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Well ringing in the New Year was totally different than any other year for us. We spent the final day of 2010, and the first 2 of 2011 potty training our 2 “older” girls Addie (33 mos) & Hayden (23 mos).
Fun, fun, fun….
But it needed to be done. I needed to have only 1 little bum to worry about in a day, and being through it now, I’m so glad we did it!!
There are a lot of great methods out there. And just like everything else in life, you definitely need to find the way that will work best for you, your little ones, and your lifestyle.
I have been putting off potty training for a while now as I just couldn’t wrap my arms around the best time to start. The mere thought of having a little baby, while trying to get 1, possibly 2 little ones to a potty…and cleaning up the accidents too, was just too much. Plus we have had events and travel on the calendar that just didn’t coincide well with potty training. But, I also knew we couldn’t dodge it forever.
New Years Eve weekend was our time.
It worked well as my parents would be in town and could watch Piper for the 3 days, and hubs was home from the office. Together we could man on man our way through this and hopefully break the back on the task. Going forward, I’m sure we will see our fair share of accidents, but I think both girls have a really good handle on their “big girl task” now.
Here is what I’ve learned:
- Potty training in a short concentrated amount of time, really seemed to help the girls grasp the idea. Being that we didn’t do this differently, I can’t tell you what it might have been like otherwise. But I do know that even though Friday saw it’s share of accidents, both girls liked being a part of throwing away their diapers and choosing their big girl panties. And they REALLY wanted to keep them dry all day. Late Saturday afternoon. Addie really “got it”. And by Sunday morning wanted nothing more to do with us…..running to the bathroom whenever she needed to all by herself! Hayden started out strong, but unfortunately had a little diaper rash that she had started the weekend with that kept bothering her and getting worse. As it is clearing up, she is getting stronger with her potty visits. Now on Day 4 without accidents!
- Making the kids a part of the prep process was great!! I asked the girls to help me unpack juice boxes into the fridge (which they never get), and to help carry Chex mixes, and snacks to the pantry. I think it helped them to know the juices and snacks were there and to be able to ask for them when they wanted them rather than me always offering something up. I had been told lots of drinks for lots of chances was a good idea. Salty and sweet snacks helped make the kids thirsty, and snack bars with fiber were like “candy bars” to them.
- Having errands done, laundry complete, and groceries purchased was extremely helpful! It left the washer and dryer open for washing sheets and big girl panties (we started with 30 pairs in total for both girls), and left us with time to dedicate solely on the girls. I had planned easy dinners, noting too fussy. Our time was meant to be with the girls at all times.
- Have LOTS of fun projects on hand. This may be 3 days of work for you, but in a weird way, you are also giving yourself uninterrupted time with your child. With our needing to stick close to the girls for their every waking hour we found lots to do…drawing on the chalkboard, playing Twister, baking cupcakes, making princess crowns, riding scooters in the house, glitter painting, playing monster, reading books, having tea parties…..we were never idol! And I’m now thankful (in a strange way) for that extra “time” we got to spend with them.
- Little prizes are super helpful! A friend I know taped hot wheels to her bathroom wall as rewards. Brilliant! We had saved fun stocking stuffers from Christmas, $1 surprises from Target, and princess gear in “Mommy’s special Closet”. There was always an M&M reward, and they loved drawing a star on their potty charts. But if something really big happened (going for the first time, going on their own, going poopy, etc) then they got to pick something special from the closet.
- Making them feel they are “just like you” was key. We must have asked them a billion times a day “Are you keeping your big girl panties dry? Mommy/Daddy are so proud of you! Be sure to let us know when you need to go.” And then again 3 minutes after asking the last time, we would ask again. In addition to this, every time Mommy had to go potty, I always said “Mommy needs to go potty, who wants to go?” Both girls almost always said “MEEEE!”. After it was “Mommy’s turn”, they were super excited for their turns too. We also did not buy a little potty. We did have one that a friend had loaned us, but they really wanted nothing to do with it. If Mommy wasn’t using it (and I’m VERY sure my rear end would not have fit on it) then they didn’t want to use it either. Instead all 3 bathrooms have a step stool sitting in front of the potty for them.
- Being prepared for the night is helpful. I am trying to go cold turkey with no night time diapers. Addie is doing great, even getting up last night to go potty at 3:45AM. But Hayden has woken up wet twice each night. We have not given either girl liquids after 5:45PM and we try to get them to go potty as much as we can before bed, but we’re not quite there yet with Hayden. So before she goes down, I make sure I have new panties ready to go, QuickZip Crib Sheets
ready to zip in place, and new flannel mattress pads ready for under the top sheet. When we hear her cry out in the night, Hubs scoops her up and takes her to the potty, changing her panties and jammies, and I change her crib sheets. We are all back in bed in under 8 minutes. I’m hoping this helps her realize that she IS going potty at night which is what’s making her wet, that it’s OK if she needs to go potty, and that we will come quickly to help her when she calls out. But who knows, I may have to resort to pull ups for night time. Hoping not.
I’m sure there is lots more for us to learn. We will continue to potty train ahead, 2 little dry bums at a time, I hope! I’ll be sure to let you know of any extra tips or tricks we learn as we further the potty training advenure!
***One tip I might add. If your little one has a friend that needs to potty train too, you might want to plan to spend your days together. It definitely has added a good element to “trigger” having to go potty. When one a sister is heading to the bathroom, the other usually wants to go too. And well, having another friend with mom is nice too….Misery does like company, doesn’t it?? :-)
Good info … i’m about a year away from starting that project. Cheers!
Steve @ HPD’s last blog: Three Bay Leaf Jambalaya
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Best of luck to you when you get there! Stay strong my friend!
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I did the 3 day method with my son last April. Best choice ever. Hubby was deployed so it was just me with him and his 4 month old brother. He was 28 months at the time. It clicked on day 2. He had the occasional accident, but I expected that. One accident a month was WAY better than endless diapers.
I used stickers for peeing and he got a Hot Wheel car for pooping the first few weeks. It cost me about $10 which was less than diapers were costing.
We’ve been dry for over 3 months now.
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Love hearing success stories like that! The girls are doing so well I’m in shock! And I’m with y a, way better than endless diapers! Congrats!
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YOu are amazing… I seriously don’t know how you did two little ones at the same time! I am impressed!
Kristen’s last blog: Gingerbread Family Christmas
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Yeaaaaahhhh not my favorite thing to do 2 at once. Looking forward to only having Piper on her own next year for sure!! But for as tough as it was, it’s so nice to be two bums less diapers :-)
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Great post! One tip that I still use with my three year old for night is to make the bed twice.
IE: mattress, waterproof pad, sheet, waterproof pad again, and another top sheet.
That way, if she has an accident at night, you just take off the top layer and the bed is made already underneath! A life saver at 3 am :)
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I sooooooooooooooo love this tip!!! Unfortunately b/c I use the zip top crib sheets, I can’t double sheet the top layer. And it really is easy to change at night. BUT I loved your idea so much, that I grabbed an old crib sheet from my mom’s house and put it and the waterproof pad over the regular zip sheet and waterproof pad…figure it’s definitely worth a try since my coordination isn’t all that and a bag of chips in the wee hours…hoping it helps tonight, or that we don’t need it at all! Thank you!
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Love your tips!
Becky’s last blog: Cleaning Month – Vacuum Edges
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Try taking Hayden to go potty before-you go to sleep for the night. Just scoop her up and put her on the potty, she’ll probably go without even waking up! This may eliminate all nighttime accidents.
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I had heard of this and had tired with hay den one night. Even though she was half asleep she just kept saying “cold potty mama!!” and did everything possible to climb back in my arms :-( maybe a space heater in the bathroom?? As it happens, she made it through the night last night, but had an accident after getting out of bed this am….it’s a slow process, but thankfully they are doing awesome all day long. Thanks so much for your tips! I have to commend you for doing this with twins!!
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for those of you guys who have your kids in regular beds.. and don’t have or use the reusable waterproof pad thing.. i use those disposable bed underpads.. (the ones for old people).. they are cheap.. and a life saver at night.. BUT i’m going to totally use the double layer trick!! that’s genious!!!
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Oh my! Another pure genius idea!!! I remember those bed pads from the hospital after having the babes…blue, right? That is an awesome idea! Might have to try that in my older ones twin bed. First night time accident last night :-( and on the same night the younger one made it through!!
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Thanks for all the suggestions! I’m going to be home on maternity leave starting next month and hope to try this soon with my 23 mo old girl. She loves to “practice” already so I think she is nearly ready.
Emily @RandomRecycling’s last blog: End of season lights to recycle
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Congrats on a new baby almost here! And you can totally potty train your little one before hand! The things I was told to look for is:
1. An interest in the potty and the ability to communicate it with you.
2. Able to stop drinking liquids 2-3 hours before bed and not going to bed with a sippy cup or bottle
3. Able to wake up dry in the morning.
My girls were good with 1&2 but not consistent with 3, but I opted to forge ahead anyway.
Good luck to you!!!
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The “diaper fairy” came to our house one night. Took away all the diapers and left a huge firetruck toy. Once my son knew all the diapers were gone, there was no turning back. The first time we tried, he would always say, “but we can use a diaper”!! We used rewards throughout the day and lots of verbal positive reinforcement. I told my husband someone would get rich if they held a 3-day potty training bootcamp where we could drop off the kids and they would come back potty trained.
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Oh lordy you have got your hands full! But just think of all the things you can buy with that diaper money!
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Thanks for all the great info., the tip about doing it with a friend is a great idea – for both the kiddos and the moms!
For the night time I’ve also heard a lot of moms recommend double sheeting the bed with two layers of mattress cover, sheet, mattress cover, sheet so if there is an accident you can just rip off the top mattress cover and sheet and (hopefully) not have to make the bed.
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Thanks for all the helpful tips! I started potty training (for the second time. I gave up after a few days of messy underwear in the summer) yesterday, but I think I did it all wrong. One pee in the potty. one pee on the floor, and a poop in a diaper is all that happened before naptime. This morning I tried again and got a poop in the potty but then just a pee on a chair before naptime.
She seems to like her new potty chair and being bare bummed (the route we’re taking this time around), but I can’t get her to drink enough to have to go more than a handful of times each day. I tried making hot chocolate but still couldn’t get her to drink. And I think she’s got a bit of a cold, so she’s probably s little dehydrated as it is. I like you’re idea of letting her help stock the fridge with juice boxes–I’ll try that. Any other suggestions for helping her go more often (hence more practice getting it in the potty)?? Any other general tips you’ve discovered? Oh, I love that idea of double layering the sheets and mattress pads! We’re holding off on overnight training and allowing her to wear a diaper to bed for now, but that will sure come in handy in the coming months! Thanks for all the shared info!
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Hey There! Good luck to you the second time around! How old is your little one? I will say that my 33 month old is better (95%) than my 22 month old (85%). We went for solid cold turkey and had the girls help us throw out their diapers. They liked being “big girls” now and not “babies like Piper wearing a diaper”. We also had them wear their big girl panties so that they would understand “getting wet”. They do not like to get their panties wet! The first day was all about getting liquids down. We had tea parties (I used my own teapot with water which they loved) we had juice boxes and played “drinking games” with mom, dad, and girls getting to “cheers” all the time. I put crazy straws in paper cups….anything that seemed different and fun so they would want to drink. They had A LOT of liquid that first day and there were A LOT of accidents, but every time they felt their panties wet, they liked it less and less. Saturday we were half way there, and by Sunday it was clicking with them. BUT all of this to say, I’m an all or nothing person. I just juggle too much in a day that prolonged potty training would be entirely too difficult. So I chose to focus on nothing but potty training for 3 solid days, and every time they started to have an accident we were quickly carrying them to the potty. I’m now 7 days into it and have to remain as committed as I was those first 3. I have not left the house that much with them, I take short 30-40 minute adventures right after they have gone potty. My 33 month old was at daycare on the 4th day with no accidents (from 8:30 – 4:30). They said she marched right to the potty all by herself the 1st time. I think the whole process is hard, diapers can be way easier, but they can’t stay in them forever….I’m crossing my fingers for you! You can do this!! Help your little one to see they can do it too I think it really helps when you tell them what a big person they are and how proud you are of them keeping their big kid pants dry :-) Good Luck!
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