Monday, May 26, 2014

Desperate times call for an Elsa Dress

I've been trying to potty train my daughter for nearly 6 months!  I thought my son was difficult, but my daughter has proven far more so.  My mother tried "potty treats," which I'm not fond of given my experience with my son.  I really suspect my daughter would decide if she'd use the potty based on if she was in the mood for a potty treat or not.  When she wasn't in the mood for candy (or what-have-you), my husband or I would be cleaning up her mess.  I've started having her help clean her messes, but that's not working either... She seems to think it's fun cleaning house, including that sort of ickiness.

So, I'm trying another form of temptation.  I asked her if she wanted something that seem highly coveted by little girls and mothers at this time... an Elsa dress from Frozen.  She seemed very excited by the idea.

What I didn't expect is that she'd want me to make it...
Or that she'd want it in pink...

Left:  the original dress.  Right: my quick modification in pink
 We got the patterns today (regular dress patterns that would be easily alterable, on sale for $1 each), several types of pink material (for the dress, sleeves and cape), some ribbon sequins, and glitter fabric paint.  The irony is that even though we weren't there long at all and she went potty at home, she wet herself TWICE.  (She also wet herself as I was typing this.)

I'm starting to wonder how likely this bargaining chip will work.  If she earns five snowflakes in a row on the calendar, I will start making the dress.  The snowflakes represent the days she doesn't wet or sully herself.  After I start making the dress, she needs to earn more snowflakes before she can have the dress.  Then, depending on various factors, she can possibly work towards earning shoes, a crown, and a wig.  If I'm lucky, she'll want to wear her dress for the Renaissance Festival and Halloween.  I'm all about the kids wearing their costumes as much as they can.  Why not?