Maryn's New Throne

Things have changed a lot since I was a girl. Sometimes I forget what life was like before e-mail, cell phones, Facebook, the Internet in general, and all of the other things that have become integral parts of our lives. Most of these now-essential items were developed after I graduated from high school and went off into the world (if BYU counts as the world) to become an adult. I still remember the first time I ever logged on to the Internet--it was at the library at college. I got my first cell phone at age 27 (so all of you 13-year-olds that constantly whine to me that your parents are so mean because you don't have your own phone--I would advise seeking sympathy elsewhere). Yes, the world has changed a lot since I was 17.



The world continues to change. I was reminded of this the other day when I went potty shopping.



We have decided that Maryn is ready to be trained. She had her 2nd birthday this week and so we thought it would be a good time to kick off the toilet training. I've been changing diapers for over 7 years now, and I'm ready to move on to the next phase in life. The non-diaper phase. When we moved last year I got rid of the potty that we had used to train the older girls. It was never a great potty and sometimes would pinch their legs when they sat down. Plus I didn't want to store it and have it get all dusty and gross in the garage. I had paid $10 for it and I figured we'd gotten that much value out of it and Maryn could have a fresh one.



So on Wednesday I went off to find a fresh potty for her for her birthday. Yes, I did give my child a potty for her birthday, and she loved it by the way. Lest you think I'm very cruel we did give her other gifts as well--but several of them did follow a certain theme. For example, I got her a Baby Alive that pees and poops.



When I arrived at the potty section of the store, I realized right away that these weren't the potties of my mother's day. Or even the potties of 5 years ago. No--these potties were tricked out. These were potties that catered to the new cell phone toting, twittering, tech saavy mothers who would not be satisfied with a simple hole and a bowl.



For boys there was a potty shaped like a soccer ball that could sense when to "reward" your child with the sound of stadium cheers. There were several different kinds of cheers that alternated. Some potties had built-in toilet paper dispensers and handles so they could practice flushing. Of course there were options so that you could choose between hard seats and soft seats.



Since this was going to be a birthday gift, I got Maryn the potty I knew she would love the most--the Princess Potty. It is pink and shaped like a throne. There is a lid that can be folded down so that it can be used as a step stool for hand washing. When the lid is up you can see the design of a crown topped off with three purple jewels. The best part is that there are two little sensors in the bottom of the bowl that sense when she has been successful and serenade her with various trumpet heralds--Da Da Daaaaaaaaah!



So far, all of the advancement in technology has not translated into more potty success. She does love sitting on her throne, but she has figured out how to reach down under the potty and push the button and be rewared with music without actually having to make a deposit. Tonight, after sitting on it for a good 15 minutes and pushing the button at least 20 times, she proceeded to get up and pee on the carpet in the hall just outside the bathroom door.



It would seem that technology can't improve everything. Bling or no bling, trumpets or no trumpets, it would seem that potty training is one of those things that just needs some good old-fashioned time and patience.



Heaven help me.