Tell me about...potty training.

[mel_mama]

Hi all --

DS1 is 26 mo old and I have a 6 week old DS2 as well.  DS1 has been familiar with the potty since he was about 8 months old and first had a little baby bjorn.  We would sit on it and read mostly -- he didn't really pee or poop in it much (maybe a couple times ever?) but I thought it would be good to get him familiarized with the potty and to feel comfortable on it.  Fast forward a year or so, a busy year -- we moved, I became pregnant -- and PT kind of fell of the radar.  He has a bigger baby bjorn potty now, but it's sort of the same old story -- once or twice a day, we sit on it, read...  Once in a while, he'll say "poo poo" and we'll go sit on the potty for 5 or 10 minutes...but nothing happens.  Which is fine, I just say, "Okay!" and we go about playing or whatever else we are doing.

My question is this -- 1.) Do I need to be freaked out that he is not PT yet, even though he does show signs of readiness?  When were your DS/DDs potty trained?  and 2.) How do moms with two little ones go about PT?  Since DS2 is so little still, I am feeling overwhelmed by the concept of PT.  My goal is to have him fully PT by 3.  But I have no clue how long it typically takes, where to start, or what good books or web resources there are on PT!  I would like to at least start PT soon, since having 2 in diapers is a bit more overwhelming (esp. laundry-wise!) than I thought it would be...

Feel free to comment or give advice!  Thank you!!!

[icy02]

IMO the sooner you start the easier it will be. I know how overwhelming it can feel with 2 LO's but it is worth it for you and for your child to PT soon! I PT'd DS1 at 20 months when DS2 was 3 mo. It isn't easy, but not much in life is :) I used a modified version of the 3 Day PT method. I basically read a lot of people's opinions and then formed a method that worked for my son and my family. It took about 1 month to be completely PT (except at night) the first week being the most influential. 

This is what I did:

-I knew that when I started I had to stick with it, otherwise I knew I would be giving DS mixed signals. 

-Bare bottomed at home and loose pants with no underwear when we went out.

-Kept a potty in the living room and for the first week or so watched DS like a hawk. As soon as he started going I would run him to the potty. If he got ANY and I mean ANY in we praised him, did potty dance, gave him a treat. It only took 2-3 times of that for him to know that is where he was supposed to put his business from that point fwd.

-The first week we stayed home a lot. This helped me focus on him. When we did go out I took the potty with us. I made sure he knew we were bringing his potty. He would carry it to the car for me :) 

-The toughest time for us was in the morning and after nap time. I did not want to "force" him to sit on the potty so I bribed him with TV ;) TV is a special occasion in our house. So, when he woke up and was grouchy and I knew he had to go I would stick in in front of the TV. When he did his business in the potty I would praise him, turn the TV off, and go about our day.

-After about a month I transitioned him to the "big" potty. I still hold him up so he can stand up and pee in the "big" potty. He just turned 2 and still needs help, but it sure beats dirty diapers.

-At first you are PT'ing yourself. Just remember whatever you decide to do - STICK WITH IT!

Good Luck!

[icy02]

Oh, and I forgot to mention. When you decide to do it just go for it! Don't go between underwear and diapers you will just confuse your DS. Pull-ups are the WORST for PT'ing so avoid them period!

[~Amy~]

We did the 3 day method as well. DS was 23 months and now has been trained almost a year. It was very easy at that age. I'd hate to try to PT him now. At that age, it was new and fun for him...now I think it would be a power struggle. And yes, no Pull Ups!

[Carolyn_mtl]

My dd is 17.5 months, and yesterday I decided to start introducing the idea of peeing on the potty. I can sit her on it, she seems happy and interested at first, then kinda lunges off of it. I tried keeping her out of diapers all day (lasted until 11 am). She peed on the floor 7 times, and we never actually caught a pee on the potty. This morning when we got up, I said to her, "time to pee on the potty" and she ran into her bathroom, so I put her on the potty, and after 10 seconds, she was trying to get off. So I got her down, and she walked into the hall and peed on the floor. .. So, for those who have used the 3 day program, what exactly did you do that worked, and how old were your kids?