Oh Crap! Potty Training

I love this one. I see it all the time in Facebook comments. I see it in
blog posts. I hear it on the playground, usually accompanied by some
sort of snide attitude: “A potty trained kid shouldn’t have accidents.”
When has your child ever learned something and then never made
a mistake afterward? Ridiculous, no? To think that your child would
never have an accident is weird. I wish there were a magic “potty
training switch,” and once you turned it on, it would be on forever.
Yeah. Right.
Now, I know that from a logical perspective, we all realize this is
false. Of course, accidents happen. Still, I find that in reality, parents
don’t really expect them. Most don’t prepare for it, and I’d say 90
percent of the parents I see expect full potty training in one or two
days. You may have an all-star these first few days, but I assure you,
accidents can still happen.
Potty training is a process. Your child will get better and better at
it. This book will get you well on your way. Each week will get easier
and easier, and you’ll focus less and less on it. Accidents will happen,
most often because we—the parents—forget (or ignore) pee-pee
dances, or don’t prompt the child. It’s important to remember that
accidents are just that; they’re not intended. I like to tell parents to
be prepared. Look, you’re carrying around a diaper bag right now
anyway. What’s one more month of carrying around a change of
clothes, just in case?
I like to say that accidents within the first week aren’t accidents,
but rather are learning tools. Both you and your child are still
figuring this whole thing out. Of course, something’s off if your child
is only ever having accidents and is not making it to the potty at all.
We’ll discuss this later.