Potty Training...how Fun!

Hi T.,

Here are some potty training web sites:

http://www.cdadc.com/ds/potty_training.htm

http://www.kidica.com/raising-children/parenting-tips/toi...

Hope this helps. D.

My daughter was two when we started potty training her and she was potty trained except for at night by the time she was 2.5. She showed the interest in potty trainig and I was thankful because I was due with my son that year and did not want to have double diaper duty. I did the put her on the potty every 30-45 minutes and the pull up thing, which I think is still too much like a diaper and one day we put underwear on her and she did have an accident but she realized that she didn't like the feeling of her underwear being wet. From then on she was fine. I am still having trouble at night with her staying dry and still use the pull ups. It's a process just stick with it. But he won't potty train unless he wants too and try and reward him with stickers or I would give my daughter a little piece of a hershey bar to congratulate her going to the bathroom on the potty. Good luck.

Take is slow. If you push the issue, it will take longer. Let him lead you. I would suggest you take him back to the potty every 1 to 2 hours throughout the day. Let him sit on the potty for awhile. Read him a story or sing some songs while he is sitting on the potty. Also talk with him about going potty, telling him that pee and poop go in the potty not in the diaper or pull-ups or whatever you are using right now. He will catch on when he is ready. Even if you don't think he is ready, you can still take him back on the potty to get him used to the idea.

I am a SAHM of three ages 8, 3 and 18 months. I started my daughter too early, at 17 months, and didn't have success until after several months of trying. I am potty training my 3 year old right now. I take him back to the potty every 2 hours.

Every child will learn this milestone at varying times and speeds. Just be patient and one day it will just click and then you will know that all the effort was worth it.

Hi T.,
My son turned 3 in December 05,5 weeks after his little brother was born. I waited to try to potty train him until January of 06 because I had heard lots of people tell me that kids tend to regress with potty training after a younger sibling is born. So I decided to wait until after Christmas and give him a month or two to get used to his new brother so I didn't have to potty train twice. It worked for us as he was completely trained in a month, from using pullups everytime to never having an accident unless he couldn't find a bathroom (only happened twice). BTW my son was first interested in the potty at 26 months old, but was not ready to train at that point. His interest did wain but it started again. I'm now getting ready to train the second son. He will be three in November. I hope it will be as easy, but I'm not too sure. If you want to talk feel free to message me.

Hi again T.! Personal opinion about potty training? I think it is a huge waste of time if your child isn't ready for it! As far as the "put them on the potty every 30 minutes" goes....who is getting trained there? Mom & Dad, not the child! All three of my girls trained after they were 3 yrs old, once we went into "potty mode" we bought the padded child seats that you place on the regular toilet seat and they each were "trained" within a few days. We did put them in pull-ups at bed time until they asked to wear panties to bed. None of our girls ever wet the bed and accidents were almost zero...except for the occiasional misjudgement of how bad vs how far away that single, second story bathroom was when your playing in the back yard! I do know of people that have trained their children at very young ages, and I know of children that had real problems as a result...one of my nephews had real issues with it when he was two! Keep your eyes & ears open and you'll know when your son is ready and that's the time to "do it"! Best wishes.

Hi Again T.
my son never showed great interest in using the potty. and would hardly ever pee if we sat him on the potty. I did the "go potty with dad" everytime he had to go. so I thought why not try standing instead of sitting. and it worked. I bought a stool from walmart that folds up real small. I think its called ez fold. its great to travel with. He took to standing so much faster than sitting. we also used some targets that helped with his aim.

Good luck
T.

I didn't have any boys, so I don't have first hand experience, but I thought my sister's method (4 boys) of potty training was a riot ! She lived in the country and you couldn't really see the kids from the roadway, so she had some privacy. She began to believe that when she put underwear on her boys, that they couldn't feel when they had to pee. So she got innovative, dressed them in long tee-shirts with nothing underneath and sent them outside to play. They figured it out on their own. And she never had a problem with them peeing in the house. In the house they learned to use the potty. I think her boys actually sat on the toilet, straddling it and facing the waterbox. They could balance well, use a finger to point the penus down and she didn't need to use the potty chair. Later, they got a stepstool so the guys could stand and go. But I got a kick out of the outdoor apparel idea. She didn't worry about it, and they figured it out by the end of summer. :-) Then it got chilly, the clothes went on, and they began to use the toilet all the time.

have fun with it !! I found each of my 4 girls had different challenges. Some were easier than others, but I also had great experienced help, because the first 3 were in daycare for that great adventure -- so it was a team project !

My son is 2.5 and one day he just said, no more diapers. Not all of them are that clear about it unfortunately. He has been interested in the potty for a long time though (almost a year) and would go when we put him on it. I now have a 5 month old and I think partly that is what did it, she is in diapers and Evan no longer wanted to be like a baby. The advice I was given and would like to pass on is "have you ever seen a school age kid still in diapers?" They just don't do it. They will potty train when they are ready. With my son though, it took 3 hard days of just staying at home and yes, every half hour, sit him on the potty. Then after he goes, give him some gatorade or something he likes to drink so that he has to go every half hour. The next day, I took him every 1.5 to 2 hours and by the third day, he was telling me when he had to go (albeit only 3 seconds before). Good luck!

I have a both a girl who is now 5 and a boy who is 4. My daughter was so much easier and trained at 2. My son insisted he liked his diaper, wouldn't tell me when he had to go and it was a mess. Pullups in my case were no good as he thought of them as diapers....yeah diapers with a bigger mess. I would say in your situation to do what you are doing. I did and day by day my son got better and better. Now keep in mind that once the baby comes he may revert back to wanting diapers and peeing his pants as a pyschological and control thing, but I never knew anyone that went to Kindergarten with diapers....so rest assured it will get done.....

Every child is different and you have to be the judge when he is truely ready or not. There is a HUGE difference between showing interest VS being ready and able to tell you when he has to go, knowing the feeling of having to go and being able to hold it. My son will be 3 Mid Sept and has been trained about 3 weeks (we still do pullups at night). He showed 'interest' over a year ago and we started out sitting on a potty when he wanted to. I also had a newborn at the time, he was 21 months, so I wasn't ready to push him. If your child is in daycare, that's another side of it. My son would go for one teacher, but not the other. My suggestion would be to get a potty, let him sit when he wants, definately before a bath and go from there. IMO, with another child on the way, it's tough to do the 30 minute on the potty deal (we tried that too). It worked sometimes but the real issue was his being able to tell us when HE had to go, not when we told him. If you aren't in a rush, just let him go at his own pace. You will see a natural progression as he gets older (and regression, probably at some point). Either way, you will know when he is ready. Good luck!

Hi T.,

Congrats on your pregnancy! As for the potty training - I would try to follow your sons cues as much as possible. Look for signs that he is ready. My son just turned 3 and we went through potty training boot camp this past weekend (only underwear except for sleeping and going on the potty every hour or so) - it was really hard, but I think he is finally starting to get it a little. Even at 3, I'm not sure he is completely ready. Also, most kids, even if they are trained, will regress when a new baby comes, so you may want to wait until after the baby comes to try to get him fully trained. In the meantime, keep putting him on in the evenings like you are and reward him when he goes. You will know when he is ready.

J.

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Sounds like you have the right idea. My daughter was 2 1/2 when her sister was born. We had started potty training, but only because she showed the interest. We had the little potty and left it in our den for months. She played with it, sat on it, used it in her own time and on her terms. The first time she actually used it was for a wee and poo. The most frustrating thing was sitting down to feed the baby and then the call would come for help in the bathroom.

I do not agree with putting a kid on the toilet every 30 minutes either. That potty trains the parent. Your child will take longer to feel the urge on his own because he knows he will be taken to the toilet soon enough. I think what you are doing is great. Keep encouraging the interest and let him know accidents are how we learn. You might have him potty trained by the time your baby arrives, or not. The achievement will have longer lasting results if it is his own. It is hard work after the baby is born, but you just get on with things because you have to. Good luck with everything. Your son is very lucky.

I'm a mother of now 2 teenagers, but potty training is still fresh in my head. My daughter (the 1st child)potty trained at an earlier age 2 3/4 years but it took just about 1 month. My son wasn't interested in it at all until he turned 3 and then it was about 7 to 10 days, yes about 1 week. It didn't matter that his friends were already potty trained (only by a few months). He would tell the day care and me that "he likes his diaper". Boys are usually slower and with a new one on the way, you may find it easier on you to keep him in diapers. You'll have a little more control of the situation and with a new one on the way you'll want control over something. Keep in mind kids don't always make things convienent for you. I think it is a great idea to keep putting him on the potty before bath time. If your child has no interest in it then you and your husband will only torture yourselves with the entire process. It really has to be "an all or nothing approach". Good Luck with the new born and with potty training.

Hi T.

My son started to show a little interest in the potty when he was about 2 1/2, last summer. So we bought a potty and started just by having him sit on it at bath time and whenever he wanted to and tried increasing how often he sat on it. We tried to get him to pee in it, but he only did it on rare occasion. He just wasn't really ready. Finally, I just let it go and waited until he turned 3 and we went over the entire process through books and video's then I told him that I would get him big boy underpants and when he was ready to go pee on the potty he could wear them. I would ask him in the morning, are you ready for big boy underpants and going pee on the potty? The day before Easter, he said yes! I put him in his underpants and he went and peed on the potty and I rewarded him with an M&M, we had a few days of lots of laundry but less and less and by the end of 2 weeks he was completely pee trained except for at night which is the only time I put a pull up on him. He still has yet to poop on the potty, I have tried everything I can think of he FREAKS out about pooping on the potty still and he is 3 1/2. The pediatrician says it's about control --- it's really annoying for me as the parent, but I keep hoping that one of these days very soon he will decide it's time to poop on the potty too. For now, he actually goes and gets pull up to poop in, I guess I am an enabler, but it's better than cleaning underpants. All this and I have a 1 year old in diapers and am due in 3 weeks again, diapers are definately easier than chasing down a potty, so wait until he is more ready and it will be easier on you all.

Hello! We have a 3 yr old boy (only child). I started having him pee before & after his tubbie. That was when he was 2ish. That went great! BUT he wouldn't go in the potty any other time. We started again when he was almost 3 to be more diligent about it....it became a battle & fight, he would say noooo & fold his legs up, etc, etc. Argh! Very aggravating!! Soooo a few months after he turned 3, I started putting pull-ups on him during the day & every hour took him to pee...eventually it started to "sink in" to him as to what to do. He is now pooping in the potty all the time (for about 4 months) & peeing is going much better- he wears underwear during the day. I keep reminding him he has undies on- pee or poop in the potty if you have to go, please!!! But he isn't trained for over-night- guess I'm just not ready for that venture/battle! Oh- 1 more thing- his potty chair & the seat that goes on the toilet has the removable "pee-guard"~ Justin likes to touch it/play with it & they fall off very easily- I have had to fish them out several times- YES- that is 1 more aggravation if potty training isn't going so well!!! Get a seat/pot with the guard attached!!!! Good luck with this new stage of motherhood!!!

try not to sweat it. I am in the same boat literally. I didn't push my oldest guy who eventually trained on his own really at 3/12 and I am not going to push the 2 yo yet. My baby is due in december too and I have decided that it will be much easier to deal with 2 in diapers than to deal with slip up's and regression. I hope my POV helps.

Good luck,
Cia

I have two boys. 2 and 4yrs. they were both potty trained at 28 and 27 months. What helped us tremedously was allowing them to pee outside. (a convenience when you have boys). some people may think it barbaric, but we are very secluded in the country and they thought it was great. I had no trouble getting them to pee inside at night or on cool days. I would also give them a couple choc. chips when they would go in the potty. It's a small enough treat that didn't put too much junk into them. Maybe I was just lucky, but I don't think boys are any harder than girls. just be persistant but gentle. good luck to you in all your new endevors (potty training and new baby).

The advice that our pediatrician gave me was this...if it takes longer than 2 weeks to potty train your child then he is not ready and you're only torturing yourself as well as your child. We waited until our boys turned three and then put them directly in undies or kept them naked. It literally took about 10 days on the nose. Do not use pull-ups, just undies and do a lot of laundry. I had friends who disagreed with my theory...you know what...the kids ended up being trained by the same age yet mine only took 10 days since we started at a later point. Some parents will brag to you that they began training at 15 months and put them on the toilet every 30 minutes and their child must just be brilliant or something because of this. Truth be told...why bother? I had my boys close together and I had 2 of them in diapers. I have to tell you that it was easier going out in public that way. When you have an infant AND one training...it limits your excursions because you now have to drag everyone into the public restroon 12 times while you are at the mall. Setting aside 2 weeks when he turns 3 is the way to go!

I have a two year old son, and he is just starting to shwo interest in the potty... he picked out an elmo video last time we were at Barnes and Nobel, and it just happened to be a potty training video. I allow him to watch two hours of tv each day, so wehn he asks for tv I put that video in. I haven't mentioned anything else other than to show him his new potty. I have begun by letting him tell me when he wants to use it (usually after an adult is in the restroom) and he's been using it for two or three times a day. I am not pushing him to do it since he is so young, but it seems he is helping himself in that respect. It also helps that a friend of ours visits with her recently trained 3 year old son. Our son wants to be like his friend and gets very interested when he uses the potty, too. He also has a jar of M&Ms and gets one everytime he uses the potty. I have heard mixed reviews on using food as a reward, though. Hopefully this will help!
A.

Hi T.! You have to be the judge of if you think he is ready or not. If you do not think he is, do not push it. All children, (boy or girl) can show interest in the potty and then back off once they get bored with it. I have 2 children. My son, 5 trained at 2 1/2 years on his own. We put a potty down, he became interested in it and we went with it. Next thing you know, he was in regular underwear all the time. My daughter, now 3 was a problem child when it came to potty training and I resorted to putting her in regular underwear and "figuring" it out. (She was being stubborn/lazy and still is to this day. If I put a pull-up on her, she will just go in it. If she doesn't have one, she goes to the bathroom. Just recently did the same thing overnight, and she is no longer in pull-ups and not wetting the bed) From these stories you can see they are all different and you ultimately have to go with your instincts on this one. It is much easier to have one out of diapers before the other comes, but only if it is his choice.

Good luck with potty training and your new baby in December!
A.

Hello T.,

I know it's frustrating, but there is no quick simple way to "make" them potty trained. I have 3 children of my own and have been "potty traiing" children for almost 8 years in my family child care.
In a nut shell there is little your child is in charge of except, eating, sleeping and going potty. When they start expressing an intrest in using the big boy potty, staying dry upon waking from naps, or for a few hours during the day,then you can start. If they are not showing signs of readiness, let it go. When they are ready it will take less then 1 week. Be patient, he will eventualy be using the potty.

Good Luck,
C.
Teddy Bear Play School

T.,
Every kid is different and I'm sure, deep sown, you know or feel if your son is ready and interested. If not, wait a bit. My son was trained more like 2.5 years....so your son must be getting close. Have you considered using sign language to let him let you know if he has to go? Also, they seem to get the peeing before the pooping. I loved the book "Once Upon A Potty (boy version) and my son seemed to really turn the corner after reading that book.