I once made a joking comment during a medical school child psychology class that I planned on potty training my possible future kids like I potty trained my dog--15 minutes after eating or playing, take them to the toilet, and reward proper defecation! If they hadn't learned to sit up by themselves yet, I would hold them up to the toilet. I was chastised and told that I would scar my children mentally by expecting so much of them...apparently, according to medical professionals, attempts to potty train can't occur without serious damage to the self esteem until 2.5 years of age.

I really was joking at the time, mostly. Just like I'm mostly joking when I say I will use a spray bottle to discipline my toddler... ;) Though it does seem quite ridiculous to have to change disgusting baby diapers for 2.5 years of my adult life...and that's if you only want one kid!

But tonight, I was surfing around the internet, and came upon this website about "elimination communication." Apparently, this method was brought to the industrialized West by a woman who spent a lot of time in India in the 70s and 80s, and who noticed that Indian women carried their naked babies on their backs all day, and yet were rarely defecated on by their offspring. Somehow, they could tell when their infants had to go to the bathroom (very young babies that can't talk or sign yet) and would then hold them over a toilet. The method is all about observing your baby and recognizing the signs of an imminent pee or poop. Genius! It is like potty training a dog!

I feel positively vindicated.