Weight loss v. potty training. Round 1.

Would I be a horrible mother to blame last weekend's Great Cookie Debacle on potty training? Dude. Potty training is stressful. And when haven't I turned to food when I'm stressed?

However, I'm happy to report that, since Wednesday, our wee little one seems to have jumped on board the wee-wee-in-the-potty bandwagon. (And I'll spare you the picture I texted Paul to show off our child's brilliant #4, too. Which I was shocked to notice, considering the number of marshmallows she has consumed as her treats for making it to the potty.)

But rewind to one week ago, and listen to my Inner-Tracie asking me, "What is this trying to teach you?" I knew I was getting disgruntled at times, and it was about something that was out of my control. What could I do besides show her the way? We could quit -- that was an option.

But I really hate quitting things.
And I rarely do, except when it comes to dieting.
Maybe that's why I just can't bring myself to "diet" right now. I know I'm eating better than I have in a very long time. And, frankly, where has dieting gotten me so far? How many times have I severely cut back on calories only to eventually find myself with my head in a bag of Snickers? What's the saying? The definition of insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results.

Now, fortunately, that expression does not apply to potty training.
But I do think we can find some parallels here.
What do weight loss and potty training have in common?

Well, we know they're both:
Frustrating.
Time consuming.
Messy. (We've talked before about the effects of adding fiber to one's diet. Ahem.)

But, have you thought about how both require patience?
Make that Extreme Patience?

And maybe the control thing . . . maybe that makes the patience piece of the puzzle even tougher. We really can't control our weight loss. If we could, whatever weight we need to lose would be gone overnight, wouldn't it? And what about those weeks when we eat so very well, we hit the gym consistently, and we wake up early to meditate each morning, only to find our efforts have resulted in a whopping weight loss of exactly . . . zero. Those kind of weeks make me want to throw something.

Patience.
Don't quit.
Give it time.
Try something new. (Marshmallow rewards?!)
More patience.
Still more patience.

All we can do is show our bodies the way.