How old was your little one when you started to potty train?

[meganm94]

DD is 14 months (first child) and we've been sitting her on the potty at nappy changes since she could walk at 11 months. She's very comfortable with the potty and recently has started to do a few wees on it when we've sat her on. Hubby is going to pick some pull ups up tonight and we're going to start sitting her on a bit more often. I've also recently found out that I'm pregnant with DC2 so the goal is to have her in knickers before baby arrives (July 2021 so plenty of time).

How old was your DC when you toilet trained? Any toilet training tips would be appreciated! Me and DH were both nursery nurses so not complete novices haha, but pointers would still be nice as it's always different with your own!

Tia x

when ,my kids were little we lived overseas in a country where they potty train from birth.
It is definitely possible and it has been talked about a lot on mn. But it is a LOT of work, and there are a LOT of accidents. I think having my kids there made me open to much earlier potty training (can't imagine not starting til 3) but I can't understand why you would bother?

In the cas eof where I was living they bothered because they didn't use nappies at all

Both of mine at 2 years 10 months. No hassle and trained instantly as they were ready

Ooh will buy the oh crap book.

18 and 20 months

2.4 - we said we'd do it the Summer after she turned 2. This time I'd do it the Summer after 18 months as I wouldn't want an almost 3 year old in nappies. Summer is easier as they need less clothes.

23 months. First week was tough but chose a week when I was at home and weather was good so we could spend most of the time in the garden. Nearly gave up a couple of times but persevered and week 2 was much easier

DD at 2, DS at 2.5. Both dry day and night in three days.

DS1 was just coming up 2. I didn't really potty train him, he was at nursery full time and just copied all of the other children! I bought him pants for his 2nd birthday and we never looked back

DS2 wasn't so easy ( wasn't at nursery) and was 3.5 years. We tried a few times in the previous year and he just wasn't ready

Am kind of wondering with MissLockdown if it won't be more confusing to have the potty around as an item of furniture and then much later try to make it clear to her that she's meant to wee in it.

We did it at 2.5. Three day job. Could possibly have done it earlier but we were doing a fair bit of travelling and staying in other people's houses (both sets of family living elsewhere) and really didn't want to be moving in and out of nappies.

I'd rather it just be something she's always known and that's always been around and if she shows an interest in wanting to sit on it, even if it is to just watch TV for five minutes, or if she wees on it at nappy changes,

No, that’s counterproductive. It’ll make things worse if you praise your child to wee on what is, to her, a random chair.

My DC were 2 and a quarter, and 2 and a half. Trained within three days.

Both of mine were nearly 3. They could do basic multiplication before they could realize they needed a wee. But when they at last were ready, it took a couple of days. The older one needed night nappies until he was nearly 8, though.

We started at 2. Nightmare. Stopped and tried every couple of months after that with no success. A month before her 3rd birthday she asked to wear her pants one day when she woke up and that was it! Went from full time nappies to fully potty trained in 48 hours. By day 3 she was dry through the night too. She's had maybe 3 accidents and they were within the first couple of weeks of training. I think when they are ready it's very easy and I'm going to wait for that with dc2 rather than stressing myself out for a year for no reason.

Haven’t read the thread, but read Oh Crap Potty Training. You could definitely have her trained by next summer.

I trained two of my kids at 2 (literally the week after their 2nd birthdays), I think I thought before 2 wasn’t possible?! Then with my third I read Nappy Free Baby by Amber Hatch when he was 16m old & realised it was possible - He was trained by 18m.

We trained DS at 18 months, it did take a few weeks until he was reliable and he did need a bit more help with getting onto the toilet as it was tall, manipulating his clothing etc, but he was ready from a bowel and bladder control perspective. Although he had a language burst at 20 months, and looking back, it would have been a little easier if they had happened first.

dd has recently potty trained at 2 years 1 month (shes now 2 years and 3.5 months) She literally took to it straight away and we've only had 2 pee accidents. Poos have taken abit longer to get the hang of, she knows exactly when she needs to go but she hated going on the potty, but she has started using the big toilet this week and she has pooed on it 3 days running so I'm hoping weve cracked it with poos now as well.

We tried at 2yr1m and it was clear he didn't get it at all. Tried again a few weeks ago, when he was 2yr4m, and it's now going really well after an initial bit of a false start (for which I sort of blame the Oh Crap approach - he did really well bare bummed but we then really struggled to transition to clothes and he's still taking everything on his bottom half off every time he uses the potty so I wonder if we should have gone straight to pants). The difference those few months made to his readiness was astonishing and I'm so glad we didn't push it the first time. I think having a deadline that's purely about what's convenient for you (and as someone potty training while heavily pregnant it isn't actually all that convenient!) rather than assessing how ready they are is a bit of a recipe for frustration if the two don't happen to line up.

I think I'd save your judgement about DC who are 3 and in nappies and that it's because the parents were lazy until your own child is actually potty trained, by the way - pride comes before a fall!

Both of mine, late! I just wait until they are aloud enough to use a toilet and actually talk about it / understand it. I don't like it being a big deal, which it seems to be when it's early. It's far nicer when you don't have to constantly carry spare clothes and ask them 300 times a day if they need to "go", as I saw friends doing. You can call that me making my life easier, and yes, that's the aim! The kids don't care either way.

Old, not aloud

I read in Toddler Taming that the longer you leave it the quicker it will be, so waited and my son was 3 and a month. I'd tried a couple of months earlier (largely because he'd been offered a preschool nursery place) but it was very clear he wasn't ready - I asked if he needed a wee, he said no, about a minute later he'd weed.

Once he was ready he took to it immediately - the only times I had to clear up accidents was once when he was "doing it like Daddy" and once when "my penis was at a funny angle". Dry at night a few months later: I had to wash his bedding from sick more often than from wee.

Son is now at A Top University, by the way.

Friends with a daughter the same age did the whole "getting her used to the idea of the potty" thing. They were adamant that they were totally cool with it, weren't putting any pressure on, knew it would be fine... until she was actually wetting her knickers, that is . Their experience was horrendous (how many 5yo children scream and panic because they've weed in their swimsuit) and they completely changed their approach for the second child.

Just after her second birthday. She was quite curious about when mummy went for a wee so came with me a few times then asked if she could have a go and did a wee first time. From then on, nothing on bottom half when at home, with her potty in the living room (we didn’t have much warning if she was wrapped up in what she was doing) that got closer to the toilet each day and was at nursery in knickers by 2 years and 4 months.
I deliberately waited until she was curious about it as I didn’t want to push it. It was much easier having her on board with the idea

@meganm94 my mum potty-trained me when I was 17m as my brother was born and she said "one baby in nappies only please". My lo is 13m now and walking, I think I may start showing him the potty at Christmas holidays see what he thinks.

Good luck, I think we all know when our LO is ready to try something new. No harm done if it does not work.

With ds1 we tried a few times around the age of 2 but he didn't get it so we left it until he was nearer 3 and he got it quickly.

Dd basically did it herself at 22 months.

Ds2 was 2.5.

Tried with dd a few times before but she wasn't ready so stopped, she kinda just did it herself just before her 3rd birthday, no accidents, was really easy. Ds now 20 months, absolute nightmare, he undressed himself and took a shit on my sofa this morning. I think its time.

About 30 months for both dd. Waited for the signs then did it very quickly. They had one accident in the first week and that was about it. Very quick and easy! We didn't change the routine at all, just put them in knickers and reminded them to go to the loo.

I should have known this would be a controversial topic 😂

Everyone is entitled to their own opinion and everyone should do what's best for themselves and their personal situation! Going forward I feel this is the best way for my daughter and our family as a whole and we're going to carry on as we are. She's been sitting on the potty every nappy change since she was 11 months old and has gone from doing nothing but sitting on it to having done 4 wees on it this week, so I'm taking that as a positive and I'm going to praise and encourage her! So we're going to carry on as we are and when we feel she's ready, whether that's in a month or 8 months, we'll go for the knickers! x