On To Undies!

I have exciting news in the ECing arena!  But pictures of that just aren't, well, internet appropriate.  So, I thought I'd share photos of our trip to Illinois earlier this month and let you use your imagination to fill in any blanks (or not, if baby poop isn't your thing...).

Swimming in GG and PaPa's pool!

So the exciting news---- Tye has been in underwear for over a month now!  I have to admit, I would love to share photos of Tye in her undies.  She just looks so cute running around in pink or green briefs!    

"I flying like a bird!" with Coach

 Just to catch everyone up to date: we used Elimination Communication with Tye from about 3 months.  While she was never diaper-free as a baby, she almost immediately began to only have bowel movements in her potty (the only exceptions were bouts of diarrhea).  We continued with ECing into toddlerhood and last summer, even spent a couple weeks sans diapers at home until Tye suddenly decided she really wanted to wear a diaper.  Once she realized she didn't have to stop playing to go potty in her diaper, that was it.  She still only pooped on the toilet and would pee every time she sat, but she wouldn't interrupt play to use the bathroom, and we stayed in that pattern until this spring. (For our entire EC journey, catch up here.)

Etta and GG, readyt to swim

The recent transition to underwear was so smooth and gentle that we don't have a set date of transition.  Since April-ish, Tye has been proudly wearing underwear at home, no exceptions, and diapers only when out of the house.  In early June, we went full-time undies and Tye barely batted an eyelash.  

On 100+ degree days, ice pops are highly preferred over regular parade candy.

 I still have to remind Tye to use the bathroom when playing with friends or when out of the house, and we still use overnight diapers just in case (though she has only wet one in the past several weeks!).  Our biggest accomplishment was our trip to Illinois, during which Tye stayed dry through all kinds of excitement and even on our long road trip!  We had just one accident all 10 days.  Of course, it was on an upholstered couch, but in all fairness, Tye hadn't been prompted to go in a couple hours (yup, it was a big wet spot- sorry, GG!).  

"Whoa!  A parade!  So much to see!"

We're also using EC with Etta, who is doing her best to communicate with us when she needs to go.   When we hold Etta to go, she always eliminates- but she poops so frequently (at least once a day, unlike Tye's once a week routine at this age) that we don't catch all of them yet.  Recently, I've been having a difficult time distinguishing between her "I need to poop" grunts and her "I am trying my hardest to crawl/reach this toy/remind you I'm here" grunts. I'm totally happy with our ECing progress with Etta.  I just really hope that we can figure out a way to communicate clearly before she really takes to eating solids!

Yesterday seemed to sum up our current pottying state pretty well.  While at the park with friends, both Tye and Etta peed on a tree.  How's that for a mental picture?  Of course, I also carry with us a full change of clothes for each.  We're good, but we're also prepared.  

Mama with "bowf girls"