wanting to start...first potty recommendations?

[nukuspot]

My DD is 8 months old and we have been using cloth diapers and doing fine. However, recently every time we put her on the changing table and take her diaper off to check, it is dry. About 2 seconds later she "pees freely" in the air once her diaper is off. So, it dawned on DH and I that she is maybe WAITING for the diaper to come off to pee! So we don't know much about EC but we wanted to start trying something here and there, perhaps taking her diaper off and putting her on a potty to have her "pee freely"? But we don't know where to start with potties. Hold her on our toilet? Get her a baby potty? Are there special really small ones for 8 month olds?

Advice about where to start would be lovely. Thank you.

[hrsmom]

Hi- Holding her over a potty during a diaper change sounds like a great way to get started! The sink works, if you want to use the sink. (We used the sink up until my LO didn't want to use the sink anymore, at about 14 months-ish, but some people don't like to use their sinks.) The baby bjorn little potty (referred to as BBLP in these threads) is a great little potty. I have heard that Ikea makes a great little potty, but I haven't seen it. Some people hold their babies over the toilet, too. I prefer standing up, so for us it's sink or potty on the bathroom counter. (Now that she's older, she sits on the one on the floor, too, but only needs my help if she's wearing pants.)

Other good times to offer the potty (if you want to) are when they first wake up from a nap, when you take them out of a sling or carseat, and whenever you think about it! You can offer as frequently or infrequently as you want. (Although your babe will tell you if you're offering too frequently!!!)

P.S. That is so awesome that you noticed that, and you want to give your LO more peeing options! So cool!

[JessieBird]

You're definitely on the right track!

I have found it useful to have a few different types of potties on hand. My DS goes through stages where he doesn't want to sit still on the potty, as if the novelty has worn off and he'd rather go exploring. Switching potties often does the trick to make it new and fun again. We have an Ikea potty (a few actually, they are so cheap), a more complex one with a lid, and an adaptor seat for the real toilet. The Ikea potties are very similar to the Baby Bjorn and are easy to throw in the car or pack in a duffle bag when you're travelling. The fancier kind with the lid is fun to play with and leads to a more elaborate "ritual" of dumping and flusing and cleaning, which my DS really likes.

Good luck and, most importantly, have fun!