"I CAN do it!"

These were the words that Owen declared today after he successfully peed in the potty. For those of you who have been following this journey, you know that this is HUGE. Granted, he peed in his underwear (and subsequently on the floor) twice today too (before and after potty success), but who gives a crap. For months we have been going through the same steps (every month or so with breaks inbetween): Owen drinks a lot, holds his pee as long as possible, agrees to sit on the potty for a little while, then starts crying and declaring that his belly hurts. He then asks to have a diaper put on. Well today I decided we were going to try to get past this last stage. Hence, the potty in the middle of the living room. I'll spare you the details, but I will say that it was quite the mental battle. But the moment he made his proud declaration and smiled that amazing smile, it was all worth it.

Owen wanted me to take the next picture. This is the Lightning McQueen car that has been perched on our bathroom cabinet for months, neatly packaged, waiting for Owen to pee in the potty just once in order to be claimed. He didn't put the car down until we made him sit it beside his bed at naptime. That was a hard-earned prize. Please pray that this is the beginning of many more potty adventures.