Oh Potty! Oh Boy!

The past couple of days have been gung-ho toilet training with Danger Boy! He's going to be a big boy wearing big boy underpants really soon! I know that with each of my children, potty training came at different times and ages and seasons of their lives. With Angel Girl, it was around preschool age, we didn't push it because Tractor Boy had special needs when he was born and we didn't want her to feel pressure or for her to regress. With Tractor Boy, it was after his g-tube had been removed and he gained more body awareness. Now, with Danger Boy, we are just barely three years old and he announces, "Mommy, I would like to go to the potty!" and he really likes m&m's as a reward (one for #1 and two for #2). Today he has gone potty more than a dozen times and it is so adorable to see him run excitedly to the potty and feel the accomplishment that goes along with our cheering him on. (which by the way, is another gift of homeschooling, having his siblings here with him to encourage him is a very big deal!)

All of this recent activity has led me to reflect a little.

Potty training goes both ways.
The child is trained to use the potty, wipe, flush, wash hands, pull up pants, etc. The parent is trained by the child as to when the child needs to go, what sort of rewards are good incentives, what sort of pottying cues to look for, etc.

I thank God for the humbling experience of potty training.
Thank You God for the little messes to clean up, because they mean that I have a little one to clean up after.
Thank You God for the toilet, that we don't have to use a chamber pot or an outhouse.
Thank You God for toilet paper, that we don't have to use something else!
Thank You God for soap, that we can be clean!
Thank You God for bathrooms, that we don't have to do our business out in the open!
Thank You God for the gift of eliminating our own waste, we'd die if we couldn't.

We have so much to be thankful for and there are so many things that we take for granted. When was the last time you thought about what you take for granted? How about taking some time to Thank God today for the little things...you might start with the toilet. ;-) lol!