Bug = 3 years 11 months
Bub = 2 years 1 month Linus at this age
Bud = 5 months 6 days Linus at this age – Ada at this age

It’s been six months since I last posted an update on Linus’s progress with toiletting. I talked about self-sufficiency in that post, but now the journey is complete.

In the week Zoe and I were in hospital after she was born, Linus progressed to always using the toilet (instead of using a potty for poos).

The final step to make him fully independent happened over this Christmas and New Year period. For the past six months Linus has yelled (with various degrees of volume and politeness) “Wipe my bum!!” when he’s finished on the potty or toilet. But I’d finally had enough over the holidays, and started insisting that he could wipe his own bum. He argued with me a few times, his eyes even beginning to well with tears. Nasty Mummy refused to back down though, and told him that he could just not wipe and end up with poos in his undies if he preferred. He argued again a couple of times, but now that he’s mastered the skill (although I don’t do any spot checks!) he’s very proud of himself.

And what’s more he tidies away his stool (er – FOOTstool!) and seat, flushes the toilet, and washes his hands himself. No parental involvement required.

For the last week we’ve been house sitting at my parents’ place in Mosgiel. This change of location has meant that the kids have had distractions to prevent them from settling at night. Getting towards the end of my rope I threatened that if they didn’t stay in bed I’d take them outside and hose them. Linus didn’t like this idea at all, in fact when I suggested that I would do it by the count of three he got quite upset when Ada wasn’t into bed by the time I got to two.

So, for the first few nights this worked well and I didn’t have to put the threat into action, but a couple of nights ago Ada was playing up and up and up, and so I said calmly, “Ada, come with me, it’s time for the hose” (Linus was asleep) and I took her hand and calmly walked her through the house and outside where I took her nighty off and ran the hose water. I then flicked the hose across her tummy and asked her if she like it. “No” she frowned in a quiet little voice, and then I led her back through the house where she skipped along up the hallway and then into bed at which point there wasn’t a further noise.

Oooh that Ada!

Bug = 3 years 10 months
Bub = 2 years Linus at this age
Bud = 4 months 17 days Linus at this age – Ada at this age

We get kicked out of the mummy-blog club if we don’t meet our quota of poo entries each year, so here’s an update on Zoe’s status in such matters.

Elimination Communication

I blogged details of what elimination communication is and why I was doing it when I tried it out with Ada. I probably didn’t get around to blogging that I stopped within a month or two when – after having some success – I had a couple of weeks with about 60 sits on the potty and NOTHING from her.

With Zoe, I decided not to try too hard when she was born, but simply to be observant and aware of her signs and rhythms for the first few weeks or months. However one day when she was less than a couple of weeks old I was letting off steam to someone about how she always seemed to pee when she was on the floor and I’d just taken her nappy off. Then the cogs started whirring and I realised this was the perfect opportunity to sit Zoe on the wee (haha) potty I had borrowed from a friend.

Progress to Date

In the four months since then, the nappy-free has been going well with Zoe. Most mornings, as soon as she stirs (usually between 5:30am and 6:30am) I’ll sit her on the potty (both of us still half asleep) and she’ll do some wees. Often her overnight nappy is fairly dry at this stage.

During the day, whenever I change Zoe’s nappy for any reason I’ll almost always give her the opportunity to use the potty, and Nana and Daddy are on board with the routine.  If we’re out (e.g. at Playcentre or a coffee group) I’ll try to hold her over a toilet.

I also try pay attention to her behaviour, and whereas I used to consider hungry/wind/tired as the main potential causes of bother, I now consider needing to pee or poo as options. Part of this is hopefully reinforced by the fact that I try to never let her stay in a nappy that’s even slightly damp.  I think it’s working – I think she gets more bothered by a wet nappy than Linus or Ada ever did.

Zoe is never out of nappies (apart from the same nappy-free time that any baby gets) – I can’t face the prospect lots of misses to clean up. I’m using a lot of traditional flat nappies at the moment because they’re quicker to dry than the fitteds, plus they’re the best to let her feel when she’s wet. I use disposables at nights, on holidays, and occasionally when we go out.

Bug = 3 years 10 months
Bub = 2 years Linus at this age
Bud = 4 months 15 days Linus at this age – Ada at this age

• Usborne “Young Puzzle” Books
• his Thomas trains and railway set
• McDonalds playgrounds
• cafés
• fluffies (the milk-only frothy drinks that cafés make for kids)
• playing Hide and Seek
• showing people how fast he can run
• showing people how wide he can open his mouth
• games and videos on Daddy’s iPod Touch
• games and activities on the internet

Bug = 3 years 10 months
Bub = 2 years Linus at this age
Bud = 4 months 14 days Linus at this age – Ada at this age

Last night, as is pretty common, Linus went to sleep a lot sooner than Ada at bedtime. Just before 9pm, I snuck up to their room and found Ada standing by the bed leaning over her sleeping brother, holding his hands. After a moment I realised that she was doing “Round and Round the Garden” on him!