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potty training
The Truth About Elimination Communication
Warning: This post uses the word "poop". A lot. It's a post about toddlers and Montessori and early toileting awareness. You've been warned.
There's been some press lately about elimination communication (aka, early toileting awareness): the practice of identifying your baby's signals for pooping and peeing and taking them to the potty to eliminate. The moms that are interviewed for these pieces (or at least the way the articles and videos are edited) make it sound like it's a walk in the par…
There's been some press lately about elimination communication (aka, early toileting awareness): the practice of identifying your baby's signals for pooping and peeing and taking them to the potty to eliminate. The moms that are interviewed for these pieces (or at least the way the articles and videos are edited) make it sound like it's a walk in the par…
Nothing To Fear... But Fear Itself
Almost invariably, if I tell a parent that my son has been in underpants since he turned one, they look horrified and ask: "But... What if he has an ACCIDENT???"
Uh, I change him and wipe the floor?
I get the same horrified look when I say that he's been drinking from a real glass and using porcelain plates and glass bowls since he was six months old: "But... What if he BREAKS ONE???"
Uh, I sweep up the pieces and throw them away?
And don't even get me started on using forks with sharp tines or pota…
Uh, I change him and wipe the floor?
I get the same horrified look when I say that he's been drinking from a real glass and using porcelain plates and glass bowls since he was six months old: "But... What if he BREAKS ONE???"
Uh, I sweep up the pieces and throw them away?
And don't even get me started on using forks with sharp tines or pota…
A Place for the Potty
We have two of the world's tiniest bathrooms, so when I decided 7 months ago that I would help Zach develop toileting awareness, I had to find a way to incorporate potties and clean & dirty underwear bins into pretty tight spaces. Our arrangement has worked out beautifully, which is great because I spend a big chunk of my day kneeling by the potty! We use the Baby Bjorn high backed potty, and I got the underwear bins at the Container Store. We keep a couple of books on rotation between the p…
Resolutions
Whew... My head has been spinning since November, and I'm not really sure where to begin.
Out of the blue, I was offered the amazing opportunity to head up the creation of the Elementary program at the Montessori Institute Of San Diego's model school. A dream come true, for sure, but one that has required me to spin a few more plates than the ones I already had going. I'm working part-time right now, mostly from home while Zach naps, but I start work full-time in September as the head guide in …
Out of the blue, I was offered the amazing opportunity to head up the creation of the Elementary program at the Montessori Institute Of San Diego's model school. A dream come true, for sure, but one that has required me to spin a few more plates than the ones I already had going. I'm working part-time right now, mostly from home while Zach naps, but I start work full-time in September as the head guide in …
Potty Post
It's been two weeks since we introduced Zach to the potty. I only have one word to describe our experience:
Wow.
Our brief journey has been hassle-free and has become a daily reminder of the respect we should have towards the youngest members of our species. I keep asking myself why I waited so long to introduce this process, even though we're starting a lot earlier than most families. He seems so content every time he relieves himself on the potty, and his discomfort when his cloth diaper is w…
Wow.
Our brief journey has been hassle-free and has become a daily reminder of the respect we should have towards the youngest members of our species. I keep asking myself why I waited so long to introduce this process, even though we're starting a lot earlier than most families. He seems so content every time he relieves himself on the potty, and his discomfort when his cloth diaper is w…
Give Me a Pee!!!
I'm currently reading Diaper Free Before Three, a fabulous book about early toilet training that supports several tenets of the Montessori philosophy (and even quotes Dr. Montessori). It reviews the history of American toilet training from the 1800's to the present and gives logical, scientific, and thoroughly convincing arguments for helping young children achieve toileting independence at a young age (note: it's not a guide for practicing elimination communication).
I considered doing eliminati…
I considered doing eliminati…
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