best seat in the house

As some of you know I've been lazily helping lp figure out this potty business for awhile now. He quite often wakes up dry, and will "go" outside or on his potty if the option is presented at the right time, but was still perfectly comfortable with going in his diapers or on the floor if that was the most convenient option available. The little potty we have was purchased for $2.50 or so at a yard sale, and was promptly chewed on by the dog in a most inconvenient location (serves me right for leaving it outside for a week), and was about 2" too tall. I had been seriously considering getting one of these as they come very highly recommended among the crunchy crowd. My goal so far has been to only have one in diapers at a time, and if you'll glance at the ticker on the bottom of your screen there, you'll see we're running out of days to accomplish that goal.

Cut to this tuesday: I was browsing the thrift store with the boy while waiting for a friend. I wasn't expecting to find much and was about to check out when I spotted it: a better option. "Come over here buddy, let's sit on the potty!" I called across the tiny store. Several disconcerted looks and pithy comments from the peanut gallery later, I was at the cash register with a goofy grin on my face, an 18.5 month old on one hip, and the answer to all--ok, most--of my problems clutched tightly in my right hand.

Fast forward a couple more days, and guess what?! He loves it! Gets on and off of it all day long, went once of his own accord (kind of missed because he was standing in it facing backwards trying to turn around, but he did stop long enough for me to assist in repositioning before he finished), and seems to very clearly associate the words, device, and appropriate actions. I have actually lost track of how many times he's sat and gone (with prompting) in the past couple of days. hooray!

Oh, and the icing on the cake: