We have searched high and low for a brainwashing technique...errrrrrr...DVD that could successfully help in potty training. We picked up a couple from the library that managed to get annoying songs stuck in my head ("Bye bye pee pee, bye bye poop"), but nothing has really convinced Elli that she should use the toilet.

Enter Elmo's Potty Time.

We still have work to do. But the movie, the Elmo panties and the sticker chart are proving to be tools of worth. The best part is that I actually enjoy the movie. And who wouldn't? There is so much to love.

As an adult I don't have that many opportunities to laugh at toilet humor. And in all honesty, there are a lot of things in the movie that are not intended to be funny. However, that small fact does not stop Elli and I from laughing ever time they play out on the screen.

Like when Grover dances around with his old man belly and informs us that he has that "got to go" feeling.

Or when King Kong drinks too much and they have to bring in a huge toilet for him to use.

But my favorite segment, far and away, is the montage of kids sharing what they call their "stuff". Widdle, wee wee, poop, two. The usual list of suspects. But then, out of nowhere, this adorable little kid pops up on the screen. He grins. He announces very proudly: "I call it DOOKIE".

Score.

In our house, "dookie" has never been considered proper terminology. But we are clearly living in an age where it has gone mainstream. Look, if it's on Sesame Street, it's fair game. That's my feeling on the matter.

Now we have a little power struggle going on in our house. One parent is encouraging Elli to include "dookie" in her everyday vernacular, while the other is absolutely mortified by the idea. We'll just have to see how this one plays itself out.

Fair Dinkum