We used to think Gal Smiley was unbribe-able.

Back when we were toilet training the Captain, we didn’t have candy or desserts very often, so he would basically do anything we wanted for a Smartie. It was so easy to get him to sit on the potty whenever we thought it was time by dangling a Skittle or an Oreo in front of his face. The lure of candy faltered when it came to pooping in the toilet, though — for that, we had to step up the game. After weeks of successful pees, but no poops, I went out and bought him a Rheneas train with Rock Crusher Cars, part of the Thomas set. I revealed it at home…and man, he could not get to the potty fast enough. The first day he sat there for almost two hours, refusing to get up for fear that he would miss the poo. Needless to say, it was $45 worth of train goods well spent — he pooped and we’ve never looked back.

Since that time, though, daily treats have become a routine. Gal Smiley is used to getting Smarties at least a couple times a week, and often the kids get to have a cookie after lunch. So toilet training this time around was a lot harder. She was totally uninterested in any food bribes and cajoling and threats just roll off her back. Basically we just had to wait around until she decided she was good and ready.

Now we’re at the same stage that we were with the Captain when Rheneas came to live with us. She’s peeing all the time, but refuses to poop in the potty. I figured it was time for some heavy-duty bribery, but what could possibly sway the Gal? She doesn’t have a special thing that she is into, as the Captain was with trains. She likes to do things like play outside or ride her bike, but the promise of such activies isn’t enough to get her to do something she doesn’t want to do.

Last weekend I went out with the Captain and we bought a bag full of poop treats. (New catch phrase for this blog: “Now with poop treats!”) We hit the WalMart and looked for a wide assortment of things that cost less than $2 — some glitter glue, tiny stuffed animals, a plastic beaded necklace, some KinderSurprise. There was one “big” treat too, a stuffed bear ($5) that she had had her eye on before. I was hoping that something in there, anything, would be the one thing she was interested in enough to cause some pooping action.

Since I had the Captain with me, he got excited about the shopping and I thought it was kind of unfair that I was buying all this stuff for the Gal, and nothing for the Captain. So with a couple of the items — KinderSurprise, and some little snow globes I got on sale for $2 at Chapters — I bought an extra one for him too. I told him that he could have his item when Gal Smiley picked her same item out of the bag.

So home we went, and Gal Smiley was pretty impressed with the bag of stuff. As expected, she really really wants that bear — she’s already named him Teddy and wants to sleep with him. But not badly enough to poop on the potty.

Then, the other day, something interesting happened. She’d already done her daily poop in a pullup but later, when using the toilet, a very small bit of leftovers fell in the potty. Naturally we made a huge deal of this enormously important event. I told the Gal that now, finally, she had earned her Teddy, and we ran to the bag to get him.

But the Captain got wind of this huge event, and he ran in too, in case Gal Smiley picked one of the things that would mean he would get something too.

And the Gal…because she is so sweet and kind and loves her brother SO much…decided to pass over Teddy in favour of KinderSurprise. Because then the Captain could get something too.

That makes me feel like we are possibly doing something right, as parents.

So although we haven’t magically started a poop in the potty transformation, the Gal is more interested in trying now, and sometimes makes the effort. And why? Not so that she can have a treat…but because the Captain wants his treat, and it’s so important to him, that she will do it for him. Essentially, we can exploit the fact that Captain Jelly Belly is bribe-able to get Gal Smiley to do stuff.

Sibling rivalry? Never heard of it!