Julianna isn’t a baby. Not really. She’s a few weeks away from turning three years old, but if you ask her, she’s still a baby. She watches “baby shows” and likes “baby books.” She also (and this is what inspired this post) likes her “baby potty.” She’s been potty trained for a long time, we started with potty training soon after her second birthday. I never thought she’s actually do it, I thought I’d just get her a potty and let her get used to it. She loved the whole idea of it, and potty trained really, really fast.
She was easily a year ahead of her her brother and sister, in terms of when they were reliably potty trained. She was good to go, day and night, by mid-September, and I honestly can’t remember the last time she had an accident. Sounds great, right? BUT – she’s only ever gone on her little pink potty. She’ll use other kids’ potties, if we happen to be at someone’s house and they happen to have a potty training toddler (which happens more often than you’d think). But sitting on the big toilet is completely an anathema to her. She’s horrified at the suggestion of it.
It works, kind of. She’s like a camel, with amazing bladder control. She can easily hold it for a few hours or so. Sometimes longer. If we’re going to be out all day, I’ll usually tote along the little pink potty, but it’s only for a while, say half a day max, I’ll just have her go first and trust that she’ll be okay. I always have an extra outfit in my bag for her, but I’ve never actually needed it.
But really – she’s got to move on. Jessie never used a little potty, my girl potty trained herself after I gave up, and just started sitting on the toilet on her own. Sam moved over to the big potty pretty quickly too, within a week or two, I think. But Julie is adamant, babies don’t go on the big potty, and she’s a baby. I bought her a little Minnie Mouse toilet seat that sits on the toilet, and she’s amused by it. It’s got Minnie on it, so she likes it, but the thought that she’s supposed to use it is crazy. As she explained to me today, babies don’t sit on the big potty. I pointed out that Mama couldn’t use Minnie, Minnie was just for babies, but you could tell that she thought I was an idiot. She politely told me that she’d still be using her pink potty and then left the room. Leaving me to wonder if she’d still be using the little pink potty for the rest of her life….
It’s the “baby” thing that confuses me, honestly. Most kids seem to WANT to be big kids – and there’s very little about this girl that would make you think of a baby. She’s fully verbal, completely potty trained (pink potty obsession aside), drinks from a cup, feeds herself neatly. She can clean up after herself, tattle on her siblings, and has memorized several books (leading the uninformed to believe that she can read). But she’s still nursing, and I think that’s what’s really driving the “baby” desire. Babies nurse, and she’s not willing to give up that title and the privileges that go along with it. I’m not sure where she got that impression, I nursed Sam until he was closer to four, so while I’m more than ready for Julie to be done with nursing, it’s not like I’m pushing for her to wean anytime soon. It’s not even like she’s nursing all that much anymore. She really only nurses when she’s ready for sleep – or if she’s really emotionally stressed out. Which doesn’t happen all that often, so it’s not unusual for her to go all day without it, especially because the nap is becoming more and more a thing of the past.
But for now, I’m happy with my “baby.” Even though she’s not a baby, and she and I both know that. She’s a big girl, and getting ever bigger every day. And maybe someday soon, she’ll actually use the Minnie toilet seat… and if not, well, she’s a skinny kid. I bet her little butt will fit on that training potty for a long time to come.
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