Success...

So a few months ago, I had posted a blog about potty training. It has been an uphill battle with Hunter on potty training. After awhile the rewards and praise were not working and it was a constant battle with him. We had just about given up. About a month ago, my mom and I took the boys to my dad's new business ventures grand opening. On the way back we drove past Murrieta Elementary and told Hunter this could be the school he goes to next year from Kindergarten. He got ecited and wanted to check it out. Well the school was locked down for the day (it being around 530pm). So we looked through the bars and my mom pointed out to him the Kindergarten classrooms and the playground and lunch tables. We showed him all the different parts of the school that we could see. He was sooooo excited. He talked about nothing else the rest of the night and nearly driving me and Mark crazy with asking us constantly when does he get to go to school. This makes us excited (but sad too, especially for me) that he will have a good transition when it comes time for Kindergarten. But of course we told he doesn't get to go for another year and he would also need to go potty like a big boy before he went to school. Well that cause uproar with Hunter cause he didn't want to go potty in the toilet.
So Memorial Day weekend comes around. Mark and I were trying to push Hunter to try to go in the potty. It wasn't going so well. On Monday, Memorial Day, it turned into a big fight with Hunter who kept lashing out at us. We felt defeated. I tried to calm down Hunter (who had spent considerable time yelling, screaming, and crying at us and anyone else who got in his way, including Jaxon and my parents, which is such a big NO-NO! in our house). As I tried to calm down Hunter I told him he couldn't go to school with other kids until he went potty in the toilet. That started him screaming and crying all over again. So I asked him do you want to go to school, he tells me yes, so I ask him what does he need to do to go to school. He tells me he needs a backpack, and a lunch box (of course I started to laugh, cause it was so cute cause he immediately stopped crying, and said all this in a happy, sweet voice) and I interrupted and asked if he needed to do anything else and he tells me to go potty like a big boy. I got all excited and told him good job and that he was right. So he goes running off to Mark telling him he wants to go potty like a big boy. So he teaches Hunter to go pee standing up. Hunter got so excited and when he was done started to ask us if he could go to school now. We tell him very soon he can go. We put his new "diaper" on (training pants) and tell him just let us know next time he wants to go and we will help him. Ever since that day he has gone in the potty (with the exception of when hes asleep, but that has only happened about 5 times in the almost 3 weeks since the "first" time) both #1 and #2.
Last sunday his it almost marked Hunter 2weeks going in the potty we let him wear his big boy underwear, which is Transformers (we had bought them months ago in an attempt to bribe him to go in the potty, didn't work). We told him that he would only wear his training diaper during naps and at night. He was so excited running around showing me, Mark, Jaxon and my parents his new underwear. He enjoys it now and it isn't a headache for me and Mark with all the fighting we used to do with him. He even gets 2 M&M's when he's done and a sticker. I think we have made past the most difficult part. Now to just get him completely through the night with no "mistakes".
Now if only we can have an easy time with Jaxon. He shows interest when Hunter goes, but when we ask if he wants to try he tells us no and runs away. He's definitely not there yet, but since he loves doing everything his big brother does maybe he will want to do it too. Cross your fingers!