Potty Training 3 Yr Old Boy - Austin,TX

I started training my son by setting a timer. We made a game out of it. When the timer would go off we'd race to the potty. If he pee'd he'd get a treat. After a few days of that, we switched to big boy underwear that he picked out and we removed the timer. I would just ask him often and reward when he'd go. We'd switch up the rewards to keep him interested and keep it fun. Also, since it was summer time when we started, we'd allow him to pee in the yard. He got the biggest kick out of it and we don't have neighbors so it was no big deal. All kids are different. Keep it light and keep it fun. Good Luck.

I think you might need to consider eliminating the Pull Ups. Maybe just use them at night as kids often don't have the physical ability to hold it all night.
Let him pick out some cool new underwear and pick a day to begin.
Just keep the potty chair nearby wherever you are throughout the day. If you're using a portable potty--you can even take it outside with you.

I would not have him sit on the potty for 3 straight hours. Remind him every half hour or so that the potty is there--want to try?

You could make him a success chart and when he gets 5 stickers (O. for each deposit) he gets to pick a treat from a pre-arranged basket of things. Good luck!

I agree with getting rid of the pull-up except for special circumstances (leaving the house, etc.). We had to use some naked training on occasion to remind the trainee that there was nothing to catch the tinkles. Accidents are learning opportunities, and he will eventually get the hang of this, I promise. I also recommend TELLING rather than asking that it's time to sit on the potty and try. Five minutes is plenty of time to sit there and sing songs or read a book, then try again in half an hour or an hour if nothing happened. Good luck!

Well, boys love a challenge. A fun way to get him interested in using the potty is to get him a two step stool and 3 cheerios. Cheerios into the toilet and tell him to "hit" them. If he doesn't get it, have Dad show him. Boys learn visually. Try that. Pooping seems to take longer. I used "big boy" underwear as a reward. As long as there were no accidents, he could wear his spiderman under-roos. It worked for both of my boys. cb

Oh! I have the same issue/question! My daughter was so much easier in this dept. sigh

A.

Hello! My son will be 2.5 years at the end of the month, and has been potty trained for 4 months now. When we first tried to potty train him, I would ask him if he wanted to go, and if he said no, left it alone, and then try and coax him into the bathroom later. We had a lot of accidents, but he was mostly in pullups. Talking to his ped. a few months ago, she said that if the kids are wearing pullups they use them as a crutch, and will hold it in and go once they have them back on, just like your son. She suggested always having my son wear actual underwear. She also said that the best thing to do is to say, Ok, we are going to use the potty now and then have breakfast, lunch, snack, etc.. Have him try to go, wash his hands, and then go eat. If he didn't go before, try again after the meal or snack. They say even as little as they are, they can hold their bladders for 4 hours. After meeting with the doctor, we pretty much did just as I said. No more pullups, and we have him go to the toilet first thing in the morning, mid morning, lunch time, you get it. It has worked great.

When my boys turned 3, I put them in underwear during the day, some have had their child go naked. I would set a potty timer, they sell them now. I saw an ad in Parents Magazine. I started at 15 minutes, and moved 15 minutes up if we were successful. This helps develop a habit that we go peepee in the potty now, not in our pullup. Your child, like mine, will say "I don't have to go potty", but put them on it anyway. I gave 1 Skittle for peepee, and 2 for poop. Also, do not put him in a diaper at night time, put him in a pull-up. This lets him know that he is not a baby anymore, and helps with potty training. Good luck!

My cousin and I were just discussing the timer idea. She got her 3 year old trained in 3 days. The first day she set if for 30 minutes and as soon as the timer would go off, they would make a big deal about it, hollering like it was the best thing in the world. Second day, she set it for an hour, same thing, made a big deal. By the third day, he was doing it on his own. Now he's 5 and recently they were at a restaurant and the cook's timer went off. Her son just kind of smiled at her and whispered "potty time". lol.

Good luck!

Looks like you have a stubborn one too:) My oldest 2 potty trained without a hitch at age 3. When my youngest turned 3, totally different story. We tried and tried for 6 months and she still refused to use the potty. She needed to be potty trained to go to pre school, so I was getting frustrated. I knew she knew what to do, she just refused to do it. I took away her pull ups and said she had to wear panties and was going to have to use the potty instead. I tried to reward her with candy, toys, stickers, tv, and she still refused. After 3 days of peeing on herself (and all over the house) I sat down with her and explained she could not pee in the house, so if she could not pee in the potty she would have to live outside. She immediately sat on the potty and peed and has not had an accident since (not even at night). I am sure this sounds cruel to some people, but it worked and I don't think she is scarred for life. You may have to be creative. Good luck!