Potty Training My 2 1/2 Year Old

I have just really gotten into potty training my 3 y/o. This is something you do not want to push. I have heard from my doctor and numerous people you will do more harm than good if you push to hard. Just be patient and let it come in their own time. You might try potty books or tapes to get them interested. Try letting them sit on the potty with their pants on while doing that activity. Let them watch the 4 y/o to show them that this is the behavior you are going for and just relax!

Hi R.;
My daughter just recently started using the potty all on her own shortly after she turned 3. One of the things that I think helped her the most was watching a video that I found at the library called "Once upon a Potty", they have one for girls only and one for boys only. Amanda loved singing along with "Prudence" the little girl in the movie as well as going potty when "Prudence" went potty. Eventually it just sort of clicked for her that she could do that all the time. She wakes up dry in the morning so the first thing she does is go potty before she has breakfast. Since she started using the potty all the time, she doesn't like to wear the pull-ups anymore. She would rather wear "big girl panties". She hasn't had but maybe 3 accidents since July when she finally started using the potty.

So far we've made the decision to just put the boys in underpants instead of diapers and pullups. With the oldest that was enough. DS#2 needed bribes so we had videos and bubble gum for him.

This time we have used the bribe but the biggest incentive was just putting the seat converter on the boy's potty. He goes on his own now. It only took 2 weeks.

R.,

I agree with Jocelyn. My daycare provider told me to put cheerios in the potty and tell my son if he could try and pee in them. Keep her in underwear when you're at home and in pull-ups when your out. You can also ask your 4 yr old to try and help your 2 1/2 year old. Let him/her show how its done. Peer pressure might work.

J.

M&M's work wonders...just give a few out when she does potty....don't make a big deal about her choice not to at this point...good luck...A

I liked the book "Diaper Free Before 3". I don't remember who wrote it. I got it from my local library. It talks about putting them in training pants and out of diapers and in the begining cleaning up a lot of "accidents"....yuck. But in time, they start holding them selves longer and become more willing to go on the potty b/c it feels "gross" to have an accident. That is how we did our girl. She caught on pretty quick, and was averaging only 1-2 accidents a week after a month. She will even stay dry during naps, and sometimes all night.
She has been regressing lately, but she is in a growth spurt, and we were displaced for a while with a nasty ice storm, and that didn't help. But we are getting back on track. Regressions are normal. Sometimes it will feel like one step forward and two steps back. Hang in there! I found the book REALLY helpful!

Hiya, R.!

Not only would I provide both potty chair/child seat options like the first responder suggested, but I would also switch to only underwear while she is awake and back off on encouragement. If she doesn't even want to talk about it and you are sure she does know how to complete the task then leave her alone. Let your anxiousness fade away because this is definately one thing you cannot rush. Prompting her and asking her if she needs to go might be cramping her new found independence and she is showing you by responding the exact opposite way you desire. Maybe you can have a more positive approach if you just can't resist prompting by asking her if her panties are still clean or dry. When they are praise her and when they aren't clean her up with a simple, "that's okay, try to make it to the potty next time, though, okay?"

If she wears diaper or Pullups she knows that it is okay to poop/pee in them, so why go to the potty? She might have the added discomfort of wet/soiled underwear to encourage her, not to mention the fun of going to the store to pick out her favorite charector to wear! When my daughter soiled her panties I carefully cut them off of her because it was easier to contain the poop and dealing with trying to clean them in a sanitary fashion was waaaaay too much effort, but it also made her sad to see her favorite Curious George undies go in the trash. Please don't poop on Dora/George/Hello Kitty was our motto!

It took my daughter most of the year to finally go consistently and we still have weekly accidents. She is 3.5 years old. It is the most frustrating thing I have ever tackled, but I have kept my frustration on the inside as much as possible. I have two dear friends with children the same age who had to resort to daily Miralax(laxative)dosages because their children have pretty much rebelled against potty training and just hold it in all day to avoid the issue thus becoming severely constipated. See? It could be worse!

Let us know how it goes for you and your little girl!
J.

Have you tried making a big deal out of it when your 4 year old goes. Don't make any emphasis on the 2 year old. Just make it a huge deal when other people go. Like if you go, and she's near talk about how nice it is to wear panties or to have dry unders. Don't look at her persay just be like, "I love wearing panties, that's what big people wear!" or when your 4 year old goes, "VERY GOOD, Mommy LOVES when you go potty in a big potty!" Your 2 year old might be like, hey I want that attention, and just start doing it on her own just to tell you about it, so you will praise her like you do the 4 year old and yourself.

My daughter is 3 and everything has to be her idea. I tend to have to use techniques like above to get her to do anything, like getting dressed. She's stubborn as an ox. I hope this helps you out. If you haven't tried it yet.

some of the things I did with my oldest son when he was potty training was sit w/him in the bathroom and sing a song can be any song or a silly song that you make up about going to the potty and when he finally used the potty I would rewarded him with a sticker so everytime he used the potty he would get a sticker. That encouraged him to use the potty until he got comfortable to go on his own.

Hi!
When we potty trained our 2 year old son, he was the same way. He didnt like the seperate chair thing tho. My mom sent us a potty chair that fits on the pot, but it has a little step stool and handles on the sides. They work great! I remember my sister used it as well as both my brothers on their kids. Within days, he was going by himself and had only a few accidents. You can find one at: http://www.onestepahead.com/product/86184/442794/117.html

If that link doesn't work, it is at: http://www.onestepahead.com under bathroom and then potty training

Good Luck!!