17 months potty training?

[lilylumos]

Is there such a thing is casual potty training? Several times now when my DD is diaperless in the house (and the bath) i have noticed that she is about to go poop and i have put her on the big potty and she's gone. Now she will walk around saying "poo poo" for several minutes before she goes, and if she does go in her diaper she says "poo poo" and is beginning to dislike the feeling of it in her diaper (cloth), so we've decided to get her a little potty to sit her on (the big one is kind of scary for her) when she says this just to see what happens. any information on this kind of training? I am not ready, nor do i think she is ready, to jump into hard core potty training...but is there anything wrong with this kind of casual-see-what-happens approach? just would appreciate any thoughts/info...

[Mother Cake]

Sounds a lot like Elimination Communication, which is where parents watch/listen for the baby/child's cues that he/she needs to pee or poo, then puts them on the potty. There's lots of info on the web about this, and it can be started with infants, so it is definitely appropriate for a 17 mo old. Just Google EC or elimination communication. I haven't used it much myself (only a couple of times with a baby I was nannying for), but I've heard good things about it from parents who have used it. HTH, & Good Luck!

[Katie T]

She very well may be ready. My last two children started around that age, and DS was day and night trained by just before 2yo. DD is 19m and started at 17m. She is almost always dry all day and for her nap but not night (although she will wake me up to pee or even recently have liquid poo in the night) I let her run around naked at home but when we go out use our cloth diapers. She will usually tell me when out and about that she has to go thought not every time. I just followed there lead, and while it takes longer to become completely trained (for my kids anyways) I feel by letting them lead the way they know what is right for them.
I always said I was humoring them, but in the end they were trained. I would follow her lead and see where it takes you.

[JessieBird]

Sounds like our house, though my DS isn't as verbal yet. We call it "EC light" and we've been taking this approach since about six months. I don't think DS is ready for full time potty learning, and I'm certainly not, but we both enjoy getting familiar with the potty, watching for signs, and the occasional catch. DS's daycare takes the same approach and I love it. They are very low-key and no pressure at all starting between 12-18 mos depending on the child. Most kids are potty learned by 24 months with just very intuitive caregivers, easy access to pottys, and learning from watching each other. I don't think there is any such thing as too young if you take a gentle no-pressure try-and-see approach. Sounds like your DD is definitely ready. I agree that you will find lots of ideas and encouragement if you read about Elimination Communication, just know that you don't have to do it full time at all and you don't have to rearrange your lifestyle to get started.

[fireweed]

That's how dd started (at 18 months), and by 20 months she was only wearing diapers at night. It was a gradual and totally stress free process. As soon as I would start to stress about it and pressure her to use the potty, it would start to backfire. So I found myself having to be really easygoing about it- a win/win situation! I found the book 'Diaper Free before three' very helpful(can't recall the author- sorry).

[kbond]

I'll just chime in also with a sounds totally normal. My DD (also 17 months) started on her birthday indicating that she wanted to use the potty. So, we let her.

What we've also done is have set times when we always do it as well. When she gets up in the morning, up from naps, and before bed. And, she enjoys it. In fact, in the morning, it's hard to get her off the potty. She has her books, and she just sits there happily cooing and reading to herself.