Potty Training Alexander Style

There is more exciting potty news to share!

So, Alexander has been expressing an interest in the potty lately. Maybe it's the M&Ms he sees Anna get as an incentive/reward when she uses the potty. I tell him he can have M&Ms also when he's ready to pee pee in the potty. Within the past week I've been encouraging him to just sit on the little training potty when he wants to (with and without his pants on, whatever is convenient at the time). This afternoon before nap I told the children it was time to change diapers and for Anna to sit on the potty. Alexander insisted on pulling off his pants and his diaper to sit on the potty, so I let him go for it. He sat there for a while, even restlessly standing up a few times. Meanwhile, Anna was on the big toilet. I was in the other room and I heard Alexander say "Ah pee pee mommy." (I can't tell if he is using "I" or "Ah" for Alex.) I figured he was just talking aloud about pee pee, so I was floored when I walked in to actually find pee pee in the little blue plastic potty bowl! Of course, there was pee pee on the seat and floor, as well. I was so excited and tried to get him all excited with "yeas" and clapping hands and M&Ms and a phone call to daddy at work. I wasn't really prepared for this but will go with it if it's time. We'll see if he continues to want to potty train or if this was just a fluke. But yea!

I had two mom friends over for coffee yesterday morning. Their boys go to school with Anna, so they came over for the three hours between dropping off and picking up the kids. One of them shared that her 3-year-old boy is still not potty trained (which you're supposed to be to attend school, but I guess if he can hold it and doesn't require teachers to change his diaper then it's not an issue). She told a very funny story about how her boy will not only tell her when he's wet and needs a new diaper but also when he has a diaper rash and needs "grease." I guess it's true what they say about kids getting potty trained in their own sweet time.

In other Alexander news, I think I have a whiz kid under my tutelage. (Hee hee, I just wanted to say that word.) I've mentioned before that Alexander can tell you how many fingers you're holding up on one hand. I have since discovered that he also recognizes numbers in print. Show him numerals 1-5 and he'll say what they are with no mistakes! I don't have a point of reference, but this seems pretty smart to me for a child his age of just less than 27 months. I only just recognized this brilliance and so have now begun to show and say higher numbers. We'll see how long it takes for the numbers 6-10 to stick. I'm guessing not very long.

Alexander is also now constantly asking for the ABC song, and I can tell it won't be long before he can sing the whole thing. He can sing up to the letter G and also sings other parts of the song, so it's just a matter of filling in and stringing together.