The long farewell....to diapers

I am of two minds these days. Hudson is trying desperately to potty train and I am kind of torn about it. Potty training wasn't even on my radar for the little man, so I was completely taken by surprise a while back when he all of a sudden took a serious interest in it.

Connor was super easy to potty train, he just had to be ready and that readiness did not land upon him until he was at least 2 1/2. I was fine with that because once he was ready, there was no looking back. I thought I would be facing a similar time frame with his younger brother.
But as usual, when I think I have some aspect of motherhood figured out, my children show me I am wrong (I think it entertains them). I hadn't factored in the big brother element. Mushy wants to do everything just like his Connie, including going to the potty. So we just went for it.

Problem the first: Connor always just used the regular toilet, as he is a giant this was never a problem. Hudson is minuscule in comparison so no amount of balance, leverage or hovering on my part could keep him from falling into the bowl. This was a disappointment to him because that is the way big brother does it and he just does not have the physique yet to manage the porcelain throne. After several self esteem killing attempts and subsequent "toilet baths", he finally agreed to give his tiny potty a chance and it was going great. He was managing several successful trips a day and I was totally shocked because I never expected to have a little boy ready to potty train at 21 months.

Problem the second: Hudson did great going to the potty when he realized that he needed to go. When he was cloaked in a super absorbent diaper, he couldn't tell until he was in the midst of the act that the urge was upon him. Let's just say there is no switching horses mid-stream for this one. So Ms. Karen suggested underwear for the tiny tyke. No problem, I thought, I had saved all of Connor's early briefs for just this momentous occasion. It was an emotional evening when I unpacked that little pair of hand me down underoos, almost a ceremonial passing of the torch if you will. Hudson was so excited to be just like his brother, but when we slipped them on we discovered that Hudson absolutely does not have a size 2T rump. They were so big that all his bits and pieces hung out of one leg hole. Matt took one look and said, "Absolutely not, this is indecent Melissa." Thus began our search for tiny training pants. In actuality Hudson's midsection is holding strong at 12 months, but I would settle for 18 because I thought that would be easier to find. Nope. Apparently tiny children don't need training pants in this world. I imagine there is a huge untapped market of parents whose kids are hanging out at the low end of the growth chart, just desperate for underwear. My mom looked everywhere while I searched online and we finally came up with some that we thought would work. They are still gigantic but at least an improvement from where we started. Plus it isn't everyday you get the luxury of wearing underwear that simultaneously keeps your rear end and your nipples covered.

Hudson loves his training pants, he keeps patting them and saying, "Connie? My Connie?" It brings him such happiness to know that he is just like his older brother and it makes me want to cry. I am sad because we are slowly letting go of the last vestiges of babyhood and I am not ready. Since he is our youngest and last, I thought that we would have longer to enjoy it and yes, I am sappy enough to consider diaper changes something to miss.

Experienced parents tell us all the time that we will blink and they'll be grown and I totally get that and frankly, it hurts. I am so looking forward to seeing what kind of men my sons will become one day but right now, I just want to keep them little for as long as possible. I am, after all, the woman that kept turning a six month old Connor over on his back like a turtle to "prevent" him from crawling (it didn't work). Matt, my ever constant dose of reality, was kind enough to say after watching me get misty eyed once again watching Hudson run around in his underwear/unitard ensemble, that he imagines after a few more months of cleaning human waste out of a tiny plastic basin (an exercise he calls "character building") I'll be changing my tune.

I hate when he's right :)