Starting EC a bit late... but better late then never!

[tillymonster]

EC mamas, please give me all your good tips on how to start ECing a toddler! She's just turned 17mo and I really think it's a good time to start although I wish I had sooner. It's my DHs fault, he is too scared to try and since we are all-carpet where we live, I sort of agree with him. But as of late, we've noticed her grabbing at her diaper (she's in cloth except for overnight) so I thought, heck, lets try EC!

So far I am trying the signs for poo, peepee and bathroom which she'll pick up on fast as she has with A LOT of signs so far. I explained to her that we are going to put on these cotton undies (which are just the bottoms from the dress sets we bought) and when she needs to go to tell mama. Of course, I'm sure she wont catch onto this right away but that's my spiel so far. She already had a poopy moment so I took her to the potty. I have a pink potty seat that I use over the toilet but she's scared of it and every time I put her on it, she cries to get off. Going to convert it to a travel potty and put it on the bathroom floor instead.

Any suggestions/tips and ideas are welcome! TIA!

[riboflavin]

Good luck! Sounds like changing the potty up a bit to one she feels comfortable with is a good idea. If you are worried about the carpet, you could always get some trainers or sew a little fabric into the crotch area of the bottoms from the dress you are going to use. That may keep puddles off the floor and help keep it a little more stress free :)

[milomama]

We started at about 13 months with DS in a carpeted house, and I'm so glad we did.  It was really amazing to see him pick up on everything.  Now at 26 months, he has been "trained" for a few months, but it really was a gradual process and nothing was pushed.  

When we started, I found it really useful to find successful times first.  So, we'd get him on a potty right after he woke up and right after nap.  He was almost certain to pee.  Then we could do signs, tell him he peed, everything to help him make the connection.  

We gave him bare bum time a lot around the house (keep vinegar on hand in spritz bottle for your carpets), and put him on a potty every hour at least.  We read him a ton of books, but do whatever will keep them on the potty.  We had 6 little potties around the house, so there is always one ready for him.  My big complaint now is that he will only use those...I carry a backpack with a little potty in it everywhere we go for him as he screams at the thought of a big toilet.  The positive to this is we sometimes do a pee break in a parking lot instead of having to search for a public washroom!

Anyways, I found EC a really great experience, but so many ups and downs along the way.  So the biggest tip I'd say is to jump in and give it a try.  Watch and listen to your child, and before long you'll figure out lots of quirks that work for your family!

[tillymonster]

Thank you soooo much. I've tried book and that seems to keep her interested in staying near the potty by oh she doesn't want to sit. From observing her I'm noticing more and more that she eliminates while standing up! Haha that's a quirk isn't it? So I'm going to start looking for a potty without such a deep seat. And I'm hoping to keep it in or near the bathroom because I don't really want pottys all over the house. But might have to do it to be susessful!

[Snapdragon]

op let me know if you find some things that work! I am ready to start my 14 month old at EC again if I can- we tried for a good time and in the last 5 months he hasn't liked it at all and we are back to diapers- I am ready to try something but he won't sit on the potty! Let me know if yo find a way for your dd to sit on the potty! I read somehwere about some potty with a handle that they like better- I am not sure why but I am going to look into it to see if I can find that again