Potty Training 27 Mo Old Girl

Updated on October 11, 2010
J.G. asks from Bellevue, NE
16 answers

My daughter will be 27 months old in a few days and we have yet to begin potty training. She seems to have no interest. She doesn't care if she is wet or dirty and does not tell you if she goes to the bathroom. We try to get her to sit on her potty and she does not want to. She does not wake up dry from her naps or in the morning either. We are expecting our 2nd baby in 5 weeks and we really wanted her to be trained before the baby was born. What can we do to get her interested?

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B.C.

answers from Dallas on

Nothing. You can slowly begin to introduce books and a trainer potty, but until she cares about being clean and can tell you when she has to go (or has gone already), it won't work.

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R.Y.

answers from New York on

My son was that age when we started with potty training and it just didn't take until later. I was pregnant and wanted him trained before the second baby (3 years apart) but it just didn't happen (we tried for at least 4-5 months). If you are having the baby in just over a month and she has no interest you are probably best to just leave it alone for a while. When the baby is 6 months or so and things are more settled try it then. I know this is probably not what you wanted to hear but if the kid is just not ready to cooperate it isn't worth a battle that achieves little or nothing.

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S.K.

answers from Dallas on

If I were you, I would just wait until after the baby is born. I felt the same pressure when our son was 2 1/2 and we were expecting twins. I knew having 3 in diapers was going to be really expensive. Then I read that kids will often regress after a new baby comes along. Our son showed little interest before the twins were born but about three months after their birth it clicked. He was fully trained in 2 weeks with one or two accidents. I didn't bother trying until he was waking up dry, though.

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K.U.

answers from Detroit on

From what you wrote, your daughter is not showing any signs of being ready, which simply means - she's not ready. And honestly, no amount of preparation is going to get her ready. If she is not bothered by a messy diaper, she has no incentive to "make a deposit" into a toilet. And she has no interest in sitting on the potty. Even if you could get her trained in the next 5 weeks, she could end up regressing after the baby is born (which is normal). Once she is able to stay dry for several hours, is dry after sleeping, is asking you to change her diaper after she has gone, and is more willing to sit on the potty, then you can start giving it a go. Otherwise it's just going to be an exercise in frustration and will drag out the process even more, and make it more stressful than it has to be.

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P.M.

answers from Portland on

I can sure understand why you're so eager for your daughter to be trained, but I agree with the other moms that you'll both be better off if you wait until she's showing interest. Can't make it happen, it's a matter of physical, emotional and nervous-system maturity. You could create lots of headaches trying to push it, and she could regress anyway.

Kids who are truly ready show interest, take on the challenge eagerly, and are often trained in a matter of days.

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E.G.

answers from Minneapolis on

If it's any help, I also have a 2 1/2 yr old (30 months) who also has NO interest. We've tried everything---potty books, potty movies, sitting on the potty, underwear, watching us---she would still prefer to wear her diaper and keep playing. She doesn't care at all if she has big girl underwear on and wets them, it doesn't even phase her! (it's frustrating because we know other kids her age who are now potty trained). So we finally gave up trying and decided we'll wait until she's ready. (It's actually a relief to not have to do this effort every day again). The time will come!

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D.S.

answers from Milwaukee on

Your best bet is to wait until after baby is born or your daughter may revert back to wanting diapers or having accidents. Having a sibling can be a very stressful time for a child. Also, since she is not dry after naps, she is not ready to be potty trained. I have 2 boys and a girl. With my boys, I waited until they were 2 months shy of turning 3 y/o. I will do the same with my daughter who does tell me when she is wet or has poo, but we are not ready to fully train yet. Good luck with potty training and with baby #2.

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A.R.

answers from Omaha on

I haven't read your other answers, so sorry if this is a repeat of what others have said. 1) I firmly believe that you cannot potty train a child until they are ready and showing interest. Before that it is just a fustrating struggle for both of you. We tried potty training my son at almost 3 with no sucess. He would just wet his pants and not care. We tried a few months later and we had 2-3 days of accidents. Then he was done training and has been fine since. He also refused to wear pullups or anything to bed and has woken up dry most nights. (There are still very occasional accidents, but he is only 3 1/2, so it's to be expected.) 2) When there is a major change (such as adding a new member to the family) Many children regress on things such as potty training. My oldest was potty trained with everything but poop when I had my youngest. She started taking her poop out of her pullup and "painting" on the walls and windows. I think it was her way of getting attention taken by the baby. On the up side she was fully potty trained shortly after. So, if it was me... if your child has NO interest in potty training don't push it. Relax a little longer. And watch for regression. Enjoy these last 5 weeks with your daughter. Even if you take time out for her from baby you will be more busy then you remember ever being. Take it easy a little longer. My kids may be an exception, but niether of them showed any signs of caring or rediness until they were 3.

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S.E.

answers from La Crosse on

We tried everything...and I mean everything: positive reinformecment, negative reinforcement, no attention, lots of attention, charts, presents, stickers, treats...in the grand scheme of things it all comes down to when they are ready. First son was 18 months old, and picked it up right away without another accident ever. Second son was 5 1/2 and still not onboard with the whole idea of potty training. It is frustrating, but really, you just need to let them decide when they are ready. I was frantic as the younger one was moments away from attending kindergarten, and we still weren't getting him trained. I was almost certain that I was going to be buying depends for him as a graduation or wedding gift...but it kicked in, finally, and though he still has ocassional accidents, he is for the most part doing pretty well. Sleeping is still an issue, but getting better.

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B.R.

answers from Omaha on

If you're not already using them, switch to cloth diapers. Disposables are notorious for delaying potty training by more than a year in some cases--they are so absorbent, and moisture just gets wicked away. Sitting in wet cloth is really uncomfortable, and helps provide that motivation.

You can pick up training pants and vinyl diaper covers fairly inexpensively, or you can use a diaper service--it's still less than what you're paying weekly for disposables, and most services will provide everything you need for potty training.

These are the two services we have locally, and both service Bellevue: https://www.desmoinesdiaperservice.com/ and http://www.andreasclothdiapers.com/

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A.D.

answers from Minneapolis on

We started our daughter who had no interest at 27 weeks. That's supposed to be the optimal time. She didn't want to sit on the potty either. We just basically took a weekend to focus on it. Bought big girl panties and just went for it. She had a couple of accidents (which feel much worse in panties than they do in diapers) and she was so turned off from accidents that she was trained after a few weeks. I think you just have to go for it. But, with the new baby coming quickly, be prepared for her to backslide.

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S.B.

answers from Minneapolis on

My son is 32 months old (will turn 3 in January) and has NO interest in the potty. I have two older girls who were both trained at age 2.5 w/ no problems, so this is new to me. He won't sit on the potty, refuses to wear even his beloved Cars underwear, cries at the mention of potty, and has absolutely no problem w/ walking around w/ wet or messy diapers (I swear he could go all day and not be bothered by it.) I've made a sticker chart (this is what worked for my older 2) and had him pick out stickers at the store by himself hoping that would get the ball rolling, but NOPE no interest. I've put him in his underwear only to have him wet or soil them immediately and not really care. From talking to other moms and my own mom I think we'll just end up waiting and let him take the lead...this process is only making all of us frustrated and he is obviously not ready, even if WE definitely are. So we are back in diapers and waiting a bit longer...we hope to be making progress before he turns 3.
In your case, don't sweat having her trained before #2 comes along. My middle daughter turned 2 right after our son was born and she wasn't trained, nor did we try to train her, until she turned 2.5. Having 2 in diapers, although more expensive for sure, is not really a huge deal. Don't stress about it and let your daughter lead you! All of our kids will be trained eventually, even if it takes a little longer than we hope. Good luck!:)

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K.H.

answers from Des Moines on

My daughter wasn't really too interested in potty training either. She was 26 months old at the time. I read a suggestion in a parenting magazine and tried it just to see what would happen. Within a week she was only wearing diapers at night. I told her that if she went all week without wearing diapers (and using the potty of course) she could have a "Potty Party." We had a little party with cupcakes (and a candle of course) and balloons. As soon as I told her what a potty party would entail she asked to wear panties and use the potty. Of course she had accidents here and there, but I wasn't expecting perfection. I would recommend the really thick training underwear with the plastic ones over them. They kind of keep the accidents from getting all over but let her feel what it was like to be wet. Good luck to you!

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K.R.

answers from Minneapolis on

If she's not ready, she's not ready. I highly doubt you can potty-train a child in five weeks. It was a year-long process with my two boys (longer than normal, I know). She especially won't be able to do it with pressure -- even if you don't mean to, she'll know you're feeling the new baby deadline and it will make things harder for her.

I think you should wait until she shows signs of being ready, which may be when she's three.

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D.R.

answers from Sheboygan on

Save yourself from disappointment and forget about training her before the baby comes. Even if she is trained before the baby is born she will probably go back to diapers after the baby is born because of all the changes. Also, she is showing no signs of being interested. You cannot make a child want to use the toilet. Just drop it for a few months and then try again. The more you push the issue the more she is going to rebel against it.
Good luck.

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J.S.

answers from San Francisco on

You should try the rewarding system. Lots of parents use an M&M or another piece of candy to reward their child for doing their business in the potty but you could get creative with stickers or whatever else interests her. Here are some more in-depth examples...hope it helps!

http://www.theskinnyscoop.com/search/potty+training?utm_c...

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