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Parenting

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Original poster

how old were yours?

41 replies

sighkotika · 05/08/2008 20:36

my ds is 20 months, and my mum has started pressuring me to begin potty training. am i right in thinking he is just a little too young? i would be happy to know i am wrong, i just need some balanced and convincing arguments if i am right and he isnt ready yet. she wont listen to me if i just say no, because, of course, she knows better than i having had three children compared to my one. (not at all bitter, just a little frustrated )

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Neeerly3 · 08/08/2008 15:14

mankyscottlass - you made me laff, my MIL did this on my birthday last year - came up, scoffed that my DT's were STILL in nappies (they were 2.5), I said, MIL, they just not ready, i'm in no rush.....she scoffed again, pah. of course they are ready, it'll just be a few wet pants and they'll get the idea....ok says I, it's my birthday, i'm relaxing and drinking, if you so keen, you deal with it......by 5pm, several pairs of trousers/pants/socks later, she flops in the chair next to me and says, i put nappies back on em.....neeerly - 1, MIL - 0.......

Ineedsomesleep · 08/08/2008 15:16

DS was dry at 2 and 3 months day and night.

DD signed nappy change at me 2 days before her 1st birthday and went and lay on the change mat so am starting with her, very slowly though.

noonki · 08/08/2008 15:28

DS1 - 2.3 (started at 18 months, but stopped as had another baby)

I think it is a mixture of you being bothered and your child understanding it. My sis didn't get round to it until 3.5 though my nephew was definately ready before had that was because she couldn't be arsed (and was hoping my mum would do it for her - she refusded!)

but some kids don't make the connection until much older, but I reakon if you catch them early they are a bit more eager to try new things

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ConstanceWearing · 08/08/2008 15:34

I've got 6 Dc's.

One of them was as young as 18months (dry day and night). Went back to bed-wetting about age4 til age 9

ConstanceWearing · 08/08/2008 15:36

stopped wearing them in the day, the week before he went to school (don't know if sentence made sense!)

Original poster

sighkotika · 09/08/2008 21:45

sorry ConstanceWearing did you mean me with the 'don't mean to be rude' bit? if you did, i'm not sure what you mean.

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TishTashToys · 10/08/2008 08:56

It's different for every child and the children usually give you the signals that they are ready. Is he interested in the toilet, asking questions, talking about wee's! He may be touching himself just before weeing (showing he's aware of what's about to happen) or taking his nappy off as soon as he's wet - showing he doesn't like being wet. My little boy is 3 in October and about 75% potty trained. We must have started when he was about 2 and a half and it is taking a lot longer that it did with my daughter. Best of luck sighkotika.

ConstanceWearing · 10/08/2008 22:25

I just meant that I'm not trying to cause friction between you and your mum, but you have enough things to do without her finding you extra things to worry abuot, like potty training, etc. I didn't mean anything nasty by it, honestly.

Hulababy · 10/08/2008 22:35

DD was 24 months when she decided to PT herself. We followed her leadny it took about 3 days, and was very easy. However, the key here I believe was that she instigated it. I also believe she was still pretty young for PTing. Night time entirely different matter and she is only recently consitently dry at 6yo.

Ignore your mum - or lie to her!

Lots of children are far closer to 3y before they are ready to PT.

Quattrocento · 10/08/2008 22:35

DD was dry during the day at around 2 and dry at night about 6 months later

DS was about 6 months slower

pointydog · 10/08/2008 22:48

Dd1 was out of nappies during the daytime, the day after her second birthday. (That's the sort of thing you remember with a first child .) Dd2 was 2.8.

Dd1 was really keen to start using a potty before she turned 2. Dd2 really couldn't be arsed. Had to set a date to get her sorted out.

Flibbertyjibbet · 10/08/2008 23:01

ds1 - 2.6yo he was ready and understood and was dry in a day, dry at night 2 weeks later.
ds2 - 25m, he was more the 'take them out of nappies and let him get the idea'. MUCH harder work, constant mopping, sooo much washing, he rebelled against the potty in week 3 and just kept weeing everywhere (that phase lasted 2 days), then suddenly at the end of 4 weeks got the idea.
He also at the end of the 4 weeks, went bezerk if we tried to put a nappy on him at night so is now dry day and night from 26m.

I would say it was much easier to do ds1 who was a bit older and was ready, with ds2 it was more of a 'boot camp' more like house training a puppy .

If I had a third (which I won't) I would wait till older.

Our mothers all seemed to go for the boot camp approach but then if you had prob no washing machine, maybe more than one child in nappies, and a festering bucket of terries to wash each night then I think we'd still be potty training a lot earlier too.

jambot · 21/08/2008 19:17

DD was 2.7yrs. Training was a slow process, but I didn't rush it and one day she just took herself off to the bathroom and that was it. Seems like such a minor thing now but remember at the time I was anxious as she was the only one in her toddler group still in nappies. Not dry at night at 3.5yrs. Still wakes up with pretty full nappy in the morning, but that's not helped by her still loving a cup of milk before bed. Trying to phase that out or make it earlier so that she can do a big wee before bedtime.

chapstickchick · 21/08/2008 19:20

all my 3 boys were dry in the day by 18-20 months and at night before they were 2!

its just luck its not to do with super parenting or intelligence once it clicks it happens you cant rush it.

apostrophe · 21/08/2008 20:04

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CatWithKittens · 22/08/2008 13:20

I agree with all those who say each child is different and you cannot rush them. DS1, now coming up for 6, was 27 months in the day when he was really quite reliable; DD1, now 4.5, was about 30 months at the same stage but both are still in nappies at night and in DS1's case showing no sign of having a dry night whilst DD1's dry nights amoutn to four spread over the last three months. DS2 by contrast is 32 months and still hopeless in the day as well. I had been trying earlier in the summer but we had at least 6 or 7 pairs of wet and/or dirty pants every day for a fortnight and I have reverted to nappies because it seems just too soon for this one. My mum did try to interfere and persuade me to persevere but has now been persuaded by my MIL, who had been a specialist paediatric nursing sister, that it was no good pushing for what's not yet attainable. He just was not interested. I could often see him jiggling and down and if I asked if he needed the potty, he would say no. Being sceptical I would put him on it with no result, then a moment or two after he was back in his pants either a puddle or a nasty smell would tell me I had been right. In the interests of preserving sanity - mine - I had to bow to his lack of interest or readiness and I shall try again in a month or two. It may be easier after the holidays when I shall only have him and his baby sister at home during the school day.

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