Help! Mom Seeking Advise on Potty Training

Throw away those pull-ups! He knows he can do his #1 or #2 in them and no one will be the wiser. If he starts feeling wet, he'll staft telling. I know it sounds like a lot of extra washings, but it will help him realize he will be more unconfortable if he does't tell. Also, don't threaten or scream at him, he'll only become afraid of you. Needless to say, you have to be veeery patient. Good luck.

If you are really "ready" you have to be consistant and get ready for alot of accidents.............get rid of the pull-ups except for sleeping.......either put underwear on him or let him be naked, stay in the house as much as possible and take him to the bathroom and forcibly put him on the potty every 30 minutes. Sounds harsh but do it for one week and you will have a daytime trained child!!!! All the best!

D., I'm potty training my 2 year son and as long as his diaper is off, he tells me when he has to go. Ditch the pull ups and make him run around without any pants at all. Instead of asking him if he has to go, just put him on the toilet every hour an say, "It's time to go potty." Reward him with a sticker or some healthy treat that he will only associate with going potty. Praise, praise, praise is the key and patience on your part. Good luck!

You have a lot of advice going here already and i agree with it. I am potty training a 2 1/2 year old and the only way it works is by "force". He doesn't get a choice he sits on the potty and he gets a treat if he uses it. Sometimes it is simple like getting to watch a TV show, or the snack of his choice. But when he doesn't give me a hard time about it he gets to choose from the treasure chest. I went to the dollar store and bought a couple of cheep toys and decorated a box to look like a treasure chest. When he doesn't argue about the potty or try to hide then he gets to pick a special treat. Good Luck! I hope this helped

Hi D., We just finished training our 3.5 yr old. He learned #1 soon enough and #2 was a bit more trying. I got him Elmo underwear which is his favorite character. (My friend's have used Spiderman and Superman) I only used pull-ups at night & if we were going to go on a long trip. He did have several accidents and would sometimes ask for a pull-up which would signal to us that he was probably going to do #2. The accidents on the big boys underwear were not comfortable for him and he wanted to be cleaned right away. I also told him that it wasn't nice to do poop on his friend Elmo and that got him thinking. I figured out that he did #2 more or less at the same time everyday and would put him on the potty around that time. BEfore that i would put him on it every hour or so and that cemented #1. It wasn't easy but when he finally did #2 in the potty for the 1st time we made such a big deal he was so excited. We all cheered in the bathroom for him which he really enjoyed. I also would give him a prize whenever he did #2 in the potty...3 M&M's which is the loves & was the ONLY thing that got his attention. My daughter got stickers. You have to find out what he likes most and give it to him as a prize. Before we knew it he was going potty everyday. Hang in there. You think it's never going to happen & when it does you just rejoice.

I've heard that the whole pull-ups thing is an American invention and that children in other countries are potty trained as early as 1 yr w/o much fanfare. Diapers are expensive and it is also an economical issue for them. Just because we can afford them doesn't mean we should use them. Anyway, i hope this helps hang in there!

I Used the treat method. Lots and lots of praise and an M&M (or whatever he likes) for a job well done. Also, try a potty party. Tell him the potty fairy is coming with a potty doll and gifts for him. Build this up for a few weeks, telling him she only comes when big boys are ready. Buy lots of small gifts, some being big boy underwear, special wipes for the potty, that kind of thing. Wrap them and surprise him one morning. Then spend the whole day watching potty videos and playing potty games. Get a "PAUL" doll by Corelle as one of the gifts. He is anatomically correct and explain that your son has to help you train Paul to use the potty. (he comes with a potty and underwear and bottle)You spend the first half of the day training Paul. He gets a treat each time he pees or poops (apple juice for pee, sneek in a tootsie roll for poop) Give the treat to your son, explaining that he can have the treat since he did such a good job helping you train Paul. The second half of the day you spend training your son. Lots and lots and lots to drinks. Every time he goes on the potty, make the biggest deal you can. Do a "Potty dance and song" Think of the biggest fool you can make of yourself, then do a little more. The more fun and exciting it is, the more he will want to repeat it. And each time he goes, he gets a treat. I had a tray of small espresso paper cups with different treats. Raisins, fruit loops, M&Ms, Mike and Ikes, etc. Let him pick, but save something big for the poop. Also, tell him if he does a great job and goes on the potty, you will have a potty party. Whether it be at home with special family, his favorite McDonalds or Chucky Cheese, just have a party that night to celebrate his big boy efforts. And dont sweat it. I've never seen a child in kindergarten in diapers, he'll get it. One pit fall, which I just posted about. I am not sure how to get him off the treats now. I'll let you know what advise I get on this. The potty party really works though. Good luck.

read potty training in less than a day. i never potty trained a boy using the book but i did potty train 3 girls. L.

I agree with Julie. YOu are the mama. YOU make the rules.
Wake up one day, have breakfast and say "no more pull-ups in this house!" Have the underwear ready and tell him that later on (that day) you'll go to the store with him to pick out some special underwear (spiderman, batman, shrek, WHATEVER, LOL!). Make a BIG DEAL that today is THE DAY! Big Boy DAy!
Have a cupcake for breakfast even- something...

Good luck. Stay strong.

I agree with the others. Buy undies, be prepared for a mess. Only use pullups for bedtime. And be patient. It will sink in. I also took each of my kids for big kid undies with favorite characters on them. It is a practice in patience and I remember doing a lot of extra laundry, but it does work the best. My kids were potty trained at 2 1/2, 3, 3, and I have a 2 year old currently working on it.

Wouldnt it be nice if it was easy??? My little girl (3) has been potty trained (except for night time) for a good 6 months now. She just recently started rebelling for some reason and pee's when she's sitting at the dinner table, or standing in the driveway, etc. I guess thats why they say you shouldnt force it until they are ready. My son (3 yrs old also) was good about going pee but wouldnt poop on the potty. I finally made him try to fart, which he thought was hysterical, and he would end up pooping, and now it's not an issue anymore. I made a big deal out of farting and pooping too, I mean like a total idiot. "WOOHOO, give me 5! You farted! Try again! Yaaaay for farts!"