Aubrey: "I need to go pee-pee"

Aubrey has successfully completed one of her biggest developmental milestones (and potentially the most challenging)....potty-training! I had heard good stories and horror stories from other mothers and had read everything I could find about the subject, so I wasn't sure what to expect. I was praying that this would go well since Aubrey had already used the potty several times when trying to gauge her abilities and interest. I am pleased to report that we now have a potty-trained 2 1/2 year old, and I couldn't have asked for the experience to have gone any better: no tears, no meltdowns, no refusals, and very few "accidents"! We are so proud of her!

This is Aubrey's last time on the changing table the morning that she started potty-training. We set aside a full week for this task beginning on Saturday so that Jeff could be responsible for Addison's needs the first two days, and I could focus on Aubrey. Aubrey received stickers for every time she used the potty. After the first 10 stickers of the day, she received a surprise - - little toys and such that I had picked up from consignment sales earlier in the year for this very purpose.For the first few days, Aubrey played on the porch (easier clean up, if necessary) and was bare-bottom the whole time. She had a little potty-chair and a box of tissues outside also. I set a timer to prompt her to go to the potty every 15 minutes. The next couple of days, she used training pants (the thick undies with plastic over them), and she was to tell Mommy when she "needed to go pee-pee." Once she mastered this, she moved on to "big-girl" undies. One of the surprises she received after getting 10 stickers was a play-doh "Barbershop." It's loads of fun, but clean-up is a nightmare! Other little surprises included a baby doll bathtub, some wooden blocks, and a play washing machine which is the cutest thing ever! After 5 successful days of potty-training, we ventured out on our first field trip to Wal-mart without diapers so Aubrey could pick out her new big-girl undies. The next day, we went to the library to see magician Chad Crews (small world - he is currently living in my hometown of North Augusta, SC). In the photo above, he is pulling a snake out of a box - - whatever happened to bunny rabbits and doves?!!

At the end of the week, we made cupcakes to celebrate her accomplishment.
Congratulations, Aubrey!

UPDATE since original post:

Aubrey had already begun telling us that she wanted to do some things "by herself" (as indicated in a May 2nd post). But apparently, potty-training gave Aubrey just enough of a boost in her confidence that, ever since then, we have seen a big shift in her wanting to do almost everything by herself such as blow-drying her hair (something that used to scare her a little).....

....and dressing herself. One morning, without warning, Aubrey quietly got out of bed, grabbed a nighttime pull-up instead of undies, grabbed a matching top and bottom, and proceeded to dress herself. Jeff was working in his office upstairs, and I was also upstairs on our computer, when we both heard running through the house. We found Aubrey proudly looking for us to show us that she had dressed herself. Nevermind that she had her shirt on backwards, her pull-up around her waist, and both legs in the same leg-hole of her shorts - - she did it all by herself and has attempted to get up and dressed by herself in the mornings ever since.

Now that the crib and diapers are gone, she really is a "big girl" now - Where has our little, baby Aubrey gone?!