Potty training question

LetsGoToDisney

I do not know what I am doing...

Lilli started to remove her diaper to poop on it about a week ago. My mom said that it meant she was ready to start trying to potty train. We got her a potty chair over the weekend and she has used it (once) for poop. She is warns about poop by unsnapping her diaper. We do not get a pee-warning. How do you get them to pee in the chair? I think we have a little momentum going with her not wanting a dirty diaper, but do we just wait until she is fed up with wet ones too? 

sooner1981

Until they can actually get to the toilet chair, unsnap their diapers and sit down, it really isn't about them being toilet trained, it is about you being trained to get them at certain intervals and take off their diaper and sit them on the chair and wait for them to go. If you want to do that, great. But you really aren't "training" them--as they aren't the ones that will be doing the steps necessary for them to pee on the potty and they won't really show any concern if you miss your cue and they just go in their diaper.

You can read all about elimination communication, if that interests you.

Be careful about trying to "train" a child less than 2 to be concerned about only going in the potty. There are some long-term studies showing that early training may lead to long-term (into adulthood) issues with chronic constipation....

jennlin

once they're on the seat, you can whistle, and it makes them pee. i don't know if this needs to start earlier or not, as this is what chinese families do at a very young age. you can try?

sleepy33

No. No. No. Nope. Na uh. No.

LetsGoToDisney

I just realized we had been doing some of the elimination communication all along without intending too. @jennlin I tend to whistle while I, *cough*, work and usually bring her in with me.

She can get to the potty and sit down, but we may have to switch diapers because she can't always get all 6 snaps undone without falling over or just pushing the diaper down and pooping while still hooked around one leg. 

pmarie33

Are you on the right board? Our babies are only 11-12 months old.  

MissLauraPants

I'm confused too...but my baby took off his diaper somehow the other day in the morning and threw it over the play yard and on to the floor.  His onesie still had one button so I had not noticed that he was diaperless until I had him on the bed and he was crawling...Needless to say I was confused...#Iguessheisreadyforpottytraining

Jenball717

Just read an article in Parents about potty training. The essentials are that kid must be able to get themselves to the potty, sit on it unassisted, and pull down their pants unassisted. Without those things it is somewhat pointless.

Lee81

I know the say a lot of cloth diapered babies potty train on the earlier side, but I think they're talking a couple months earlier than average, not a year +. If your baby has some kind of poop signal now, that's awesome and I would totally go with it if it were me. Might as well plop her on the potty if you know she's about to go. But I wouldn't go out of my way to look for it at this point. You'll probably just end up stressing both of you out if you try to make it happen now.

LetsGoToDisney

pmarie33 said:

Are you on the right board? Our babies are only 11-12 months old.  

Lilli will be one year old on Wednesday

LetsGoToDisney

@ElleStaxx yes, she just recently started taking off her diaper to poop on it. It seemed reasonable to encourage her to use the potty rather than pooping on her diaper or the floor. Also our dog was very interested in what she was doing.

deedee1017

I dont think there is anything wrong with what you're doing, but I'd just take it for what you are getting.  I think it's difficult to push her to do more if she is not capable of getting herself to the potty, undressing herself and sitting down. I think what you're doing is a great start and maybe it will lead to early potty training.

sleepy33

First, let me just say, my first reaction was basically WTF, because it's like so far outside the realm of where my baby is, as to seem ludicrous. My first instinct, if my kid was taking off his diaper, would be to put pants on him, not to grab a potty. But that's just me.

I get what you are saying about that you might as well put her on the potty rather than have her go wherever, but my thoughts are: I just don't see how this will work for urinating, at this point. My kid is still peeing, like, constantly. And I don't see a way for you to 'encourage' her not to urinate in her diaper. My other thought is, how are you going to handle your baby basically dropping trou out in public? I am assuming she wears clothes in public? Is she taking clothes off at home to take off the diaper?

LetsGoToDisney

sleepy33 said:

My other thought is, how are you going to handle your baby basically dropping trou out in public? I am assuming she wears clothes in public? Is she taking clothes off at home to take off the diaper?

Yes, she wears clothes and takes them off to remove her diaper. Usually she wears a dress with a matching diaper cover that she strips off like undies. She did start to remove her diaper cover at the children's museum last week so I took her straight to the bathroom, no big deal. She goes at nearly the same times everyday so I have a general idea when to be extra vigilant. It may become more of a challenge when the weather gets cool and she needs pants. 

Lee81

sleepy33 said:

First, let me just say, my first reaction was basically WTF, because it's like so far outside the realm of where my baby is, as to seem ludicrous.

Omg, this. Even if my kid did have some concept of the fact she was about to poop, I'd be surprised if she was coordinated enough to sit on the potty without falling off. #clumsybabyproblem

skyla13

I leave you this

LetsGoToDisney

crunchymama11 said:

So if you are following her cues and not pushing her I think it is ok. That is what I did with her and it worked out well. "encourage but don't force" tends to be my parenting motto. I don't see what the big deal is as long as you don't force and punish for it (I don't think you are- just throwing it out there). Some babies are ready earlier than others

That is what we have been doing. She is surprisingly strong minded so there would be little use in trying to force her to do anything. Also it did seem early to me too, but my mom and grandmother just brushed it off with "cloth diapered babies initiate training earlier." I was fully day trained at 14 months.

When she does this she gets a huge smile and looks so proud of herself, very mischief managed. Then she runs a few into the next room and peaks around the corner to see if I'm going to chase her down and put her in another diaper.

Jalee85

This whole post is just depressing to me. Perhaps I need a bump break...lol I can't even get my kid to let me know when she is hungry vs whatever other things babies do. I still treat her like I did when she was a newborn.

D cries - I check diaper, then if diaper is not dirty, then I offer food, if she is still cranky it usually means nap time...lol

huntjul

@jalee85 I'm sure there are plenty of things in your life to get sad or upset about and this thread just isn't one of them. PT or don't PT. Not my kid, not my concern. Clara figured out ow to remove Velcro diapers, so we went to snaps instead of the potty. #foiled #iamsmarterthanababy #atleastfornow

Jalee85

huntjul said:

@jalee85 I'm sure there are plenty of things in your life to get sad or upset about and this thread just isn't one of them. PT or don't PT. Not my kid, not my concern. Clara figured out ow to remove Velcro diapers, so we went to snaps instead of the potty. #foiled #iamsmarterthanababy #atleastfornow

@huntjul‌
It's wasn't really over the potty training part. It was a large number of things things that just made me realize we got a long road ahead of us.

huntjul

Jalee85 said:

@jalee85 I'm sure there are plenty of things in your life to get sad or upset about and this thread just isn't one of them. PT or don't PT. Not my kid, not my concern. Clara figured out ow to remove Velcro diapers, so we went to snaps instead of the potty. #foiled #iamsmarterthanababy #atleastfornow

@huntjul‌ It's wasn't really over the potty training part. It was a large number of things things that just made me realize we got a long road ahead of us.

@Jalee85 Bump break if you need to. Take care of yourself and your family. We're all rooting for D and know that although she may have a more difficult road in front of her that some of our babies, she's going to get there. Hugs.

Jalee85

crunchymama11 said:

@Jalee85 ::hugs:: it hurts I know. It might be a good idea to step back a bit (I've had to do that a time or 2) or it might not help. But please try not to compare babies- it is not fair to D OR yourself.

@crunchymama11‌
I'm trying really hard not to compare. It just seems like all of a sudden there are reminders everywhere...lol Plus D has had a regression in her walking. Her foot is now even more turned in. The good news about that is that the PT Evaluator feels pretty confident now that it's not her hip or her thigh bone and that it is literally just her foot. That can be easily corrected. We are going to do 2 months of her exercises and if its not better we will either start taping or using a foot brace. I think it just makes me sad that we will likely not have a 1st word or standing/walking by her 1st birthday. Not that either has to happen it's just one of those things that really make you think.

:::sorry for the thread jack::::

BrittanyCupcakes

I think OP's DD was one of the first O13 babies to stand or walk. Maybe she's just super advanced.

I plan on introducing the potty as soon as Carmen starts walking, but I don't expect her to potty train until she's older.

LetsGoToDisney

Jalee85 said:

This whole post is just depressing to me. Perhaps I need a bump break...lol I can't even get my kid to let me know when she is hungry vs whatever other things babies do. I still treat her like I did when she was a newborn. D cries - I check diaper, then if diaper is not dirty, then I offer food, if she is still cranky it usually means nap time...lol

Honestly I feel like I'm doing it wrong 80% of the time, but she is one year old today and healthy so I try not to beat myself up too much.

I just posted because I want to encourage her to use the potty chair rather than taking off her diaper to poop on it. (That may be the weirdest sentence anyone has ever typed.) 

Jalee85

LetsGoToDisney said:

Jalee85 said:

This whole post is just depressing to me. Perhaps I need a bump break...lol I can't even get my kid to let me know when she is hungry vs whatever other things babies do. I still treat her like I did when she was a newborn.

D cries - I check diaper, then if diaper is not dirty, then I offer food, if she is still cranky it usually means nap time...lol

Honestly I feel like I'm doing it wrong 80% of the time, but she is one year old today and healthy so I try not to beat myself up too much.

I just posted because I want to encourage her to use the potty chair rather than taking off her diaper to poop on it. (That may be the weirdest sentence anyone has ever typed.) 

----------------------________
I should have just said nothing. You didn't say or do anything wrong. It was more if clonglomeration of all the different little stories and it just made me realize that at one point I wanted to but my daughter a potty for her 1st birthday and now instead I have to teach sign language so I can help meet my child's needs. It wasn't anyone in particular it just hit a sore spot for me....lol

You are doing a great job, and yes I would throw my kid on a potty before I let her poop on the floor as well!