How Potty Training Brought My Wife and I Closer: Part Two

Sean August 10, 2009 - 3 Comments
Potty Training

Today’s guest post is the third in a four part series from writer and cartoonist, Blogger Dad (aka David Wright). While he drew all the art for Potty Training Power and designed this web site, this is his first experience with actual potty training.

He and his wife will be using the Potty Training Power System with their two year old son, E. All this week, he will share his potty training adventures right here.

If you missed part one of this series, you can catch it here and part two is here.

The Potty Chair Incident : Day Two of Potty Training

My wife’s sister gave us a portable potty chair that plays music when your toddler pees or poops. Of course, it also plays music if your toddler reaches down and presses a button. Guess which method my son chose – repeatedly.

Annoyed, my wife hid the potty chair.

I like the idea of a floor potty, which is easier to use. But not if it’s a toy. In addition to making music, the potty made an excellent parking garage for my son’s growing collection of toy cars.

So, we moved E to the Elmo on-the-toilet potty seat that weâ€˜d bought in preparation.

Given E’s difficulties, I thought maybe he was having a hard time with the Elmo seat on the toilet. I wanted to get another floor potty chair. My wife says fine, get something simple. I went the store and bought a cheap potty seat.

You get what you pay for

The next morning: My wife was sleeping. I decided to get a head start on a positive potty training day which would set a better tone for the day and make my wife’s time easier. I showed my son the new chair I bought him. He was curious and excited. It will be a good day, indeed.

And then he sat on the chair.

This is about the time that I realized that the chair’s potty hole was roughly equivalent to the size of a Dixie Cup and impossible for a two year old boy to use unless you want your walls sprayed with fancy yellow writing.

So, I brought the musical chair back out of hiding. I found a button that stops the music and I figured this could work. Of course, I figured wrong.

My wife woke up and asked me why on Earth I am using that chair when I just bought one? I explained. She then went off on the whole sending mixed signals and confusing him thing. She was annoyed. Yesterday’s frustrations were spilling over.

So I asked her what she wanted me to do? I suggested getting a different toilet seat. This time, she suggested, don’t be afraid to spend for quality.

20 minutes laterâ€¦

Well, all the quality seats had fancy music or something else which would distract E. The onlysimple chair left was also on the cheap side. Out of options, I went ahead and bought it.

I got home, and put it together. Or, I should say, tried to. It kept falling apart, its plastic clips refusing to fasten the top half of the seat to the bottom. I don’t know about you, but I like to keep a toilet together.

And of course, E wanted nothing to do with it.

Suddenly, my wife and I got into an argument over the potty seat. Yes, a toilet seat!

â€œThe Elmo seat is fine, I don’t know why you’re buying other ones!

â€œWHAT?! You just told me to go get another seat!

Like I said, frustration was boiling over.

I stormed out of the house in a huff and drove to the store to return yet another seat. The lady at the store, the same one who had processed my prior return an hour ago, looked at me like I was some kind of potty chair fetishist or something. I got my money back and left, sans potty chair. The whole time I was driving, I kept wonderingâ€¦

Is my son ready for potty training? More importantly, are we ready?

My wife was upset and frustrated and I understand. This is tough work and can make you question your parenting skills. As a dad, I don’t sweat it so much. I figure I’m supposed to be ignorant on a lot of these things. However, my wife takes it very personal. Since she is so good with kids, she figures she should be able to do these sorts of things easily and without help.

As I started driving home, I realized that if we’re going to get through this, we need to do it together. We need to try and get beyond the annoyances. We need to follow Sean and Cindy’s advice and follow through with the plan.

Potty Training Power will work. It HAS to.

Sean and Cindy encouraged us to not give up and that this was all par for the course.

On the way home, I picked up some flowers and brought them home, hoping to help create a calm environment and make this easier on my wife. I handed the flower vase to E, who then handed it to my wife.

â€œHere, mommy, he said. She smiled; the tension had left the room.

Day Two results:

Much better. Only four accidents. Improvement.

I’m crossing my fingers.

So how did Potty Training Power work out? Did we give up? Are our walls now decorated yellow? Did we throw in the towel and go back to diapers? Find out all this and more in the conclusion of this series right here.