Potty training

The twins are 3+ and the daycare ladies keep bugging me about this, so I realized a couple of weeks ago that it was really time. I decided that the first step would be to get rid of the diapers.

So on a Monday morning, after taking off their pajamas and nighttime diapers, I proceeded to put them in... nothing! Actually I put shirts on them. But no diapers, no undies, no pants. Bare bottoms only. They cried and begged for diapers, but I was firm. I said "when you need to go pee or poop, either go in your potty or go outside." And they did really well, only one accident that first day and nothing after that. They like to pee on the patio, preferably inches from the door, and I frown on that, but otherwise no problems.

Our yard is awful -- ouchy things everywhere -- but they've been walking barefoot in it for a while now, so I figure they can walk stark naked in it too. I draw the line at the gate, though. They can sit stark naked next to the gate and play with toy trucks, but they can't go into the front yard like that. That means no stroller walks for a while, but it's OK.

After a week or two of this, I tried to figure out how to move on to the next step: underwear. They are still wearing diapers to go to daycare in the afternoon. I want them to start wearing underwear in the morning, then underwear and shorts, and then eventually go to daycare like that. But first we have to introduce underwear. I had bought some plain white underwear a long time ago (maybe a year? how embarrassing), because I am a snob (or at least a would-be snob) and I did not want my children to wear underwear with licensed characters on it. They wear the white underwear occasionally, but when I brought it out again last week, they said NO. NO underwear. "I don't like underwear," said Baby B. Baby A put a pair on his head.

So then I rethought licensed character underwear. And when we were in LA this past weekend, we went to Target and I bought a package with 7 pairs of THOMAS TRAIN underwear. Baby B was so excited about it that he opened the package in the car and played with all the undies. On Monday when we took off the nighttime diapers, all they wanted to do was to put on Thomas Train underwear. Success!

Or sort of. First they each put on a pair. Then they each put on a second pair, over the first. Then they both peed in their underwear. All the Thomas Train underwear had to come off and go in the laundry. Then they ran around naked for a while.

Today when they got up, they wanted to wear Thomas Train underwear, but I reminded them that they had peed in 4 pairs of it and I hadn't washed it yet (I washed it today). I offered the 3 remaining pairs, which are less cute. Baby B made the best of it and put on a pair. Baby A thought about it for a long time, put on a pair, took them off again, and then put them on his head.

Pretty soon they were both stark naked, playing with cars right by the gate where all the neighbors can see them.

It's a process. Someday they will be (potty-trained) teenagers and I can tell them all about this. Meanwhile, I am going to order some Elmo underwear.