Potty Training

We're still letting Charlotte mostly take the lead when it comes to potty training.  I bought her some "big girl" underwear (the really thick, absorbent kind that's completely NOT waterproof), and she likes wearing it around the house.  I'm not brave enough to let her wear it out yet.  She spent a whole afternoon, from 3-7, in it without an accident while we asked her every 40 minutes if she needed to use the potty.  And when she said she did not need to, we insisted it was time for a potty break anyhow.  Today, we were checking out at a department store when she informed me that she needed to go, so we had our first encounter with a public restroom.  We rushed to the bathroom, which was as far from the register as it could be.  I had her straddle the seat, facing backwards, so there was no danger of falling in.  I also held on to her so we'd both feel safer.  And she did it.  I was so proud of her that I gushed all the way out of the store afterwards.  So far, that's the only reward we've offered, and it's all she seems to need.  She beams when we exclaim how wonderfully she's doing, and it's the first thing her Daddy asks about when he gets home from work each night.

My only complaint about Charlotte and the potty is that she takes FOREVER to go.  Even when we're getting ready to go swimming or to go some place she likes, she takes up to 30 minutes to finally believe she's finished.  And she GOES the whole time... little bits here and there.  We have to start the bedtime routine half an hour earlier now to accommodate nightly potty time, and getting out of the house on time is more challenging than ever.

My plan is, when we have three consecutive days without anything on the calendar, to put Charlotte in her big girl undies and just take potty breaks on a schedule the first day.  I'll remind her about the potty on the same schedule the second day, and on the third day I'll see what she does all by herself.  She's already stayed dry through a few naps in the past week, and she hasn't done a complete poop in her diaper in two weeks (half in the diaper, other half in the potty after she realizes that she needs to go).  We need to work on   her undressing by herself, too, but I'll worry about that later.