Potty Training Update

Okay - first, I must confess.  This picture is old.  It's actually from the last time we attempted potty training, but I so didn't want to jinx any chance of it being successful this time, so I have not taken even one picture.  Honest. (Though I'd be lying if I said I haven't wanted to a time or two.)

So - here's how this attempt is going.  Overall, it has been very successful so far.  The first day was lots of accidents.  In fact, I think he ended up about 30% for the day (or so), and I wondered if he was getting it or if I should back off.  But, being that he seemed more successful at the end of the day than the beginning, I chose to at least give him one more day. 

Day number 2 had four accidents total = 75% success.  Yay!  Go B!  Day 3 = 100% success.  Yep, not one accident, same underwear all day.  And - so far, for today he's 100% (though he is napping right now in his underwear - we'll see how that goes) and that was with being gone and out of town for about 2 hours.  (Though he refused to pee while we were gone.)

So all in all - he's getting it.  And now it's time that I fess up:

-  I expected this to be time consuming and difficult, and for a lot of other things to be on the back burner, and it's been exactly what I've expected it to be.  And to be quite honest... trying to figure it all out, myself, has me more than a little bit exhausted.  I went to bed at 9:30 last night and got up at 7:00, and I'm still tired.  I expected it to be time consuming, but not nearly so draining. 

-  I've seen more of the bathroom in the last few days than I care to see for a long, long time.  AND - furthermore, two bathrooms will be a necessity once Ansley starts on the bandwagon.

-  And, half of what has left me so exhausted is the whirlwind of questions I have now!!!  Here's what has been littering my mind the past few days: 

What do I do for nap and bedtime?  He can't make it through the night, but I really don't want him to get up either (selfish, I know).  Everyone says no diapers, so do I do pull-ups?  Or underwear and hope that he can hold it? 

And what about going out?  He's peeing on a potty seat at home... do I have to take that with me everywhere now?  And he wouldn't pee on it in a public bathroom today?  How do I combat that?  And if he learns to pee standing up, how does he reach the toilet in a public bathroom with no stool.  It'd be really beneficial if I shared the same 'parts' as him at this point... there are some things I obviously don't get.

And when will he ever be able to go to the bathroom on his own?  Is that something he's capable of now? 

How long do I need to do the sticker charts / m&ms before it's second nature and he does what he's supposed to because he knows he's supposed to? 

And WHEN will he stop peeing every 30 or 45 minutes?  Granted, I know he's little and has a small bladder and what not - but my goodness - he went 17 times yesterday!  In 9 hours (since he was dry through all of his nap...) 

- And here's this for my last confession:  I am very happy that we are tackling this now, but, by golly, diapers sure seemed a whole lot easier than this :(  (And I'm saying all of this, and he's doing well!  Don't know how I'd be if he was doing poorly.)  I'm more happy than anything right now, but I'm wondering how we make life work now, like it did before, with his new found skill. 

Any words of wisdom are appreciated!

-A