Wednesday, September 7, 2011

The nitty-gritty of Potty Training....

I'd say this is definitely a continuation of the non-glamour part of staying at home with my kids.

Potty training.

I think I've dreaded these words for at least 4 years now.

When I decided to stay home with the kids this year, we knew there would have to be sacrifices made in our everyday household lifestyle.  Diapering 3 kids is tremendously expensive and I highly do not recommend it!  That was kind of an oops in the family plan;) 

So, when school started and our second source of income slowly faded away, I decided to start nailing the potty training issue hard-core....not just with Isaac, but with Kahler too. 

Potty training not 1, but TWO kids. 
And they're boys.
Not. easy.

Luckily, Isaac caught on really well with needing to go #1.  Summer time helped too, as he was found most of the time streaking all over our house, then training him how to go potty that way. 

He is currently staying dry all the time, through the night and naps, riding to and from places, and going to preschool and Sunday school.  Super happy about that!

Our issue with Isaac is the #2 part.  This is an ongoing problem anyways with Isaac as he struggled with it even when he wasn't potty training.  So now it's extra hard.  He has the problem of clenching and holding it in all the time.  So right now we are catching him in the act and making him sit and do it that way. I think he's starting to get the idea. 
This is now not just the problem for him, but for his brother too. 
How do 2 boys inherit the "I'm going to clench and hold my poop in pose"?? 

The John has recently become the most popluar room in our house lately. You'll find me in there with one of the boys...sometimes Maylin thinks she needs to join in the party too. Most of the time, after I catch on the the clenchers doing their "pose" I'll swipe them up, rush them to the potty, and I'll sit there with them and almost feel like I'm coaching labor! lol! After a minute or so they lose focus and just start making goofy faces at me and or anything else that entertains them while sitting on the john. Such a fun time! ;)

So now, I'm at the point, especially with Kahler,of wiping just little bits of poop here...making him sit.....catching him again....wiping more.....making him sit. 
It's a vicious cycle!...and of course NOT a glamorous job!

And we all know what happens to kids that constantly have to be wiped.  His hiney is now suffering a very painful blistering from the non-stop wiping. 
It's a fight every single time....and I'm so ready to give up!  I'm trying to stay positive and remember he's doing pretty good with going #1, but even that's not very consistent.
Another problem...Kahler is OBSESSED with wearing shorts.  All the time.  Diaper or no diaper he thinks he HAS to wear them.  So not only does he have accidents, but his shorts are constantly being washed with whatever accident he has. 

Any suggestions are welcome....especially how to care for a blistering hiney for my soon-to-be- 3 yr old!=/  The A&D and Balmex are not cutting it!

So there you have it....the non-glamour and nitty gritty of potty training. 

Tell me something. If you were me? Would you take this job seriously??:)
Pray that I have a good update next time this topic up again!:)

2 comments:

Sarah said...

I was VERY lucky with my kids being easy to potty train. So, so, so thankful!

I do swear by butt paste though. Worked like a charm on both Jackson and Adie. I actually have some (I think a brand new tube!) and coupons that we don't need anymore if you would like it :) Just let me know!

Linz said...

THanks for the offer Sarah! We went ahead and got 2 different creams that did the trick and I think are healing him up fast! So thanks for the offer:)