Your best potty-training tip. NOW.

by Karen Walrond (Subscribe to Karen Walrond's posts) May 8th 2006 3:32PM

Sorry if I seem a bit snipey today -- but really, I've HAD it with the potty training thing. I'm sick of puddles and pull-ups, man, just sick of it. But most of all, I'm sick of being nice about it. All the books say you shouldn't apply any pressure on your child -- that it should be fun! The Toilet is Our Friend! So far, I've been great -- celebrating all her potty successes, and giving a small sad "uh-oh," when she's had an accident, followed by a "No biggie -- we'll just clean it up," with a smile, and a reminder: "Remember, Alex? We peepee in the POTTY." And she smiles and says "potty" together with me and it's just a laugh a minute.

Thing is? What I really want to do is yell, "GIRLIE, ONE MORE PUDDLE AND I SWEAR YOU'LL STAY IN THE NAUGHTY CORNER UNTIL YOU'R E15!!!"

*ahem*

Anyway, my patience is really wearing thin. Anyone have any tried-and-true tricks for getting your kid to consistently go to the potty? I'm not talking through naps and bedtimes -- I just would like a consistent, "I have to go to the potty" while she's awake. She does it occasionally, but I want it every time.

EVERY. TIME.

Comments (37)

Reader Comments (Page 1 of 2)

wookie 5-08-2006 @ 3:37PM

Persistance and consistency?

For us, the positive "happy" stuff didn't work for Sh*t. And we're still hit and miss on her knowing when she has to go.

However, consistently bringing her there and letting her try every 20-30 minutes (at the beginning) did get her used to succeeding in "putting pee in the potty". Especially before beginning or transitioning from an activity (ie- no TV/breakfast/whatever until you've gone to the bathroom).

And a while after that was working, we moved to reminding her verbally "Do you need to go, it's time to go" and letting her manage the mechanics more independently.

thordora 5-08-2006 @ 3:38PM

Thank you for asking this. Vivian is almost 3, and toying with me. She won't do it consistantly, usually only when it's bedtime to stall.

LS 5-08-2006 @ 3:43PM

O.M.G.!!! Thank you thank you thank you for this post!! Your day seems to have mirrored mine. We started the day with a puddle on the floor, and my son gleefully yelling "PUDDLE!!" and jumping in, thereby SPLASHING PEE ALL OVER THE FLOOR!!!

I firmly believe that the Pull-ups are hampering our efforts, because he doesn't feel uncomfortable when he pees. I'm seriously considering going "Commando Mom" on him, and putting him in cloth diapers so he gets uncomfortable when he wets.

I'm on deadline, here. We have to have him "reasonably" potty trained by September, when pre-school starts. So I, too, am desperate.

Any books that you guys can recommend? ANYTHING?? PLEASE???

Sara 5-08-2006 @ 3:44PM

My kids were really easy to train so I don't know how much help I can be but I just reminded them constantly about going to the potty and downright insisted that they go at least every hour. I used a digital watch with an alarm to remind me to take the girls to the potty. I also limited drinks while we were out. Good luck...it will get better quickly!

Victoria 5-08-2006 @ 3:48PM

She's still pretty young, it might take a while til she goes without prompting. :)

I kept my son naked for the first week and took him every 15 minutes at first, then stretched it to 20 min, then 30 min and so on.

ann adams 5-08-2006 @ 4:19PM

I'm a bad granny. I bribed two of them. They got to paste a sticker for each success. That did it.

The youngest just picked it up by herself - probably from watching the others.

AJ 5-08-2006 @ 4:21PM

I know every child is different, but what is working for us is flat-out bribery. My daughter is 23 months old next week and showing signs of being interested in potty training, so I used this tip from a friend.

Everytime she goes potty successfully she gets a piece of chocolate (her favorite candy) and I have since stopped giving it to her otherwise....so if she wants a piece, she'll run to the potty and at least try to go....and she's successful about 9 out of 10 tries. We're just starting this whole process though - I have no clue if this will work long-term or not. Good luck to you!!

Ginny 5-08-2006 @ 4:22PM

We were told to put the potty chair in the area where we "hung out" the most. I think this helped. I don't remember potty training being a big deal. Having it right there where we were reminded them to use it. Outa sight, outa mind ya know.

becca 5-08-2006 @ 4:25PM

for boys, try tossing FrootLoops or Cheerios into the potty for "target practice"! makes potty training a fun game.

marnie 5-08-2006 @ 4:37PM

We had fairly good luck with our son using these guidelines:

1) Bribe with stickers, candy...we even made up a reward chart where my son would get a "big" reward after filling it up. (Trip to get ice cream, new matchbox car, etc.) I know, bribes, ick, but in this case it works works works. (We did a single fruit snack--my kid loves those things--for peeing and two pieces for pooping.)

2) Have your child go commando. Ditch everything--pull ups, underwear, pants, you name it. (Obviously this is for at-home use only. Stay at home for a couple of days, if you can. If you must go out, use underwear and bring along a few changes of clothes.)

3) Take the potty with you, whatever room you're in, have it with you. This helped us enormously.

4) We gave my son a huge incentive: he had to be able to use the potty if he wanted to go to preschool the next month. It was a great motivator. He was also really excited to wear his new robot underwear.

Hope this helps at least a little bit!

Elizabeth 5-08-2006 @ 4:37PM

Isn't Alex a little young for full-on potty training? Dorothy is almost the same age, and she uses the potty occasionally, but she clearly doesn't know yet when she "has to go." Our daycare generally advises not trying to start potty training at least until they're getting through their nap dry - they think that's a good indicator that the kids have the physical ability to hold it until they get to the potty.

Sharon 5-08-2006 @ 4:38PM

When my daughter was in the midst of potty training and was about at the point where Karen's daughter is, we stumbled upon something that helped us along.

We were visiting my mom and she was using that toilet bowl cleaner that leaves the water in the bowl blue. When my daughter went #1 in there, it turned a greenish color, which she though was pretty cool! When we got back home, we started using it in our bowls to encourage her to tell us every time. By the time we got sick of the stuff she wasn't having any accidents.

I have also heard of some parents throwing a cheerio in the bowl and having their son aim for it.

Jerri Ann 5-08-2006 @ 4:43PM

No tips, just complete and utter agreement. My son is 3 and uses it fine at daycare, but we've been in underwear since last Thursday and used the potty a handful of times, only a handful. Once when I reminded him that he had to tell me "before" he had potty , he looked at me like I was on crack and said, "BEFORE?" as if he was just now "getting it" but no matter, he didn't get it then either!

ann adams 5-08-2006 @ 4:50PM

Thank you commenter #11. I was wondering what happened to the Froot Loop suggested by #8 (becca).

Sharon 5-08-2006 @ 5:00PM

The Froot Loops are a great idea, too (guess I missed that one!).

Mandie Christenson 5-08-2006 @ 5:19PM

Pretty soon it will be EVERY TIME- every 5 minutes in the car- every 5 minutes at the market- the last 5 minutes of the movie. Sounds like you need a break from training and bets are she does too.
Don't worry she won't need diapers for college!!

Kimberly Koski 5-08-2006 @ 5:21PM

I'm new and desperate, hence why I'm here. Please help if you can. My son is giving every indication that he is ready for the potty. I have a 16 and a 14 y/o so I'm using all the old school practices I used in the past. Going commando, keeping the potty within arms reach, etc. He's able to stop his stream when he starts to "puddle" (excellent sign) but when I get him on the potty, he acts as if he is absolutely terrified! I don't know what to do! I sing songs, bought a potty that plays a congratulatory song when he deposits, clap, generally act as if he's just brought peace to the middle east, every positive behavior that you can imagine and still he's freaked. Any suggestions? I'm about to give up and this kid will be graduating hs in his wet under 'roos.

Hollie 5-08-2006 @ 5:22PM

My daughter will be 3 this week and is just now potty trained. It was frustrating, but there really is some truth to the saying "when then they are ready, they will go."

Check out www.charmin.com. They offer a FREE potty training kit. I didn't even have to pay shipping. I was impressed. It had a big sheet of stickers, a book, and a chart. It really helped encourage her to go. I think thats what really got her going consistantly.

I tried everything..........toys, candy, stickers, the works.....then one day a coule weeks ago, she just started going. Thank goodness!

Best of Luck!!!

Matthew Miller 5-08-2006 @ 5:24PM

A story I *think* got to from some link on Blogging Baby but can't find now gave a statistic I thought was useful enough to remember for the future -- half of all kids where potty training was started at age 2 were not 100% trained by age 4. However, when training started at age 3, almost all were completely trained by age 4.

I have no link with which to back up these numbers. :)

Kimberly Koski 5-08-2006 @ 5:25PM

Mommies and daddies - Don't forget training pants and plastic pants. Much better than pull-ups and certainly better than cloth diapers since the child still thinks of them as "big boy/girl pants". Cheaper, and you don't go through as many outfits when you're out. When home just use the training pants sans plastic pants, easier to get down in a hurry! Helped my two!

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