Anyone have any good potty training tips?

Question

We have a boy. He turns three in March and we have a baby due in Febuary. He shows all the signs.

I would like to have him out of diapers by the time the new baby arrives.

What "techniques" did you use?

How exactly did you do it?

What do/did you do when you run to the store or when you'll be gone for the day?

I thought three was ok too (especailly for boys)! Thanks for the reassurance, SD.

Answer 1

put him in underwear, non of these pull ups nonsense. Take him to the bathroom every time he wakes up, before and after meals and anytime you or dad have to go. Ask him every 15 to 20 minutes if he needs to go. Praise him highly when he does, say nothing when he has accidents. Just help him get clean and dry again. I guarantee that in two weeks, he'll be potty trained. It only took my first one 3 days to go accident free! My second was stubborn, grrrr, and would pull down his pants and underwear and poop in the floor, pull them back up and keep going. He was tough to get through to, but it only took him about 2 1/2 weeks, and he wasn't showing signs of being ready, at all. (It was time though. I had 6 month old twins, and it was 3 months before his 3rd birthday as well.) I always potty train the Christmas before their third birthday. Which means I'll be potty training twins this time next year. Santa gets them the toys and mom and dad get potty chairs, underwear (you'll need lots and lots of underwear) and anything else. Books to read on the potty an such.

When you go anywhere, be sure to pack two extra pair of underwear, pants, and socks, just in case. Gerber underwear are really nice when he's first learning. They have an absorbent panel in the front. You can also buy those plastic pants, to contain the mess. Just be sure to check often to make sure he's dry. Visit the potty before you leave the house, when you get where you're going, and again before you leave. When you leave him with someone else, make sure they understand that you're potty training. Get rid of his diapers, don't put another one on him, starting tomorrow. I'm telling you, he'll feel it run down his leg a couple times, and not want that to happen anymore. Be sure that they're willing to clean up after him if, and when, he has accidents. (For poopy messes, it's easiest to rinse the underwear in the toliet, and then wash them ASAP. If you have a sitter, you could have the washing machine full of cold soapy water, and she could just though them in. When you get home you can turn in on and wah-lah clean pants!

Good luck, if he's showing signs he's ready it'll be a breeze!

and to comment on your first answer: I don't think three is too late! People let their kids suck on pacifers at four, go get on to THEM. They're ruining their kids teeth for Christ sake! It's a proven fact that starting TOO early actually sets the process BACK. Johnson and Johnson makes a little book, for about 5 bucks, full of potty training tips!

Answer 2

I understand where you are coming from. I felt like a bad parent because my son just wouldn't get it. We started by using no diapers in the day at all and having him wear only a shirt around the house. If we went out we had back up clothes just in case. We tried the aim game where you put cheerios in the toilet to help them aim at. At night we put him in pull ups, just so we didn't have to change his sheets every day. Once he was used to that we would limit is intake before bed and put him in underwear. We only had two night accidents. For the rest of the accidents, we explained to him that if he continued to pee in his pants that he would have to go back into the crib and he wouldn't be able to play with his big boy toys anymore. He finally got the hang of it and now we have no problems. I started potty training when he was 2 and he was not completely potty trained until he was about 3 1/2 years old. He is almost 4 now! Oh and we also used a reward system in the latter part. We made a potty chart and if he went a whole week with out an accident we gave him something little like tattoos, pencils, or crayons. After two weeks we went to the store and he got a toy the he wanted! That seemed to work really well. Good luck and congrats on the new baby!

Answer 3

Just because YOU would like to have him out of diapers by the time a new baby arrives doesn't mean he is ready to be potty trained. As to "all of the signs"...what would they be? Taking off a diaper, once kids figure out how to do it ALL of them do it not because they're ready to sit on the toilet but because they LIKE being naked. Ever try putting shoes on a little one? They don't like it...they prefer being barefooted. They also prefer their butts being uncovered. If he is requesting to sit on the toilet then by all means start putting him up there. Don't expect him to automatically know what to do when he's there though, because he probably doesn't have a clue as to WHY he is there, he just saw someone sit there so he figured he should try it. If he continues to request, then continue to put him there, then when the one time its timed just right you can praise him and let him know that that is what that seat is for. But don't figure the job is over. A child isn't FULLY potty trained until they are dry day and night and until they are don't go putting underwear on him or you'll be washing four or five pairs of underwear a day on top of doing diapers. And by all means don't do the "pullups" thing. They're too much like diapers in the way they feel and the child will not get the same sensation when going in underwear as he will with pullups. Pullups hold in the wetness...undewear doesn't.

Answer 4

Wow, three. Sounds like you're starting a little late. Make him wear just a t-shirt around the house. Give him lots of fluids. Make him sit on the potty atleast 2 times an hour. Pay really close attention to him and any signs he gives that he has to go. If you think he does put him on the potty. Make a really big deal out of it if he goes. Candy, music, dancing etc. Soon he will relate the sensation with sitting on the potty. GOOD LUCK

Answer 5

Try putting a cheerio in the toilet for #1, make an "aim" game for him. For #2, try giving him some fun potty books, but them on the back of the toilet and let him choose which one he wants to look at. Just give him time. I had the same problem for my little girl. Going #1 was easy, however #2 was hard, until I did the books. Good luck.

Answer 6

This is great! My sister just put my 2.5 year old nephew in "big boy pants" today! She grabbed him and held him so he was looking at her. She said "You cannot pee in these. If you have to go potty, tell Mom or Dad." Then, we played wtih him for a while. Before I left, I said I had to pee. Nephew got excited because he had to as well. Sis took him into the bathroom and showed him how to pull down the undies and go. They usually keep him in a t-shirt when they are around the house, and ask him frequently if he needs to go. He tends to go by himself if he has no diaper on. They said that even when he naps without a diaper he tends to hold it, so push for him to go without as much as possible. I have also heard that the book "Everybody Poops" can help with #2-ing.

Answer 7

First you'll need lots of patience. Then I used to put my daughter in underwear. I let her pick them out at the store. Then I let her wear them at home and if she had any accidents, Which she did LOTS. I would remove her underwear and she would watch me place them in the washing machine. After about a week, she began to realize that she loved her underwear she picked out and would run to the bathroom and pee in the toilet. Then we would show her how excited we were and of course she loved the attention and that was how it all started. Besides Patience you will need a carpet cleaner, a good one in a spray bottle and lots of bounty paper towel. I trained her in less then 7 days while I was off of work. Good Luck with whatever you choose. :)

Answer 8

too early - too late we mommies just can't win!All the advice here sounds pretty standard, so it must work. (eventually) Just remember to keep your cool - set down the new routine - and stick to it (I use a timer to remind ME to check if ds needs to go. ) Everyone promises that if I relax and let it happen it will. GO FIGURE!

Do go and check out dr. phils toilet training ideas - they were helpful. Then by a commercial size bottle of carpet cleaner and a lot of paper towels.

Good luck!

ps - if it takes a week or 2, you may only have 4 or 5 weeks to reinforce the new habit before baby. Be sure to praise praise praise after baby and don't feel mad if he regresses. You may be too tired to deal with it all right now, and after baby2. ??

Answer 9

Do not reward him with food this is not a good thing to do but definetly reward him with something I got my son a sticker album and every time he used the potty he got to pick a sticker to put in it he was trained in a week
Do not use pull ups they do not help at all.

Answer 10

Place jrs favorite candy in a container out of reach in the bathroom and every time he goes in the potty give him a peice.