Freedom!

For the first time in a little more than 8 years we are freed from diapers!!!
We have talked about potty-training for awhile, but I kept waiting for a week we could stay at home all week to teach Grace. Apparently I was taking too long, so on Tuesday morning Grace said she wanted to learn to go potty on the toilet. We had a couple days before a school meeting that Grace had to be baby-sat for, and since she was so excited we went ahead.
So on tuesday we talked potty all day, practiced how to go potty, and practiced again and again when she didn't make it, and often asked her if she was dry. She actually recognized she was going, stopped it, and then went to the potty and finished by herself that day!
She stayed dry that night, and after one accident that morning, and at 4am that night, she has been going to bathroom in the toilet all by herself and staying dry ever since!! Hooray!! And when I say all by herself, she knows when she has to go potty, puts the toddler seat on so she doesn't fall in, (which did happen once upstairs without the seat :O), pulls down her clothes, goes potty, wipes, pulls clothes up, flushes, takes the seat off, and washes hands all by herself!!!! Though she does love an audience at this point, so we can clap and cheer for her.
She is so excited to be a big girl and go potty in the toilet like Reese and Cameron, and seems so much older now. I love how our kids suddenly become more interested in being independent after they are potty-trained; now she gets dressed by herself, puts on her shoes and coat, etc. There were some tantrums and crying when we taught the boys, but it was so cool working with Grace; she was so excited and ready, and the whole focus was on praising her for staying dry and for whenever she practiced or went potty, she just loved it. I loved how positive an experience it was; it was actually the way the book we adapted (how to potty-train you child in less than a day) described it, which when I read and did it with the boys was definitely not all positive. The stereotype that girls are easier held true in this case.
I was very grateful it went so well, since I had asked a friend to watch Grace for a meeting I had, and had to spring on her the potty-training fact. Maybe Grace was blessed to be so easy for my friend, cause anyone who is willing to babysit a kid getting potty-trained deserves many blessings!