Where Does You Toddler Son Pee?

Updated on February 15, 2008
D.J. asks from Aubrey, TX
58 answers

I am potty training my 2.5 yr old son and have a quick question. Where does you little toddler pee? He enjoys sitting on the little Pooh Bear plastic potty, but it's a really a joke because he has never used it. He does actually pee on the big potty everytime I put him on it facing backwards like he's riding a horse. Once I got him to pee standing up, but that makes me nervous that it'll drip down his leg or on his clothes. He is currently in spiderman underwear and kept them dry all day yesterday, but it was only because I was constantly putting him on the potty all day. I think I was making a mistake by doing that. Someone told me I was potty training myslef not him. Today I think I will let him have an accident so he can learn to recognize when he needs to go potty. I am ready for suggestions so lay it on me! :)

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So What Happened?

Thanks for your advice! I received alot of reponses and it is going good so far.
I am learning to just try whatever works. He will pee standing up or sitting down. Today at church I actually had him stand on the toilet seat and he made it into the potty! I was so proud!! He has been pooping on himself, but I think that is just part of the learning process. I hosed him down in the shower yesterday. That was fun! lol
I also took him in public this weekend and he stayed dry. I only put diapers on him at night b/c the first night he peed A LOT!! Other than bedtime he never gets a diaper. I just keep taking him to the potty and he goes everytime. He has NEVER told me when he NEEDS to go potty, but I'm sure that will just come later. That's OK. He is really good at going on command. He even practiced on the grass outside and I was proud. I am thankful he pees so well. I'll be happy once he poops in the potty instead of his pants. :) Thanks again for your advice!

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S.R.

answers from Odessa on

My toddler grandson pees in the regular toilet. He was reluctant to until we bought him a little seat to put right over the top of the regular seat. Now he'll sit up there and take care of business and he's so very proud of himself. He loves to stand and pee and I have a little stool that lifts him high enough to clear the toilet bowl and his mommy has been really diligent about teaching him to wipe himself and then even wipe splatter and toss the tissue in and flush. Then he can use that same little stool and stand on it to wash his hands. He is almost 2-1/2.

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S.H.

answers from Beaumont on

I have a three year old and had him potty trained by two half the same way you are doing. The only other thing I can suggest is that if you are outside and he needs to go then let him pee on the tree make it fun. When he goes potty on the toliet have him a treat, so that he knows he has do something good. One more thing is try to let him stand up at the potty on a stool if needed and lean towards the back of the toliet, which will make him feel like he is a big boy. Be consistent try not to switch back and forth between underwear and pull-ups that only confused my little boy. Hope this helps. Good Luck.

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J.C.

answers from Houston on

My son loved to pee on the trees outside. Once he got control and the hang of peeing while standing, we moved it to the "big" potty. He does well and doesn't miss the "target". I would suggest putting a "target" such as goldfish crackers in the potty for practicing aim.

JC

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M.D.

answers from San Antonio on

I read somewhere about having a "Potty Party" for a whole day! Plan on staying home with your son and do not let him have a pull up. Keep him in big boy pants and make it a huge deal. Make up your own rules! I tried this and it worked for my son but I extended it. That Potty Party was the kick off for the Potty training week. I made an elaborate poster board and hung it in the bathroom. Every time he peed I put a star on the board and he got a treat. (Small prizes from the dollar store) When he reached 15 stars he earned a bigger prize. I took him to target and spent like five dollars. It was fun for all of us! Oh! I almost forgot. He peed in the toilet standing up. Had better luck that way since that's how dad pees. :)

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C.A.

answers from Austin on

I have taught all three of my boys to pee sitting down it's alot less mess for me and by the time they go to school Dad teaches them to stand up and by then if they mess hopefully they can clean it up themselves. Sounds like you're doing a great job, I also have a two year old who pees on comand but won't come and tell me yet. Good luck and hang in there.

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K.W.

answers from Dallas on

We use to put cherrios in the potty and tell him to aim. This will sound terrible but we also use to let him aim at the tree in the back yard.
Good luck

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M.S.

answers from Dallas on

My son is almost 2 and is almost fully potty trained. I have never considered getting him to stand up or face backwards on the toilet. I just want to get the basics down first. He has an older sister to watch, so he thinks sitting is the only way. Also, I asked my husband to sit on the toilet when my son is watching him. I'll worry about standing up later.
Best book on the subject: Early Start Potty Training, by Linda Sonna. Very practical advice on how to potty train a child from birth (if you want) to beyond age two.

Good luck!

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K.J.

answers from San Antonio on

My twin boys were potty trained almost instantly when I told them they could either use the potty or pee in the back yard. Guess which one they chose? :)

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M.M.

answers from Corpus Christi on

We started potty training my son at 2 1/2 years old. We had him in pull ups. He did not want anything to do with the "big" potty for the longest time. He had several accidents. It was difficult, because I was a working mother and he was in daycare all day. I tried this cute trick someone told me. We threw Cheerios in the toilet and let him aim for them. He seemed to enjoy that game, but he did not want to go #2 in the toilet. Shortly before he turned 3, he just decided it was time for him to be a "big boy." He has never had an accident since. He is 5 now. Children usually decide for themselves when they are ready.

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J.R.

answers from Austin on

You are doing just great, Deanna, especially if you take Mike and Debi Pearl's advice!!
My potty-training comment is about standing vs. sitting: I don't think it really matters until he decides he must try the potty at every store you visit! Then you will probably want him to know how to stand and pee. I always let my boys stand on my foot so they would be tall enough.

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G.C.

answers from Dallas on

Hi Deanna! My son is nine now but what I did for him was take him to the regular potty. Got him a stool big enough for him to stand over it. Put a little toilet paper in the pot with a cheerio in the middle of the pot and told him to aim. Dad helped too when he was around. Sometimes if they see dad doing it, they kind of get the hang of it. Take him every few hours even if he doesn't have to go. He will start going on his own after awhile or ask you to assist him until he can stand on the stool on his own.
G.-

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J.B.

answers from Dallas on

when my son was just over 3 we started training since that was when he showed interest. we spent 3 naked days in the house and i plied him with milk so he would have the feeling of having to go. we used the portable potty and i put him on it every 30 minutes. if he went pee he got an m&m. if not a raisin. if he pooped them he got 3 m&ms. He never has had an accident. sometimes his pants or underwear get wet even now- he'll be 5 next week, but that's just from being lazy. once he was tall enough to stand he did that..otherwise he sat on the big potty once he was ready to not use the portable one. hope that helps.

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J.K.

answers from Dallas on

If you teach your son to sit when peeing,You will appreciate later. It saves alot of messes on the floor, especially when he gets older and if he's tall. I have 5 sons, 2 are 6'7.

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C.M.

answers from Houston on

I always taught my boy to stand. It does not drip down his legs. But, sometimes he would get disracted and pee on the floor. I have hread of parents putting stuff like cheerios in the toilet and let them hit them. Like target practice. My mom always told me I was potty trained not my son. At first I think it is always that way. Then he will get the hang of it. Stay strong. Keep moving forward with this. I also took my son camping for practice. He would go pee on the trees alot.

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M.T.

answers from Austin on

My sons and my grandson all used the regular toilet (using the child-sized also never produced any results) and were on regular potty schedules. The consistency in anything eventually forms good habits, doesn't it?

To avoid having drips, I would make sure clothes & underpants were pulled down far enough and have them stand against the commode.

Would never recommend purposely having them produce accidents. This would be negative training, which isn't your goal.

Patience and time should work best...he is still very young, so don't listen to all the advice not to be a trained parent. It works.

Rooting for you,
M. T.

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C.M.

answers from Abilene on

Now this is just me, but.... I let me son run around with only a long T-Shirt on. Every time I'd put underwear or a diaper on him, he'd go in those. I just asked him every so often if he had to go. But the real clincher was getting this potty-training kit in the mail. I'm not sure why we did, but Thank You Jesus, cause it was what pushed him to finally getting it. It arrived in our mail Thursday afternoon, and by Monday morning he was totally trained. And since then (3 years ago exactly this Valentines Day!!) he's only had 2 accidents. It was this thing from Pampers... Kandoo... it had a little frog on it, and it came with a little "treasure map" (what my son called it). It had the steps to going potty... 1. pull down your pants; etc. Go to Pampers.com and see if they have it still. My son loved doing the steps and checking them off each time. Sorry this is so long! >C.

PS: if you teach him to pee sitting down - that'd be the best thing you could do for yourself, and his wife. My husband was taught that way, and our bathroom stays cleaner for way longer. I just stress to Alex that in public is the only place to pee standing up...

I'm a SAHM with a son, Alex, 6; and a daughter, Brooke 2 1/2

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B.F.

answers from Dallas on

My son is now 9 years old, so I've been there. He started learning standing up, and I decided that it was more important to learn than to do it perfectly from the get go. The only thing I did was stress that he needed to stand up right next to the potty. He was so small when he started this he had to stand on a step stool to reach the potty! Leave the toliet seat up at all times to help him, but otherwise let him try! As for reminding him and taking him to the bathroom I did that too and you what? He did great, he learned to go on his own within a few weeks. Don't stress over it. :)

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E.C.

answers from Dallas on

I have 3 sons, ages 17, 20 and 23, and a 4 year old daughter. I was a daycare provider for 15 years. I was so blessed that my husbands' mom taught him to pee sitting down. I also taught my sons to do that. I told them that peeing standing up in a persons' home was disrespectful to the woman, because she is the one who would have to clean the bathroom, most likely. My sons are country kids. They'll pee in the driveway with their dad before we get in the car to go to church, but they don't splatter all over the nearby tub and floor when they pee inside. They sit and go that way.
One book I liked for this and adopted within reason was "Potty Training in Less Than a Day" I may not have the title exactly, but you can google it.
By the way, I LOVE Michael and Debi Pearl. I first read their book on child rearing about 15 years ago. I remember it was new at the time. It is such a blessing!
good luck to you in you potty training!

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C.E.

answers from Dallas on

I learned these tricks from a friend who has 4 boys, and I used them on my sons:
--Have him sit on the toilet facing backward
--Have him aim at the water
--Put a few drops of dishwashing detergent so he try to make bubbles
--Put a few Cheerios in the water so he can try to hit them

It worked for my boys. Hope this helps.

C.

A little about me:
A Proud Wife, Homeschool Mom of 7 wonderful children--5 girls and 2 boys--and Math tutor

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J.W.

answers from Houston on

I have twin boys, so when I was potty training them you can only imagine how many accidents I was cleaning up. This might sound gross, but my DH told them to pee behind the tree (if we were outside, which we always were). Well it worked. But then I had another problem which was making them use the bathroom instead of running outside everytime they had to pee. So then they started watching their dad when he had to go. So I guess you can say their dad trained them and not me!!

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D.M.

answers from Austin on

Deanna,
Bless your heart! Boys are awesome and wonderful but potty training them is a challenge. It is ,of course, important to remember that every child is different. I have 3 boys myself. Ages 7, 5 and 9mos. First and foremost, don't rush it. If he is just playing with the potty right now, that's fine. At least he's not afraid of it. What has worked for us is to let them go without any bottoms on while they are at home. IT is fine for him to pee on himself so that he can learn what NOT to do. Keep the potty in a place that is easily accessible (i.e. the kitchen, living room, play room) so he can see it as a visual reminder. THen just be normal. Whenever he acts interested, be very excited and reward him. He'll get there!
D.

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A.K.

answers from Dallas on

Just a suggestion for peeing standing up (which is my son's favorite way to do it- started at 2.5 years).... after he gets up on the stool, tell him to put his knees against the toilet- will keep the pee from getting on his legs. Just make sure that the stool doesn't slip away from the toilet- if it's on a rug or something, it might. My son always knows to put his knees on the toilet. That way if he drips, it's just on the toilet rim.

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H.H.

answers from Houston on

I think that's why I prefer the description "potty learning" to "potty training". How else is he supposed to learn, if you don't teach? He didn't use a spoon right away, you fed him. You are not training yourself, you are teaching him. Everyone else has lots of suggestions, you can pick and choose. What works for one may not work for you. But do remember that he is "learning" the potty, not a monkey you are "training" to urinate in a certain spot. You have to do the teaching, and your support needs to be there for him to learn. Slowly take away some support WHEN he is ready.

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A.C.

answers from Dallas on

You for sure need to let him have some(not just one) acidents for him to get potty trained. Mine is now 3 and he was potty tranined by about 2 1/2 years. I had used pull-ups and he didn;t care if he wet in them. Omce I made him wear REAL underwear he could actually feel wet and started taking imself to the bathroom now. BTW, I got mine a little stool so when he wants to pee like daddy he doesn't get it everywhere.

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L.S.

answers from Houston on

When we potty trained our son, who is now 19 and at college, we let him tinkle outside in the backyard. He thought it was very fun and he learned to tinkle standing up like big boys do. Otherwise, he just sat on the toilet and leaned way forward. We taught him to hold his wee-wee down to make sure the tinkle went into the potty. Sitting backwards like you have him doing also works really well. And for the first few days, you HAVE to put them on the potty all day long. That's how they learn! I also kept a little jar of M&M's in the bathroom - that was the reward!

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P.K.

answers from Houston on

let him pee standing up. it is how he will for the rest of his life, and he (and you) will get used to the dribbles and mis-fires at first, but then he know what to do!

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K.M.

answers from Dallas on

Deanna,

I HIGHLY recommend a website I used to potty train my daughter. I know they say girls are easier than boys, but the author of this manual potty trained her son in 3 days. I bought the manual ($10.00 - money back guaranteed) and my daughter was going potty on the potty by herself after 2 1/2 days. The book discourages the mom taking the child to the potty every so often, because then, the child will come to expect that the mom will take him/her. That's how accidents happen, because "mommy didn't take me to the potty". The website where I found it is www.easypottytraining.com. It was AWESOME! I plan to use the same thing to potty train my 9-month old twins...when it's time, of course!

Best of luck.
K.

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M.Q.

answers from Houston on

Hello I have two boys a 4 year old and a 2 year old. I pottie trained by 4 year old son when he was 2 1/2. At first we bought him a little training seat that goes on top of the big toilet. They usually come with a little cup that attaches to the front of their seat so the boys wont pee outside. We did not know that until we bought it. Its a soft cushiony one that you can get at Target, Walmart any department store. But when we were in public restrooms my husband always took him. Once I had to take him and I didnt know how to do it. So he peed all over him self. I asked my husband and he told me that to seat him down regular and make sure that his pee-pe is inside. So when he pees it wont get out, But the first few months we had to hold or push it down for him because he didnt know. Until he understood how to do it all by him self. So Till this day my four year old still pees sitting down. I think that the boys learn how to pee standing up by watching their father, its not something that we have to teach them. And when I was potty training him I would also ask him constantly and he would say no until once I caught him peeing I ran him to the restroom and then I told him that, that is where the pee goes that not on his underware. and we clapped and danced for him so he got all excited. And I can tell you that he only peed on himself twice and it took me less than a week to potty train him.

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C.M.

answers from Austin on

My son turned five in Dec. He didn't potty train til he was 3 1/2 ( his choice not mine) At first I got him to gothe potty by putting fruit loops in the toilet and telling him to hit them. When he hit it and he finished he got a sticker or something. He likes going potty on the tree outside. We live in the country so it's not a big deal. Now unfortunately I am trying to teach him he can only potty on trees at home not at the sitters house. He will let you know when he is ready believe me. GOOD LUCK!!

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A.S.

answers from Dallas on

I have six kids and have never found use for our little potty other than to introduce potty training to them. They just seemed to want to use the big potty.

As far as putting him on the potty alot so he doesn't have accidents, I think that is fine. You are teaching him where pee and poo is supposed to go. And the fact that he has the mind set to go pee in the potty and can connect the two is WONDERFUL!

Just keep doing what you are doing, it seems to be doing the job!

Much Luck!

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J.G.

answers from San Antonio on

Well then i guess i potty trained my self too haha!! I told my son (who was 2.5 also) every 30 mins if he had to go potty, he would say yes or no, when he went he couldnt reach standing up, so he would get on the potty backwards on his knees (he figured this out on his own). He coulnt use the "little" pottys cause he was to chunky in his thighs that it would squish his "buisness". any way he also learned how to hold it and shake it and all that from his daddy, he would watch him go then he would tell him ok your turn. He finally got the hang of it and we didnt have to tell him all the time anymore he just went. As far as going poo poo, he did that at the same time, he had one accident in his undies and he didnt like the feel of it so never did it again (hes kinda girly haha just kidding he doesnt like to be dirty at all). Ohh and we also took him to walmart and let him pick out his own undies and for some reason he wont wear "regular" ones he likes the shorts ones, but hey who can blame him he is just like his daddy LOL. I hope this helps you, if not hopefully you got a couple of laughs anyway. Good Luck on the potty training, we are still working on the night time though and he is going to be 4 in July.

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S.J.

answers from Dallas on

get a step stool for potty training to give him a extra few in. that way he can eather sit or stand easily. potty training my son we played sink the cherrio for aim. there is a vidio i used called he potty she potty its a book and video we did it in a weekend.

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C.L.

answers from Odessa on

well at least ur child tries to pee not like mine,hes always letting me "no" that he doesn't want to sit down in the potty iam trying to get him off the pampers, cause iam planing to have another one but a realy want him off the pampers. i ahv ea Q? for u know does ur child talk already at 2 1/2 yrs?

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E.L.

answers from Dallas on

I have all girls - but my friends with boys have done this successfully:

Put a bowl of cheerios near the toilet. Have him throw one in and "aim" for the cheerio! He will have so much fun that he will potty train himself. Oh, and get some clorox wipes!
:-)
Good luck!
E.

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S.S.

answers from Dallas on

When my son started potty training he started on his own because he wanted to be like his Dad and started copying him. He didn't like the potty seat we had for him because Dad stood up so we got him a foot stool so he could actually reach the toilet. It took a while for him to get the hang of aiming it in the toilet but he does pretty good now. The best part is that my 18 month old is starting to make the motions of peeing in the toilet just like his Dad and brother. :D Good luck finding the right method for your family!!!!

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T.K.

answers from Dallas on

Deanna,

Both my kids were potty trained by the time they were 3. (Son now is 7 and daughter will be 4 next month). At the time I worked full time so I took the lead of my in-home sitter who had 20 years of child care experience. We bought the cloth training pants that were plastic on the outside and cloth on the inside. That way when they do have an accident they can feel it. We only used pull ups at night. The first week or so we took our kids to the potty every 30 or minutes or so just as you are doing. It was tiring and at times I would take them and they'd sit there only to get off and have an accident, but around the two week mark they stared to go longer and longer and finally they were telling us when they had to go. The key is to not revert to a diaper of a pull up during the day at all, even if you are going out. Although it was a task I would continue to take them potty every 30 minutes even if we were out in a store or restaurant. (Again this phase only lasted about two weeks). I always had a bag of clothes in the car in case of an accident. They stayed in the training pants for quite a while as a caution; however, the accidents became less and less. If your son is staying dry all day, he seems to be 3/4 of the way there already. He may get discouraged if he does start to have accidents. Accidents are ok, but I would continue what you are doing and praise him everytime he does not have an accident. Good luck!

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J.M.

answers from Houston on

I have been called the master of potty training :) With my son, I put him on the BIG potty to pee. I totally skipped that potty chair thing. That only gave me something else to clean! I would make him sit to pee and poop. Once he got the hang of getting in there and doing it, he stood up. Gabe was 2 1/2 as well. He was super excited when I told him DON'T PEE ON SCOOBY! (As that was his favorite then.) Three weeks later, he was 100% potty trained! He probably started standing at 3...when he could reach it! I hoped this helped a little!

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D.H.

answers from Sherman on

Hello.
When it came time to teach my son how to use the potty, i could handle the number two, but my husband had to handle the number one. Now our son "pees just like daddy." Makes him more proud of himself.
Ask your husband if he wouldn't mind taking him into the bathroom with him when he needs to go. Just to watch how Daddy does it. Then whenever your son needs to go, and your husband is home, have your husband take him. I found this to be the easiest way for all of us. As for hitting the target? Try cheerios in the potty for him to "aim" at.

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K.M.

answers from Dallas on

That's how I trained my daughter to go, putting her on the potty every 30 min. It only took 2 days before she was able to tell us when she had to go. I know boys and girls are different, but I don't think you're training yourself by putting him on the potty all the time. You're training him to realize what it feels like to go and giving him a sense of accomplishment that he went in the potty. Make a big deal about it when he goes, even if you put him up there and forced him to. Accidents aren't fun for either of you, so keep doing what you're doing. Set a timer if you have to and keep putting him on that potty. It takes patience, but he'll figure it out.

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H.L.

answers from Dallas on

I taught my son to pee sitting down first. Then, when he was fully potty trained (and tall enough) I taught him to do it standing up.

BTW, you're not potty training yourself by putting him on the potty all day....that's how you do it!! By making it a habit for him, he will learn to go on his own. When I started potty training my kiddos, I set my kitchen timer for 20 minutes....every 20 minutes, we sat on the potty. Then I would slowly increase the time over the next few days as they learned to "hold it".

Just don't get discouraged when he does have accidents....I think most people think that potty training is something that magically happens in a week or two. From my experience, it took a month to train my daughter to pee and another month afer that to train her to poop. With my son, it took about a month & 1/2 to train him to pee and another month after that to poop. It is a process that can be exhausting on you mentally & physically, but once it's over, life is so much better!

Good luck!

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R.C.

answers from San Antonio on

I don't think you are making a mistake by taking your son to the bathroom constantly. Yes, in a sense you are potty training yourself to do that for him, but believe me, he is learning to recognize that he needs to go potty by doing that. He doesn't need to have an accident in his pants to learn when he needs to go. My husband and I are in the process of potty training our son right now, and so far, he has not had a wet accident for me because I do take him to the bathroom. When he doesn't need to go, he tries to fight me on it, but I make him sit on the potty anyway, just to be on the safe side. When that happens, he usually doesn't go, so I know he is learning when he needs to go and when he doesn't. This has been going on for a few weeks now, and I am finding that he will go by himself and come find me to help him pull his underwear and pants back up. My son turns 3 on Tuesday, so it sounds like he may be a little older than your son. After a few weeks of taking your son to potty, if he is not recognizing on his own when he needs to go, he may not be ready to potty train yet. My pediatrician told me a good indicator that any child is ready to potty train is if the child is waking up in the morning or from naps with dry diapers. Once I noticed my son had been doing this for about two weeks, I started potty training.

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J.T.

answers from Sherman on

My mom used a 'folger's can' to get my little brothers trained. She used it on all three of them. I know it sounds strange, but it worked! Good luck!

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A.L.

answers from Corpus Christi on

Great that you are getting your 21/2 little boy potty trained. My son stands up facing the potty. And many times, it does not make it in. If his clothes get wet, we clean it up (emphasis on WE). When he does it on his own - NO MESS!! we do a little dance! Have fun! It is worth it! Messy but worth it!

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R.G.

answers from Dallas on

I have 2 boys 8 and 6. Here are my humble opinions:

1. Taking him all day is exactly how you teach him - if you have time keep doing this for awhile

2. Both of our boys quickly moved to peeing standing up at toilet - a little pee on them is fine and believe me even when older there will be trails of pee ...

3. Have Dad take as much as possible and pee with them at same time - little boys think this is great. My 6 year old still races to pee with his Dad every morning.

4. We allowed our kids to pee behind the tree in back yard. They really love this. However, this does create a comfort level in peeing out and about which can create another set of challenges.

Good luck!

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A.G.

answers from Abilene on

I have a friend that has 3 boys. She used to put a cheerio in the potty for her sons to aim at. This helped them to learn to stand up. It may help to have your son stand on your feet to make him taller. Also, it helped us to have daddy explain a few things. Also, we do not live in town, so we started out letting our sons pee on a tree. It is kinda odd, but boys like that kinda thing. Good luck.

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L.B.

answers from Abilene on

I have a son and when he was being potty trained, my husband is the one that did it. We figured since he was a man and peed the same way as our son, then our son would watch him and learn. He did and it was soooo easy to potty train him. We just let him go to the bathroom with dad and he watched, learned and was potty trained. Hope this helps and works as easily for you and your son as it did for mine.

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A.C.

answers from Dallas on

no don't let him have an accident on purpose! You want him to have success! he will have an accident, I promise. You will get pee on his clothes your floor, etc. so just know that. Embrace the process, buy some new undies and do a couple more loads of wash. You will stress him out if he has to feel pee free every time no drips. Its worth it to $$ saved on diapers. Can't potty train without some misses. I say let him pee sitting down, standing, in the grass, where ever, until he gets the hang of it. Let him choose. I did this with my kids and never had any issues. The boy started sitting down and then switched to standing. Let's face it, its easier. Boys AND their daddies are messy peers. Its a fact. You are doing everything perfect, taking him lots, every 2 hours, to the potty. Take him with you when you go and each have a turn. Keep it light and warn him its almost time if he is in the middle of a game, etc. He sounds so ready. I bet it'll be easy.

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P.P.

answers from Tyler on

My oldest son is now 30 and my youngest is 14. When they were potty training we got a small stool for them to stand on when they were pottying. This way they felt like they were big like daddy standing to go, and if they lost their balance they really wouldn't have far to fall. Some of your potty chairs will convert to a step. My advice is forget that potty chair. They are a mess to clean anyway.
Pam in Texas

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J.K.

answers from Austin on

When I potty trained my son, he sat on the toilet for a few months because he was just a bit too short to stand up. But, while I was actually potty training, I took out the little "container" from the potty seat where the pee goes in, and for 2 days we stayed home and he was naked and when he was about to start peeing, I would put the container to catch the pee so that he would see the pee needs to go into something. The next day he was peeing in the toilet. Also, you can get a little step stool and he can stand on that to pee into the toilet if he already wants to do that...

Good luck!

J.

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V.S.

answers from San Antonio on

My son is also 2 1/2 and potty training. He goes in a potty chair, stands up at a regular potty, and even goes in the bushes if we are outside (that's his favorite). I think you did the right thing by constantly putting him on the potty at first. This way he gets the idea of how often he may need to go in order to stay dry. I don't think you should aim to 'let him' have an accident today, but instead you should set a timer and go every hour or so. Then, if he happens to have an accident you can adress it, but you won't forget and wait so long that it is inevidable that he has one. Good luck and stay on a schedule, even if you are out and about.

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L.P.

answers from Dallas on

My boys wouldn't stand to pee, UNTIL they saw thier slightly older cousins stand, then they wanted to be just like the big boys. Maybe have someone show them, like your DH if he isn't uncomfortable with it, like my spouse was. Good luck!

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M.B.

answers from Houston on

Hello! Potty training, what fun, right?!?! Well, with my son, I just put his undies on, and would remind him frequently, baby, don't pp in your pants, go to the potty if you need to go. And he did! Also, my son really likes to stand up and pp, like his daddy. I can't say we've had any real issues with that. His aim is pretty good, and the way I see it, he is probably coming out as clean as his daddy does!! :) I just would make sure he stood really close to the potty, and he did fine. When we first started, accidents didn't seem to bother my son very much. (poop, yes, pp no!) And it only seemed to happen when he was busying playing. Almost like he would forget, or just didn't care. So, that's why I decided to just remind him often. And I also made sure to buy underwear for him that he thinks are really cool, like Spiderman. It seems to matter to him!!

Good luck!!

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M.U.

answers from Houston on

One thing you can try is to put a fruit loop in the toilet and have him aim at the fruit loop to see if he can sink it or make the water change colors. Any time he does hit it you can reward him with a hand full of his favorite snack. This always helped me. Good Luck

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W.P.

answers from Sherman on

Yes, let him feel it a couple of times so he will know when he needs to go and he'll pick it up fast. The only time I make my 3 year old, who has been in underwear for 4 weeks now, go to the potty is when we are about to leave and go somewhere because I don't want him haveing an accident in the car.

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J.H.

answers from Dallas on

I know some moms that still take her son to the potty and she has been for a long time.
To have an accident is not a bad thing. When I was potty training my youngest we went every 15 min to start and then just bumped up the time. He wet himself a few times(and when its cold out thats REALLY uncomfortable) He started standing to pee by himself. But to be honest his favorite place to pee is OUTSIDE!!!!!!!
He will learn! Dont be into much of a rush for his sake and your sanity!

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S.K.

answers from Longview on

Do you have a male in the house? Have them pee together into the toilet at the same time. Both of my sons were trained within a week with this method.

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L.S.

answers from Dallas on

I put my now four year old backwards like you when he was too little to stand at the potty. He would also use the little potty, but rarely. He really liked to pee in the grass and learned how to "aim " better outside. It just happened that we were training during warm weather so he could go in the back yard. I know it sounds a little wierd maybe, but all that going outside really helped him realize when he needed to go because it was fun for him. He now uses the big potty standing up.
btw - I love the books you mentioned too - such good applicable advice!!

L.

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S.W.

answers from Houston on

My son, who is almost three goes to the bathroom sitting down on the big potty like his two older sisters. It is good that he is wearing underpants and not pullups so he will have some incentive to potty train. The key is to remain positive about the whole experience. Try putting blue food coloring in the toilet and when he goes the water will turn green and he will think it is reall cool! Several friends recommended the book How to Potty Train your Child in One Day (haven't read it yet). Your son will need reminding to use the potty, at first. Your son will need to have a few accidents, and feel it running down his leg, but he will get the hang of it in a few short days. You will need to block out some time to accomplish this. Once he is daytime trained, it will make your life so much easier.

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