A few people have asked me how the potty training (or EC [elimination communication]) is going with Gracie. So here's a little report on that.
Let me first say, Gracie is a very contented child. The biggest thing with EC is the Communication part. Mommy is supposed to communicate with baby the potty cues, then baby is supposed to communicate with mommy (somehow) when she needs to eliminate.
I'll boldly say I've done my part. Gracie has definitely learned that pssst psst means "go pee now" (unfortunately we failed with the poop cue, so psst means both) Gracie is really good at actually pushing her little muscles and making herself go when I put her on the potty and tell her to go, even if it's just a tiny little teaspoon she's able to eliminate. So in that sense, we're doing great and I'm really proud of her.
However, on Gracie's end, where most babies have some sort of cue as to when they need to poop (the pees are less obvious for most kids) I have found nothing with Gracie. She doesn't grunt, fart, smile, cry, nothing. She'll just be playing one second and pooping the next. I try to catch her poops immediately and put her on the potty (after it's too late) and tell her where she should do that, but she just laughs at me, and sometimes she'll give me a little pity pee. Of course there are some days where I do have motherly intuition and I'm able to catch her poops in the potty. Those are really good days.
And of course some days are better than others. It all depends on how much effort I put into helping her. For example, today, our washing machine is broken, so I'm trying not to dirty any diapers since I don't know when it will be fixed and it's almost 2:00, and she's only had one dirty diaper (pooped while I was eating breakfast, the little stinker). Otherwise all of her elimination has been in the potty.
Let me first say, Gracie is a very contented child. The biggest thing with EC is the Communication part. Mommy is supposed to communicate with baby the potty cues, then baby is supposed to communicate with mommy (somehow) when she needs to eliminate.
I'll boldly say I've done my part. Gracie has definitely learned that pssst psst means "go pee now" (unfortunately we failed with the poop cue, so psst means both) Gracie is really good at actually pushing her little muscles and making herself go when I put her on the potty and tell her to go, even if it's just a tiny little teaspoon she's able to eliminate. So in that sense, we're doing great and I'm really proud of her.
However, on Gracie's end, where most babies have some sort of cue as to when they need to poop (the pees are less obvious for most kids) I have found nothing with Gracie. She doesn't grunt, fart, smile, cry, nothing. She'll just be playing one second and pooping the next. I try to catch her poops immediately and put her on the potty (after it's too late) and tell her where she should do that, but she just laughs at me, and sometimes she'll give me a little pity pee. Of course there are some days where I do have motherly intuition and I'm able to catch her poops in the potty. Those are really good days.
And of course some days are better than others. It all depends on how much effort I put into helping her. For example, today, our washing machine is broken, so I'm trying not to dirty any diapers since I don't know when it will be fixed and it's almost 2:00, and she's only had one dirty diaper (pooped while I was eating breakfast, the little stinker). Otherwise all of her elimination has been in the potty.
She's a good girl.
2 comments:
You are crazy, and yet sooo amazing for doing the EC thing. I get excited when Josie tells me that she pooped her diaper. I am trying to catch her before she poops...and she has told me several times, but when she sits on the potty she doesn't do anything. Gracie needs to rub some of her smartness on Josie ;)
Miss you!!!
Yea, that's pretty much how it goes, we get out of EC what we put into it. We were really lazy for a while about encouraging him or giving him the opportunity to go in the potty so he got quite comfortable going in his diaper. Now we are just getting focused again and trying to convince him that the potty is fun and worth it haha. Oh also, I don't know if you sign with Gracie but they day Max learned to sign "potty" (about 12 months) was one of the best days of our EC lives, =D
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