Help! potty training ds's 1and2 and i havnt a clue what im doing...

[NappiesGalore]

frankly, ive been sticking my head in the sand on this issue and kind of hoping theyll just train themselves or something (der!) i have books and stuff but i just cant face reading or researching anymore as it all just makes me full of dread and feeling like a failure already. so someone FGS just tell me what to do please!!!

anyways:
ds1 is 37months, ds2 is 24months (yesterday)
been talking about potties and toilets and generally about the subject for a while in a 'no pressure' sort of way with ds1.
this morning i took off a heavy nappy from him and said 'can you tell me when you want a wee? we can find the potty and do it in there' (have done this before with both of them and they have either done wee's on the floor or mostly, outside in the garden)
little while later he says he wants a wee and asks for the potty! hallelujah! i got the potty and a book and read him the book till he wee'd and then made a big fuss and gave a sticker and put it down the loo with him and let him flush and he seemed really pleased.
not long after, ds2 did the same thing! so did the praise etc with him too.
then, ds2 does a poo in the potty and doesnt even tell anyone! again wiht the praise, when we found it. and ds1 has since poo'd in the potty also.

so this is all great and stuff, but where do i go from here?? im in totally alien territory. do i need pants? how long do i praise them? what should i do if they start to play with the poo?! (ds1 had a little go at his, the little nutter).
how do i consolidate our progress?? help.

sorry for long post.

bump bump bump bump (to the tune of your choice... )

I can't really help you much - still consider myself a fledling potty trainer. But DS1 is 38 months & going through the same - he has pants - no nappies - when I am with him & constantly reminding him to go to the toilet he is fine. When left to his own devises to go to the toilet/potty he has left it too late and wets his pants getting there.

it is so frustrating but I am hoping he will work it out soon - but I would definately say you are not going to move forward too fast unless they are in pants and out of nappies.
Praise them until it is second nature? Get rid off the pooh straight away & emphasis how dirty it is to touch - wash hands etc.
I'm sure some one will give better advice soon and help us both!!!

oh god i hope so jetset

seriously!!! i need some input here. please hepl.

Cod?? Hunker?? some sane level headed woman, for the love of , i dunno, mother nature or something, sort me out, will you??

NG, I don't know, I'm afraid - DS1 still in nappies and gleefully asking me to "find out vee-vees" and "find out poo!" when I change him...

Sounds like yours are doing really well. Perhaps try some of Cod's bootcamp threads to get some tips about consolidating it - otherwise, I'm sure that people who know more about it will be about in the morning (they're more organised, the morning crowd ).

Good luck with it all.

Sane level headed woman? Me?

well, you seem to be my version of sane and level headed.
you know, in a hippy hairy-fairy yet sarcastic sort of way. i had a v interesting upbringing.

thank yuou for answering bTW

ROFL! Yes, that sounds more like it

Wish I could help. Will be asking you for help when DS1's ready though, I think

yuh! luike ill remember any of this then!!
i thought id never forgewt any of the gorgeous cute thi ngs any of my boys did and when etc. and in reality i hardy even remmeber my own name half the time!

bloody kids!!

ooops! turned into cod.

am getting drunk.hehehehe.

well, its not quite the response i was looking for... where are all the 'experts'??

anyway - am moving house this week to make way for builders to knock the house about for 6 months and have done zero preparatuion for movers coming tomorrow so maybe this week not the best time to staert in earnest anyway.

will be back to pester for info in a few days. in the meantime, do please feel free to leave tips and pearls of wisdom on here for me

My best tip from 'doing' dd1 is use a kitchen timer. Set it to go off after 20 mins, once it goes off put them on the potty (have they got one each BTW?), they don't move for 5 mins or until they have produced (in lounge with TV on). Then reset timer for 20 mins etc.

After 2-3 days increase time to 35 mins.

Then take risks - ditch the timer and let them tell you. Lots of accidents = back to the timer.

It was the only way I remembered to ask regularly enough.

(Ooh, and THEIR choice of pants - we had Dora the Explorer in our house)

So am I expecting too much to expect him to go for a wee without me reminding him. Causes if that's the case I think I'll try the timer just to remind myself.

He has no problem going on the potty - he just leaves it too late to get his pants down or just wees in his pants if he is engrossed in something. I don't have any of these problems if he is naked.

Ok here is my twopenneth - have trained 3 kids and 2 dogs so claim some expertise! By the way it is exactly the same! Have to rush so I might miss something out...

They must be ready or there is no point (ie know when they are wet/'dirty' - try cheapo nappies -and be able to tell you and show interest in all things lavatorial)

You must be chilled and relax! house move, hmmm... Having the two do it together might work well though, they definitely learn off each other and you and your dh - I'm afraid you need to leave the loo door open for a bit

Give yourself a good 2 weeks in the summer and try not to arrange any long trips - stay close to home.

Strip em off from the waist down. By the time you've got their trousers down they will have done it. Try and catch them doing it - esp a poo and pick em up and plonk em on the potty (chair type). When you have 'caught' something in the pot use reward extravagantly - lots of verbal praise, hugs and a bag of choc buttons (or whatever is a massive treat for them). It works better than stickers for little ones and can be phased out very quickly, reduce number of buttons whilst continuing verbal praise.

Never show them you are angry, ignore mistakes and just clean them up.

I wouldn't bother sitting them on the loo/potty after meals etc, I think its counter productive. Far better to watch them ALL the time and look for signs.

Don't use pull ups, they are a total waste of money, you need to be committed and really watch them like a hawk (just like puppy training). Buy loads of cheap pants - let them help choose.

Using this method ds1 was dry day (and night but don't expect it) at 2 1/2 in 2 weeks. Ds2 and dd were dry in the day in the same time. Puppies also... I hear it can be done in a weekend if the child is old. Once they've got it, it just seems to click. And once they've got it I get them on to the toilet asap - makes life so much easier.

IF no success, leave it and try again in a month or so.

thanks george,

will get back to this when thingsare a little more settled

Rach, even ! {doh!}

NG and jsmum....
here's my take on it (btw NG that's quite sthg you are talking on there!):
You need to put them in pants. No messing about with pull-ups etc.
Let them pick the pants they will love.
Then have a day or two where you don't venture far, put them on the potty every 30 mins, big cheers and stickers and dancing round the place when they perform.
Stretch this time out as the dryer days go by. Expeect lots of accidents at first but if it goes over about 6/day you might want to leave it for a bit.
Have lots of pants and shorts. I have about 15-20 pairs of 2-3 shorts (have done this 3 times!).
Mine did all vary eg DD refused to consider it till she was 2.5 tho could hold her wee very well; ds1 willing but not very able; Ds2 very willing at barely 2 and very able.
You may have to continue to ask them if they need a wee every hour or so when out for several months - or maybe only for about a couple of weeks (that was with ds2).
But I still ask everyone before we leave the house for any length of time.
BTW I would start going out and about again after a couple of days - a wet floor at toddler group is hardly the end of the world.
HTH

sorry NG I meant taking on there.
BTW don't worry about playing with pooh, it's very common (there's even a scientfic technical name for it).
Just remove it from him and say, no, don't do that and don't make a big fuss.
Second what WTWTA says. Also yes, you may have to have an open-door policy in the bathroom (we do anyway lol)

ok WildThing and Clary (ooh, wildthing, what a good name,..) and anyone else who has imparted knowledge here or on other threads.
thank you so much for your input. eel MUCH more prepared now. am actually going to be pretty relaxed about it all. good weather helps as they love to be naked!
have bought lots of exciting pants.
am not doing pull ups as weve been using easy-up pants as nappies for months and months anyway (easier with wrigglers who dont want to lie down for nappy changes) so they wouldnt notice the difference.
have THREE potties, as they both use them simultaneously and theres always a little tustle over who gets what potty (sigh)
lots of praise and stickers for successes, and v little made of accidents.
so thats it, all set then!
blimey. i shall have to change my nickname soon...lol

Best of luck girl! You will be obsessed with their bottoms for a while but, ...everything passes!