Potty Training

Okay, for those of you that know I got peed on during the sacrament about a month ago, you'll realize that this whole potty training thing isn't perfect. Not only that, but we also had an "outpotty" as Morgan calls it, in the back of the car for our road trip this last weekend. So, there are definitely some things to "fine tune", but what can I expect? Morgan isn't even 2 yet!

Anyway, I thought I would post my mini novel of things that I learned during potty training, in hopes that other people can get their own ideas, and hopefully be more successful in this endeavor we all get the privilege of embarking on.

Okay, so this isn't the complete list of potty training ideas/tips that I have discovered, but they will definitely improve your potty training experience (at least they did mine!).

* First off, read the book, "Toilet Training in a Day." It's an old, old book, but definitely worth it. (It will be WELL WORTH THE MONEY to buy it on Amazon. Everyone that I've talked to says it's wonderful.I didn't read the whole book, cover to cover, I basically started at the beginning and skimmed through it to get the basic idea. For instance, the book suggests getting a baby that wets to show your child how to go in the potty--I just let Morgan figure it out. She didn't take long to figure out that you go pee pee in the potty. I also skipped the whole section about teaching her how to dump the potty into the toilet. I'd rather not have any messes, so I just empty it for her.

*Give yourself a day with NO OTHER DISTRACTIONS (i.e. have someone watch your baby, or have your husband be gone with the baby as much as possible all day--I know this is hard when you're nursing, so maybe arrange to pump a couple of bottles worth, just to get through at least part of the day).

*Pick ONE room and keep your child in it. Morgan was allowed to play in the family room only. This gave her easy access to the bathroom, while not letting her all over the house. I didn't let her in her bedroom, and she was strongly discouraged from going into the kitchen. This does a couple of things: 1. it minimizes messes all over the house. 2. It helps your child understand that there is something going on (potty training) and he needs to stay more focused.

*Panties are a PRIVILEGE! Morgan wore panties and a shirt while we were training. If she wet her panties, then she lost them until the next time she went potty in her potty chair successfully. Sometimes this was about 15 minutes. Other times, it was a couple of hours. However, she wanted her panties back because I severely limited her privileges when she didn't have them on. No panties= no sitting on the couch, no sitting on Mommy or Daddy's lap, she had a choice of only about 3 activities (her zoo, her piano, and her magna doodle). If it was meal time, she ate on the floor--no furniture if you don't have panties. It didn't take long for Morgan to figure it out, and recently, if she has an accident and loses her panties, she asks for water and will sit on her potty chair until she has a success so she can get them back.

*Keep a record of the day or you will feel like you are getting nowhere. The first day, I marked 4 accidents on my chart before I finally got to mark a success. The next little while, it was only 2 accidents before a success. The list quickly became even, and then we achieved more successes than failures. However, without this list, I would have given up, thinking she wasn't progressing, even though she really was.

*Reward and/or Discipline IMMEDIATELY! As soon as I heard Morgan starting to pee in the potty, I clapped my hands, told her how exciting it was, and gave her a treat (PB M&Ms worked great for us). Likewise, as soon as I saw an accident, I picked her up and went straight to the potty and sat her on it, all while explaining that we don't go potty in our panties (I didn't do it 10 times like the book says...once usually got the message across). If she ever asked for a treat, I explained to her that she needed to go pee pee or poo poo in the potty in order to get a treat. That it was a reward for going to the potty.

*Watch the clock (I kept a timer and took Morgan potty every 20 minutes). They don't quite understand that they need to tell you they need to go potty. In their diaper, they can go whenever. I figured out that for the first few days, 20 minutes was good. Morgan could hold it for at least that long, but I wasn't making her sit on the potty all day. If there was a success, I rewarded her immediately. If she didn't go, that's okay. Set the timer and try again in 20 minutes.

* Assure him that his toys will still be there when he gets back from the potty. Morgan always thought her toys wouldn't be there when she got back and she didn't want to stop to go potty. I assured her that her toys would stay and we would go right back to playing, but we needed to sit on the potty first. Now, she's figured out how to pee in about 10 seconds (or less) and go right back to her toys after she's done.

*Make sure you take him potty as the last thing you do before leaving the house, and the first thing when you get home. Set predictable times that he can expect he will have to go potty. For instance, Morgan goes as soon as we hear her peep in the morning. If she's not completely awake, and is still groggy, I'll carry her to the potty and sit her down. She also knows she will have to go about 25-30 minutes after dinner and just before bed. This helps the child learn to adjust to these "planned" potty times.

That's all I can really think of for now. If you have any questions when you're ready to try, don't hesitate to call. I was calling my sister at least a dozen times a day asking questions like, "How should I get her to stop peeing in time out?" or "How long should I make her sit on the potty when I know she should be going poo soon?" I'm no expert, but I'm happy to help and give any advice I may have.
Good Luck! It's only a couple days that is horrible if you stick to it, and then it's super EASY and you'll be glad you did it!