The Potty Chair

Today we purchased this potty--though, not in these exact colors. It's a Safety 1st 3 in 1, in case you are so excited by the looks of it that you want to run right out and buy one as the new centerpiece on your dining room table or a food dish for your poodle. Don't misunderstand the situation here. We are in no way, shape or form attempting to potty train our nineteen month old. We just thought that if we had this charming minuscule toilet we could kind of mention periodically that potty goes in it and wouldn't it be so special if Garrett went tinkle in it so that mommy could stop spending the gross national product of Chile every month on diapers. Our son is just starting to recognize what potty and poop even are so he's not exactly ready to use this new toy. We fully intend for it to be purely ornamental for several months. When we ask him if he went poop he grabs the back of his diaper if he's dirty (and, well, sometimes when he's not) and if we ask him if he went potty he grabs the front. He shows great interest when we use the toilet, but definitely doesn't equate our bathroom visits with his wet or dirty diaper. So anyway, today I stuck it in our bathroom and I sat him down on it (fully clothed mind you). I walked over to our life size toilet and sat down (also fully clothed). "See Garrett, mommy and daddy go potty in this toilet and you go potty in your new and very cool potty chair." He looked at me, his little legs barely long enough to touch the ground. He smiled. "Garrett, can you go potty in your new potty chair?" Of course not would have been the correct answer as he was wearing the aforementioned clothing. He looked at me, turned, and fell off the potty chair as he attempted to climb down. He righted himself and stood in front of his new throne, facing it. Then, with all the exuberance he could muster he thrust his pelvis forward and stood perfectly still for a good ten seconds. It was as though, in answer to my question, he replied, "Yes, Mommy. Of course I can go potty in my new potty chair. But I'm a boy and boys stand when they go."

Touche, Garrett. Well played.