Potty Training - Houston, TX

Stickers on a chart in the bathroom worked wonders for my son. He loved picking out his stickers and putting them on the chart for going potty. 1 sticker for going #1. 2 stickers for going #2.

I was having such a hard time potty training my oldest. I finally went to what we call "potty stickers". I put a poster board in the bathroom and everytime he went to use the potty, he picked a sticker to put on the poster board. There were little ones for when he attempted to go and bigger ones for when he was able to actually use the bathroom. It worked so good for him that I used it for the next kids..4 of them total.
I hope this helps.
Have a great day.
Jo M.

Hi L.,
Both of my girls were fully potty trained by the time they were 22 months. Make it fun. Celebrate, celebrate, celebrate when she is successful on the potty. Make a lot of noise and be silly. Any time I would go to the bathroom, my girls went with me and tried on their potty. They loved this. In between the times I needed to go, we took one of their babies or stuffed animals in the bathroom and told them to show it how to use the big potty. Then give the baby or stuffed toy a try. Also, a lot of praise goes a long way. I hope this helps.

All of my kids have been different, but with my daughter who is now 2, I just keep her in panties all day if possible.. (this also helped remind me to take her to potty every hour or so). There are a few accidents during the day, but every time there is I put her on the potty afterwards. It seems to reinforce to her visually, (even when she was younger) that this is where it goes- in the potty! Also, we have a jelly bean jar in the bathroom so whenever she goes (or tries hard) she gets one. I hope this helps some! Good luck!

My daughter is 16 months and we use "poo poo popcorn." I have popcorn in a ziplock bag that we keep in the bathroom. She can only eat it while she sits on the potty. she is very motivated to sit on the potty and uses it whenever she has to go.

Although mine was 3 when I potty trained. I found that putting her straight in panties and dealing with the accidents worked. She hated having accidents and wearing any type of diaper or pull up was a hindrance to potty training.

Go to http://www.tinkletoonz.com That is the best potty ever! It is simple and easy for them to use plus it rewards them with music when they go. Boys are harder to train, they say. I had mine trained in 2 days with this potty at 18 months. We didn't push it on him or make him sit on it or anything when we got it we just told him it was HIS potty. That night within 2 hours of getting it he went pee then later on he went #2! It works great! The only thing about it is that it might startle them at first when they go because it starts to play music. My son would stop going to hear the music then start up again. I should be a sales consultant for this potty because I believe in it so much! Put it in the bathroom next to the real one then you can eventually move to the real potty.

Potty training is more about the mom than the kid. If you're ready to go full time, set a buzzer for every 60 minutes and put her on the potty. If that's too long or too short, adjust the time. Also, as a girl she should do well. Just remember that if she doesn't respond she may not be ready, but give it a fairly good run (at least 5 days) and don't punish- this is learning and everyone makes mistakes when they're learning.

Good Luck!
A. (mom of 3 grown boys- one trained at 18 months, one trained at 3 and one trained at 4)

Best of luck..I have 7 children and decided after the "stress" of potty training my oldest daughter the next ones got trained when they brought the panties to me and asked to be trained!! It was a one day process and no messes and no stress!! Ha Ha!! So if she isn't ready don't fear, she will be ready even if it isn't during your spring break.

All I can say is that I was ready for my daughter to be trained (she just turned 2) because I am having #2 in May and she just doesn't want to. She was doing great for awhile and was really excited about it, but then she just decided she didn't want to use the potty anymore. She would tell me that she didn't want to and I didn't want to push it and make matters worse. So, I explained that if she didn't want to use the potty, then she couldn't wear pull ups (she really liked wearing them....made her feel like a big girl). I told her that she could decide...either she could wear pull ups and use the potty or she would have to wear diapers again. She picked diapers, so that's what we did. She knows how to go on the potty and knows when she needs to go, but she didn't want to and if they don't want to, they aren't going to be successful with it. So, my advice would be to try it and if she shows any signs of stress, let it be for awhile and let her tell you when she's ready. I figure now that my daughter knows how and what to do on the potty, when she's ready to do it, it will happen in a day and we'll be done with it. I am planning to buy her some big girl underwear and show them to her so that she has a new incentive to tell me when she wants to go, but we won't start using them until she is ready to start using the potty again. Best of luck to you!

BUY SOME BOOKS!! Look on amazon.com about infant or baby potty training - there are some good ones but I don't have the titles on the top of my head.

I personally wouldn't push. If she is ready (which, at 19 months is doubtful) let her run around naked for that week, and set the timer. Take her every 15 mins so she learns what it's like.

Again, though, i wouldn't bet on her being ready. I'd put my money on her not being ready yet.

First of all I applaud you knowing to take a week off to do this. My daughter wasn't interested till she was at her grandmas alot one summer with her cousins and sister in law who are all 3 to 6 yrs older than her. They are all girls so they'd all pile up in the bathroom together. I guess this interested her to start going. One because my daughter is a take charge person even as an toddler so she'd say I want to do it, I want to do it and she'd just yank her diaper off, even when she didn't need to. Needless to say the diaper would have to be changed because it wouldn't re-stick!!Very trying time. She was 17 months old, I wasn't ready and she thought she was and did well with those older girls around. It was hard when we were home by ourselves because then she wasn't interested and then yes theres those moments when she'd just yank the diaper off. So I was pretty much forced to just do it. I wasn't working but I had planned my days those first two weeks to mainly stay home as much as possible. I think the hardest thing is, that anything they do that is part of them growing is exciting to them that they can master it then they regress when they realize that they may not get to go back and claim their boundary causing them to want some control. I took them over to play with their older cousins because I was told that it helps when they see kids a little older than them go. So good luck and be patient, rewards with stickers and things helps alot too. Please remember to be patient and understanding being harsh can also make them regress. You have one thing in your favor, she's a girl!!!!So much easier than boys.

I know boys and girls are different, but I was having trouble with my boys (twins) and one mother told me to let them run around with no bottoms on and that will make them more aware. It certainly made them aware and they ran to the potty, but with two kiddos at the same time...I had to stop that method of training. It was getting out of control.

I have three kids and they were all three before they made up there minds.

I introduced my daughter to potty training at that same age, but she did not want anything to do with it, so I just left her little potty in the bathroom and eventually she figured out that that one was hers. She was 3- I did not press the potty training issue-because I think when I had introduced it too early I kind of scared her of it a little. Kids get it when they are ready- not when we are ready.

Hi L.,
What worked for me.... I bribed my kids! if they used the potty... I would give them a square of chocolate (one piece off a Hershey bar). They really like chocolate and we don't normally eat candy. It worked like a dream!

Hey Luara....My name is S. and I just wanted to say that my daughter actually took upon herself to potty train...there are things like making it a game ans having aa "pee" party...but the child has to want to do it too....ALina, my daughter hated it and one day after i made a big deal about her wearing these cool panties and stuff she decided that thats what she wanted to do...glorify it and make sure that she knows BIG GIRLS go to the potty, also you can aloow her to go into the potty with you and shell pick up what you do...I did that with her and she picked up qiuck...I mean and plus its up to you and how long you are willing to take to do this....Good luck..let me know

good luck with this approach. i have heard of people doing this, staying home to train their kid, and i applaud all of you! for me, both of my kids trained themselves just before their 3rd birthday, and it sort of just happened. saying that, of course my daughter wet the bed last night, dang it! but that hardly ever happens. what a savings, no more diapers at such an early age-wow!

Have your child go and tee tee as soon as she wakes up in the morning and when she goes to bed at night. Put her on her potty that you have special for her. When you go ...let her sit on hers beside you. Buy her some big girl panties with her favorite character on it. I think the regular panties are the best that way she will feel the wetness and it will not be a good feeling. If you get the pull ups...that won't be any big deal. Praise her like crazy and every time you give her something to drink wait 20 min. or so and take her.
Every child is different. If you see that she needs to go more quickly than that then adjust to her. Be patient and loving and she wll catch on soon. The only thing that I can say is that with mine I thought they got it and then they would
act like they didn't have a clue. It does take time and persistence and patience....good luck!!!!

Don't force the issue. 19 months is awfully young. Also, don't expect her to go on your timetable. Let HER guide YOU. She will let you know when she is ready and things will go much smoother. If she is not ready, you are just going to cause grief for yourself and stress out your daughter.

my daughter was 3 and a half- we didn't push her at all

(I just didnt want her to have weird "potty issues" and hold it) what we found worked was pretty simple. My daughter lOVES books, so I got her a big stack of special "bathroom books" some potty themed, some not. We only read these while she sits on the potty. It got her excited to sit in there, relaxed (so that hopefully she would go!) and got her to sit there for a few minutes. If she actually went, we added a dollar to a jar. When the jar was full, she got to go out and buy whatever she wanted (we steared her to new BIG GIRL panties, and bathing suits!)

You might be setting yourself up for failure if you want to potty train in a week. It's an on-going learning process that takes weeks if not longer.
Try and sticker thing, and the M&M thing and don't pressure your child. That just makes them give up on it.

Hi L.,
I am the mother of 3 grown "kids" and also a grandma. I keep my 3 year oldgrand-daugher while her mommy works so I have had the joy of potty training her as well. What I have discovered is that those little creatures have a mind of their own... so we have to be creative in the way we introduce anything to them.
I used stickers to reward her when she went potty, as well as planned something special if she succeeded at having no accidents that day, that week, etc. (toy store, Chuck E Cheese, etc.)
One thing you may need to know is that a child's physical ability to control her kidneys doesn't always develop at the same rate as other children's, so if she has accidents, please don't scold her. Just encourage her and brag! brag! brag! when she get's it right. She will be more encouraged and excited over the fuss you make over her, than she ever would by the hurt and anger that comes with being fussed at.
Been there... done that! Hope it helps you!
Sincerely,
C. Goodrich <><

They say girls are easyer than boys. I don't know about that I have 5 boys and 3 girls.What it all came down to was were they ready.I would say get pull ups or under wear and keep them on her during the day. Take her to the bath room often. Like before she eats after she eats. in between take he often. Don't ask her if she has to go just take her. Before her bath and after her bath are good times to take her to.The big thing is taking her often. I didn't ask if they needed to go I just took them.Don't put her in a diaper during the day while potty training. Keep her in the pull ups or in the under wear.What worked good for us while potty training some of ours was to put the pull ups on at night. and no diaper at all.We found that sleeping through the night and staying dry came before the staying dry during the day.Some kids prefure a potty chair and others don't. That will make a differance.Make it easy for them when they start learning that they can try and do it them selves. potty chair, step stool.It is hard a first and you want to give up. Hang in there.Your daughter will get the idea if you take her often. Stay patient,no diapers during the day, take her often and and make a big thing when she dose go.Some of my kids we had to use reward. some of them we make a big thing of it and how proud we were and that worked.Good luck and hang in there with it.

My only advice is try not to have any expectations. Some children are ready at this age and some are not. Good luck.

Go straight into cotton panties so that she can feel it. Just let her play in the panties...no pants. Put her on some reasonable "potty" schedule ( so that she can sit and try to go). When she has an accident...treat it matter-of-factly. "It's OK, next time your body feels like that lets try to put it in the potty". Have a basket of clean panties in the bathroom and some wipies so that she can wipe herself clean and put on dry panties. Be patient and Best of luck.

L.~
Your child will potty train only whe she is ready! My eldest was 3 before she was trained! I tried & tried, mostly because my mother-in-law kept "No, she was trained, not the baby"!!!
Yes, try, but don't push or get frustrated. She will do it on her own time! Finally, after my younger daughter was wanting to sit on the potty, and at her 2 days a week of mother's day out seeing all the other kids going on their own, she finally decided it was her time. Good Luck!

I'm getting ready to potty train my little one, too! The book that everyone recommended to me is called Potty Training in a day. Good luck!

http://www.amazon.com/Toilet-Training-Less-Than-Day/dp/06...

I would recommend putting her in panties and not pull-ups. I know this is messier if she has an accident, but pull-ups keep little ones feeling dry just like diapers. So they really won't know if they have an accident, which, in my opinion, prolongs them learning the sensation of needing to go potty.

Also, take her often without asking. She doesn't know yet what it feels like to need to go, so if you ask if she needs to go, her answer is really pointless. Good luck!!!

Remember, she is very young, and her bladder may not physically be ready for this. So if you are not having much success after a week, it may be best for both of you, emotionally, to wait several months. My pediatrician says that the best indicator that a child is physically ready to potty train is if he or she wakes up in the morning or from naps with dry diapers. This means that the bladder is large enough and the spinchter muscles are developed enough to hold in everything until the child is awake. I waited until my son was waking up consistently with dry diapers until I started potty training with him. I feel like I made the right decision for both of us to wait until then because he learned within a week when he needed to go.

The kohler transitions seat is awesome. It has a seat for mommy then a seat for baby sandwiched between that and the lid.
It is awesome.

I'm not saying this will work for every child, but with my third (of six) children, I started using the following method that worked wonderfully with only one glitch from child #5. First, look for signs that she is ready and block out a week just like you are doing. If she has already used the potty, I'd say she is ready. Second, put her in a double cloth diaper (to save your carpets) but no plastic pants, so she can feel the wet. Third, watch her closely and feel the diaper VERY often. As soon as it is wet, say "Wet! Wet! Let's run to the potty!" Get her on the potty as quickly as possible, verbalizing (simply and enthusiastically) each step of what you are doing. Although this may seem backwards, it only took a half to one day for each child to figure out that they should run to the potty calling "Wet! Wet!" BEFORE they actually wet. Fourth, when that happens, be ready with the treats and praise! Fifth, stay consistent all week and you should be ready to return to normalcy.

One daughter trained easily this way at age 2, then at 3 1/2 started having frequent accidents. At first, I was very understanding and patient. Then I realized that she was using it as a form of rebellion and that the rest of her "obedience skills" were pretty much out the window, too. Since I had already established obedience skills with her, I started treating her "accidents" as the rebellion they were, and within a week the accidents stopped and the rest of her behavior improved greatly, also.