The Princess and the Potty.

This girl.  I love her to pieces, but she's gonna be the death of me.

She's two.  And a half.  But she thinks she's sixteen. 

And she hates the potty.  I know it doesn't seem that way in the picture above, but that's only because Ben is unbelievably great and unbelievably patient and unbelievably loving and maybe just as stubborn as she is. :)

Ben and Ginnell, our sitter, have actually paired up to make a really great team.  They have, miraculously, gotten Hadley to the point where she will at least sit on the potty for a few minutes each day without screaming as if her right arm is being sawed off...no exaggeration.

Up until about a week or so ago, BeBe would scream, cry, and fight as if her life depended on it to stay off of any potty...the big one, the little one, the potty seat...you name it, she hated it.  I'm quite certain, however, that she's not scared of the potty at all.  And I know she knows how to control herself...she'll ask to be taken out of the bathtub if she has to poop or pee, and that child will hold whatever she's got until there's a diaper secured on that little bootie of hers.  And then, my friend, she lets it all out.  She'll keep her big girl panties dry, though.  While she hasn't actually worn them for an entire day yet, she'll sport them quite often in the evening and can keep them dry for extended periods of time. 

She's just stubborn.  And she likes to be in control.  And there's a slight chance she gets that from me.

Promises of candy, stickers, new toys, special priveleges...she could care less.  In fact, a common conversation around our house used to go something like this: 

Babe:  "I want some M&M's."

Us:  "Cool, Babe.  You want some M&M's?  Let's sit on the potty and you can have a lot!"

Babe:  "Um, I not want any M&M's."

But not anymore.  These days, we're averaging a potty sitting at least once an evening.  And while we're still not getting any poop or pee in the potty, she's got the face to make it happen down pretty well.  Sound effects included.

I figure she'll get the hang of it before she's ten.  But it sure would be nice to stop buying diapers in the next month or so!