Potty Training, Take 2

For the past few months Ella has sporadically used her potty. I haven't pushed the potty training because our schedule changes weekly and monthly. Some months we're home everyday of the week and other months we're only home three days a week. It is tough to be consistent when the schedule is always changing. Plus the "readiness" signs were a little weak. Ella was interested in the potty, but I was still fighting diaper changing.

Over the past few weeks, however, Ella has started to show strong indications of being ready for the potty. She has consistently told me when her diaper is dirty (not wet, just dirty). And then she spreads her legs out as far apart as she can and waddles to her diaper changing area and lays down to wait for me. Last week I put her down for a nap in just a shirt and a diaper. When I went in to get her up, she was diaper-less (apparently she got bored trying to fall asleep), but there wasn't any mess to clean up. She (and everything in her bad) was completely dry!

Once Daddy is done with school in June, we begin potty training in earnest over the summer. I am hoping we are all done by the time he goes back in August. I would really like to only buy/wash diapers for one kid, not two! I am also hoping that a little peer pressure from Sarah will help the process. Ella will pretty much do anything "Ware-wah" wants her to -- let's hope that works to our advantage in potty training!

We don't have any books/CDs/DVDs for the Big Event because I am not sure if they really help. Do you have any that worked well for your child?