How to get started with a 2.5 month old?

[OperaDiva]

I have been interested in EC since before my DS Hunter was born in September, and now that I kind of feel like life has settled a little, I'd like to give it a try. I do have some questions though.

• First, how do I start? I tried once just holding him above the sink right after he nursed, and he seemed really uncomfortable and didn't go.
• He sits up reasonably well, should I get a potty chair and try that instead of holding him up?
• How do you make sure boy parts are pointing down while also supporting his weight?
• Best times to try?
• His poops are really sporadic, and half the time when I think he is, it's just gas, and when he really is, I don't hear it, so should I just focus on pee for now?
• I see a lot of people talking about cues and cue-ing, what exactly does that mean and how does one go about doing it?

Wow, I had more questions than I thought...

[Carlyle]

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

I have been interested in EC since before my DS Hunter was born in September, and now that I kind of feel like life has settled a little, I'd like to give it a try. I do have some questions though.
[LIST][*]First, how do I start?

I would just start by making a "pssss" sound any time that you notice him peeing. If you never notice, try having an hour (or whatever you're comfortable with) or so of naked time each day, and make the "pss" any time you notice him going during that time.

After you've been doing that for a while, you may have more success with offering. You might also try offering at the "likely" times. For us that was:

Right after waking up from naps or night
10-15 minutes after nursing
Any time I was changing a diaper anyway
any time *I* was using the potty

You might just try doing a coverless cloth diaper or naked time during these "likely" times so that you can get a sense of what he does when he's getting ready to pee.

But really, whatever you can do and STILL STAY CHILL AND RELAXED about it. That's what you should do. If it starts to take over your life or feel overwhelming, just pop the diaper back on and wait until you have the patience again (that's my 2 cents... I'm a diaper pusher )

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

I tried once just holding him above the sink right after he nursed, and he seemed really uncomfortable and didn't go.

For us, 10 minutes AFTER nursing was a much better time to offer. It needed time to process

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

[*]He sits up reasonably well, should I get a potty chair and try that instead of holding him up?

It does spare your arms a bit if you have a potty chair (try the baby bjorn little potty or the Once upon a potty), but it's not necessary. PLus, in cold weather, potty seats get cold which can make some babies cry (unless you also buy or make a potty cozy )

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

[*]How do you make sure boy parts are pointing down while also supporting his weight?

I didn't have a boy, but I used this position when holding dd over the potty and trying to keep her from dropping my keys into the bowl.... I'd put my wrists under her thighs and lean her head back between my breasts. This leaves your hands free to ... hold things. Or whatever...

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

[*]His poops are really sporadic, and half the time when I think he is, it's just gas, and when he really is, I don't hear it, so should I just focus on pee for now?

Don't worry about differentiating between the two--work on getting him used to the cue sound and start offering at the likely times and just see what comes out.

Originally Posted by OperaDiva

[*]I see a lot of people talking about cues and cue-ing, what exactly does that mean and how does one go about doing it?

First you get the baby conditioned to recognize your cue (for us it was "pssss")...this was my way of telling dd that she was in a good place to pee/poop. You can also look for the babies cues that they need to pee. I was never very good at this one, but for some people, they'd notice that their babies would go from very still to very wiggly or vice versa. As kids get older, they might crawl to the potty or use sign language. Hopefully others will chime on on 2 month old cues, 'cause I wasn't good at them and it was a long time ago!

Have fun!!

[emmaegbert]

thats when I started w/ my daughter and it went very well at that age (now less so, she crawls and is very, very mobile at 7m and not so interested in the potty, though she still uses it every day)

I did a lot of nakey time, lying on a pad and prefolds, I put her on a potty when I thought she might have to go (the sink never appealed to me) and the small, one-piece ones have a little bump in the front that should get most boy pee (it did w/ ds). I did it by watching and intuition, and pretty quickly she was mostly dry, at least until she started moving and things changed up. She also used to "fuss" when she needed to go, sort of said, "eh eh eh" and squirmed around. Now she only does that if she's sleeping/sleepy. I also found that she at least did not pee or poo while nursing or in a deep sleep.

You can also use a kind of losely fastened fitted diaper coverless, or pocket dipe, like a "trainer" (can pull it down like undies).

HTH