Potty Training Advice - Oklahoma City, OK

Around two is a good time to start. Don't expect it to be a short process. The best way is to introduce her to the potty, sit her on it, read her stories, whatever. When you start take her into the bathroom with you when you go so she will begin to see the concept. When she uses it, emphasize what a BIG girl she is and how proud you are of her. But don't be punitive when she doesn't. Just be supportive and emphasize the positive. She'll get it in her own time.

IMO, 14 mos, even 24 mos, is waaaaay to early especially with a baby coming. My daughter was 2 1/2 when my son was born and our pediatrician told me to wait until after our son was born to attempt to potty train. My daughter was potty trained a week before her 3rd birthday and it took us 3 days (pee and poo). I have a girlfriend who was determined to have her daughter potty trained by 2 1/2- she started when she was 2 and finally had her trained at 2 1/2; it took her 6 months!
I used a reward chart. My daughter got a sticker each time she went on the potty- it worked great. As far as the potty- we had a potty but my daughter preferred sitting on the toilet with an insert.
HTH!

Developmentally MOST children aren't really ready until around 3 years. I know others will argue with me, and I know each child is different, but training to early opens the door to all kinds of problems. We tried early with my oldest, and it was a stressful disaster. We quit, waited until she turned 3, and BAM! it was done. Easy and stressless for ALL of us.
Good luck.

What I did with my little girl is, got her a potty seat and when I went I took her with me. I also took her just about every hour or so and gave her a book to look at. I put on the water at a low drip. I told her potty before going in the bathroom. She got to where when she saw me going in she had to go also. And she was potty trained by 16 months. I'm not saying that she will be by that age because every child is different. She was ready yours might not be. Make it fun for her. But, don't push her if she's not ready. It will only slow the process and irritate both of you. Try telling her she's going to be the big sister and make a big deal about her being the big sis. And if it works keep makeing it fun and a big deal for her.

Read John Rosemond's "Making the 'Terrible' Twos Terrific!" He says that potty training is not (or should not be) about our convenience or even cleanliness, but about our toddler's independence. So if we make a big production about it, or pressure our kid to do it, they will likely resist and get into battles. Rosemond identifies ways to know a child is ready to potty train, and suggests placing a simple potty chair in a place where your child spends a lot of time, then pointing it out to your child and telling them to use it when they need to, and you'll only help when they ask for it. He says, handled this way, potty training happens when the child is ready for it, and rather smoothly at that.

J.,
Congratulation on baby #2! I completely understand your issue with having 2 in diapers but it may be unavoidable, 14 months is very early to start, I think they usually do better a little bit older, around 2 is pretty normal I think. She needs to know the difference in wet and dry and have words for potty, diaper etc. I will tell you my experience with my dd's. I had a very smart 2 year old and was all determined to have my her potty trained before dd #2 was born, this is not something you can rush through or force them to do, she did ok, and I she tried but she just wansnt totally ready yet. It's also not easy potty training one while you have a newborn as well, but we managed. She was in panties before she was 2 1/2, not completely accident free, but I was so happy. Now I am working on potty training her little sister very different from big sister, as long as I can stay consistent she does well, but all the holiday business has her backsliding:) All children are different of course, and I know lots of kids who didn't potty train until they were 3 and some who were completely trained at 18 months. You just give it a try when you feel she might be ready and see how it goes, it takes awhile to start sometimes, but once they actually pee on the potty, they kind of make the connection and start understanding what you are expecting. As far as potties go, we use a seat that sits on top of the big potty and a stool, much less messy than a potty chair and takes up much less space, also you dont have worry about the transition. Good Luck-Dont sress!, God Bless you!

the idea of trying to PT a 14 month old sounds crazy to me. my baby is almost 14 months and, well, yeah just crazy. best to just prepare to have 2 in diapers, for a while. my 3 1/2 year old is still not fully PTed (hes pee trained durring the day). i learned its just best to let them do it when they're ready. we started introducing the little potty when our first was 18 months. we would let him sit on it and play with it to get used to it but it wasnt till much later that he really started to use the potty at all. and we started and stopped a few times b/c we kept listening to nosey family members who kept asking when he was gonna potty train. so in my opinion wait a while before even introducing her to it and then let her take the lead and go by her cues

if she is walking abd talkin even a little she is ready to start potty traiing , When You get up in the mornings put her on the potty when u go take her then abt every 30 -45 min til she gets a schedule down . If she is like mine and is pulling off her diaper then seh is telling you shes ready for the next step get her some pull ups that hels to and when she goes potty raise her i like to clap asnd say yea alex big boy and he claps any time he thinks he has done something good

There is nothing wrong with getting a potty chair and putting it in your bathroom. Every time you go take her with you and let her sit on hers. If she shows interest in going on her own then she may be ready. I only have one friend who's child showed interest at 18 months. But then again that child was reading at 4 yrs. old. I think most children aren't ready mentally until they are 2+. They don't have body control, they can't verbalize what they need, and it is a lot of work on your part to take them every little bit to sit until they do something in the potty. Also, with a new baby getting lots of attention she is going to revert to a younger age.

My favorite web site about kids is parentcenter.com and I have all of my grand kids listed in it and I get wonderful emails on development and stages. Here are some links specific to readiness.

http://www.babycenter.com/toddler

http://www.keepkidshealthy.com/parenting_tips/potty_train...

http://www.webehave.com/potty-training-readiness.htm

This one really has everything.
http://www.pottytrainingconcepts.com/A-Potty-Training-Age...

Hi J.,

My husband works at Tinker too (Maintenance/Construction), as does my brother, who is a Chief in the Navy. My mother had me potty trained by 18 months so I would start there & see how it goes. Girls are smarter & learn more quickly than boys. ;-) Good luck.

C.

Hi J., I had to go back to work when my daughter was a year and her pre school/day care had the idea that 18 months was when "they " would start potty training. well she is 29 months and is afraid to go #2 and is only now starting to tell me when she has already gone, not before. I believe she would be finished by now if her school had not started so early and put that kind of pressure on her. as far as #2 baby coming in Aug. if you get her trained now, you also may risk the chance of her regressing once the baby comes. I waited with my son until after #2 came (he was 27 months when she came) and i waited another 3 months with him before i started and it only took about a week before he caught on so.....I suggest taking a look at her personality. if you think she should wait, it might be worth it in the end. two in diapers is not as bad as you think.
good luck.
A.

Girls usually have the bladder control capabilities to start potty training around 20mo. Generally trying to potty train around a major life changing event (such as having a baby) backfires and any progress you make prior to will revert. Unless she show signs of being ready willing and able, I'd hold off until after your new little bundle of joy is settled into the family. As far as potty seats go, make her part of the decision process, that way she can "own" her seat. I'd also get one that fits onto your toilet so if she wants to imitate you she has that option. If your starting young I wouldn't use Gerber training pants. Your almost sure to get puddles on the floor. I got my daughters pants at Zoom Baby Gear online and love them. If you go to the Diaper Pin website they have a list of reviews for cloth training pants you can look at.

They're all different. DD at age 2 told me she wanted to use the potty and was trained almost immediately. DS was a little past 4 before he was ready, but once he was ready, again, almost immediately. They are 21 and 10 years old now. LOL...the time flies.

I would wait until she shows you the interest. It makes life a lot easier.

A. :)