Potty Training - Day 1

I have been planning for weeks to begin potty training on 21st July.  That day marked the first day of the Summer Holidays and the end of our weekly commitments such as Nursery and Toddler Classes.

For the past 2 weeks I have been getting organised; buying numerous pairs of knickers, Huggies Dry Nites bed mats, Dry Like Me training pads, and the all important reward stickers... Thomas The Tank Engine of course!

Today started like any normal Thursday with my parents arriving to help out with the childcare.  My mum then offered to take C into the garden with"pants and potty" to see how she got on.  This wrong footed me slightly.  Did I really want to start today?  I have always said that once I start I would see it through to the end, no going back to nappies on odd days if it was more convenient. 
I wobbled for a minute...
On the plus side, the weather was going to be good for the next few days, she could spend the majority of time in the garden.  There was no guarantee the weather would be so good next week.  Also having my parents on hand on day 1 would be a huge help!

We therefore started today.

By lunchtime we had got through numerous pairs of knickers and had had no wees on the potty despite numerous sitting attempts.  On the plus side, C was aware she was wetting herself and informing us.... although slightly late.  I was actually really pleased.

In the afternoon C seemed to be up and down from the potty every few minutes.  She was getting stressed which meant so was Mummy.  It would appear she hadn't yet understood how to empty her bladder fully which was resulting in trickles every few minutes.

Eventually we had our first success, followed by lots of praise from Mummy!  C seemed pleased with herself and especially pleased on her Thomas sticker!
I think in total we had four successes on the potty which I am so impressed about!
More importantly she is recognising when she needs to go and informing us.  As her bladder control improves hopefully she can give us more warning.

I had concerns that her lack of speech may prove a barrier to potty training however she has had no problem communicating when she needed to go. 
Her speech today has been brilliant.  Saying "Get Up Please" when she wanted to get off the potty.  The first 3 word sentence I have ever heard her say!

I am slightly apprehensive of what tomorrow will bring, especially as I will be on my own but all in all I am feeling very positive.  Today went better than I expected!