Eyes on the Prize

Today was a banner day here at Chez DH.

My daughter has been mostly potty trained for over 6 months, but there's been a bit of a snag with pooping in the potty. I tried verbal encouragement, bought princess underwear, even doled out M&Ms here and there. Nothing worked. Tried hugs, kisses, sticker charts, and a treasure chest. Nada. I've still been dealing with a 3-year-old who clearly articulated her desire to have a diaper put on when she needed to poop, then just as clearly instructed me to take it off when she was done. Ugh.

Somewhere along the way, she learned about Barbie. I've been telling her for quite some time that I thought she was too young for Barbie. But I caved. This is the carrot I've been dangling over her little potty for the past two months. Today, she earned it.

She picked out this Barbie. I was a little surprised she didn't pick out a princess Barbie. When I asked her about it, she showed me the back of the box and pointed out, "Look mom, Barbie's dog poops, then you clean it up. This is my poopin' prize." She doesn't miss a beat.

I'm not particularly proud that I had to bribe my daughter with a Barbie to get her to poop in the potty. I was getting desperate. I'm sure I'll be cursing the little magnetic dog poops every time I vacuum, but today we both feel like winners. Ah -- life in plastic; it's fantastic!




Thanks to everyone who took the time to comment yesterday. I really appreciated everyone's insight and take on the "to-blip-daily-or-not" dilemma.