potty training problems

HELP!!!!

My son turned 3 in October.  I had tried potty training off and on since he was about 18 months old.  Sometimes he would do really well, and then he would just have no interest and I would stop pushing for a while.  Finally, the week before he turned 3, something "clicked" in his little head and he was ready to use the potty like a big boy.  Boy were we all excited.  We even got him a sticker chart and told him he got one sticker for #1 and 2 for #2 ONLY if he used the potty.  No stickers for accidents, but also no punishment (accidents happen).  He filled the chart, with a lot fewer accidents than I expected, and got a prize.  Things were going great!

But then.....I don't really know what happened.  It seems like we're back where we started some days.  He's been peeing his pants quite often the past couple weeks.  A lot of times he'll realize he has to go, but instead of just going to the bathroom, he starts running in circles, panting and yelling "I have to pee" until we make him go into the bathroom.  Then there are the times when he's playing and I guess he just doesn't want to stop so he'll pee his pants.  But the ones that are really starting to concern me are the times when it doesn't seem like he even knows he did it.  I'll notice his pants are wet and ask him if he peed and he'll say no.  I have to actually show him the wet pants before he "gets it".  I also started asking him if he needs to go a lot more often.  Most of the time he'll tell me no and then 30 seconds later Heather wets himself or starts screaming that he has to pee.

So, what do I do?  Is this normal?  Is there possibly something wrong?  Should I make an appoint with the pediatrician?  Should I just wait it out?  I am just so stumped as to how to handle this.  At times I think I should take him in, but then I think "no, he's just bull headed".  (and he is.  This kid does nothing unless its on his terms)  So please, any advice is welcomed and appreciated.  Thanks!

Potty Training....bribes???

My son will be 3 soon and I am soooo tired of changing his pants!!  He seemed to be interested in the potty at a very early age, so we went with it.  He did really good for a while, then we hit the wall!  He has been in training pants for over a year now, which may or may not be part of the problem.  He has just had absolutely no interest in using the potty.  I've tried potty chairs, stickers, candy, even bribes!  And still nothing.  And the big problem is that he won't tell us when he's wet or dirty.  He pees so much that it soaks his pants but he won't ask to be changed.  I don't know how he can stand it sometimes!

I've heard from those who are for and against using bribes, but at this point I am desperate for anything that works.  TMI alert....he has some poo's that can (and do) put a grown man to shame! 

He's really been wanting to go to school to play with the kids, so I've been trying to use that.  I tell him that as soon as he starts peeing and pooing in the potty, he can go to school.  And no, it's not an empty promise....once he's potty trained we do plan on getting him into a part-time daycare program so that he can have more interaction with kids.  He's seems to be excited about the idea, but he's still not really cooperating.  My latest "bribe" is Chuck E Cheese's.  Every time he sees the commercial on TV he asks to go there.  So, I told him that we would have a big celebration party as soon as he stops going in his underwear.  That one seems to be working...at least for the past 2 hours since it started!!

I know that "he'll do it when he's ready", but what's wrong with a little encouragement?  Even if it is in the form of a bribe? :)

Sleep

Once you become a mother, sleep becomes a fond memory.  Something that you used to enjoy, but can no longer seem to find.  And the more time you put in as a mom, the more distant that memory becomes.  You begin to lose sight of it during pregnancy.  Having to get up all night to pee or rolling over to find that watermelon under your shirt is stopping you from getting comfortable.  Then once the baby is here, you're up all night for feedings and diaper changes.  Once he's able to sleep through the night, you have a glimmer of hope that you'll also be able to sleep all night.  But no!  You find yourself up all night checking on him to make sure he's still breathing or that the blankets are still on him.  Or, if you're like me, you are awakened every night by him climbing into your bed with you.  Then it's on to a night filled with feet in your back and hands in your face.

I'm still fairly new to motherhood, so sleep is still something that I remember and miss.  I miss going to bed, closing my eyes, and not waking until the sun was shining in through the window.  It's become a lovely daydream that I often think of in between cleaning up spills and yelling "Don't touch that!”  I know that it's going to be a long time (if ever) before I truly find it again.  But, until then, I will keep dreaming of what it was like and how wonderful it will be!