Potty Training and Work

I bought my daughter (who is now 7) regular toddler panties - not the padded kind and not pullups - with "Little People" on them (she was really into them at the time). We made a BIG deal about her having big girl panties. I spent a weekend at home with her and after a few times of her peeing in them and being REALLY unconfortable, she started to go to the bathroom to go. I did this in the spring so she just ran around the house in her panties and a T-Shirt. We did pull ups at nap and bedtime for awhile but she had very few accidents. Good luck to you...I know it can be very frustrating!!

As I wrote to the other mom, this is more about training you than him.

We're using a timer and we go everytime it goes off, starting at every 15 minutes. If he goes then he gets a reward if he doesn't then he just goes back in his pull up.

my son is 2 but I still know the feeling. I never have time and I don't even have a job. What I do with my guy is take him into the bathroom with u when u go and put him on the big potty if possible. My son wouldn't go in his potty chair we got but as soon as I put him on the big potty with a potty seat he started going.

ok, this is a good one. Have whoever watches him while you are working and in school potty train him too. When he has a drink, time it and watch his face. They know you're trying to train them. But, after he drinks, wait a bit and put him on the pot, the same for poo-poo, after he eats, it usually wants to push out food he has eaten. It's not easy and since you're so busy, give yourself a break and take it slow. Talk to him and let him know this is where he goes pee-pee and poo-poo, and wean him off the pampers, that's his security. Buy some pull ups for big boys and let him know he's not to wet or poo in them. And, I know you won't like this, but we got the same treatment when we were coming up. Spank lightly when he goes on himself so he'll know he's done something wrong. It works

I would suggest putting him in training pants, not diapers. But your care taker has to be willing to jump on the boat. Put the kido in training pants (cloth ones, NOT disposable!)and no pants, put him on the potty about once an hour. If he has an "accident" clean him up in the bathroom, explaining that he had an accident and the toliet is where pee and poop goes. When he does finally goes on the potty make a big deal about it. What will happen is that he won't like the feel of being wet (and let him no that there are no more diapers...they went bye-bye), and going on the potty is a better choice. The first couple of weeks sucks...I will admit it. They are having a ton of accidents and you will be washing training pants every night. But what will happen, is that he will learn to hold his potty to space it out, and that it is more pleasent to go on the potty versuses getting all wet and "yucky" (as my potty trained 2 year old says...). The book I used to help me along was called "Diaper Free Before 3". Great book...you should be able to get it at any bookstore...I got ours from the library. My kid has been successfully potty trained for months. We maybe average 1 accident a week. By using the book's method, it was a pretty easy transition w/o too much heartache.

Hi S.,
I'm going through potty training right now with my daughter and I've realized there's nothing quick about this process! She does get lots of reinforcement at her daycare because they take regular potty breaks, and it helps to have some peer pressure at this age! Also, the reward for going in the potty is one goldfish cracker for #1, and 2 for #2, and as simple as that seems, she really wants those goldfish crackers! However, as willing as she is to sit on the potty, she doesn't always go, and we have sessions as long as 30 minutes when we sit, get up, wash hands, change diaper and then go through it all again! I don't know if it's a matter of just relaxing enough to go or what! So, we sing songs and I try to keep her focused on going. If she is just playing and doesn't seem like she will go, then I make her get off the potty. Also, we do try wearing big girl panties and she's finally to the point when she doesn't want to wet in them, so she will run to the potty when she does have to go. We have had several accidents to get us to this point though. I have friends who swear that if you leave the diaper off your child and suffer through a few accidents that they will potty train faster, but like you, I rarely have a full day when we can do that, and I really don't like having the messes on my carpet. I know she is getting closer to being potty trained, but it is a process that takes a lot of consistency and patience. I wish you the best of luck!

My son just turned three and just potty trained. We didn't offer rewards or bribes. We didn't force him to sit on the potty. We didn't drag him in the bathroom at 15 or 30 minute intervals. He knows how to use the potty. So we just waited until he was ready to do it himself. One day he decided he was done with diapers and we haven't had an accident since. So my advice is to not stress too much over it. All kids train eventually.

Get your darecare provider involved if they are not already. Set up a schedule to sit him on the pot every 30 minutes, if he goes reward him, maybe just a sticker on a chart and when he gets so many stickers, give him a reward. Once he's going regularly bump it up to every hour. Also take him EVERY time he asks. Don't get frustrated. Boys especially take a longer time usually. He will go when he is good and ready.

I just potty trained my two and a half year old a few months ago. I found it easiest to take her in the bathroom and let her try, when I could tell that she hadn't gone then I would turn the water on, and of course she broke weak every time the water was turned on. LOL. I had a bag of gourmet jelly beans and everytime she went in the potty she could get 5 jelly beans (thats how many fit in her hand). I also watch a little girl who's Mom works nights and I trained her the same way. They were so excited about the jelly beans they took to it really well. I didn't use any type of traing pants when I did it. I let her pick out her panties and she picked out lady bug/butterfly and Princess panties. Then, I told her she needed to keep her new panties dry. We made it a huge deal when she peed in the potty. We gave her five and told her Good Job! She still has an occassional accident here or there when she has held it too long, but I look at it this way, I can clean the carpet for what I spend in a few months on diapers. I hope this helps!~ S. I.