Recently I was left alone with both kids for 9 days. This is the longest I've been solo, and with a toddler and a baby, oy ve! But we survived. The kids did great, it was just me being on double duty that was exhausting. During this time I also (very stupidly I might add) decided to potty train Riya. This meant I had to keep her home from school for 3 days plus the weekend.
A few months back when Ram told me the dates for his second annual work trip to Cali and asked if he could extend it to the weekend to go to Vegas and catch up with a very dear friend that he hasn't seen in 5 years, I said yes without hesitation. However, at that time, I had no intention of potty training Riya. We received word in April that she would be moving up to the 3 year old class in May, so I wanted to wait until she adjusted.
But as the weeks and days passed, Riya's desire to be diaper free kept growing and I couldn't ignore it any longer. So as Ram's trip drew near, my anxiety reached a whole new level of WHAT DID I GET MYSELF INTO?! Being solo with both kids is hard though I was beginning to feel more confident about doing both of their bedtimes by myself. We had a routine down and Riya has become quite the little helper. But add potty training to the mix and whatever false sense of security I felt as Ram walked out that door last Sunday morning, left with him. Just the
thought of potty training exhausted me. All the books out there said, block out a whole 4-5 days and focus solely on your child. You will not do laundry. You will not clean. You will not look at your phone. You will do nothing but watch your child. These authors either have only 1 child or a plethora of help. I don't fall into either category.
Thus began the daunting experience of potty training. Riya started out very strong and we had no accidents on day 1. Day 2 the resistance began (expected) and it was clear that she knew exactly when she had to pee and poo but pooping while seated was our sole issue. This is a common road block in potty training, so I was very proud that she at least was making the connection and getting to the bathroom on time. The sitting while pooping thing would come, it just takes time. After 5 very long days with both kids, I sent Riya to school and was so happy to hear that she did great. No accidents! And it stayed that way for the rest of the week.
I am beyond proud of my little girl, who is acting all grown up. Although this solo venture was tiring for me, the kids had so much fun bonding with each other. I cannot help but beam with pride when I look at these two:
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| Copying Rayan. LOL |
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| Riya can never have enough cuddles with Rayan <3 |
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| Daddy's home!!! |
