Potty training

[ZebraZeebra]

Where to even begin? Just looking for other people's experiences really. Did you go down the route of encouraging time on a potty, or did you graduate to pull-ups to encourage them communicating with you that way? I've seen mentioned this idea that pull-ups can help in the interim with the child recognising they're sat in poo, and not wanting to...or something?? I'm very new to this big next step - forgive my naivety!

DS is only 18 months and doesn't yet even communicate to me about a filled nappy in the way I've seen other children do, but it seems like such a huge thing I wanted to have a general idea of what I'm doing when the time comes

I just left the potty out from very young and let ds play with and be comfortable sitting on it etc. We also used to sit him on the toilet after bath time so that he'd get used to sitting on there and knowing what it was for. We turned it into a little game.
He was familiar with using the potty and toilet and the language of having a wee/poo from a young age because he used to watch me, his dad and his cousin who is a little older and potty trained before he even started. I used to let him have some time without a nappy on (outside, summer!) and point it out when he was having a wee. He'd stand and watch, mesmerised (sp?) by it.
I didn't have a specific time frame in mind to start or complete potty training; I just waited until he was interested. This Christmas just gone he kept asking, "Can I have a wee-wee on the potty, mummy?" and that's when I knew he was ready to start. We tried over the Xmas hols but it was too stressful, what with the time of year, so we dropped it again but nursery picked it up and ran with it. In February just took his nappy off, told him to sit on the potty and think about having a wee and he did. He hasn't worn one since.
My advice would be to get your ds used to the idea of using a potty/toilet and familiar with them, starting around now, so he's happy to sit on them when the time comes. Don't be embarrassed for him to watch you/his dad and other children (if possible, of course) so that he sees it's normal. Let him have plenty of time without a nappy on - not necessarily every day or even every week but enough for him to see what happens when he has a wee: where it comes out, what it feels like and where it goes.

Sorry, posted too soon!
It seems like a huge step but if you make it normal and just let it happen, it will happen: there will come a time when he just doesn't want to wear nappies any more.
P.s. I didn't bother with pull ups as I found they confused my ds and he just saw them as nappies. I bought him some monster pants from asda and he was happy to wear them. He also knew when he'd wet and didn't like that feeling. For long car journeys he put an absorbent pad in the car seat. We have a potette travel potty - froggy potty in his words - for trips out. It can be used as a potty and a toilet seat, it's great!
P.p.s. If he had an accident and weed on the floor I used some stuff from the pet shop. It's a powder that you sprinkle on and leave a while before hoovering up; the area is bone dry and doesn't smell at all afterwards.