Potty Training & Monday's

Working in the 2.5-4 year old room means that we-(the staff in that room)-do a lot of potty training. Some kids catch on quickly, some it takes a few weeks, and others it seemingly takes forever because they aren't quite ready but the parents insist that they are no matter what we say and they send them in underwear.

The kids who catch on quickly are, generally, beyond ready for potty training. They were staying dry in their pull-ups/diapers all day, going to the bathroom without reminders, and basically just needed underwear to 'complete' the process and end the pull-ups/diaper buying that their parents continued unnecessarily.

The kids who take a few weeks are ready but need a little coaxing. Whether it's because the bathroom is scary, they're too busy to go when they need to, or they just don't care, they take a little while. Generally the first week or two is rough simply because they have to stop what they're doing to go use the bathroom. Sometimes we get tears, sometimes we get tantrums, other times they happily go, or they tell us they have to go potty while they're sitting in time out. Once they 'get' that going to the bathroom is not optional, they turn the corner and comply. This usually happens after they've been wearing underwear and had 1 or 2 accidents and realized that it isn't pleasant.

The kids who seemingly take forever are both heartbreaking and frustrating. Their parents put them in underwear too early which results in lots of accidents. Thing is, even if they are soaking wet, it doesn't seem to bother them. They haven't yet made the connection between the urge to go and going on the potty. It's heartbreaking because we KNOW they aren't ready but we can't do anything about it. It's frustrating because it results in lots of clothing changes, and lots of sanitizing for the staff. It's pretty much hit or miss with these kids because, as much as we try to figure out their elimination schedule, it changes on a daily, if not hourly, basis.

All that being said, the single most frustrating thing about potty training is parents who insist their child be in underwear but yet put them in a pull-up all weekend because they 'don't have time to clean up accidents.' This makes for some very stressful Monday's, both for staff and potty training children. We've explained to the parents, time and time again, that this confuses the kids and it's like taking 2 steps forward and 3 steps back. Monday's are horrendous enough with all of the sleep deprived, sugar filled, spoiled rotten, schedule lacking kids-(basically the entire class)-who come back to school where we have *gasp* rules and schedules, required naps, and healthy food. So why make it even harder by adding to that stress with a child who hasn't worn underwear or eliminated in the potty for the past 48+ hours????

Maybe it's me, but parents seem less and less willing to work WITH child care staff while being more and more likely to press their agenda's on us. This is one of many things that parents do that leave me feeling frustrated, incapable, and stressed.

Following the potty training line, I'll hopefully be writing a follow up post to this one about underwear freedom.