That's not chocolate . . .

I've respectfully removed a picture of Dottie in her poopy state. The more sensitive males in my family thought it was distasteful. They're probably right. But, the story's still here, so read on.
Potty training was going great with Dottie. For two days in a row, she went the day in panties, completely dry. Then, for some reason, she completely reverted yesterday. She didn't make it to the potty once. I put her down for her nap, and she was very quiet for an entire hour, so I thought she must be asleep. I went to go check on her, and this is what I found. Poo everywhere. Everywhere. I won't go into details, because it would probably make you throw up. I almost threw up myself. Suffice it to say it took both Joe and I an hour to clean up her, her room, her bedding, and her toys. The only reason I can think of why she would commit such an act is that she saw monkeys at the zoo on Wednesday eating their own poo. Maybe she thought it would be a good idea.
So today, I decided she wasn't going to take a nap until she went #2 on the potty. She has been very good about going #1, but she usually saves #2 for naptime, as a means of getting out of her nap. But today, it was a gold letter day compared to yesterday. Dottie succeeded on the potty, with #1 and #2. I'm so proud of my little girl.


This is Dottie a couple of days ago when we were having potty success. She's singing along with The Little Mermaid. Let me point out the essentials to beginning potty training (for Dottie anyway):

1. Princess Dress. This is a must for Dottie. She needs the inspiration from Barbie and Mermaid and Belle. Also, it makes it easier for me to get her on and off the potty quickly.
2. Portable DVD player. Wow, what a great invention. She can sit in the bathroom and watch a show, and when she has to go, no problem. Hours of entertainment. And believe me, we've spent hours in the bathroom.
3. Books. Dottie loves books. Especially ones with Tigger or Princesses.
4. Towel. The towel has been our friend. Dottie knows that she needs to sit on the towel. This prevents unneeded clean-up.
5. Sugar-free Koolaid. That's what she sips down all day so she gets to know the feeling of when her bladder's full. It's really worked well.
6. The Bribe. For Dottie, the thing that worked was gummy bears. Gummy bears are a delicacy to Dottie. In fact, I don't think she's ever had them before potty training. She gets three when she makes it to the potty on time.
7. Princess Panties. I think this is the real clincher for Dottie. It makes her feel like a big girl. She knows that when she wears the panties, she's not a baby anymore.