Potty training tips?

[Jeni]

Any potty training tips out there? We just bought a potty last night and I know he's not ready, but I want to be prepared. I don't think he even knows yet when he's wet or dirty, but I want him to be comfortable with it.

[Dawn]

Alexia has started to show some signs by pointing and saying poo-poo when she does it & she likes pulling her pants up and down (hence the reason we're going to be getting Pampers Pull-ups). She even tries flushing the toilet when I'm done and even puts the lid down (she loves doing those things). So what we did was put her potty in the bathroom JUST for her to become familiar with it. no pressure at all. When she nears around the 2 yr. old mark & is showing more signs of being ready we will try a little more...but with no pressure of course. They have to be emotionally ready. ALso, I've always heard that it's harder to toilet train a boy than it is a girl.

i think for now if you just have his potty around to become familiar with it first, then that's a good start & your on the right track!

[Nocona]

Matthew usually tells us when he poops (not always) and very rarely when he pees. He does not stay dry at night. He's, clearly, not even close to being ready. I haven't even bought him a potty yet. Our ped said she wouldn't even attempt until he's 2 - 2 1/2. I'm just going to watch his cues.

He loves to flush the toilet and put the lid down too, Dawn

[Jeni]

I just want him to be familiar with it, and know thats where he sits when he comes in the bathroom with me!

[Hilary]

Just subscribing as I think (if we don't move) we're going to try and start in January! I hope some of the mom's with older kids will pop in.

[Carla]

We got one a little while ago, even though I know he's not ready. He knows what it's for and likes to lift the lid and sit on it. I know he knows when he;s wet since if he has a velcro diaper on, he'll take it off when he pees but he doesn't let me know when he poops. He's starting to pull down on his pull up diapers, so I think maybe he's getting ready. I don't want to push him, but hopefully I can be observant. (I don't want to train him only to revert back to diapers when the baby is here)

[Wendy]

One word..... M&M's

[Faye]

I started with my son after his 2nd birthday because he was in daycare and they sort of pushed me However, he didn't train totally until right after his 3rd birthday. I do remember using cheerios in the potty for him to aim at. I did not use a reward system but a lot of people do that. I have also seen a book out there before (can't remember the name of it now) that tells you how to potty train in one weekend, however, I don't think I would have the patience for that.

[Shel]

Originally Posted by Wendy

One word..... M&M's

Stickers work too. I did sticker charts with both of the boys and they loved it. I bought all kinds of funky stickers for them.

Dr Phil had an episode on potty training in a day. I'm going to use it with Riley over Christmas break and see how it goes. He said to use a doll that wets, put it on the potty, let it wet, and then throw a big party. Scream, yell, yay, clap, throw confetti, give the doll a sticker or candy. Then let the child try. If nothing happens, make the doll go again. Throw another party. We'll see!

[Hilary]

Wow, that sounds like a fun idea, Shel! I wish I would have watched that one.

[JenM]

That is a good idea! I'm thinking about getting a dolly that wets now too. DD has had her own potty since around 13 or 14 months sitting in our bathroom. I'd often put her on it while I went to potty. We read tons of books on pottying which for some reason she loves. Zoe likes to let me know when she does poopys and has even sat on the potty and announced 'poopy"... though I'm not sure she actually WENT while on the potty... it may have been afterward. She also likes to open and shut the lid and flush the toilet. She likes to put her dolls on the potty. She will occasionally strip off her diaper... though doesn't get the opportunity to do that often since she usually has pants on. She hasn't shown awareness of her bladder yet... just her bowels. I don't think she will train until at least 2... so I'm just trying to build her self awareness at this point. I think it's important to take them into the bathroom with you all the time. For a boy... it'd be great to let him go in with a man? Though I'm not sure it's THAT important since I suppose most boys train learning to sit down first anyway? Not too sure about that, though.

[butterfly__71]

Originally Posted by Shel

Stickers work too. I did sticker charts with both of the boys and they loved it. I bought all kinds of funky stickers for them.

Dr Phil had an episode on potty training in a day. I'm going to use it with Riley over Christmas break and see how it goes. He said to use a doll that wets, put it on the potty, let it wet, and then throw a big party. Scream, yell, yay, clap, throw confetti, give the doll a sticker or candy. Then let the child try. If nothing happens, make the doll go again. Throw another party. We'll see!

LOVED that idea....and when I tried it, and told Simone it was her turn to go, she took the doll, and said "No, it's baby's turn again!"

[Rene]

The only tip I can think of that was the most valuable to me was absolutely waiting until the child is ready......ie; if the child is resisting too much and the whole thing is one big fight, forget it for a couple months and try again. I started trying when my son was 18 months old but it was a no go....again at 2 years old and it was still a no go. Then, all of the sudden, around age 2.5, there was no battlefield in the bathroom anymore...he was ready and acted like he'd been doing it all along. Same goes for training them to go "poo poo out the butt" like he says now.....don't force it, they'll do it when THEY'RE ready. :babysmile

[Waz]

Well, I'm VERY new at this...... but Chloe has peed and pood on her potty now a couple of times each......so here the things I have noticed so far:

I keep a few books in the bathroom for her, with one being this very cute Potty Book for Girls book my Mom got her. She loves to sit down and read about Hannah (the girl in the potty book) and we ONLY read that book in there. I think it gives added incentive when she wants to read that book.

I also have discovered that sometimes cleaning out the potty with a sticky poop can be not so pleasant, so I've stocked the bathroom now with those Bleach Clorox Wipes. They make cleaning up MUCH easier.

She is REALLY enthusiastic about sitting on her potty, and sometimes she will want to sit in there for 30 to 40 minutes at a time! A HUGE drag..... but at the same time, I just go with it. I think having a lot of patience is the key, and keeping it"fun" and not a chore.

Chloe's big thing now is that she likes to stand on her potty (it's one that also doubles as a step stool) and wash her hands in the sink afterwards. So I use this as incentive when she is sitting on the potty yelling "wash hands, wash hands". I tell her that we need to potty first, or put our diaper back on before we wash hands. She'll usually choose to sit longer!

It cracks me up that she loves to wash her hands so much, but I figure... hey.... I'll start hitting that one right from the beginning as long as she is into it. Kill two birds with one stone!

Chris

[Nocona]

Matthew's the same way about washing his hands, Chris. I figure that's a plus for the future

[Maria]

Another issue near and dear to my heart...
for the past 2 weeks or so Emily always tells me when she has to go (poo-poo).

Originally Posted by Shel

Dr Phil had an episode on potty training in a day. I'm going to use it with Riley over Christmas break and see how it goes.

How did it go??