Potty Training - Fresno,CA

Hi, First you can go the slow way and start him off with pull ups just to get use to pulling up and down his upcoming new underwear. Then when you are ready go shopping with him and let him pick what underwear he wants and a special potty book. When you are ready mostly on the weekends let him wear his new underwear. Be ready for accidents so buy a good amount of underwear and carpet cleaner and oxy clean for couches. Can't tell you how long it will take till he understands but my son was 2 1/2 when we started the potty process and rewards did not really work for him. We also taught him from the beginning to go in the same potty we use; I was not up to cleaning out those potty containers. It took us a good month till he went to the potty on his own without any help from mommy and daddy. This was a great feeling.

My first advice- be flexible. If you try something and it doesn't work, try something else. No one way is the right way or the best way. So far as particulars go, I would suggest that he sit to pee until he is pretty well potty trained UNLESS he feels really strongly about standing- the reason being that at first the whole thing is not easy for them, and simplifying it by having him sit (ie, he doesn't have to think about "sit to poop, stand to pee") may make it easier. Also, if you want to potty train it is a good idea to ditch the diapers all together during the day, but use them at night at first. And as a child care provider I HATE HATE HATE pull ups. I think that if they are emotionally ready to potty train, they tend to respond better to wearing training pants (ie, "big boy underwear").

So far as keeping him on the potty- if he doesn't stay on, he's not ready. If he doesn't sit there long enough to do whatever he's not emotionally or intellectually ready to potty train, so you need to wait a few more months.

When you first start you should put him on the potty OFTEN- right when he wakes up, every hour, after every meal, and before nap. From there you just go with their natural rhythm as you start to figure it out. They have really neat timers out there specifically for potty training, or just use a kitchen timer. After a few days he may even hear the timer and go all on his own.

Other tips- keep him in loose sweat pants so he can be mostly self sufficient. I don't like using rewards for this, but it's not awful to use them- the reason I don't like them, though, is because if you need to use rewards he's probably not ready. But get him excited about it so he will want to do well. And never never make a child feel bad because they have an accident- talk about it, but don't yell or admonish. Doing that could very well set you back.

Just because he is taking his diaper off and saying poopoo, though, he may not be ready. If he puts up any stuggle don't force the issue. You'll just draw it out and make it torture for everyone involved.

Also, books are great, and let him watch your husband and/or you go to the bathroom, if you don't already. Good children's books- "Everybody Poops" and "Toilet Training"

Most of all, good luck!

I have a 4 1/2 year old son. Potty training didn't really start for us until he was 2 1/2 and was in pre-school and could see how other children his age were going into the bathroom. It was confusing for him to see mommy sitting and daddy stand, so every time my husband went to the bathroom, our son went too. We also played a gave of tossing cherios in the toilet to "aim at". We never let him run "free", we used pull ups. Oh, and we got the toilet ring that fits into the regular toilet, he never did take to the training potties. In fact, he still uses the toilet ring when going poop. Good luck! Getting out of diapers is great, but be patient, expect the potty training to take months and month!

My husband wants our son to learn to sit first. He says he needs to learn to sit first so that he will learn to poop in the potty. And then later when he has mastered the sitting position going pee and poo, then you can teach them to stand. To me, that makes some sense. I have no idea since I'm not a male and never had a brother and haven't started potty training my son yet. But I have already trained my daughter last year. I think I let her run around naked first so that she gets the idea of what it feels like when she has to pee. And then it was also easier to get her on the potty fast. I left the potty in the living room where she is most so that we could have quick access to it rather than having to run into the bathroom. And then I slowly moved the potty closer to the bathroom. And I gave her lots of liquids so that she would have to go more often and I would put her on the potty every 30 minutes to an hour. I also just put her in her underwear and they will have accidents. But that is all part of the learning process, I think. She kept peeing in her pants and finally decided she really didn't like the feeling so she became motivated to keep herself dry. Also, I bought underwear that had her favorite characters on it (Disney princesses) and told her that she needs to try to keep them dry to make the princesses happy. Otherwise, they will cry if they get wet. But I did keep a pull-up on during the night for a little while. I waited until she could wake up dry for at least one whole month straight. Also, if you decide to potty train, I would spend a week just focusing on it. That means you don't leave the house at all or limit the trips and just fully devote yourself to this training. Well, these are some tips that I can think of. I don't know about others, but this is probably the hardest thing we have had to deal with with our daughter so far. Good luck with everything.

Go for it. If he is taking his diaper off, that means he is ready. My one word of advice. Once you take the diapers off, keep them off except for sleeping. It confuses children when you take them off at home, but put them back on to go run errands. They never know when they should hold it and when they can go. Just get used to bringing a little potty (lined with a plastic bag), wet wipes and several change of clothes with you. Boys have the advantage of being able to pee standing up when you are away from home, but I would sit him down when a toilet is available. But sometimes kids have set-backs. If this happens, ask them if he wants to take a break and put the diapers back on for a couple of days. This reassures them and more often than not, they will ask for the underwear the next day. You are the mother and will know what is best for your child.
Last thing: if you get upset when he has an accident, he might use it later to set you off when he wants to get you upset, so keep your cool.
Hope this helps.

Our youngest son is 2.5 now & takes his daiper opff all the time but, he's no where near ready or interested in potty-training. I've actually never heard of taking off the diaper as a sign of being ready but telling you about peepee & poopoo definately is. We also have an older son (7rs) who I started training at about 2.5 & was very ready & trained completely, as in no accidents & poopoo on the potty, in 2-3 months. Sometimes boys take longer. I'd say get the potty & encourage him to use it when & if he wants. Just take his lead, go at his pace & don't get anxious about it. I'd also suggest not using pull-ups. Not only are they pricey & not very absorbent, they give a false sense of security. Go straight to underwear or training pants. Have him sit at first & then let his dad teach him to stand. Gets lots of underwear & be prepared for accidents & wet clothes. Alos get him his own potty, not the seat that sits on top of the regular toilet seat. It's hard for kids to get up to the regular toilet w/o help or a stool. Plus it slows him down if he's in a hurry! Some people use a reward system which might work for your son. Our older son loved getting stickers when he peed or pooped in the potty & then put them all over his potty. As for keeping him on the potty, read him a couple of books & have him sit or 'try' for just a few minuts & then get off. I made the mistake of having my son sit on the potty every 1/2 hour so he was then trained to go only every half hour & wouldn't go otherwise. I had to kinda re-train him to go when he felt the need. So, don't too stuck on a schedule & let him go when he feels the need. Hope this helps & good luck.

This brings back so many memories. My boys are now 22 and 19, Wow! When I began potty training them I took cues from them, like your son. If he is saying poopoo then it is time to start. I would put on a pull up and show him how to pull it up and down.

Place the potty in a convenient location, maybe a family room, somewhere that he will see it and remember to go if needed. Provide some kind of screening so he can have some privacy. Most kids usually have to go as soon as they get up in the morning, so that will be number one. Then about 10 minutes after he eats take him to potty, and of course before bed. You will find a schedule that works for you.

I would start him out by sitting until he has enough control where he can stand and pee. Most moms do the potty training so I know you are wondering how do I show him how to stand and go. My husband did this and it worked. He put colored fruit loops or cheerios in the potty and told them to aim for them. That made it fun and taught them to aim. LOL. Be patient, they do well if the parent is not stressed about potty training.

Try everything! He will let you know when he is totally ready, so if it doesn't work after trying everything you can think of, he's not ready and don't push too hard, or then it will be impossible to get him to do it.
For your other questions, www.askdrsears.com gives some great advice on potty training. He says to let your little ones run around nakid so they can get more in tune with their plumbing and able to control it better. Also, pull ups are another great way to go, there's a whole lot of options there like the ones that get cold when a little pee pee gets on them announcing it's time to go to the potty.
I found it's best for little guys to sit on the potty as they can relax more, but not facing forward as that is unnatural for them, have him sit stradling the potty facing toward the potty to go pee pee. And unfortunately, for little boys, poo poo is much harder and takes longer for whatever reason. Dr. Sears does a pretty good job of explaining that too.

Hi i am a mother of twin boys. My advice to you is to let him go on his own time. here is some suggestions that worked for me. First i would let the boys sit down to get used to using the potty. Then once they were used to it i had them stand up to go.I would put a couple of cheerios in the potty and tell them to aim i know that may sound funny but it actually worked fo rme.I would try to start him going on the potty at least twice a day just to get used to it maybe when he first gets up and before he goes to bed. Much luck to you

Hi K.,

As a mother of 3 boys, I can answer all of your questions! It's easier to have him sit at first because he will need to be used to sitting to go poop & it is very easy to transition to standing to go pee later. put him on the potty at least every two hours. I like to devote 2 weeks to potty-training & stay at home & put my boys on the potty every hour. To keep him on the potty, stay in the bathroom with him & read him kids books about going potty. DO NOT keep a diaper on him. He will not want to stop playing to go visit the potty if he has an absorbent diaper or pull-up on. Put him in underwear or nothing at all. Lastly, my favorite potty-training book is "Potty Training for Dummies". Silly name, but great advice!

C. : )