Potty training Lily (or “The Cat Came Back”)

My wife and I call Lily the monkey, but we’ve also made the disturbing realization that Lily is a lot like a cat. Specifically, a lot like our departed, long-term family member Missy. The big black hair, the running out of the room, the need for constant supervision. I swear to you that we even caught her once licking her arm for no apparent reason, so was she grooming, feline-style?

Missy also had some bad behavior issues, which included urinating on clothes, corners, bathroom mats, and beds. It was bad, disgusting, and we never were able to find a remediation for it. Finally, after researching and speaking to professionals, it seemed the bad behavior at her age was ingrained, and we wouldn’t be able to get her successfully adopted. Sadly, I had her euthanized in Oct 2006, and I still miss that sweet, stupid cat.

Since Lily turned three years old late last month, my wife and I have been attempting to potty train her. As I’ve learned, all kids handle potty training in their own way and time frame. A coworker of mine potty-trained her son at 18 months old, which I think is phenomenal. Josh had a few accidents, but he was basically potty-trained in a week. Lily hasn’t quite grasped the concept. Well, that wouldn’t be accurate. After the first week or so, she’s sitting every hour at school, and now she’s making it through the night without experiencing an “accident.” I think she still goes way too often, instead of holding it, but I don’t know if it’s because she’s small or a girl.

I say she’s not quite potty-trained, because she still hasn’t gotten a hold on estimating if she’ll have enough time between realizing she has to go, and making it to the actual toilet. She is still experiencing accidents, mostly in bathroom as she’s about to sit, though she’s left quite a few puddles in the dining room. Earlier this week, she had an accident on my wife and the couch, and also the bathmat. After spending the past two weeks blotting and cleaning urine from the floor, the couch, clothes, the and the bathmat, I experienced my Missy flashbacks.

My wife and I have constantly joked that the cat came back, reincarnated in Lily. I’m starting to believe it’s very true.

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