EC-how to start?

rianals

So, I've been reading and hearing about EC and have been thinking about giving it a go.  I'm a SAHM and DD is eight months old.  We are going to be going on a 3 1/2 week vacation during May.  Is it too late to start?  Should I wait until we get back from our trip?  Any tips or words of wisdom?

Thanks a lot...

kat.in.the.hat

never to late to start and you can even practice while on vacation!

for me, we started when I noticed my daughter grunting while pooping in her high chair.  I'd pick her up, tell her gently, but in a voice to get her attention, "wait, wait.  lets go poopy on the potty!" then I'd put her on the toilet.

For pees, the best luck we had getting started was to give her a bottle, then wear her for fifteen to thirty minutes.  As soon as I'd take her off, I'd put her on the toilet and make the "sssssssssss" sound.  Baby wearing was always a sure pee maker for us and that helped her associate the "ssssssssss" sound with going pee.

peachypear

Have you read Diaper Free Baby? Great book, and she talks about ECing at different ages. The author herself started with her first at 12 months, so 8 mo isn't too late.

I know many people starting older go straight to a toilet insert, but DD much prefers her Baby Bjorn baby potty. She is much more comfortable on it, can play with toys in her room, etc (and we are more comfortable not crouching by the toilet in our tiny bathroom and ECing right at the changing area).

I would start now rather than waiting. You have a whole month before then, plus you can EC on vacation too. I know babies who aren't phased at all about "goin' about town." Unfortunately DD isn't one of them, but we have brought her potty with us on trips.

My big advice is to focus on the successes rather than the misses. Also, I have found that DD gives fewer cues as she gets older, and timing her potty trips works much better. We have the best luck if we put her on the potty about once an hour.

rianals

I haven't read any books about EC, yet. I originally heard about it when I was pregnant.  However, I was planning on going back to work when DD was three months old, so I didn't think that I would be able to make it work for us.  I ended up not going back to work and am finally following up on different ideas that I had once upon a time.  I've realized that I can tell when DD is pooping fairly frequently and decided to give EC a try.  Tomorrow, I plan to pick up a potty chair and I will check out a couple bookstores and see if I can find "Diaper Free Baby."  I'm excited to try something new with DD and expect it to be a fun thing for me, not a stressfull thing for either of us-well, as fun as pee and poo can be...

webMistress0609

We started about a month ago. We tried the seat reducer on the big potty @ first but Ari didn't like it. We got a Baby Bjorn Smart Potty & he enjoys it. We started just sitting him on it at certain times that were good for a "catch", such as after waking from a nap, after being worn, or after his bath. We also offer the potty at most diaper changes since it's right at the changing area, but we rarely get a catch then. We've tried to catch poops when we see him going but it kinda freaks him out to stop in the process, so we haven't had as much success with catching those. We make progress & have more catches all the time though. I wish we would've started earlier.

tak2002

We don't really do EC, but sometimes we use the potty.  I bought Henry a potty because I noticed that he grunted when he pooped and had a predictable poop pattern. I figured I'd save some diapers and horrible poop blow out (which had become daily). I put him on the potty in the mornings and he went pee and poop. Now, anytime I think he's going to go (which has become less predictable) I put him on the potty and he pees and poops. We don't do the noises and things like that. I think it's just a comfortable position for him to go!

rianals

Well, I bought a potty chair today, but was unable to buy the Diaper Free Baby book. I had to special order it. I hope it arrives soon. DD is sleeping right now, but she usually wets her diaper right after her nap...I am going to try to catch it.

kat.in.the.hat

they also have a website with a lot of good info

diaperfreebaby