We've found success, and along the way, we've traveled down various paths:
- Cheerios: bad idea. They just upset my son because I threw them in the potty when they should in fact be eaten.
- Songs and Dances: work when he's in the mood, otherwise forget it.
- Stickers: Good, but then he starts negotiating for more. Really? A 2-year old in the process of mastering negotiations. I'm worried what I'll be giving up when it's time to get him to part with his blankie.
- The "potty bell" introduced by grandma: love the concept, but it only works at her house. works like a charm, though! Set the timer on the stove, When the bell goes off, time to visit the potty!
- Food Rewards: good, when he was hungry, otherwise out of obstinance he'd just refuse. OR, it would backfire, and he'd insist on going potty again and again and again so he could get more treats.
- The "I'm gonna get you" tactic: resistance going potty? No problem. I go first .. then he has to have his pee pee get my pee pee. This actually worked really well with my little warrior. He loved "knocking my pee pee down" with his pee pee. Got him nearly every time.
- Food Coloring (another brilliant grandma idea): variation on the "I'm gonna get you" tactic - squirt a bit of food coloring in the potty water and initiate target practice.
I'm sure I attempted other forms of blatant bribery and manipulation which I'm forgetting but it's all good! In the end, no one (especially mama) is emotionally scarred, and we have potty success!
In closure, my son, who is very happy with himself, announced that it's a boy's job to go pee pee and poo poo in the potty, and I agreed! When I asked him what a girl's job is, he announced "to wipe people's butts". And there you have it: The world from the eyes of a potty trained boy.
