Potty Training a Boy - Santa Rosa,CA

Updated on April 20, 2008
C.B. asks from Santa Rosa, CA
43 answers

Moms out there with boys. I have heard all the things about how to potty train a boy. I need to know what really works. And suggestions? My girls were easy, done in a week. They were a little over 3. I am not a pressure type person, I am not going to hound my child with the dreaded question "do you have to use the potty?" a million times a day. We are on the go people. My son is super smart, but completely uninterested in this. When the time comes I want to be able to do this quick and efficiently. I could bribe my girls with anything. My son, nothing works. He is not ready now, but I want to be ready when he is. I have the potty waiting in the bathroom for him. He sits on it in his clothes waiting while I go potty usually. And I have let him run around the yard without a diaper. This will happen more frequently as the weather improves!
Thanks in advance!

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Wow! I cannot believe how many wonderful responses I received. I want to say THANKS for everybody's advice, and I promise to let everyone know what worked, when we get to that point.

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K.L.

answers from San Francisco on

He will do it when HE is ready. I have two boys now 5 and three. The five year old was potty trained at two, very cooperative, by the book. Little man two, not so easy. Very stubborn about sitting on the potty at age two. My DH was determined to train him. He put forth a great effort with minimal results. At three yrs 2months he was ready on his terms. He would go in with his brother and do it all. After about ten days he was good with me to go in with him to set him up. I still have to suggest frequently we go to the potty because he gets distracted.

Good luck to you!

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L.F.

answers from San Francisco on

I have 2 sons ... 14 and 12 ( and a dtr age 10) I also teach preschool and help potty-train the little ones. I have found that many times the "potty-light" goes on in boys around 3 yrs 4 months. you are right to be ready... just in case... and right to let him go at his own pace. when he is done with diapers he will let you know, especially if he sees other boys his age going potty.
L.

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D.S.

answers from San Francisco on

C., my son was close to 3 when he was trained - I was not really getting thru to him ...but (1) week home with my husband (his dad) did the trick - I remember he did not like the potty chair much ....however...he liked to stand on a small stool and try to use the bathroom the same way his dad did - Although he was a little older than some....he made very few mistakes once he was trained(which was great for me)
Good luck!
Regards,
D.

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B.Y.

answers from San Francisco on

I potty trained my 31/2 yo boy when he was 21/2. Yeah just like you i had the potty out in the bathroom for like a year before we actually started the process. I actually started out with him sitting down. For me determination was the key. YOU have to be ready too! Set aside a couple days to be at home to do this. First day i started i simply took away the diaper (but with pants on). He would cry everytime he wet his pants but i walked him to the potty everytime. He would get a sticker on his potty if he did it right. FIrst day he wet his pants a trillion times but by the second day much improved and so on... I also designated times for him to sit there for a few minutes during the course of the day (usually about an hour after a drink or a meal) and read him a book while he sat there. If he wanted to get up i'd let him. Just tried to keep it as positive as i could. I think the whole process lasted no more than a week before he got day time control. He would have accidents if he was watching TV or playing hard but for the most part there was no power struggle issues.
Hope this helps. B.

1 mom found this helpful
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G.M.

answers from Modesto on

Well, I have a 4 y/o boy, and a 2 y/o girl. Neither is easier than the other. They were neither one interested in toilet training when their time came. We tried bribery, buying the fancy pull-ups, going on underwear/panty shopping sprees. Until summer school prior to preschool started. They could not go unless they were fully toilet trained. So we went to the visitation days, met the teacher, followed the class etc.... But when we would get home we told them they weren't allowed to go anymore because they were still in diapers/pull-ups. Once they had it in their heads that this was something that they wanted for themselves, toilet training was done within one week for the both of them. It was on their terms (or so they thought) and they were extremely proud of themselves. And I am happy that I don't have to buy expensive diapers/pull-ups anymore!

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N.D.

answers from Sacramento on

Hi there,
I used this method to potty train my daughter and it was exactly how they said.....3 days and we were done. No accidents, no regression. We bought "Potty Patty" and I cracked up at the idea but it really worked for us.

I told my girlfriend and she did the same thing for her 2 boys. She bought "Potty Scotty" and said it worked like a charm for her.

I now have a son and in a few years will try it with him. I hear they are much more difficult than girls. We'll see.
Good luck!! If you try it, let me know how it goes!

http://www.pottytrainingconcepts.com/

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W.M.

answers from Sacramento on

C.,
Boys tend to be later on the potty training issue. My son was almost 3, and we had to do it out of necessity. He needed to go to preschool. My first one was done by 2.5 and my second one trained herself at 18months one week after her baby brother was born. I walked past the bathroom
and she was on the toilet with the diaper on the floor,
going to the bathroom. SO, they all do it in their own time, but they do take longer when they are boys. Give him a few more months and he will probably be ready.
W.

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M.N.

answers from San Francisco on

I definitely think you're on the right track and I agree with NO pull-ups.

Our oldest was three and I was two months from having his brother. We had a party whenever he peed--hats, confetti, noise makers, cheering, clapping, etc. That worked for him. The second one was about three and four months. We tried everything but finally with him it was the drops of blue food coloring in the toilet. He LOVED turning the water green (my dad came up with that one). Just a month ago (he's four and a half now) he pulled out the blue food color to try it again.... Between that and being at a pre-school where he had peer examples he was trained within a few weeks.

Good luck--M.

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T.M.

answers from San Francisco on

My youngest boy was going pee in the potting when he felt like it for a few months, but still wearing a diaper and not pooping in the potty. We were going camping for 5 days and told him he could poop in the woods like a bear - he thought this was a great idea. We got to the campgrounds, he put on big boy underwear and went to play in the river - within in an hour he said he had to go poop, so he went in the weeds where bears would go and did his business. We covered it up with brush and rocks. We followed this routine for 5 days camping and when we came home he was completely potty trained. Not exactly a conventional approach, but it worked!

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L.B.

answers from Chico on

C.,

I don't know if they still sell these but they used to be called training targets for boys. They actually use a step stool for the big potty and you drop them in the toilet then they use them as target practice will they are urinating!!! It sounds kind of ridiculus but they were introduced to us by my daycare provider and they worked for us and other moms that we know. My son would urinate in the toilet but still would bring me a diaper until he was almost four for a bowel movement. I have five children and four of them are girls and my youngest is a boy. Girls are for sure faster at potty training than boys. We also just started using Fruitloops for the "target practice" they flush real well and alot cheaper!!! Just an idea...L.

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B.W.

answers from Sacramento on

Hi C.,

My only suggestion, is NO PULL UPS! I have 3 boys, and when I used the pull ups, it's just a diaper and they knew it. I did 3 days of staying at home, using regular underwear and just encouraging them. Took 3 days each time.

Good luck when he's ready!
B.

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S.A.

answers from Sacramento on

Boys do usually potty train later than girls. I have some friends whose sons trained a little before 3 but they typically had accidents until after 3. My son was really potty trained at 3 1/2 years. We started when he was 2 1/2 yrs and he did great with urinating in the toilet but it took another year for him to poop in the potty. All boys are a little different, some have no problem pooping in the potty, others just won't do it. I say wait until 3 years at least. Practicing on the potty is a great idea! That is what got my son to finally poop on the potty. We practiced every day, three times a day. First with clothes on, then with just a diaper and then finally naked. He pooped a couple of times but I think it really just fell out, he didn't really push. Then one day, he pushed and pooped! He was 3 1/2 years and hasn't had an accident since. I have about 15 friends with boys the same age and only 2 of them potty trained before 3 1/2 years if that tells you anything. Good luck!
S.
Mother of Nicholas (4 years) and Luca (2 years)

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K.P.

answers from San Francisco on

I have a 3 year old boy and thought we would never accomplish potty training. We started the process last summer and then in December I had a baby so we waited until after the hoopla died down.

He turned 3 at the beginning of Feb. So with his birthday approaching I kept telling him that after his birthday we were going to get serious about potty training. Kind of mentally preping him.

We always offered the potty at night right before bath time. Sometimes he would go and sometimes not. Then I started with first thing in the morning. As soon as he would get out of bed I would have him go in.

One Friday he went to my in-laws for the day and they were out of pull-ups so he wore big boy pants. He had 3-4 accidents throughout the day. THat night after bath I went to put a pull-up on him and he said he didn't want to wear them anymore.

We've had maybe 8-10 accidents since officially starting the process and 1 at night.

I was concerned that he would never do it, but also didn't want to force him either. SO we just kept talking about it and letting him go at his pace too.

Hope some of this helps. Good luck....With the weather getting warm it might make things a lot easier too.

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J.G.

answers from San Francisco on

i think you have the right idea with the running around the yard without a diaper. I potty trained my son during the summer letting him go outside in the back yard. we would aim for trees and flowers and make a game of it and he caught on pretty quick and with you being a non pressuring parent it, i dont forsee you having any problems. i have found that boys are actually easier then girls. Good luck!

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D.W.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C.,
I have a 21 year old son and also a 5 year old grandson. You are right when you say girls are easier to potty train, my daughter was a peice of cake than it was time for my son. What a challange that was. I tried and tried with no progress than a I started making a game out of it. I took fruit loops and put them in the toilet and told my son to see how many he can "sink". He was trained within 2 weeks. We did the same with my grandson and it was a success.
Try it, it can't hurt. Also try bringing him to the store with you and bring him to the "big boy" section where he can pick out his own underpants. This is a great booster for the little ones.
Good luck, and just know eventually he will be out of diapers.
D. W. Vacaville

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G.D.

answers from San Francisco on

I have a 3 1/2 year old son and a 7 year old son. Both did not potty train until they were well into their 3's. In fact my 3 1/2 year old has only been potty trained for about 3 months and he will be 4 in June. I tried to really encourage my first one to use the potty using every possible incentive you could think of. But the bottom line they are going to do it when they want. This go round I did the lolly pop incentive, I used dum dums because they are small, and it kinda worked for about a week and then the excitement wore off. The thing that I discovered potty training boys is that once they make up their minds to use the potty they really don't have accidents during the day at all and just use the potty.
The only training I had to do this time around is how to use the potty so he didn't miss (point it down) and remind him to call me after he poops....he wants to do it himself
and he often doesn't remember he has to use toilet paper.

I guess what I am trying to say is don't rush it, he'll be ready when he is.

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J.H.

answers from Fresno on

When I potty trainted my son, it was easier that I had expected. We started at 2yrs. 2mo. He was ready!! I did the cold turkey method. No diapers or pull-ups and straight to underwear!! (diapers for nap and night time though) It took about 3 days to get the hang of it, but by day 1 afternoon he was going in the potty and stopping himself when he started to have an accident. We gave him a TONNNNNN of liquids to make him go frequently. Special cups, and he even got to drink juice (which we usually don't allow) those days. After he got the hang of it I gave him stickers for successful pottys, but he didn't care that much about the stickers.

It was tricky to not have diapers at all, but if you stick to it they get the hang of it!

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N.P.

answers from Modesto on

Hi C.!

It sounds like you're doing the right things for a boy :o) It does take longer than girls, but you're already prepared for that, so there won't be any "disappointment" about it. Let's see...,you have the potty ready, he's running without a diaper....you're doing great. I would get a matress "cover" to protect your matress. Both my boys would NOT wear anything like a diaper/pull-up at night when they were potty training because they thought they were too big. Extra sheets, too, unless you plan on washing everyday (I decided every OTHER day worked better for me )

I had to "bite my tongue" with my boys having to go potty. It was ALWAYS obvious that they had to go, but they were "too busy" and always waited until the last minute. So, YES, my first learning experience was to let them figure it out for themselves. Or else, you will be saying "do you have to potty" a million times a week. They do figure it out by themselves, and when they do, they seem to be more consistent and successful with the potty. Otherwise, they simply "wait" for someone to remind them.

The best part is.....when you're on the road, you don't always have to find a "clean" bathroom. Boys can pee anywhere!

Happy Training and Have fun!!

:o) N.

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S.B.

answers from Sacramento on

Hi there,
I have a boy and a girl. My daughter is older and I worked and bribed to get her potty trained and it was fine but I thought there had to be a better way. As my son got older I decided to just wait until he was ready. It happened to come on a day when he was not quite 3 and we were getting ready for a 4 hour car ride. He got into the car and announced he was not wearing a diaper and that he would never wear one again! We made several extra stops during that car ride but he did great and has been diaper free ever since. I wouldn't worry about it at all...when he is ready he will let you know!

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A.S.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C.-!

I have 3 girls and 1 boy. My girls were all potty trained around the age of 3, and my boy was not even interested until he was almost 4. But when he was ready, it took just 2 days, and he rarely ever had an accident after that. I would say to wait until he was good and ready - it will probably be longer than your girls. Boys are usually on the go, and take longer to pay attention to that particular brain signal. I'm with you - I didn't want to run around after a child asking if he had to go potty all the time - frustrating for me and frustrating for them. I didn't make a big deal of it at all - (we also are a busy family) - and didn't worry about it. He just wore pullups for a long time :)

Good Luck with this-!!

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K.G.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C.,
Try reading him the boy's version of "Once upon a Potty" for a few months before starting potty training. That helped our completely disinterested son care want to try his potty. Also, waiting 4-6 months longer with boys than you would with girls seems to be the norm.
K.

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L.P.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C., I just potty trained my son - he will be 3 in May. We spent hours with him over the past year reading to him in the bathroom, sitting with him, trying out new potty chairs... We finally waited until he was almost 3 and the only bribe that worked for us was hot wheels (little toy cars). He had a couple accidents the first week, but other than that, since he was ready, it was easy. We still put him in diapers at night, but he loves his big boy underwear (Thomas the Train, Lightning McQueen...) Good Luck!

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J.M.

answers from Fresno on

I used to have my husband take my son to the bathroom and show him how daddy goes potty. My son was a little over 3, but it seemed to work!!! Good Luck!

J.

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J.C.

answers from Sacramento on

I have four boys (and one more on the way)three of whom are potty trained. I really messed up with my first two, I bought them the little potty and started with pull ups shortly after they turned two. They were no where near ready and we didn't get completely out of pull ups until they were about 3 1/2! What a nightmare that was.
With my 3rd son I decided to relax a bit. I didn't even mention the potty until he was almost three and saw his friends using it at church. I asked him if he wanted to use it instead of pressuring him to learn. I didn't buy him a little potty, instead I bought him a step stool to get up to the "real potty". We let him watch his older brothers and dad use the potty and I sat with him when he wanted to try. We made him a chart and let him pick a small sticker for it each time he tried and a big sticker when he actually went. If he used the potty and had a dry pull up the whole house would cheer, Mom, Dad, brothers, everyone would clap and praise him. We did this consistently for about 2 weeks and he was ready for big boy underwear. We always carried an extra set of clothes with us, but he had a very minimal amount of accidents. Within a month he was dry at night consistently. (It took his brothers 5 years to be dry at night, boy am I glad I finally learned my lesson)
Sounds like you are on the right track with being willing to wait for him to be ready. Peer pressure(instead of mom pressure)and praise have worked the best in my experience.

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S.B.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C..

We used stickers as a reward. We took him to the store and let him pick out a couple packs of stickers. When he went "peeps," he got one sticker and when he went poo, he got 2. We let him decorate his little toilet w/the stickers. When the sticker fun wore off, we took him to Chuck E Cheese, let him play and purchased some tokens to take home. Same cenario as the stickers but he put the tokens in a little velvet bag. He saved up for the next visit to CEC.
Also, we let him pick out his own "Big Boy Underware" and he thought that was really cool. He wanted to wear them right away. We pointed out that keeping them clean would be cool too, lol, and it worked!

Good luck and good for you for not pushing :)
S.

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J.S.

answers from San Francisco on

Boys aren't necessarily harder! I just potty trained my 3rd child (a boy) who was by far my fastest (I have an older boy and girl). They are all so different. I didn't think he was ready at all (he was 2 years 5 months at the time), showing no signs but I was really hoping to do it during winter break because we too are always in the car taking older kids somewhere. During break he happened to be naked and I noticed him holding himself so I took him to the bathroom and he went. Of course, older siblings were so excited for him that that really motivated him. All during the winter break I kept him naked. I had tried at one point putting underwear and clothes on but he wouldn't tell me he had to go- he'd forget and go in his pants. So I kept him naked all week and that was it- he was done.

The other suggestion I have is to purchase a portable toilet. I bought one for him to keep in the car (right start sells them) and in the beginning we used it like twice a day. Now it might be once a week but it's so nice to know it's there and I don't have to worry about being out and having no where for him to go.

Good luck!

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J.K.

answers from Fresno on

My son potty trained easily after I started putting himb on the big toilet backwards. This was wexciting for him because he could see himself go in the water. He would sit on the potty chair and pull off the pee catcher just to frustrate mr I think. Also just get one off the padded baby toilet seats that go on the big toilet. Ultimately they just want to be like us and do what we do.

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M.S.

answers from San Francisco on

I found that letting them run around without a diaper wokks the best along with a reward chart. I have 3 boys and they all
were not ready until age 3. I tried everything but it just seemed like they physically were not ready until then.
Hang in there!!!

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K.D.

answers from San Francisco on

My son @ 22 months showed signed of
"wanting to potty like daddy"
So, I put 2 phone books on the floor in front of the toilet.
(He was short) And he picked it up very quickly.
I used blue food coloring & placed 1 drop in the center of the water. Told him this is where you aim.
Worked pretty good. Except I had to remind him to hold himself.

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C.M.

answers from San Francisco on

This might sound crazy but it works. I used to put some cheerios in the toilet and have him aim at them to go potty and then after he would go he would get a special treat.

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P.C.

answers from Bakersfield on

hit the target!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! take squares of toilet paper and red marker... draw a circle on it with a dot in the center. let potty time be target practice! :) when he needs to go potty he takes one and drops it in the toilet and tries to aim for the target! its makes the whole process of going peepee on the potty fun vs work! It worked with 3 of my nephews! When my son is ready to start he better be just as enthused! good luck!

ps. the going naked thing also is really good! when my son is ready its going to be naked nathan with the potty outside! :)

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S.L.

answers from Redding on

I agree with the mom who said you have to be ready, not just your child. It's a commitment on the part of the parent to devote a couple of days or it will drag on way too long! My son who is 6 now, started potty training at 2. Here's my advice....don't ASK him if he needs to go potty, TELL him "it's time to take a break and go potty now" at least once an hour. If you ask him, you are giving him a choice and most likely setting him up for an "accident". If you tell him, it becomes a habit.
Oh, and throw a few cheerios in the toilet. Sink the cheerios was always a good bribe when he was resisting!
Hang in there and GOOD LUCK!

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P.K.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C.,
I have a 3 year old boy, we're potty training him also. He acctually hardly ever used to go on the toilet, maybe on a couple occasions in the past. He watches dad a lot and we tell him that if he wants to be a big boy he needs to go potty on the toilet. I think watching his dad do it helps. Last weekend we tried leaving his diaper off of him for a few hours and letting him run around nood. (weird as that sounds) it acctually worked. He ran up to me twice in the same morning and said " mommy I go potty" and ran to the bathroom, sat on the toilet and went pee. I was very impressed. I think that when the time comes for them to be ready to do that he'll let you know. Also, I think an example, such as dad can help. I haven't tried this, but I have heard it helps, put a couple cherios in the toilet and have him use them for aim when he goes pee. I also have a younger brother that was trained by our dad telling him to "shoot his spidey web" in the toilet. LOL I guess it just varies with each child. I hope this helps, good luck ;-)

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J.L.

answers from Sacramento on

I have two boys and just finished training my youngest. My oldest potty trained himself at 36months. I had tried and he was completely uninterested. Then one morning he woke up and said" mommy I want to wear underwear" and that was it- no accidents, no diaper at night. Then my second turned 3 with no interest and I just kept asking 1 or 2 times a day if he wanted to use the potty like his brother. It worked for a while but then he just got bored of it, so I stopped asking. And same as the first one he decided on his own one day that he wanted to use the potty. He has had more accidents than his brother did and I did have to ask him every hour if he needed to go, but that was only for a week or so.

I think boys will potty train when they are good and ready to. The presure sometimes can backfire

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R.C.

answers from San Francisco on

My son was and is an extremely bright young man. I struggled with my first son and didn't want to repeat the horrible potting training experience. So each and every day at some point, usually when changing the diaper, when he was two, I said, wow, you know when you are three you won't wear diapers anymore, because when you are three, you will be using the toilet. that's how it is all three yr olds use the toilet.
On his third birthday, he began using the toilet. No muss no fuss no hastle.

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M.R.

answers from San Francisco on

I'm a mom of 3 succesfully potty trained boys and a preschool teacher who has helped to train dozens of children. I think that it's definatly important to make sure that he is interested in going to the potty. One way of doing this can be using a rewards system. For example when he goes he can either earn something small like 1 jelly bean or 1 M&M. Or if that doesn't work for you there is also the option of doing a reward chart. He can earn a star for every time he uses the potty. I would give 3 stars for a poop as that is usually a little harder for the boys to master. When he earns the desired amount of stars he can get a special treat. When the time is right this approach should help. I don't think that any "bribes" are working with him right now because he's just not There yet.
When you decide that you are both ready to "potty train" I think that the best way to do it is going cold turkey on diapers and pull ups and go straight to the "Cool Big Boy Underwear" Pick out his favorite cartoon characters and he will be so proud he'll probably want to show everyone. One of my boys pulled his pants down in a grocery store one time to show this nice older women his Spiderman underwear :) LOL
Expect there to be accidents!!! This is all a part of the learning process. Kids generally don't like feeling the wet sensation when they have wet their pants. Consistancy is the most important thing in my opinion. You don't want to confuse your son by having him in diapers/pull ups some of the time and underwear some of the time. This only prolongs the time until your child will succesfully be potty trained. The only time I think it's a good time to use a diaper or pull up when you've started potty training is during nap and over night in the beginning. You will know when your child is ready to stop using these because they will be dry when they wake up.Have Dad show him how he can stand up and go pee in the potty. Give him the option of standing or sitting down. One thing that some boys like to do is stand up and try to pee on Cheerio that is floating in the toilet. Another trick is to show them that when they are standing and go pee in the toilet they make bubbles. I hope that this helps a little. Good Luck!!

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M.H.

answers from Sacramento on

Hi C.,

I am a mom to 4 boys ages 6 1/2, 5, 3 1/2, and 6 mos. I recently went through potty training again this last year with my 3 year old. I had the older two trained at 2 1/2, but the other one decided to wait until just before his 3rd birthday before he was ready. But he was by far the easiest because he was older. I never used a potty chair with my boys...I trained them straight to the toilet. I bought a seat that fit directly on top of the toilet and I put a stool next to the toilet so they could climb up on the seat. It seemed to save a step for me in the end and I didn't have to dump out or clean a potty chair. My 3 year old was done in a week. Once he decided he was ready, that's all it took. I tried forcing him before he was ready and it was so frustrating for both of us. I don't know what I was thinking. We didn't even really use pull-ups. He went straight to underwear. The first two I trained to pee while sitting down and then later taught them to pee while standing up. The last one was tall enough to learn to pee standing up first...again...it saved a step in the end. So, all that to say that I guess my advice would be just to wait until your son shows that he is completely ready and it will be an easier process for all of you! When he begins to show some interest, get Dad to start teaching him a tip or two in the evenings when Dad is home (and let your son watch Dad...watching Dad and wanting to be like Dad will go a long way in the motivation category and Dad can teach him how to hold himself). Running around in the yard without a diaper will help tremedously, too. Good luck! Boys are a lot of fun! :-)
Kara

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S.S.

answers from Yuba City on

Hello. My son is 3 1/2, just got interested in the potty. My Dr. said that some kids are stubborn and when they're ready they'll let you know...(2nd Dr. to tell me that)!! My Dr. did mention to make a game of it.. make a big deal about it..Good luck (for me too ( :)

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R.G.

answers from San Francisco on

Boys always take longer and don't even start until his about 3. My oldest son was 3 and 4 months. The younger son was just three. I know preschools require potty training and we were just under the deadline for that. We did run around naked baby in the back yard, had a training potty right at the door and one in the bathroom. I made a potty chart and put it on the bathroom door a few months before so they could look at it and understand it before using it. I traced the lid of the kid potty, taped it up on a piece of contrasting construction paper and hung it up. You would have to lift the lid to see the bottom half of the traced potty bottom. Make sense? We would have a basket of stickers which the boys picked out themselves, or beads or whatever interested them at the time. No candy ever. One time, my little one put a blue M&M but that was toward the end. So, they get a trip to the sticker basket to put in their chart under the lid. I was a miracle how quickly they got to it to make this a ritual rather than a chore. Yes, you do check every so often if they need to go. I also bought the big boys underwear, kid picked of course, and washed them and had them ready in their drawer for when they were ready. Just the thought of that reward and knowing they were in there was enough to excite them too. So, bottom line, no pun intended, is wait it out. Be gentle. Use the potty in the family room to drive around with cars stored in it for a few months and then convert it to the real deal. Too much info? Hope not. Good luck and have fun.

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V.H.

answers from San Francisco on

Hi C.,

I potty trained my son at about 2-21/2. He wasnt quite ready yet either so every other morning or so (after some milk or juice) I would put him on the little potty right in front of the tv watching cartoons and before you know it he went. After the first time he kept doing it. It might be kind of strange to potty train in the living room but Hey it worked!!!

Good Luck!!!

G.P.

answers from Modesto on

I know the feeling. My oldest was potty trained by his dad. My second one was delayed so it took me forever to potty train him. My youngest was the easiest. I had a potty chair on the floor. He would walk in the bathroom on his own and use it. I believe he seen everyone else doing it so he picked up on it. I am a single mom, so I know the feeling, with boys. He was a year and half when he started using it. He didn't have any accidents which was good. I kept a diaper on him during the day or out at stores.
My son preferred the real toilet over the potty chair. Boys can be lazy and some know on instinct. 2 years of age is about the time they should broke from the diaper. My oldest was 3 when he was trained, he had two younger brothers in diapers. My oldest is adhd, and my middle son has learning problems. Some babies can learn once they start walking. I feel bad with my middle son, he was 5 when he learned. Every child is different.

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M.B.

answers from Sacramento on

I too first tried potty training my son at 2 1/2 years. He liked the idea for a couple of weeks then got bored and refused.

I backed off and waited 2 months later and at first it wasn't smooth sailing but then he surprised me a week later and started waking up with dry diapers after nap and sometimes in the morning and thats how I knew his bladder was ready. He's only been sucessfully going regularly on the potty for about 2 weeks and we still have accidents but its usually from him getting too into playing and not wanting to take a break to go potty.

A friend of mine suggested jelly beans as an incentive. I bought Jelly Bellys and he is really excited about the variety of colors they come in. He gets 1 candy for going pee and 2 if he goes poop. He actually started going poop sucessfully in the potty first for about a month before he was ready to go pee in the potty regularly.

A couple of friends of mine decided to go cold turkey at about 2 years 9 mos as well and just skip pull-ups all together on their boys and put them straight into underwear. That worked for them.

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T.F.

answers from Chico on

I wouldn't worry about it too much. At 2 1/2 he's probably still a little young. We tried to potty train our oldest boy (he's almost 3 1/2) too early and we fought with him for a year. We tried bribing him, etc. and nothing worked. Then he turned 3, and the fighting with it stopped. It only took about a week and a few accidents (we put him in underwear except when napping or at preschool) and he was potty trained. After a couple of months he stopped wetting in his pull-up at night too. Best wishes!

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