Potty training b4 baby no 2

Hi all,

 I already have a 28 month old son and i'm due to give birth to his brother March 19th 2011. The thing is i really think i need to potty train him b4 baby comes as i cannot afford to have two kids in nappies and i think my son is @ the right age now. I really dunno where to start, so much conflicting advice out there.

Wanting to ask for tips from people who have been there and done it and what seems to work and what doesn't.

Do i use pull up pants or not?

How do i get him to sit on the potty as he seems reluctant?

Hi Lolly, I remember you from Sept 08, I think?!

I am also preg with no2 Due end May and am potty training Freya at the moment, this is actually training mark 2 as we tried in the summer as she was showing all the right signs but we gave up after a month or 2 as she was getting really upset when ever she had an accident and it was getting worse not better,
.
This time has been much more successful, although I'm saying that after a bad couple of days with distractions, she is sitting on her potty at the moment, lol! I would stay away from pull ups as they don't really feel the wet so much in them and it takes much longer. Having talked to other mums as well as doing it myself I would say it is much better to go straight into pants and put up with the puddles if you want him to get the hang of it quicker.

The one thing I would be careful of is doing it too close to the new baby's arrival, toddlers can often regress when new babies arrive and if he doesn't want to do it now you might to wait till baby is couple of months old and you are settled into a routine, a friend whose dd had been trained for over a year started having accidents for attention when her new one was born.

As for getting him to sit on it if he doesn't want to, have you tried goping straight for the toilet? Or taking him shopping to chose the potty, or letting him decorate it with stickers? I read a few books about it and most of them seem to suggest sitting the child on the potty at regular intervals but that doesn't work with Freya as if she doesn't need a wee she won't have anything to do with it!

I have to admit I find it rather stressful, my oh is much more relaxed and it is true they will do it in their own time, we did ude a bit of bribery at the beginnig which some people would probably say is bad, but a smartie or chocolate raisin for every success combined with lots of clapping and cheering seemed to work!

good luck

gem

Hi Gem P,

Yes i remember your name too.

Started the potty training today, put my little boy in some Thomas the tank pants as he's mad on Thomas. He got really excited to wear them finally as he got them for his birthday back in September. All went well this morning, had an accident at around 11.30. Didn't want to discourage him in any way so i stayed positive and cheerful.

I managed to get him on the potty with pants on to do a puzzle and we read a story and he seemed quite content to do so. He had a break off the potty and then went back on to do some painting with pants down. He was a little anxious about not having anything on his bottom half, but i managed to distract him enough and he sat there for around 15 mins.

Thought that he was doing well, had another break and we played with his trains and then back on potty with pants down to watch a Thomas dvd. He was fine for ten mins, but then started getting upset and asking for "pants up mummy". I kept him on there another 5 mins as i read to try and do it everytime 4 15 mins and then let him get off it again for a while.

Anyway he started getting upset around dinner time, he had a little bit of lunch as didn't seem hungry at around 12.30 and then started getting really restless.

Guessed he was needing to go to wee, so tried to get him to sit back on potty, but he was getting really upset and wanted to come up in my arms. He outright refused the potty this time and i could tell he was holding it in and he did this for like an hour. Shows he has bladder control, but upsetting for me to see him stressing out.

He was very worried to go on potty or in his pants, i kept telling him "it's okay to do wee wee" but he got more and more stressed about it and then leaked a little in his pants.

I cleaned him off and put him in a nappy for his afternoon nap and i think he did a little wee in the nappy. It's as if he would only go in the nappy as he thought it was safer. He's had a really long nap now and i'm now wondering if i should continue or quit, to put him back in a pair of pants or not?

Will update soon! Lolly.

Though I had a potty handy for my toddler,in case of untimely accidents,I never actually potty trained any of my children.I bought steps and a small toilet seat (its important to buy a good one as a slipping toilet seat can set a child back!).
My children learnt,as they do most things,partly by copying a parent.
It also seemed to lessen jealousy and insecurities a toddler can feel when a new baby arrives. The toddler can be heaped with praise for being clever like mummy (or daddy, and it saves time retraining), also makes going out with a baby and potty trained toddler less of a logistics nightmare.Different strokes for different folks!

Hi - I think that's great advice chrissiem. My 2yr old boy 'toilet trained' in about a week and I think a big part of that was down to the fact that I used to take him to the toilet with me so he knew what to do and wanted to copy. He was never a fan of the potty (thank goodness as i really dislike them!). 

Lolly - it sounds like your wee one is more stressed out because he is being put on the potty a lot. Maybe just put him in pants and let him say when he needs a wee - and take him to the toilet with you and explain what you're doing - and tell him he can have a go on the big toilet too if he wants.

I've no idea about the regression thing......hoping it wont happent oo much with my boy when baby comes!! xxxxx