Potty Cake, Potty Cake

Potty training a child is absolutely nothing like I expected. I never took into consideration that the toddler I'd be training was going to be so strong-willed, opinionated, and rebellious. I also never took into consideration there could be other factors thwarting my plans. I had to completely drop the subject and let HER decide when she was going to start using her potty. Going #1 wasn't the issue. Going #2 was always an all-day, dramatic affair. She's had anal fissures since she was a baby, hard stools, and painful BM's. We found out that if she ate a Fiber One bar a day, this took care of all of her problems. However, she was so traumatized by pooping that it took 2 years to talk her into using the potty. I tried begging, I tried dropping it, I tried being stern, I tried bribing with candy and toys. Nothing was working. Then one day she asked me if I would be so happy if she pooped on the potty. I said, "Athena, if you poop on the potty I'll bake you a friggin' cake." This did it. She pooped for a cake.

She caught me off guard, but I was able to whip up an impromptu princess cake for her.

Shew. I thought I was going to be changing diapers until she was 10. Mission accomplished.