Potty Training vs. Instincts

So, we're still working on potty training Aidan. He had started showing the "signs of readiness" that you read about in all those know-it-all books a little after he turned two. Elyse had been no problem to teach how to use the toilet once she was ready at two years old and I assumed Aidan would be the same although I recognized that generally boys tend to potty-train a little later than girls. But after months of encouraging him, it just wasn't happening, so I had given up for a while. Eventually, I let him decide whether he wanted to wear "big boy undies," pull-ups, or diapers each day and he inevitably chose diapers. I think he was just too busy to stop and go to the bathroom!
Today, however, after his morning bathroom run, he went and dug out his big-boy undies instead of his diaper and put them on "meself." I was immediately skeptical, premonitions of carpet cleaner and me on my knees scrubbing flashing through my mind. A short time later, we were outside playing and I decided it was probably time for him to go inside to the bathroom again, but he wouldn't have it. "No want to!" he screamed. I knew this was a losing battle for me, and an idea popped into my head. "You want to potty in the grass?" He stopped his tantrum, and slowly looked up at me, not sure he heard me right. "Do you? You want to go in the grass?" I asked again. "YEAH!" and down come the undies and out he runs to the big tree way back by the fence and has at it. It was unbelievable! It must be part of the masculine instincts ingrained in boys from their formation in the womb. No directions needed. I mean, how did he know to go back to a secluded part of the yard? How did he know to turn his back towards the onlookers? I gave a mere suggestion and it was like VB-Day for him--Victory in the Backyard. Upon finishing his business, he ran back to me smiling and pulled his undies on again and scrambled back out to the slide to continue playing. No complaints, no need for guiding in order to get the task done...he did all by "meself." I had no problem the rest of the day getting him to go potty since I'd just send him out to the backyard, and for the first time in recent memory, we had no accidents all day!
It reminded me of a tiger cub who is raised with humans and one day instincts take over and the tiger cub is no longer a cute pet, but a TIGER. It has behaved in the way God created him to behave despite what it has been trained to do. The same with my little guy. We've tried to train him to potty inside on a cold, hard, man-made contraption when all along he just wanted to do it the way God intended!! So, if you visit our house, beware of the little boy who strips down and suddenly runs outside--only to momentarily return and happily continue with what he had previously been doing. He's just following his instincts!! ;)