Potty Trained Big Girl

(Taken from family blog)

Addie knew that turning three meant a couple different things: 

* She was going to Disneyland

* She was going to get donuts at her Minnie Mouse birthday party

* She was going to wear underwear like a Big Girl!

I was nervous about that third thing but I hid that from Addie and tried to come across as excited and happy as I could be about it, it must have helped because on day three Addie was potty trained! I am so proud of this girl of mine. She did such a good job! The first day she had a few accidents so I went to the store that night and bought a sticker chart, stickers, Minnie Mouse underwear and a big Paw Patrol toy. I knew that toy would either motivate her or really really frustrate her. The night that I came home with it Addie ran straight to her potty and went because she thought it would be an instant gift. She was a little sad when she realized that she would have to go more than just once to earn her new toy. Okay, she was more than just a little sad, she was very sad about it. She went to bed that night a devastated little girl but on day two she understood how the process worked. She still had an accident in the morning but managed to stay accident free the rest of the day. Day three was Thursday which is her dance day. She had zero accidents the whole day but I was still nervous because it was the first time we would leave the house with her just wearing underwear and not a diaper. I took her to her dance class fully thinking that an accident would happen because I thought she would have too much fun and distraction to let her teacher know she needed to use the bathroom. I don't know why I plan for the worse because Addie has proved to me over and over that she can do hard things. There was just a minute left of her class when she came out with her teacher requesting to use the potty! I ran with her to the bathroom and someone was using it so I asked Addie to wait just a minute longer and that little girl of mine managed to stay dry until she was able to go in the toilet. I was so proud of her. The first outing was a success! The next day we spent four hours at the mall with Grandma Donna buying some new shoes for the kids and she let me know two times that she needed to use the restroom. I no longer worry about her outside of the house and I am fully trusting her abilities to listen to her body. This whole potty training process turned out to be so easy this time around. We have tried a couple times throughout the last year but this was the first time we  really committed ourselves to doing it right. It also helped that Addie was ready. By day three she was potty trained! It's been a week of underwear wearing and she's so proud of herself. She still has about another week to go before she earns her Paw Patrol toy (once her stickers on the chart run out) and she's so excited to get there.

Addie Rae I love you and I'm proud of you. You're the best little big girl I know.