If you have successfully potty trained your toddler

daniella2727 · October 2013

Please share -

how did you do it? approach?

how old were they?

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time?

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out?

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together?

did you incentive with little toys or candy?

how did you respond to accidents?

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

jllmb79 · October 2013

3 day potty training method. No clothes from waist down for 3 days

21 months

got rid of diapers and only pull ups for nap and night sleep

still carry potty in car but hardly ever use it now that she uses public restrooms

I bought underwear but for 1 month after 3 days naked we did pants with out underwear

No candy or toys only a really crazy jump up and down celebration dance

Accidents: next time we go pee pee on the potty and show me where the potty is

sschwege · October 2013

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach?
We didn't follow any formal approach. We had a little potty for awhile and read potty books, so she was familiar with the idea. One day after a nap she told me she wanted to go potty, sat down and peed. To be quite honest I was planning to wait a little longer, but she was interested, so I followed her lead.
how old were they?
2 1/2
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time?
Started with just awake times. DD started waking up dry from her nap after a week or so, dropped the nap diapers. About a month later DD started waking up dry at night, dropped those as well.
did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out?
We have the Potette, which I carry in the bottom of the stroller. I use it in situations like when we are at the park and there isn't a bathroom close by. Also sometimes we would carry her little potty to the car just in case, but she has yet to need us to pull over.
what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together?
That day when she sat down and used the potty I took her to Target let her pick out two packs of underwear and M & Ms. Told her it was her decision if she wanted to wear the underwear or not, and that she would get 2 M & Ms every time she had a success on the potty. The first day she decided to wear the underwear over her diaper, the second day she decided she wanted to wear them without a diaper.
did you incentive with little toys or candy?
2 M & Ms, once that ran out we didn't buy more and she was fine with that.
how did you respond to accidents?
She is so sensitive she really felt bad about it. So usually I would be consoling her because she would burst into tears.

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

sschwege · October 2013

Oh one more thing, I know some methods frown upon this but we kept the potty in a central location for the first few weeks. So basically in our living room. The problem was I had a four month old who was still nursing a lot, plus babysitting for another four month old during the day, hence the reason I was not planning to start potty training for a little while longer. DD needed to be self sufficient enough to do most of it on her own, so it worked better to have it close by. Once she had the basic idea we moved the potty back to the bathroom without issue.

Leap08 · October 2013

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach? We do 3 day potty training.
how old were they?DD1 was 22 months; we're working with DD2 now, also 22 months.
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? We do pull-ups at night. The rest of the day they wear undies starting on day 1.
did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? No. DD1 has never had a problem using public toilets. She also doesn't have a problem peeing on the side of the road. We'll see how DD2 does. Potty training is still very new for her.
what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? Not much. We did buy undies and we talked about getting rid of diapers a lot and being a big girl.
did you incentive with little toys or candy? We do M & Ms (1 for pee; 2 for poop) and celebrate a lot.
how did you respond to accidents? We run to the bathroom and sit on the potty, even if she's already done going. I say things like "oh no, your panties are all wet. Yuck. Pee goes in the potty."

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

beckslea · October 2013

Please share -

how did you do it? approach? Initially we kept a small potty in the main bathroom and asked her if she would like to use it. Sometimes she did, others times not. We had her in pull-ups at this point. Around 29 months, her daycare teacher remarked she was really ready so we started to offer incentives so that she would want to. We offered two raisinettes for each poop or pee and handwash. She picked it up almost immediately.

how old were they? 29-30 months when she "got it".

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? No we let her decide about naps. She didn't want to wear a pull-up so I didn't make her and she did fine. For nighttime, I made her wear a regular diaper until about 2-3 months after she daytime PT'd "just in case".

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? Yes to both. I still take the potty in the car for long trips.

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? I picked out underwear I knew she would like (Minnie Mouse & Dora) and we talked about PT quite a bit.

did you incentive with little toys or candy? Stickers didn't work. We never offered toys. Candy worked great for her because she has a sweet tooth like her mama.

how did you respond to accidents? Just have her help to clean up. No fussing or scolding. She has only had a few accidents in the last 3 months.

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

erbear · October 2013

DD1 was trained a little after 3, totally on her own. I did nothing, she was ready, I told her that big kids didn't pee or poop in undies and that was that.

DD2 showed readiness around 2.5. I put her in undies, told her the same thing. She took a few days but she got it easily. We didn't train for night but she wakes up dry 90% of the time. Have never carried a potty in the car.

ashiscute · October 2013

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach? We had the potty seat out and offered it. When she was ready we just made an effort to take her potty every 90 mins or so until she started telling us on her own.
how old were they? 26 months
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? No I don't think you can do that really. Just start with awake time and their body will catch up with sleep time when they are ready. It took about 2 more weeks for her to be dry at naps and another 4 or so to be dry overnight.
did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? Never. We use a potty seat on the toilet. We've never used a little potty. She pees in public bathrooms when we're out. Even if its the park or a gas station.
what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? Buy some potty books and some princess undies.
did you incentive with little toys or candy? no
how did you respond to accidents? Take a deep breath and say "remember you need to tell mommy when you have to pee so that I can help you get to the potty."

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL -Good luck!

Soap1 · October 2013

DS1:

how did you do it? approach? Took away diapers and went to underwear. Put painters plastic down in his room and spent all day there.

how old were they? 22 months

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? No, I didn't worry about naps and nighttime for another year or so

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? Yes, but we rarely used it

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? Yes, purchased underwear

did you incentive with little toys or candy? Nope

how did you respond to accidents? Just took him to the potty. It was like potty training a dog!

DS2:

how did you do it? approach? Tried same approach as DS1, had less success

how old were they? 2 years exactly

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? We're STILL not nap and nighttime trained

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? no

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? Santa Claus brought him big boy underwear for Xmas

did you incentive with little toys or candy? Yes, for poop. Poop training took a LONG time, so we used special treats like cookies and candy

how did you respond to accidents? At first just like DS1. Later we expressed disappointment at accidents because he really did know what he's supposed to do

BelhurstBride · October 2013

Introduced the topic when she started showing interest in the potty. She wanted to wear panties and not a diaper but after a day or so of having to stop playing to go to the bathroom she decided it sucked and wanted a diaper back on.

About 6 months later she woke up one day asking for panties.

And that was that. She's never looked back and never had "accidents."

srcr2011 · October 2013

how did you do it? He didn't have much interest in the potty until we actually started potty training him. He would sit on it before a bath and that was pretty much it as far as an intro to it. He was ready though, he would always come to us and tell us to change him when was dirty. I read him a book that showed pictures of potties and kids on them. It was called "The Log Family". I am off during the summers, so I set a goal. The first week in June. But don't beat yourself up if you don't meet that goal. My mom suggested I put his portable potty in the living room. I put in there because that's where we spent the majority of the day. Playing with toys and watching Curious George. It was easier for him to remember to pee in the potty when it was in front of him (and I did put a bath mat under the potty to avoid smelly spills).After a few times, he had very few pee accidents. Pooping, well that's another story. As long as he had his undies on, he didn't need a diaper, he was happy to poop in the undies. I took off his undies and left him naked. He had no where to go and did not want to go without something on. He asked for a "pampo" (diaper) and brought one to me. I got wise to his little game, and hid the diapers from him. I was determined. He was crying to poop in a diaper and even asked for his undies. I waited and watched and when I saw he couldn't hold it any more, I slid the potty under him and PLOP! He pooped in the potty! We clapped, we sang, we danced, we cheered, we went crazy!

how old were they? My son was 2 and 4 months

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? Undies on DS while awake on Mon and Tues, and he peed EVERYWHERE. By Wednesday, naps in undies, and Thursday, undies 24/7.

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? YES!!! By saturday, he was done potty training and we went to a graduation party and took his portable potty with us. We kept it in the back of the SUV. We always had a potty for him, even if we ended up in the middle of no where. He likes to pee outside, on the bugs, on the ants, on the grass...as long as its not in his pants. When we is a little older, we will work on privacy

I really recommend one of the foldable seats for travel when your LO is used the the potty. It's sooo much easier (here's a link:) https://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11745552&cp=2255956.2273442.4213325.3242104.3242109&parentPage=family

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? No, but we already had some. Someone gave him some for his birthday. LOL but we did show him "How cool" they were. And my nephew (8 yrs old) let DS watch him use potty and see his cool undies.

did you incentive with little toys or candy? No, he pretty much got excited when we clapped and cheering him on

how did you respond to accidents? I never got angry at him or said "bad boy". I just told him don't wet "batman" (that's what he calls his undies cause they had batman on them). It's can be frustrating, but try to stay calm and positive even through the messiest mistakes

Also:
Continuity helped me A LOT! Same place, same time, by the same person...
HIDE the diapers from your LO if they like to get one and take it to you when dirty
Only do it when you know they are ready, each kid is different and learns are their own pace.

GOOD LUCK

blondie42107 · October 2013

Ds1 was just over 2 years old. Big boy underwear day one - 24/7; no pull-ups or diapers. Tighter fitting jammy bottoms helped keep the pee on the clothes and not as much on the floor, etc. Lots of laundry the first few days but within a week we were pretty much good to go.

Ds1 was already staying dry through the night. We use waterproof mattress pads and just had extras close by for bedtime and naps but it wasn't a huge issue.

CopperT0p · October 2013

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach?
We unsuccessfully tried when he was about 20 months. He would go on the toilet but wouldn't tell us when he had to go. We did the 3 day method and I was laid off at the time so I was home all day with him to work on it.
We backed off after 2 weeks and put him into training pants again. Then when he was 23 months all of a sudden he said "I have to pee" and from then on was going regularly on the toilet with few accidents. I think it helped that the daycare I got him into when I went back to work had a little kids toilet and they took him there regularly with all the kids. It was literally like a switch went off. After a week of being dry at daycare they asked us to start sending him in regular underpants and that was it.

how old were they?
23 months when he was finally ready.
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time?
We kept him in pull ups at night in the beginning, then when he was dry for 2 weeks straight we went to undies, but lately he's had several night accidents so we have gone back to pull ups just at night. He doesn't need them at naptime. He's been wanting to drink a lot more in the evening which is what is causing him to pee in his sleep, since he won't leave his bed at night.

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out?
We didn't bring anything with us except a change of clothes in the beginning. He always gave enough notice that we could find a toilet.

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together?
We let him pick out his underwear, which he was really excited about, we also had him put his cloth diapers into a storage tote and watch us pack them away.

did you incentive with little toys or candy?
No, just praise and high fives.

how did you respond to accidents?
"Oh dear DS, you're not dry".

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

Vespah · October 2013

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach?
how old were they?
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time?
did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out?
what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together?
did you incentive with little toys or candy?
how did you respond to accidents?

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

1. 3 day method, kept in diapers for naps and bedtime though.
2. 2 years, 2 weeks.
3. Day time only to start, slowly she just started waking up from naps and in the morning dry. After a few weeks she declared she didn't want to wear a diaper any more. That glorious moment was 5 months after day trained.
4. Still have a My Carry Potty in the car. She REFUSES to go in public toilets.
5. She went commando for about 2 months, much easier to just pull down one layer of fabric and doesn't have the feeling of undies which can also feel like a diaper. After she was more confident in going pee we introduced undies. For prep all we did was a daily countdown of how long until she became a big girl and was done with diapers.
6. Just high fives/fist bumps as reward
7. NEVER say "it's ok" say something like "oh, you pee'd on the floor, next time pee goes in the potty." If you can catch them mid stream it's the best thing ever. They really make the connection between the feeling of peeing and where it's supposed to go.

Good luck!

laurakaz13 · October 2013

Wow! I feel like I'm underestimating DD! You've all trained your LO's so early. I have just started training DD now at age 2 1/2. I just waited for her to show interest and ask to go on the potty. She's now going #1 and 2 on the potty, but still wears a diaper at night and for naps.

I'm in no rush. Daycare helps train her as well. But clearly I could be doing more to make it happen.

JoannaJes · October 2013

DD will be 3 next month, she decided several weeks ago that she would like to ditch diapers. We only use a little potty ring on the actual toilet. No portable potties, just a foldable ring that I put over public toilets. She got some stickers the first few times, but nothing after that. She still wears diapers at night. She really hasn't had accidents. She tells me when she has to go, I don't say anything. Both my kids trained right before 3, and it has been soooo easy with minimal accidents, so I never had to deal with a lot of these other aspects.

alake · October 2013

I have potty trained 3 out of five kids so far.
My oldest two:
I took them and bought them a potty at 14 months. I didn't really have a method.
DD1 was fully trained at 20 months. I started hard core training her at 18 months.
DD2 I did the same, but started hard core at 20 months. She wore a diaper to bed until 2.
DS we did the three day method at 28 months. I probably would have done it earlier, but there were some issues. He is adopted and we didn't get custody of him until he turned two. He was still settling into the house and getting used to his new surroundings. He was ready. I haven't used diapers at all since we started. We don't road trip often, but fly internationally lots. He is ok in public washrooms and on planes. We leave on Halloween: going from Miami, to Canada, Canada to Ireland and then back to Miami. I don't see any issues with this travel. We went from Miami, to Canada, Canada to Italy, Italy back to Canada and back to Miami over the summer and he did fine. He had been trained for less than a month before we left for Canada.
We don't do rewards, just lots of praise. We also don't get mad about accidents. They happen.

TriciaandSean · October 2013

My son has been in underwear since August and is dry 95% of the time but still has occasional poop accidents. I still wouldn't consider him fully potty trained because he doesn't tell us when he needs to go. He can hold his bladder a really really long time though. He goes in the morning, before nap, after nap and before bed as part of his routine. We also make him go if we are leaving the house and sometimes he fights us and tells us he already went potty today but will go. At school they have the kids go every hour or 2. On the weekends we don't push it and he stays dry able to hold it for 4-5 hours.

erbear · October 2013

I think there's no point in training your kid until he/she's ready. For DD1, it was just after 3. DD2 showed readiness at 2.5. I mean, you can do it whenever, but I don't consider someone potty trained when a parent puts him on the toilet every 30 minutes, even if he goes, YWIM?

kjdean · January 2014

daniella2727 said:

Please share -

how did you do it? approach? I used the 3-day potty training method on my son.
how old were they? he was 2 and showed interest in potty training.
did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? Just three days, but by the fourth day, he's already diaper-free
did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? Yes. But on the road, especially on a long journey, he had to wear his diaper inside the vehicle.
what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? I still purchase diapers to use it on him during sleep, but most of the time, I put underwear on him during the day.
did you incentive with little toys or candy? Yes, I give him toys, sometimes snacks like bread and biscuit but rarely sweets.
how did you respond to accidents? I'm a calm person so I respond calmly and asks my son to try not to do it again and tell me to accompany him to his potty.

gearing up to start in 2 weekends once our family stops visiting LOL

yeah. · January 2014

how did you do it? approach? Waited until she was ready, told her we don't pee in undies, and called it a day,

how old were they? 2.5ish

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? no. I put her in a diaper at night still, but she's dry about 95% of the time overnight.

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? We never brought a potty with us anywhere.

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? bought some underwear

did you incentive with little toys or candy? no

how did you respond to accidents? told her we don't go in our undies. She only had a few accidents once she was ready.

beezybaby · February 2014

how did you do it? She just started getting fussy about wearing a diaper so I figured we would try it. we did the no diaper at anytime except during naps and bedtime. We stayed home the first day, made one quick trip out the second, and by the third we acted as normal. I would say she was dependably potty trained by day 5.

how old were they? 2 years 1 week.

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? nope. Just used whatever was available, including the grass on a hike!

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? She was gifted panties for her second birthday- weird IMO- but we didn't use those or any others until she was more dependable. The feeling of underwear, or even tighter pants can make them feel like they have a diaper on. we just talked it up a whole bunch, did potty dances and celebrations any time there was a hit on the potty, and thats about it.

did you incentive with little toys or candy? yup. pez. but by now, 2 months in, she rarely remembers that she gets a treat. maybe once every three days.

how did you respond to accidents? at first very calmly, and we would ask her to help clean it up (not poop though). We would just explain that next time she should tell us she needs to go and that she should only go on the potty. Now, we speak in a bit firmer voice, she has to help clean up (while still in wet clothes) , and she puts her soiled clothes in a special hamper.

LinnyAnne10 · February 2014

how did you do it? approach? bought the potty, bought stickers, bought underwear. We started slow. Encouraged him to go, ask him all the time if he had to go. Took almost a year. He's now 3, and in the last 3 weeks he figured it all out. And has been in underwear with no accidnets for about a week now. It was like a switch for him. Daddy came home from deployment and he decided it was time for no more pull ups and went for it.

how old were they? started at 2 1/2 years, didn't figure it out until 3 years and 4months.

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time? We just did during the day, as we still need to break sippy cup at night before we tackle night time potty training, and naps just kind of went with day time.

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out? Nope, just wore a pull up, and then when he flipped the switch we just made sure we brought extra clothes just in case, and wore underwear when we go out.

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together? bought the potty chair (which was a waste of money never used the darn thing) and bought the underwear, and let him pick out the stickers he wanted

did you incentive with little toys or candy? Yup, stickers for peeing, and for pooping we did privileges and monster trucks.

how did you respond to accidents? Made no big deal out of them when they happened. Just said "Opps oh well, next time we go pee/poop in the potty!" and also made him sit on the potty if he had one, so he would get the idea.

Jenelle101 · February 2014

how did you do it? approach?

Well it was a little easier in our situation because I potty-trained 6 kids at the same time (I run a childcare/preschool from my home). It may not SOUND easier, but it really was. When they see each other doing it, it becomes a social thing for them. Anyway, my approach was to only have my daughter wear underwear. I set a timer for every 20 minutes, and sat her on the potty every 20 minutes. If she went pee, she got 1 mini M&M. If she pooped, she got 2 mini M&Ms.

how old were they?

She was 2 years, 3 months.

did you potty train for all times of day at once including naps and night time?

I put a pull-up on her at naptime and bedtime, but I noticed that once she was potty-trained during the day (it only took about 3 days), she wasn't peeing at night or naptime. It's like her body just "got it."

did you carry a potty with you in your car for road trips or just trips out?

We most definitely carried a potty whenever we were in the car. It came in VERY handy because you know how it is... when they gotta go, they gotta go!

what did you do in advance of planning -go purchase under wear together?

We picked out underwear together. She was very excited to become a big girl!

did you incentive with little toys or candy?

pee = 1 M&M, poop = 2 M&Ms. We stopped this after about a month...

how did you respond to accidents?

I never got angry. I just cleaned her up, and said we'll try again... I never wanted her to feel embarrassed or upset because I know they can regress if they feel this way.

GOOD LUCK! Our girl was potty-trained very easily. She worked hard for those M&Ms!

EDIT: And I agree with others to do it when the child seems ready. My DD was saying "potty," "poo-poo," and "pee-pee" at 14 months old. She was interested at a very young age, so we bought a potty at 14 months. We let her sit on it, and she was very familiar with it, but we didn't start until after she was 2.

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