ready, set, potty train!

Well, I'm ready. I went to the store on my lunch break and got all the gear.

• one potty chair (that converts to a seat adapter and stool)
• multiple CARS underwear
• peanut butter m&ms (because mommy needs a reward too)

This Fourth of July weekend, while others are off to the pool, visiting family, watching parades - we will be celebrating our own Independence Day - Independence from DIAPERS!!! We did the jam packed weekend last weekend, with the friends, parade, pool, fireworks, car burnout show (a boy thing), etc. This weekend it will be all about the potty.
Little Man started showing the signs a couple of months ago, but only recently have we been able to check them all off.

• dry through the night and nap time
• interested in the potty
• aware of when he goes
• desire to get the diaper OFF (not sure if that is a real sign of readiness though)
• Caught: sitting on the big potty, shorts off, diaper on

Most importantly its summer - (I don't train in winter) and I have a long weekend to work with. The twins were trained in the fall - turning 2 in July, they weren't quite ready - but by the end of August they were starting. I however was not prepared. Oh, I had the coolest potty chair given to me. It was able to have a picture on the lid, it had a handle and made cool flushing sounds and it had a recording of Mommy saying good job. I had special thick undies that stopped stuff from running down the leg. But after that, I didn't have a clue. I didn't know a thing about how to potty train a child, much less two. (Yes, I know, there are plenty of books out there, but I am not a self help book person).
I listened to great stories - of how I was trained in 48 hours. And horror stories - of how someone else took years. I got advice from all kinds of people (none of whom included rewards of any kind) about how often, what to say, etc. So I thought I was ready. We took the twins at the same time into our small bathroom, and Daddy showed them how it worked (I thought a man explaining would make it better - lets be like Daddy and all). And they thought it was neat, but no they didn't GET it. They enjoyed playing on the potty, in the potty, around the potty, but never actually used the potty.
I had figured T2, being just like his Mommy, would get it first. But about 2 weeks into our process, T1 all the sudden, understood. Finally, something, somewhere in there clicked and he got what was supposed to happen. A few days later he was done. No diapers, no pull ups (unless on car rides, because Mommy is a chicken), no wet bed. T2 was still not getting the whole concept. Maybe I started them too early, maybe I should've read a few books first. But I had one done and one not so done. Then one day, T2 walked in on T1 and while T1 yelled "OUT", T2 noticed his brother was doing something he couldn't. Well that was the end of that. T2 is never to be outdone by someone else, figured out what he was supposed to do and he too was done.
All of this was 5 years ago. Am I ready to try again? yes. Do I have a better strategy? yes. Do I believe that this time our son is a little more ready than the twins were? yes. Do I think it will happen in 48 hours? No. Not all of us can be that special :)

"A child can go only so far in life without potty training. It is not mere coincidence that six of the last seven presidents were potty trained, not to mention nearly half of the nation's state legislators." ~Dave Barry