How do you fit potty training in to your routine?

AlisaS

My guys are just starting to get interested in the potty - not quite time for training - we are just having them sit on them if they ask to right now. But I see the future........

I know nothing about potty training. Did you find any method to be best?

Pesky

I'll let you know -- we're going to start potty training in earnest over Labor Day Weekend!  I'm going to try the 3 day method (adapted for our use a bit) and see how that goes.

yellowcar

I just let DD take the lead and did not force her or make a big deal out of it at all.  We did use a rewards system (M&M's) and that seemed to help.  We had a potty in our bathroom (on the second floor) and one that was tucked away on the first floor.  She started going on her own when she was just shy of 3, and then once she hit 3 she was pretty consistent.  She is almost 5 and we are still nowhere near dry nights yet (but that might be medical--I was a bedwetter until I was much older.  I'm not even thinking about this yet)

duchess0727

I hope someone has good advice for this.  We need to get started on this, too.  Andrew is moving up to the next room in two weeks and that's the room everyone gets potty trained in.  I'm hoping I'll get some help from the teachers so I'm waiting to hear what they do in the class. I'm going to start trying to sit him on the potty every morning after he wakes up - he often goes then in his diaper so I figure it should be a good time plus both my husband and I are there.  Then maybe we'll have him try to pee in the potty before bedtime and see how that goes. 

 

dpdw

I introduced DS to the potty around 18 months.  We'd put him on it before bed each night.  99.9% of the time nothing happended, but two or three times he peed -- I'm sure it was pure chance.  DD was born right at DS's 2nd birthday so I put any serious PTing on hold to deal with the new baby.  A week after his 3rd birthday I tried a "no diaper day" on a Saturday & took him to the potty every 30 minutes.  It was a disaster.  Not once did he pee or poop on the potty, but he sure make good use of the floor & our kitchen chairs.  5 months later, out of nowhere, he told me he had a dirty diaper & he wanted it changed.  He NEVER did that before.  So, I read the 3 Day Potty Training e-book & tried their approach over 4th of July weekend.  It worked!  He had one accident at daycare on Day 4, but that was it.  We used pull-ups at night for about 2-3 weeks.  Now he's fully PT'd.

My advice for the working mom is to wait until they are 100% ready then do the 3-day approach.  You'll save yourself tons of stress.

abpdjs

we are at this point too.  there was a nestie on the 24+ toddler board that made a good point.  there are 3 ways to go about training:

1. the 3 day training where you pretty much stick to your kids like glue and catch all their cues and get them to the potty and it clicks.

2. wait until your dc is old enough and they can pretty much get to the potty on their own (more like 3 yrs old)

3. start around 2 and train, stopping and starting for various reasons (regression, illnesses, whatever that keeps you from being consistent with dc) - this whole process can take up to a year depending on the kid.

i am starting with daycare (Carson is starting full time next week, currently goes 3 days per week).  i am going to start having them put him on the potty at school and follow what they do at home (i.e. rewards)  we have been putting him on the potty casually at home since he was 17 months and he knows the potty and is not scared of it and pees and poops on it when he wants.  but we are starting the full on day training here soon.  everyone is telling me he will be a breeze to train.......we shall see.  but fwiw, the toddler 24+ board has many nesties training and really good advice - feel free to stop by and check it out

jlw2505

Honestly daycare was a HUGE help with this with my older DD and even with my younger DD who is way to young to really be training but whenever her sister or the older kids in her daycare class sit on the potty, she wants to as well.  What we did in the beginning is what you are doing - when they ask, have them sit on the potty.  We would ask her if she wanted to at diaper changes as well and always before bath time.  Daycare has the kids, starting in the toddler 2 program, sit on the potty at every diaper change which is every 2-3 hours or as needed.  I think they also have some of the kids that are doing better with it sit more often but I can't remember as its been a while.  I know once my DD was really into it we just asked her if she needed to go more often but honestly, we never pushed it and if she was saying no, we backed off until she started asking again.  Once she was ready, she trained really easily.  My younger DD is now 17 months and has been wanting to sit on the potty for about a month but she's not really ready, not really showing the signs.  She loves to sit on the potty and has peed and pooped on it a few times but I have a feeling it will be a while before she really trains.  Good luck

momofolivia

abpdjs:

but fwiw, the toddler 24+ board has many nesties training and really good advice - feel free to stop by and check it out

This.  The 24+ board has PT posts daily. 

We were going to do the 3-day training Labor Day, but another Nestie had a very bad experience with it, so I think I will hold off until November (Veterans Day).  Right now we just ask her if she wants to go.  She was doing great for awhile, but I slacked off and so has she. 

I focused on no diapers on the weekends and mornings and evenings.  We have a book that she can only read when on the potty.  It is a slow process that way.

Daycare will only start to work with her at 2yo. 

AlisaS

Thanks guys. I know my Aunt told me to forget the 3-day method since it can totally torture both the parents and the kid - if they aren't ready, it won't work.

And I know that my boys are at the beginning and I don't want to train them yet.

Ah, good times!

HeatherLynneH

I just started training Kahlynne and it was out of the blue...  we were over my moms and my neice has a potty insert there and kahlynne kept taking it out of the bathroom and bringing it out to the living room so i said do you want to sit on that and i put her on it and she peed sooo i decided to go with it and we got her one for home and we ask her if she has to go and sometimes she runs to the potty and sometimes she shakes her head no.. so she has only gone on it 2ce so far.. since Saturday including Saturday.. but we bought her Pull ups and we are gonna go from there...  My DH is home with her all day and i dont know if he is as vigilent of her cues as i am regarding when she has to go pee.. but i think eventually we will get the hang of it and so will she!!

 

GL! 

krub

When we're home, I let them run around bare bottom, ask them if they have to go potty and have them try a lot.  With DS, that was mostly on the weekend.  Once he could hold it, I'd have him work on it all Sat morning while we were home and then I took a 3 day weekend to do PT book camp wit him.  With DD, we pretty much take her pull up off when we're at home in the evening and she goes potty a couple times.  I send her in pull ups to school now so that it's easier for her to use the potty there.  Over labor day weekend, we're getting rid of the diapers (I think it's easier to do over a 3 day weekend).  I'm starting to prep her now on being a big girl, saying bye bye to diapers for good, etc. 

 ITA that your DC has to be ready to do the 3 day boot camp first.  But, you will still need to stay really close by and learn your DC's cues to help them PT.  It can take a long time before they're consistently going on their own.  With DS, we tried a couple times before it clicked and we just practiced a lot up until it clicked.  With DD, she's been leading the way and I think she's finally to the point where she could get rid of the diapers.

madhatter2003

My DD just sort of did it herself....told me she was too big for diapers and she wanted big girl pants. That was it.

This was about 1 week after moving up a room at daycare where almost everyone was potty trained. Peer pressure is great 

KKMMex

I waited until my daughter was three before attempting any serious potty training.  Then I put her in panties and just waited for the accidents.  It took about six weeks before she got it.  She had the logistics of pottying down cold in two weeks.  The rest of the time after that, she was basically learning how to hold it.