I read a lot quite a few blogs and online about people potty training. Most of those I read about and have talked to trained their boys at close to three. I had planned to start trying with in November so Gus would be finished before baby #3 arrived. But Gus seemed to have other plans. He began showing these signs that he was ready:
1) He would tell us when his diaper was dirty or even take it off himself and bring it to us.
2) One day he had taken off his diaper and I didn't know it, and he took a nap without it on. He didn't have an accident!
3) Many mornings and naps when he woke up he would be dry. And he would go hours during the day without a wet or dirty
After the nap without a diaper, we decided it was time to start training. We picked a day. I bought him some underwear. We already had this potty, so we didn't need that.
Day 1: In the morning, we took off his diaper from the night, and let him try to go on his potty. Then we put him in underwear. Every 15 minutes ( I had a timer on my phone that would go off) I would take him and let him try to go potty. If he had any urine at all, he would get candy. We had lots of accidents, lots of accidents. We tried to stay on the hard floors all day. He would sometimes get a little in the potty. If I knew his bladder was empty, I might give him more time in between tries. I put him in a diaper for his nap, and as soon as I did he filled it....
Advise learned from Day 1: Trying every 15 minutes was too frequent, by late afternoon Gus and I were both frustrated and tired. Every 30 minutes probably would have been better for the first day, or if I knew he had emptied his bladder and he hadn't had much to drink even longer.
Day 2: I kept using the timer. Gus would just tell me no when I asked him to try to potty. He was just frustrated. Even candy would not bribe him. We kept trying every once in a while. He would get little puddles in the potty every once in a while, but still had big accidents. Day 2 ended with mommy and Gus both very frustrated. I was wondering at this point if starting was a bad idea. We decided to try one more day. I did not want to give up. I felt like I was failing if I quit.
Advise learned from Day 2: Potty training does not happen in a day. It takes time. The timer just made everyone upset. If Gus drank a whole cup of juice, I should try to start asking him if he needed to go. If he hadn't had much to drink, don't force him to try. He would just say, "It's not working!"
Day 3: In the morning, I think (it was a few weeks ago so I'm trying to remember!) we had a successful potty trip. Just one success was a huge confidence booster for everyone!! Now, later in the morning there was another accident. I quit following the timer. It made us all happier. Gus showed progress, we would keep pressing on.
Advise learned from Day 3: Throw out the timer. Pay attention to your child's habits and plan. Gus didn't need to go if he was sitting watching tv, so stop making him try. He went hours without going.
Day 4: Gus continued to show progress. We still had accidents. He would try though to make it to the bathroom. He was starting to learn when he needed to go.
Day 5: More of the same. We stayed home, some friends came over to play. He told me he needed to go while they were here- yay!!!!!!
Day 6: We had to drive 1 1/2 hrs to another town for most of the day. We put him in a diaper. When he needed to go to the bathroom, he would not want to go in his diaper. But we then discovered something else. He did not want to potty on an adult size potty. The day was frustrating for him. I should have put his training potty in the car.
Advise learned Day 6: If you are going to be gone from the house, take training potty with you.
Day 7- Now: Each day gets better, but we are not accident free. We have to have a change of pants at least twice on most days. If I need to go anywhere, I usually don't let him have a drink for like 30 minutes before we go, and we try to potty before we leave the house. This has worked most of the time, but not all. I try to keep a change of clothes with me all the time. When Gus went to Mother's Day Out for the first time, I took his training potty. I knew he wouldn't go on the regular potty. But he would not want to wear a diaper either. He had several accidents while he was there but did use his potty.
How to transition to the adult potty: We knew Gus had to learn how to go on an adult size potty. We had a stool which we put in front of the potty. Gus is a little guy so we thought we would just teach him to go standing. We kept giving him chances to try but he always said, "It's too big" or "That's mommy's potty." I decided today was the day to get this figured out!
I put the training potty where he couldn't see it. We put his stool in front of the potty. We told him the night before he was going to start going in the big potty. When he went in the morning, we tried on the potty, he wasn't interested. He had an accident. A few hours later, he needed to go. I took him in the bathroom. He did not want to stand, he wanted to sit down. We had got the child size seat for the potty so he could sit. He sat down and went. Victory!!!!!!!!!!! He did it again a little while later. Since then we have had an accident and a few tries without success, but he is sitting on the big potty now which is progress!
Pooping: Yes, I just used that word. We have NOT been successful at this yet. But my child is not like other children. He does not go daily. He hates to go. It is quite dramatic. I am not putting lots of pressure on myself or him to get this figured out. I know it will happen.
Overnight: Most nights when Gus wakes up, he is dry. I think we could successfully let him sleep in underwear, but we have not tried yet. One thing at a time.
Preparation for Mom: I started on a Friday, so my husband would be with me on part of Saturday and Sunday to help with the training. I did NOT cook dinner on Day 1. I did not leave the house until Day 6. I recommend having snacks and whatever your favorite drink is on hand. I did cry several times and felt like pulling out my hair. It was one of the hardest things I have done with Gus, and Gus has not been easy. You can do it! Just be prepared and stick to it! It takes work, and it is still taking work weeks later. Have plenty of underwear for your child, you will be doing lots of laundry. Also have lots of paper towels or towels ready- however you plan to clean up messes.
Well, if that was enough talking about going to the bathroom I don't know what is! I hope this helps some mom out there. If you have any tips, PLEASE leave them in the comments. I have to potty train two more kids so I am not done yet!
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