Time to Talk Potty.

Welcome to the Gaddie household.  Step inside and hear me use the word "pee pee,"  "poo-poo" and "big girl panties" probably more than you ever wanted to hear them in your life.  That's right.  We have officially begun potty training.  It has literally happened overnight.

You may remember, maybe a month ago, I took Avery to Walmart to pick out her very own "big girl" potty. We brought home our very own Disney Princess potty that sat proudly in mommy and daddy's bathroom.  My intentions were to get the potty early, talk about it, get her accustomed to the fact that we had a potty that she was going to use and then start training after she turned two.  But, in true Avery style, SHE'S decided when we're going to do things, and to heck with my plans.  She woke up 4 mornings in a row in a completely dry diaper.  I thought that was suspicious, so I immediately called my mom to get her opinion.  She told me that I needed to start potty training.  Cue panic mode.  I have NO idea how to potty train a child.  Every other process we've gone through has been pretty self-explanatory:  Sleep training:  let her cry it out.  Wean off the bottle and paci:  take them away and don't give them back.  Wean off formula and give regular milk:  gradually introduce it until she's full time milk and no more formula.  Easy.  Potty training?  Not so much.  You basically can't do it just "willy-nilly."  It works best, from what I've heard and read, if you have a plan in  place.  To Pinterest I went!  I scoured blogs and potty training advice sites and then developed my own plan:

1.  Putting her straight into "big girl underwear."  Skipping Pull-Ups (except at nighttime....we'll just call them her "special nighttime panties" or something like that) because they're too much like diapers.  In regular underwear, she'll be able to recognize that she's wet or dirty, not like the feeling and hopefully correct it sooner.  We're doing Gerber potty training pants on first (more absorption ..less mess if she does have an accident), then pretty underwear on over it, so she feels special.

2.  Potty time before bed, as soon as she gets up and every 30 minutes during the day.

Fun tip:  Pull Ups, even though we're not using the product during daytime training, has a "Big Kid" iPhone app that you can download that has a ton of resources....a potty timer with Minnie Mouse that you can set to go off every 30 minutes, hour, whatever.  You can schedule a call to come from Minnie, Cinderella, Tow Mater, etc. to tell your toddler that it's time for a potty break (I WILL be trying that this weekend when I'm home with Avery).  Games they can play as a reward whenever they "go" in the potty.  Tons of ideas to make potty training more fun for your little.

3.  Rewards for pees and poops in the potty.  I thought about doing prizes from the Dollar Tree or something else for going "number 2," but realized that means more toys and knick knacks around my house, and that doesn't need to happen.  I decided on 1 M&M for pee, 2 for poops.

That's it.  We've literally hit the ground running.  When Avery and Marty got home yesterday, Avery and I immediately went to town to pick out her "big girl pannies."  I talked them up and told her that big girls like mommy and her cousin Kate, who she idolizes, wear them and now it was Avery's turn.  She was ecstatic when we picked them out.

Showing off her new big girl undies!

Excited about Princess "pannies!" 

I woke Avery up this morning, took her straight to the potty and it began!  I know that it's not going to be the easiest thing in the world.  She's going to have accidents (she peed a tiny bit in the floor this morning and immediately let me know so I could put her straight on the potty) and it's going to be a learning process that will take much longer than a few days, but it's worth it.  It means no more diapers, more money in my pocket and my little girl learning a major milestone.  With that, I have a tiny bit of hesitation.  Potty training means we've crossed into "big girl world."  It's amazing how quickly they grow up and are ready for the next milestone.  Sorry....sappy mommy moment.  *sigh*

"Mom.  Are you seriously taking my picture?"

"But I'm just wearing pannies!  Don't take my picture!!"