To Party Like It's 1999!

Today is Writer's Workshop day over at Mama Kat's. Head on over, choose a prompt and write. Write to your little heart's content!

Today, I have chosen the prompt: Share one piece of great advice you’ve received from someone who knows stuff… Let's Begin!

Back when Ethan was three, he was showing signs that he was ready to potty train. I'd been waiting for this moment to arrive. I was so excited. I began having dreams of the day I would not have to change a diaper. Not really, bit you get the idea. I was over diaper changes. I wanted to break up and move on to the single life. The single life being no diaper changes.

So, we began. However, Ethan decided that no, he wasn't going to use the potty. Not at all. He and the potty were not making friends. If this was preschool, and he and the potty were in the same class, they would be on either sides of the room glaring at each other. I tried to entice him with big boy underpants featuring Elmo, a "treasure chest" full of candy and small toys as rewards, shiny star stickers for the calendar..EVERYTHING I COULD THINK OF!! Still, nothing. So, I decided one day just to put the big boy underpants on him and see what happened. You know what happened? He held it..ALL DAY! Oh yeah. He did. Later that night, I got him ready for bed. I put the pull up on, and the first thing he did was go to the bathroom. WHAT?! All that work for this! It happened several times. He would hold it all day, and then go as soon as the pull up was on. I was at my wits end. So what did I do? I went running to my uncle. Pediatrician. Ethan's doctor. The only person I knew then that did this with three kids and could give me some good advice on the subject, because I was ready to throw myself on the floor and have my own tantrum. Sobs..Kicking..Snot bubbles. The works.

Anyways, so I call my uncle, and he tells me this little diddy. Tell Ethan that his poop wants to go to a party. Say what? Yeah..A poop party. Tell Ethan his poop is sad, because all his friends are going to a party, and his poop isn't, because it's in his diaper, and now it has to go in the trash and it can't go play with is friends at the party. When he does eventually go poo in the potty, clap, shout, dance, throw confetti if you have to, and have him tell his poop to have a great time at the party. I listened to this advice intently. When I got off the phone, I laughed. I laughed a lot. A poop party? You can't be serious!? But, you know what? I tried it. Because I was at my wit's end..Remember? And you know what? It started to WORK!! Not even joking. I told him this story, and WABAM, kid was using the potty like no other. He had the occasional accident, but it wasn't horrible. Then, just two days after moving to Wisconsin and a couple of months after his 4th birthday (don't judge me!) Ethan said bye bye to diapers and never looked back.

So, looking back, the poop party is AWESOME! I'll be using it again. Claire is coming up on birthday number 2. We bought her a talking Elmo potty for Christmas. I opened it up not too long ago and have been letting her explore it in the living room and telling her it's for poop and pee. Soon, I'll be taking it into the bathroom and sitting her on it when I'm using the potty. We'll see what happens from there.

Ooo...A whole post about poo. I bet you're excited you stuck around!