I have been thinking about this post for over a month now & have finally taken the time to write it. Sophie has grown by leaps & bounds this summer & I can officially say she is no longer the baby in our family - we have 2 big girls!
It all started on our trip to California. As soon as we got to the airport she did not want to sit in her stroller anymore because she wanted to push her suitcase like Sadie. Unfortunately, it wasn't worth the fight so we let her push it all the way from baggage claim to the rental car pickup:
Let's just say it was a long walk. And I have told Bryan we are not traveling with a big stroller anymore because she really doesn't want to use it. We also had a lot of temper tantrums on that trip because she was the only baby in the group:
Are we mean parents for taking pictures of this instead of acknowledging her?! She was surrounded by Sadie, Kason & Zoe who were not drinking out of sippy cups, sitting in a stroller, sitting in a booster seat, sleeping in a pack-n-play or taking naps. She wanted to do everything just like them.
So when we got home from that trip, I finally gave in. We took down all 4 baby gates, which have been up in our house at both staircases for over 4 years. I can't tell you how much I love them not being there! She has been able to do the stairs for a while now, but they still kind of make me nervous. We also removed the booster seat from the kitchen table so that she could sit at the table normally like the rest of us. I no longer bring water cups with me unless we go to the park or something. Instead, I let her get a regular cup & lid at a restaurant just like her sister. And let me tell you, life has been so much better.
She has also wanted to potty train all summer but we have been busy traveling & I didn't want her to regress or mess with it in airports, hotels, etc. so I finally gave in when we got home from Grand Cayman. We don't have any other big trips planned this summer & I knew that gave us a month before school starts to really get potty trained. We started on Wednesday & I kept our schedule wide open until the end of the weekend. We did a "potty boot camp" for a couple of days where she basically ran around naked & we didn't leave the house:
Sadie thought I was mom of the year because I basically sat her little toilet in front of the tv, pumped them both full of snacks & drinks why they got to watch movies all day:
And you know what? It worked! She got the hang of it really quickly. After 36 hours with no accidents, I let her wear her panties outside to play. I figured if she could play outside & not get distracted or forget about going to the restroom, that would be a big step:
Again, no accidents! So we ventured out on the 3rd day to a store. I took her to the restroom 4 times while we were there & she never went & then she had a little accident inside the store :( Her first accident. But she never went again all morning - in the car or at the store. But I could tell she was holding it & as soon as we got home, she went in her little potty again. Which made me realize that she was only going in the little potty & not the big potty. So that night, I sat her on the big potty for 1 1/2 hours & pumped her full of snacks & liquids again, trying to get her to go on the big potty:
Luckily Sadie was at a friend's house playing so it was just Sophie & I but she got a little bored sitting up there after a while so we started making silly faces:
She finally started crying & saying that she wanted her Minnie Mouse toilet & after a while I gave in. Sure enough, she pottied right away on her little toilet. Then we ventured out to dinner with Bryan that night but as soon as we walked in, Sophie grabbed her crotch, said she need to pee & ran to the bathroom. She finally went on the big toilet! I guess I pumped her up with so many liquids trying to get her to pee in the big toilet at home, that she went 4 times at the restaurant that night! When we got home, the girls got to have ice cream to celebrate:
The next morning Bryan & I had to teach God's Garden (children's church) but it is for 3-5 year olds, but instead of dropping Sophie off in her classroom, we let her stay with us. I didn't know how she would do by herself yet. Not only did she do perfectly in the car & at church, but she had so much fun going to children's church with her big sister:
At this point, I am so incredibly proud of Sophie & cannot believe how awesome she was doing with her potty training. I honestly thought she was ready, but did not know she would pick it up so quickly. Until Monday night. She had been awake in her room for about 2 hours & would not go to sleep & after a while, I finally went up there to calm her down. Let's just say that she was upset because she had pooped in her pull up & had made a mess with it. I did not take a picture because I was too grossed out, but she had it all over her, all over the walls, her crib, on the floor, etc. I don't know why this girl does it, but this wasn't the first time. I am so thankful Sadie never did it. Yuck! About an hour later, I finally had everything cleaned & she was finally asleep.
I'll have to back up & say that I had been putting a pull up on her at naptime & bedtime. She had woken up from her nap every day dry but I was still being careful. She is only 2 1/2. I didn't think she could hold it for 12-13 hours at night yet.
Fast forward to Tuesday afternoon, during naptime, I hear her talking & making noise again. I asked Sadie to go check on her & Sadie started screaming & freaking out because she said Sophie had pooped everywhere. Again. Even worse than the night before :( And that's when I realized, she thinks she is fully potty trained but she can't go to the bathroom because I still have her in a crib so she is acting out. Bryan was in NY this week & I was home by myself, frustrated, cleaning her room AGAIN so out of desperation, I called a handyman that we know who came over at 7:00 that night to transition her crib into a toddler bed. I figure I was not ready for her to be out of her crib yet, but I would rather clean up a messy room than have her make another accident or regress in her potty training:
And guess what happened?! The next day during nap time, she got down by herself & pooped in her potty. No mess. Guess I made the right decision!! In fact, since I have converted her bed, I let her sleep in panties during nap time & she has woken up dry every day. I have still put her in a pull up at night, but she has woken up dry 4 days in a row. Unbelievable. And the best part, she has stayed in her bed, read her books, played with her babies & hasn't really event gotten out or made a mess:
This girl has honestly surprised me. In fact, she has blown me away with how mature & independent she has become this summer. She has always been the more difficult child so I really thought potty training & transitioning to a big girl bed would have been harder. Thank goodness she proved me wrong. She is definitely a second child who has learned watching her big sister. And I am so proud of Sadie also for being a great teacher & a helper.
Don't get me wrong - I am sure she will have an accident some time, I am sure she is not finished with her temper tantrums just yet, but I am loving having 2 grown up little girls in our house now!
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