Another PTing question - solve the debate
I have done no reading or preparing for pting because it just seems like a concept that is so far away. Last week Aidan was making the poop face - you know the serious look of determination - and when he looked finished I signed change and asked if he needed one, he signed back and then walked over to the cabinet where the changing supplies are and grabbed his wipes. I thought it was a total fluke. But he has signed change back to me (no initiated on his own) and has gone to the cabinet a few times again.
I just see it as him putting together the fact that I sign change and then we go to the cabinet for supplies - not that he knows anything about the fact that he went. My MIL is convinced that I should start pting because of this - I don't agree. She thinks I am holding him back. I realize she thinks she has the smartest little grandson in the world but I'm just not seeing this as a sign of readiness. I don't think he 'gets it' yet - he just doesn't like to be wet so he pulls on his diaper when it is wet and then has done the cabinet thing a few times the past week. WDYT?
Re: Another PTing question - solve the debate
I say buy a potty and let him explore it, but don't PT. Base your next step on whether or not he's interested in the potty. Amelia will do similar things to Aidan and she'll pee in the potty if I put her on it (has since she was 13 months), but I didn't push it.
She loves to sit on the potty the tear off little pieces of toilet paper and put them in. She'll even put Elmo on the potty and pretend that he's going potty. I haven't really started potty training her because she's just now fully aware of her functions (at 17 months) and I'm so glad we didn't try sooner. I am thinking about giving PTing a go in the next few months, when I have a few days to stay put at home and really focus on it.
I agree with KelleyA... I bought a little potty and put it in the hall bath and Joe has NO interest in it. He does tell me when he has to poop... or when he has pooped but I tried to sit him on the potty and he screamed.
I think you need to follow his cues.
IMO
Hmm...I think it may be too early....but I haven't done much research on it. Joe is 16 months old and says "uh oh" when he is peeing or pooping...so I am thinking of buying a potty when he turns 18 months old. I think I read somewhere that when you start noticing dry daipers that he is starting to control his bladder more and that is time to start introducing the potty....but I don't know where I read that, so it may be wrong.
The whole concept of training Joe to go in the potty seems much grosser and nastier than changing a daiper...so I am in no rush (the mere thought of cleaning a poopy potty is ick!!
I think it's worth trying out. Because wouldn't it be wonderful if he was ready and it just went nice and easy?
We started out introducing the potty when DD was around 14mo - kind of like you described, we could tell she was about to poop (in our case, in the bathtub), so we'd sit her on a potty ring on the big potty and she'd poop there and we'd cheer and clap. She loved it. By the time she was 19mo old she did not poop anywhere except in the potty. And honestly? Having not changed a poopy diaper since Christmas... that's pretty nice for me.
E was having fun being a big girl. If she'd screamed when I set her on the potty I would not have pushed it, but if I hadn't even tried then I would have missed the chance to get her started when it was so easy.
I don't see what it can hurt to give it a shot as long as you don't push him if he resists.
I know the norm now is to wait until kids are 2.5, 3 or even older to PT. But back in the 60s and 70s most of us were PTd between 18mo-2y so obviously kids CAN do it earlier and I don't think we're scarred from it.