Sam has been in throes of potty training for a while now. He wears pull-ups, and can pee and poo in the regular potty. The problem has been getting him to do it consistently. #2 has been the main problem, as he seems to prefer going in his pull-up, vs making an effort to go on the potty. Pee, he’ll do on the potty, if prompted/reminded. Since we know he has the mechanics mastered, it’s been frustrating to have him continue to poop in his pants, when he “knows better.”
He knows that he needs to keep his pants dry if he wants to be a “big boy” and if he wants to be in “Mrs. Cloud’s class” next year (the preschool class Wendy is currently in). I finally told him that I know he can do it and when he decides he’s ready, he will do a great job and I will be proud of him. Lately, he actually has been making an effort to go on the potty and we’ve had several poo successes, which thrills my heart to no end.
We had tried various rewards methods (treats, etc.) but it didn’t seem to be a big motivator for him. One thing, however, does seem to excite him: Daddy’s potty dance. When Sam would go #2 in the toilet, Mike would do a silly dance for him, which he loved. If Mike wasn’t around and he went #2, we’d call and tell Daddy and Sam would say, “Daddy, when you come home from work, you can dance for me.”
So today, after nap, Sam tells me he needs help cleaning up his poo poo, which I understood to mean he had pooped in his pull-up. As I carefully removed his pull-up, I saw that it was dry! He sat on the potty and proceeded to poop. Since, 30 seconds earlier, I was convinced I was going to be messing with poo, I was thrilled with this outcome and offered to dance for him. I did a little jig and he looked at me and said, “That’s not right.” So I tried again, doing some other funky white girl moves. Again, he wasn’t impressed. Finally, I attempted to approximate the moves I remember seeing Mike do, and he smiled and said, “That’s the dance!”
Apparently the potty dance is a very specific sequence of moves. If possible, I’ll attempt to document it the next time Mike has opportunity to demonstrate.
![The Meanest Momma](https://lh4.googleusercontent.com/-S0-UAwPX6Rk/TwXG1TDRHII/AAAAAAABDeo/WFIw0U8-VRI/IMG_2075.JPG")
Oh, I feel your pain. Right there with ya. Only we don’t have a dance. But we should…
LOL, whatever it takes!!!!
So over the last few days, my co-worker, Eric, hears me answer the phone and say, “That’s great! you went poo poo in the potty?” And a pause, then I say, “Sure, I can dance for you when I get home!” Of course, I’m jazzed as I respond to both Sam’ statements, but it peaks his interest. Today Eric turns to me and says, “Last night I told my wife, ‘I gotta see this dance Mike does for Sam, if he calls up to asks Mike to do it after he poops.’”
Now, you gotta remember I’m a middle aged white guy who does telecom for a living…I ask you, how good could this dance be? If you’re having trouble with your son going on the potty, you’ll have to come up with your own moves.