Little Bear will be 9 months old next weekend, and I thought it was time for an update on how the Elimination Communication process has been going for us. We have moved 3 times in the past 3 months (finally settling down into our permanent new home a few weeks ago), meaning that Little Bear's schedule has been all over the place. While I've tried my best to maintain a routine and keep on top of her schedule, it has not always been possible. With packing, cleaning, unpacking ... times three ... there have been days that I haven't set Little Bear on her potty at all. Other days I managed mornings and evenings. And yet other days I was able to get her on it throughout the day. Now that we are settling into our new home, however, I am able to give more attention to Little Bear and her Elimination Communication. And yes, she still does communicate with me. It's usually a simple fuss. If I catch it and put her on the potty - bingo, no problem. But the last few weeks I've often just had to let her fuss because I've been in the middle of a call to our bank or realtor, driving around running errands, etc. So she fusses, wets her diaper, and then fusses some more. Eventually I will check her and, sure enough, she will be soaked.
BUT, when I am listening, and when I do place her on the potty on a regular basis ... she goes. Consistently. And despite the hectic schedule we've been keeping the last several months, the one thing Little Bear does NOT like to do is poop in her diaper. While she will simply give a little fuss when having to wet, pooping is another matter all together. Her cue is simply getting extremely upset and frantic. She usually quits playing or eating (or whatever it is she happened to be in the middle of at the time) ... and she gets very irritated. To an outsider, it may seem like she is simply throwing a fit for no reason. As her mom, I know immediately that it's time to poop. Up the stairs, onto the potty, and ... 9/10 she poops immediately.
Other times I will be placing her on the potty to pee, then realize that #2 is also on its way. But what remains consistent is that she will not poop in her diaper ... unless I don't put her on her potty. This has only happened about 3 times in the past 3 months. And every time it was my fault for ignoring her cues. That means that since Little Bear turned 6 months old, she has only pooped in her diaper 3 times. Every other time has been on her potty. Which means no messy, smelly bum to clean or diaper to rinse out. How awesome is that?
How awesome? WAY awesome. It's so encouraging to hear how much you've been able to do with Elimination Communication despite your hectic schedule. We bought our baby potty, but I've been somewhat on the fence about it thinking that I'll only be home full-time for 3 months and then our baby will be in childcare 2-4 days a week. It's so great to know that there can still be great benefits even if I can't be consistent 100% of the time :-)
ReplyDeleteIt is great, huh? The awesome thing about EC is that it can be used as much or as little as you like. I've read of moms that only use it when baby wakes up in the morning, or after eating (usually 5 minutes after, I've found). You figure that's 7 diapers a week. It's also still training your little one to be aware of their elimination and know what that sensation means. If nothing else, it gets them used to sitting on a toilet seat while going pee and poop. I've known many parents that have had one heck of a time getting their child to sit on a toilet seat because it just seems "scary." Hopefully Little Bear won't have that fear. =)
ReplyDeleteOh this is amazing...I just got a potty for my little guy but have been hesitant to put him on it since he's in daycare 2 days a week..he's 7 months but I really want to start getting used to the idea of putting him on the potty...I am sure you have it somewhere on your blog if you used a regular potty or something special. Very encouraging...thanks
ReplyDeleteDelia: Yes, my first post of EC shows the potty we used. Go to the side bar and click on "Elimination Communication" and then scroll to the bottom. It should be the last post. It's called a Baby Bjorn. We LOVE it. There are different sizes ... you might consider getting a bigger one since your little one is already 7 months. Not sure what the success rate is for EC when starting at 7 months ... but they learn so quickly I'm sure he'll pick up on it. I think using cloth diapers is really important because that helps them know when they are peeing. Good luck!
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