Captain Underpants

Calder has gotten really good at pooping on the potty lately. I don't think I've had to change a nasty diaper in over a week. Still wiping butts on a regular basis but that too will come in time.

To make the training a tad easier, Bruce and I decided to get him into the pull-up style training pants. It's a lot faster to rip those suckers off when Calder is all "I poop NOW!" rather than wrestling him out of regular diapers. We even went all out and bought brand name ones because we thought the Pixar characters would make them more appealing for the kid. 

Pull ups are OK, I guess. I talked to a friend about this and I have decided now that I agree. They kind of suck when it comes to teaching children to pee on the toilet. Kids don't care if they pee in them so there is really no impetus to bother with the potty. There are special pull ups that have a cold feeling when they get wet, menthol maybe? That seems cruel as anybody who has ever had a run-in with special parts and Icy Hot can attest to.

Since Calder has been pooping on the potty like clock-work on Friday night I decided to experiment with Calder and real underpants. I dunno, maybe I miss Elby too much and was looking for a reason to clean pee off the floor again. Who knows. The first attempt at underpants lasted, well I don't know how long since I didn't have a stopwatch on me. 

Saturday, after the Field we tried again. Calder likes his underpants so getting him into them isn't tough. He likes to go through his drawer and snuggle them all while he watches TV. The hard part is getting him to choose just one pair to put on. This time went a bit better. Calder even made it on a trip to the playground without needing an emergency change. This success was achieved by putting him on the potty every 15-20 minutes and forcing him to go, ready or not. Of course, miss one interval or give him an extra sip of milk and I am back busting out the mop again. 

Regardless of how good he does during daylight hours, I make sure that Calder is back into the training pants at bed time. I don't need him trained so badly that I am willing to change sheets at 2 a.m. Today, though, I am being brave. Calder is at present napping sans Pull Ups so we will see how this goes. While I am tempted to cut the nap short to put him on the throne, after yesterday's napless he-beastie performance, I am willing to sacrifice some laundry for peace and quiet.