The Day My Daughter Learned How to Poop in a Toilet

At my daughter's four-year-old physical, the Pediatrician told me that my daughter was "Toilet Training Resistant." The doctor handed me a handful of pamphlets on toilet training and told me not to worry. She assured me that some day it would just click. I just needed to be patient and wait for that day. Luckily for me, that day finally came.

After a few weeks of bribing my daughter with a Barbie doll swimming pool, and handfuls of M&Ms, she finally started to go potty in the toilet. She was excited, I was excited, even the grandparents were excited.

But when it came to pooping in the toilet, she was still "Toilet Training Resistant." Any time she needed to go poopy she would run into her closet and hide. By the time I reached her it was always too late. Another pair of Sesame Street underwear soiled.

Weeks went by while we waited for her to figure out how to poop in the toilet. She told me she just couldn't figure out how to do it. I told her to push, and she tried pushing with all her might, but nothing would come out. Her closet continued to be her preferred location for pooping.

Then one day a miracle happened.

In the room next to the bathroom we have a storm radio. Every Wednesday at 1:00 p.m. the National Weather Service runs a test. It is a loud alarm, and it can be very startling if you aren't expecting it.

It was 12:58 p.m., and my daughter was just finishing going potty on the toilet. She was about to stand up when the storm alarm went off. I was in the other room and heard my daughter's startled scream.

I ran into the bathroom and there she sat with a puzzled look on her face. "Are you okay?" I asked.

She was clearly upset and answered, "Mom, that alarm scared me!" I told her how sorry I was that she had been frightened by the alarm. I assured her it was only a test.

I asked if she was ready to get off the toilet and she looked embarrassed. "Uh, Mom? That alarm really scared me."

"I know, honey, are you ready to pull your pants up?"

"No, not really." She looked embarrassed and finally admitted, "The alarm kind of scared a poop right out of me." I ran to the toilet to look, and sure enough, there was a poop floating in the toilet.

Ever since that day my daughter has had no trouble using the toilet for both potty and poopy. It will definitely be something we laugh about for years to come. It will be known as the day my daughter had the poop scared right out of her!