My toddlers ages 2 and 3 are working on potty training. They did great all day yesterday with no accidents. The thing is, they always feel they need a cup of watered down juice or milk at bedtime and its a struggle to get them away from it... I want eventually get them night trained so this obviously is posing a problem. Any tips on how to go about this would be appreciated. I am trying to get away from diapers...and kind of not wanting to do pullups but am thinking of going with them instead of diapers at bed time to get away from the diaper thing as well. The only thing is they are kind of spendy.
Get a call from the dentist, who says nothing but water before bedtime! It's not your choice or theirs - it's just the rule.
In my opinion, the pull-ups with cool-alert are worthwhile. Otherwise, you might want to invest in a few pairs of plastic pants for over their underwear. You really can't train them at night - do what you can during the daytime, and just deal with however it works out for them at night.
I agree with the other posts. Use underwear during the day since they will train more quickly anyway & the cost of pull ups isn't going to be more than all those diapers. We used pull ups only at night and I got the generic brand and they worked just fine.
As far as the cup....gradually decrease it and stick to your guns. If they are thristy they will drink it, if not they are only using it for comfort anyway (I'm sure you are aware of tooth decay since you water it down), but don't worry about night training until you get the day time down! Sounds like they are well on their way!
E.,
I would start by putting less and less in their cups at bedtime. I'd just give them plain water too, that will probably make them drink less (to thirst rather than because it tastes good).
I went cold turkey on diapers with my little boy just before his 3rd birthday. We had very few accidents. We still use a pull up at bedtime, but the cost savings of using one pull up per day vs. diapers is amazing! Especially since I have a second still in diapers and a 3rd on the way :)
I like that my son can get up at night and we can go potty much easier than in a diaper. He often wakes at 5:30 and has to pee, so I prefer to use the pull up because we can get it on and off with his pj's vs. changing a diaper.
Good luck!
J.
SAHM to Charlie (3-24-05) Joey (12-4-06) and #3 due 11-16-08
I am assuming that they don't go to bed with the cup. If it is just a case of making the drink less desirable, stop putting juice in it and reduce the amount of water allowed. Do it gradually until it is just a sip after brushing teeth or something. If they drink enough during the day, thirst shouldn't be an issue. Night training usually takes a long time because of brain development, not bladder quantity. Are they dry after naps? If not, they are not ready for night training.
Hi E.
When I night trained my kids I would put less and less juice and more water in there cup until it was all water and then I reduced the amout with that also. I personally feel pull ups are the same as diapers except if your child will wake up to go at night they are easier to deal with, but at the same time you may just want to use underwear then. Good Luck :)T.
