Potty Training... Where to Begin

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When it comes to potty training, there's always the question of when?  When is the right time to start? When is your child really ready?  Where do you begin?  So, recently, when our two year old began showing interest, I knew it was time to head to Walmart, and pick up a package of Pull-Ups®Learning Designs®.

Ella has been watching her older brother use the potty for awhile now, so naturally it influenced her curiosity about using it as well... however, she is also our "wild child", like a squirrel, always on-the-go, and too busy to be bothered if something doesn't interest her, Therefor, I knew that getting started on potty training with her was going to require some creative tactics...

So, off we went to our local Walmart to pick up the necessary supplies.  We headed straight for the Baby section, where we found a package of 25 Pull-Ups, for only $8.97.  Then it was off to find some items to help make our potty area fun and exciting for Ella, because like I said, in order to slow her down, I knew we'd have to pull out all the stops!

This is why I love the fact that Pull-Ups feature fun character designs.  Ella loves Doc McStuffins, so getting to wear "big girl underwear" with her on the front, made her really excited.  This was a win for me, because while she was excited about wearing one of her favorite characters, I got to enjoy all of the great features that Pull-Ups have to offer.  Their new designs are more absorbent then they were in the past, which is awesome, because Ella tends to be a heavy wetter, and they offer 10% more coverage for protection and fit. I also love the fact that thanks to the built-in wetness indicator, character art is revealed when the Pull-Up is wet.

Another feature that I really enjoy is the easy open sides.  I prefer to treat the Pull-Up like regular underwear, to help promote the idea of it to Ella, so the stretchy (they are now 10% more stretchy then they were previously) and soft fit is great... but in a pinch, having sides that open, sort of like a diaper, can be really helpful.

My plan for working on potty training with Ella was to turn my kid's bathroom into an area that would make using the potty fun and exciting for her, so in addition to picking up some Pull-Ups, I grabbed some stickers, some of Ella's favorite treats, and some card stock, because I knew I would be creating a fun printable to hang near her potty to help encourage her to go.  This is why Walmart is so great, I can get everything I need in one shopping trip, which is essential when shopping with three kids!

The following are some great ideas for turning your bathroom into a fun area for your child to potty train in:

* Be sure that the toilet is accessible for your child, by using either a potty chair, or an insert for your full-sized toilet... If doing this, add a step stool, so that your child can reach the toilet.

* Create an easily accessible storage option to keep your Pull-Ups and treats/prizes close.  We keep a basket in the bathroom that holds stickers, a jar of "treats", and additional Pull-Ups for changing time.

* Use my free printable (included with instructions for printing below) or create a sticker chart of your own to keep near the potty... when your child successfully goes, they earn a sticker (let them put this on the chart themselves to add to the excitement), after successfully going several times, they earn a prize (some ideas for this are a small piece of candy, fruit snacks, or a small inexpensive non-food item/toy that they like)

* Be sure to praise your child and get really excited when they successfully go!

{free potty training printable}

To print, click the link above and download printable, then print onto card stock, and hang near potty!

All of these steps should get you on the right track for beginning to potty train your little one.  You're putting the idea out there, by using Pull-Ups, and by making using the potty fun and exciting for your little one.

Find out which character your child is when it comes to potty training here!

xoxo,

Adventures In Potty Training

Allow me to preface this blog post, by stating the (very) obvious... I am by absolutely no means an expert when it comes to potty training or pretty much anything else that comes along with the parenting of toddlers.  This post is merely a sharing of our experiences, what worked best for us, and what didn't, and a glimpse at the products that we used, that in my opinion, contributed to our overall success.

When the thought of potty training Max first crossed my mind (quite some time ago), I literally felt lost, like I had no idea where to start.  Of course I was aware that there are tons of resources out there, that offer up the latest and greatest methods on how to finally get your kid out of diapers, but I honestly wasn't sure which version would work best for us, and what would be most effective.

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I purchased our first potty chair, a little before Max turned 2, and I'll be honest, I had high hopes that my child would be a prodigy when it came to toileting, but I was quickly brought back to reality when I realized that he wanted absolutely nothing to do with it.

My thought process went a little something like this:  "I know, I'll purchase Max a potty chair... just to get him interested.  We'll read some books about going on the potty, and get really excited about it, and in turn he'll get really excited about it, and in no time it will be bye bye diapers."

In hindsight, I seriously must have been crazy.  I'd like to blame the fact that I was in my 3rd trimester of pregnancy with Ella, and it was wishful thinking that I would only have to deal with one child in diapers at a time... yeah, we'll just go with that.

When I mentioned to our pediatrician that I was considering giving potty training a whirl, he very quickly talked me down from the ledge and instructed me to wait until after Ella's arrival, to attempt such a thing.  He was concerned that Max was about to have enough change to deal with, and that we should cut the poor kid some slack and give it some time... so that's exactly what I did.

Before long, I had 2 kids under the age of 2, and even the slightest thought about potty training had slipped by the wayside.  Several months passed, before I decided to give it another try, and even then our attempts were halfhearted.

I still didn't feel comfortable forcing the issue, and really just wanted to put the idea out there and ease Max into it.  I wasn't surprised at all when he still had zero interest, as I had been told about a zillion times that boys could be tough to train in the toileting department.

In all honestly the sheer mentioning of the potty sent Max running for the hills, and so after being told on several occasions, that he would go when he was ready, I decided to drop the issue, once again, until he truly showed some interest.

That was until we decided to enroll Max in a preschool program this fall.  The program, though only 2 days a week and a couple hours long, demands that all of the children in the class are 100% potty trained... as in no pull ups, and no "regular" accidents.  This mandatory rule meant it was time to step our game... like now.

So, last Monday I set out to get Max potty trained once and for all. A friend of mine had sent me an extremely detailed email, outlining the "3 day method" (also in book form), which she swore had worked for her, so I decided we would give it our best attempt as well.

First thing that morning, Max helped me collect all of his diapers, and we placed them in a trash bag.  I explained to him that we were done with diapers, that he was a big boy now, and that if he wanted to go to school, he would have to pee and poop in the big boy potty.  Shockingly, he was pretty excited about this pep talk.  I then proceeded to put a pair of real underwear on him, and explained to him that big boys don't pee or poop in their underwear, and that they keep their underwear dry.

It's important to note here, that I had let Max pick out his big boy underwear himself.  I truly believe it helped that he was excited about the designs that he chose, which in turn made him even more thrilled to be wearing them.

The first morning, he had 2 pee accidents, very early on.  I made it a point not to get frustrated or upset about this, and instead focused on telling him that big boys keep their underwear dry, and that having wet underwear feels yucky.  On day 1, I watched him very carefully, and kept the potty chair close... in the living room even (gross, I know).  I probably asked him 1000 times if he was keeping his underwear dry, and would have him sit on the potty every 20 minutes or so to try to pee.

I was in a complete state of disbelief, when by 11:00 that morning, he was independently walking himself to the potty, announcing that he "had to go pee pee", and in fact going 100% by himself.  He was literally so excited about going on the potty, that he was totally disappointed when he would try and nothing would come out.  I did offer him a couple of m&m's every few times that he successfully went on the potty, and that was enough for him, I never had to offer any other form of prize.  I did offer him lots to drink that day, and even allowed him to have a few popsicles to encourage things along, but other than that, it took very little to transform him into a pottying pro.

I'll wrap all of this up with these thoughts... I'm not sure whether our success can be attributed to the 3 day method, the fact that Max was finally ready, or if it was a combination of both.

We spent 3 days at home, literally not leaving the house, and dedicating ourselves to getting him trained... and while it was a tough 3 days, it was totally worth every second we put into it  He is still wearing pull ups at night (which I should note, I always put on him while he is standing, I never lay him down to "change" him anymore), but he's been waking up dry in the mornings more often than not lately, and I finally feel confident about sending him to preschool, even though just a little more than a week ago, the thought of him leaving the house in underwear terrified me.

If you are interested in the 3 day method, you can find a ton of info on it by googling it, or by looking on pinterest, and by all means if you have any questions about it, please feel free to ask.  I'm curious though, what methods did you guys use?  What worked best for you when it comes to potty training, and how did you get your little ones potty trained at night?