advice needed on how to proceed with 17-month-old's potty training

[JuliMummy]

I have also posted this in Elimination Communication, but haven't had any responses yet, so I thought I'll try here too.

We haven't done EC as such, but I did put DD on the potty at every nappy change from when she could sit up. She is now 17 months and pretty much potty-trained at home - provided she's not wearing anything on the bottom. If she's not wearing a nappy she goes on the potty by herself whenever she needs to poo or pee. So she has very good control already. When she's wearing a nappy she just pees in it, she doesn't ask to go on the potty. But when I put underpants on her she either gets confused and thinks it's like a nappy and pees in it, or sits down on the potty and pees through them   

I know the issue with the underpants is something she will figure out quickly. I just need to bite the bullet and put them on her all the time and keep reminding her that she needs to go on the potty to pee and that we need to pull down the underpants first. 

But to get her properly dry I need to stop putting nappies on her when we go out. And this is where I just don't know how to manage it. We do a lot of walking with the stroller and I just don't know what I would do if she asked to go on the potty when we're out walking. How have other people managed this stage?

I can't really draw on previous experience with my son, because he was a whole year older when he became dry and was able to "hold it" for a long time right away.

Any advice would be greatly appreciated 

[lexapurple]

DD was like your DD. She was potty trained when she was 18m.old. She did almost the same thing with exception that she knew the difference between diaper and panties and would ask for help if she was wearing panties and potty in the diaper if she was wearing one. On walks away from restrooms we just potied where ever. I would just hold her squatting and she would go. I do not see a problem if a toddler potties under a tree in a corner in the park. Dogs do it. It would be different if grown ups do it. If you are still conserned, you can bring a jar or something and take it home with you to dispose.

[JuliMummy]

Thanks, that's very good advice.

She's got the hang of the underpants now. She waits for me to pull them down though, she can't do it herself yet. She also wanted to go on the potty when we had just come home from an outing and she was still wearing a nappy, which is great. So she's doing great at home. But when we're out she's still perfectly happy to pee in her nappy and doesn't ask to go on the potty.

I think the next step for us is to put pants on her as well as underpants at home, and once she's got the hang of that we will venture out. The idea of letting her go wherever we are is good, except that most of our walks are in central Oxford, so not much in the way of trees or nature strips or anything like that, and I do think there's a difference between going under a tree in the park, or even on a nature strip, and going on the footpath in front of someone's house   I think I'll just have to waterproof the stroller, take extra clothes and see how long she can hold on when we get to that point...

[LuminosaJane]

My dd was around the same age when I started PL with her.  I was surprised at how long she could hold it when we were out.  She developed a preference for going in the potty, especially poop, quickly.  Now at 26 months, I'm struggling with her determination to be independent about going potty and her unwillingness to tear herself away from play.  When she was 19-20mo, it was an interesting thing for her to do.  Now, not as much.

Anyway, at home, we both prefer her to go bottomless and when we're out, I just put the training pants on her in case of an accident.  I liked Potty Patty and Hanna Anderson when she was younger because they were thicker and more absorbent.  Now, I use the Gerber because they're thinner and she rarely has a full on pee accident.  99% of the time it's like she has a drop or two and realizes she needs to go.  Another brand I liked, that we still use at nighttime, is the Imse Vimse.  These are almost waterproof, a little on the thick side and would be great if you're out for a longer walk and not sure how long she can hold it.  My dd is rarely wet at night, but I think it would be a total drag to have to change sheets in our bed in the middle of the night and I didn't like using a pull-up every night that wasn't even really getting used. 

[lindsayinnc]

We are working down a similar path as you so I have been trying to think about these scenarios.  Is there any way you could bring a small potty chair even one of the collapsible ones with you and store it under the stroller?  Or can you map out a few good bathroom locations along your typical path?  We have a small fold up that sits on the regular toilet that is for out and about, but it doesn't have a pee guard for my little boy so we haven't really tried it yet.  We are going to get more into the swing of things while out when it is a bit warmer so we can just have an extra potty in the car.  Keep up the good work.