Monday, March 07, 2011

Totally Desperate Potty

Pin It Now! Because I know you probably don't get enough potty talk or have enough potty issues in your own life I will graciously share the Hagen potty adventures with you . . . in hopes that you will feel normal. Or that you will tell me that I'm normal - at least in this one department.

Some of you know about Jordis's kidney reflux which we discovered after a Urinary Tract infection and a four-day hospital stay when she was 8 weeks old.


Elijah sometimes does not drink enough water, gets dehydrated, and then has some pee issues because of that.

And then there's Lydia. Sweet, strong-willed Lydia.
You may have read some of my posts about my 270-day Potty Training Method. It's been revised. Just before she turned three she told me she wanted underwear and that she was ready to potty train. Nearly two years later . . . we are still dealing with "accidents" just about every day.

I'm pretty sure we have tried everything short of forcing her to watch golf on TV.

She can stay dry as long as I make her go frequently. But if I leave it up to her . . . "Um. Mom. I peed in my pants. Just a little bit." I don't think they will allow me to give her an earpiece to take to kindergarten so I can coach her remotely. So we're skipping kindergarten and she'll be starting junior college in the fall. I hear they're flexible with potty issues, coaching earpieces, and the like.


Lately God has helped me to deal with her with patience and calmness. I have memorized this verse:
Colossians 3:12-13
"Therefore, as God’s chosen people, holy and dearly loved, clothe yourselves with compassion, kindness, humility, gentleness and patience. Bear with each other and forgive one another if any of you has a grievance against someone. Forgive as the Lord forgave you."

But every month or so . . . I want to cry about it. A few days ago was one of those days. When I picked her up from childcare at church. Could she just be dry this time?
"Did you go potty at church?"
"Yes."
"Are you dry?"
"No."

Recently she got her first Urinary Tract Infection. Then she got a renal ultrasound to see if there is anything else going on. Last week (after the church let down) her pediatrician called to talk to me about the ultrasound. Her kidneys are normal, but the wall of the bladder muscle is a bit thickened. Because she exercises it so much by holding it! Let's a little out and then goes back to holding it. So basically she has made this a physical thing and created a mental issue . . . for me :)

So we will continue with the potty timer and keep working with her on listening to her body.
I'm also going to get her a Potty Watch. Anyone used one before? I don't see any with consistently good reviews so please advise.

And as for me? Thanks for asking. Having four babies in five years . . . I pee when I jump rope and sometimes while doing the Insanity workout. But as far as I know, there are no watches that can help with that.

What about you? You got potty issues in your house? I guess the real question is . . . do you have any potty issues you are willing to share on the internet?

***If you made it through this post without having to go potty then you probably should get something for it. Leave a comment and then you're entered into the wild world of random.org to win a copy of my book Totally Desperate Mom: Keepin' it Real in the Motherhood. A potty-talk comment is not necessary to be entered in the drawing, but it is welcome here.
*** For an extra entry follow this blog publicly. Then leave a comment letting me know that you already do or that you do now and it you feel good about it even though it was under duress. You can unfollow me after the drawing and I won't even be smart enough to figure it out. I will pick a winner by 9pm Cali time on Saturday, March 12th.


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32 comments:

lsnellings said...

I feel your pain! After PTing my first in three days, I thought I had potty training figured out. And then came baby #2...And two years later we still have frequent accidents. But amazingly enough, she stays dry through the night! What's up with that?

Madonna said...

We are on the downhill slope of potty training. Praise the Lord! But it wasn't until after the day I lost it:

http://amommytalks.blogspot.com/2011/01/potty-training-day-i-lost-it.html

Steph @ MomKaboodle said...

Ugh. Potty Training. My 2-year-old has no interest in it, so I'm not even pushing it (yet). Supposedly she won't go to college in diapers....so we've got some time. =)
My 5-year-old refused to PT until he was 3 1/2. Even now, we still have "accidents". It's like he gets too involved in what he's doing, and doesn't notice that nagging feeling until it's an emergency. ('course he does the same thing with his hunger...so maybe it's just a phase?)
As for Mommy, well....coughing, laughing, sneezing....yup childbirth does some crazy things to the body!
Would desperately love to have a copy of your TDM....cuz I've been feeling like a TDM lately! =)

Steph @ MomKaboodle said...

oh, and I followed you via GFC as MomKaboodle. Don't worry, I'll stay a follower even after your giveaway is over. :D

btw, I originally found you last year through UBP10...found out that UPB11 is the 1st week in April - are you participating this year?

Angie @ Flibbertigibberish said...

It would be boring to tell you about the potty-training woes with my own kids, because, yes, we have them too. We had to start punishing one for her accidents because she was just "too busy" to go. "Sorry Mom! I wanted to finish this 1,000 piece puzzle before I went potty!"

Instead, I'll just go ahead and admit that it's ME. *I* am the one who wets my pants. I laugh... and I pee. I have endless stories about this. I should probably just start a whole blog about my personal peeing stories. I even played the part of a bladder in a play once. Hey - everyone has their own path to stardom, okay?!

Angie @ Flibbertigibberish said...

And I follow. Your comment about unfollowing made me laugh. But I didn't pee.

Heather said...

Wow, we have similar issues! My daughter Jordan had a UTI infection at 6 weeks and we suffered with that for years. She still has a reflux, but has not had a UTI for a few years, she is 6 now. We still see a specialist, and she may have to have surgery at about 9...soooo...
Then there is my 5 year old boy, Jonathan, who has been potty trained since the age of 3, but wets the bed every night...so we keep him in a diaper :( at night! We have "accident" issues that run in the family till up to age 13...so, poor guy, hoping he will just magically do better soon! Not sure what methods I want to try yet...
And I am in NO BIG HURRY to potty train my youngest, 18 month old Joshua :) Thanks for your blogs, they make me laugh, and I am glad I am not the only one!!

Barbie said...

I hate potty training! So sorry to hear about Lydia's bladder. That's scary stuff. Totally what I was afraid of when Aubrey would hold her urine for 30+ hours. I would love another copy of your book to give as a gift, but that would be selfish of me. Maybe enter Madonna for another entry since we've been friends since we were like 6. ;) Anyways, Aubrey had her tonsils removed today, so between the puking up of blood and snuggly sleepiness, I've been reading your book and loving every chapter. I alternate between laughing out loud and crying. DEAR READERS, IF YOU DON'T WIN IT, BUY IT! ;)

Steph said...

My son is 10 months old so I obviously have no potty-training stories yet. (Although I've heard some strange people start potty-training around this age??) But I can say that I use cloth diapers (gDiapers) and lately they have been smelling BAD. I just finished boiling his cloth diaper inserts on the stove in order to "strip" them of their residue. Now I'm making split pea soup for dinner....in a separate pot. haha

FYI I posted a book review on my blog yesterday of your book. You should check it out!

Amanda said...

Potty training my first child was super easy, my second child was not too bad- except for the poop- she keep having accidents several days a week for a few months (I kept discovering poop all over my house- yuck!). So since my potty training wasn't too bad with the first too I know it is probably going to be horrible with #3!

jandrmom2009 at gmail dot com

Amanda said...

I follow you on GFC
jandrmom2009 at gmail dot ocm

Anonymous said...

I totally relate. Sweet Baby J and I had timing issues. I was ready for her to be out of diapers. She was not. In the end, we used a potty watch. This cute little book also came with a trophy. Each day that she was dry, we put a letter of her name on the trophy.

Then we had Nate the Great and she digressed.

But I let her keep the trophy.

Rachel said...

I have two boys and if anyone had told me how hard potty training them would have been, I might have just kept them in diapers! Ok maybe not...My 5 1/2 year old has been potty trained for 2 years but just sopped wearing pull ups to bed. My 3 1/2 year old has an accident daily but throws a fit if I try to put pull ups on him. Oh well, at least he can change himself ;)

I would love to have a copy of your book! I loved that one reviewer wrote that she read it in the pickup line at school. I'll have to try that :)

carol said...

Do dogs peeing on the freshly cleaned throw rug no matter how many times you have taken them outside to go potty count? I have little boy dogs who are exactly like little boy humans - they play and play then just come in the house an pee because they forgot to do it while they were on the grass with all the big boys lifting their legs!

teal915 said...

My kids are fascinated with all things potty. I ocassionally catch them sitting, pow-wow like, exchanging potty prases just when I think, "Wow, they are playing so nice today." Boy, am I wrong. Our three old boy had his bday at the end of Dec, and he is finally catching on to the potty thing. I finally just put him in underwear, and he is a pro at peeing now. But he has the opposite problem as your daughter. He holds his poop, because he doesn't want to go in his pants (finally got it down that is a no no), but he is too scared to poop in the potty for some reason. So he's crazy constipated now. He says about 10 times a day that he has to poop. He sits down and cries for a minute, but he doesn't go. I'd say tha qualifies as a "Totally Desperate Potty". Thanks for sharing : )

http://teal915.blogspot.com/

Kelly K. said...

I am not into potty training yet...but will be soon...eek! My daughter is 20 months old, so I think she's still too young to delve into it. I'm going to wait till she's two at least...maybe even longer...I'm waiting till she shows interest. I wish you luck with your potty adventures though....it sounds frustrating. :( Hang in there!! I'll have my own unfortunate tales to tell soon enough.

Kelly K. said...

Oh, and yes I follow your blog too...and not just for the contest. :)

CAP17 said...

I think it's normal to pee 'just a little bit' at this age...Olivia does it (and, yeah, I do too when I cough or sneeze). But holding it is scary! Try the potty watch. It might work for her.
We just started training Zoe at 2.5 and she pees in the potty, but poops almost every time in her underwear. She does fine at preschool, but when home, or in a restaurant, or anywhere BUT school, it's poop in the underwear. She gets so upset and I try to tell her she needs to go IN the potty. I even drop the poop in the toilet so she sees where it's supposed to go...so GROSS! I worry I will have to hold poop for many months to come...and I feel your potty pain. :(

Kimmy B. said...

Is it bad that I'm scared even more now to start the PT process? ;) Just kidding!

jenn said...

I potty trained my 3 year old son in a few days, and he took to it great! I mean, we had poop accidents for quite a while afterwards til he figured out he'd get ice cream if he did it on the potty. :) With my 4 year old, who has autism right now, it's a bit more of a challenge. just now starting the process!!

I hope i win your giveaway because i have a gadgillion friends who need your book.

jenn said...

and i've been following you for a long time!

Jessica Johnson said...

Try potty training a deaf kid! And it probably doesn't help that I always get the sign for toilet and toy mixed up. We are a hot mess over here.

Marina said...

I was planning to start potty training when DD turns 18 mos... gonna have to see how it goes. Little worried now. And of course as I type this I catch a whiff of a poopy diaper. UGH!

Holly said...

I have to say I feel your pain, although I'm relieved to say so far potty training has been a breeze (you watch though, daughter #2 will give me a run for my money!) For real, and the workout is AWESOME! I so wish I could do it ;)

LaNette said...

I would love your book! I have twin boys that will be 2 in a few weeks! It would be so nice to have some tips! Thanks! lanette_beck@yahoo.com

Tina V said...

I feel your pain...best of luck...kids are God's way of keeping us on our toes. :)

Julie said...

Working on potty training my first one. It is VERY challenging some days :-)

Tina V aka @TMVMOM said...

P.S. if I should happen to win I have a friend who has an 8 month old and is soon to try for #2 that I would love to give your book to....keep up the wonderful blog posts :)

Dawn Lynn said...

My 3 year old refuses to go in the potty... He doesn't want to stop his plans to go... Your humor is great!

Anonymous said...

Thankfully all four are potty-trained now, but I went broke buying Hot Wheels cars to bribe my son with so he'd pee. I was that desperate.

Anonymous said...

Following your blog... That's different than stalking... right?

Theresa @ Two Much Fun said...

How wrong is this? We've been potty training (training -ha!) for almost three weeks now. There's been amazing days where everything ends up in the potty (with reminders to sit on the potty) and then there's the majority of times when there's almost a full day of poop and pee on the floor. I find myself turning into some crazy lady asking a two year old, "why are you peeing in your underwear and not on the potty?''