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Potty training

Is your child ready for potty training at nursery? Here's the place for all your toilet training questions.

Original poster

Started potty training today - anyone else want to give / get a bit of moral support?

469 replies

Biscuitsandtea · 15/10/2011 18:24

Hi, DS is 3 and we've started potty training him today. We were hoping to wait until he woke up one morning and said 'I'm done with nappies thanks very much Mummy - let's go wild with the pants', but this hasn't happened so we thought we'd just try him with nothing on at first and then pants and see how it goes.

Just wondered if anyone else was starting too and wanted to go through it together?

We've done various bits of nappy free time for months with varying amounts of success, but only ever an hour or two here and there with no consistency to see how he was doing and whether we thought he knew when he was weeing or pooing. It's only recently that I've thought that he actually does know hence deciding to give it a go today.

We had a quiet weekend so thought 'no time like the present!'

Now a couple of times in the week we'd had no nappy on and a fair bit of success in the potty. Wednesday = lots of mopping up wees but a few 'hits' at the end of the afternoon. Thursday was better with no accidents. but this was still doing everything bare bum!

Today we were doing pretty well this morning. Everything going in the potty and no accidents, so after lunch we thought we'd try adding pants into the equation. previously pants = accidents (I wonder if he would forget it wasn't a nappy?) so we never persevered with them, but we have this afternoon. Certainly more accidents this afternoon, which is I think a mixture of being tired and the 'pant effect' and we had a very rough few hours between say 3 and 5. Then we've had a few more wees on the potty and going a bit better this evening.

We're planning more of the same tomorrow but we have a birthday party to go to in the afternoon and I'm in a bit of a predicament about that in as much as I don't want to go back to nappies and confuse / demoralise him, but equally don't want loads of accidents at my friend's DDs party so as yet we're undecided. I think at the moment we'll be erring on the side of a nappy as it's just not fair if he has an accident in the middle of the party?

Anyway, anyone who wants to join me for the ride, please come aboard :-)

I'll have Wine, Brew and Biscuit to help the journey go along!

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Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 16:56

And another poo accident Sad. 2 today now Sad

what I don't get is that when we just did the odd bit of nappy free time he'd get wee's and poo's in the potty?

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Kingsroadie · 18/10/2011 17:31

Oh Biscuits - that's rubbish. But he did really well with wees though and especially out and about in the loo? It seems lots of people on here's children took a while to get the poo even though they had cracked the wee...

We have had quite a good afternoon so far. Up from nap at about 14:45, nappy pretty empty, probably 1 wee in it. Since then we have been out and nothing (she even sat on her potty in the garage Blush when she said she needed a wee but nothing happened. However, she previously refused to sit on it so that was a step forward (aided by magic milky way stars). When we got back she stayed in her pants and trousers and did one wee in the potty. While having her dinner just now she weed a bit then stopped and asked for potty (sort of) and did the rest there. Which was good I think! And she immediately went back to the highchair, picked up the towel, said wet and took it to the washing machine. I helped take her pants and trousers off and she then let me put another pair back on. No poo today so far so am expecting one before bed but we'll see!

Chunky thank you very much for the support! Grin You're right - I don't want to push it but this afternoon we seem to have made progress, which makes me want to continue. She actually seems to be better in the afternoon than the morning - got the hang of it perhaps?!

monkeybananas · 18/10/2011 17:54

Kingsroadie- that sounds like great progress. I'm not looking forward to having to stop a meal part way through for the toilet because I'm pretty sure DS won't go back to eating Sad
Biscuit- we had 1 poo accident too today. to be honest, I think if they've got the hang of one bodily function, the other will follow suit. (at least I'm hoping)
Tomorrows challenge will be an afternoon trip out to the shops hmmm, do I put on a pull up just in case or go armed with multiple trousers and pants??

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 18:08

I've gone for pants for excursions today with numerous pants and trousers - some in a rucksack with me (and appropriate cleaning up materials) and the rest in the car boot!

And I needed them for one of the poo accidents today!

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Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 18:12

But I think I said something really stupid to him Sad

I was going to reward him when there was a poo in the potty to reward, but with a 0% success rate there was nothing to reward, so I told he'd get a treat if he did one and now he's stressing out about beig able to produce one on demand Sad.

Oh poo!

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Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 18:12

Oh and well done to everyone else - sounds like you're all doing great Smile

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Kingsroadie · 18/10/2011 18:21

Hopefully it is a bit Monkey. She has weed a lot less today than in the previous 2 days (eg 2 this afternoon so far compared to 7 yesterday). She has been drinking less but does drink quite a bit so maybe is learning to hold it a bit more...

Well, I started thinking - what's the worst that could happen - they poo/wee. It's not THAT bad I suppose. So I have been taking loads of clothes and bags with me, plus travel potty - maybe do that?

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 18:23

That's my approach too to going out (said as if I'm some old hand - ha ha!)

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Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 18:43

BREAKING NEWS:

O.M.G. Poo in potty alert

We have a poo in the potty!!!

That's all - as you were!

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monkeybananas · 18/10/2011 19:59

(shock) lol!
Excellent news - what a break through!!
Thanks for advice all - I think I'll brave it and stick with pants on the trip out tomorrow (and take a back pack full of spare pants and trousers!) of course because I have all the spares with me, I'm not going to need them but the day I forget them, ..... you know what happens.
So, tomorrow's ANOTHER potty training day.... (hmm)

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 20:08

I know - I so wish you could send them away to potty training boot camp and just get them back totally house trained :(

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monkeybananas · 18/10/2011 20:12

ooh, now there's an idea (for someone else to do of course!) Grin

ChunkyMonkeyMother · 18/10/2011 20:13

YAY well done mini Biscuit! Thats fantastic news!

We had a massive poo on the floor and a little bit in the potty - He was pleased as punch when he did the potty one - But we ended up a little bit at square one after nursery - He had 2 accidents in nursery then weed on the way to parents then again twice there and then again on way home here - Even though the little blighter sat on the potty their about 8 times!

Yes we have another potty training day - I have Saturday, Sunday + Wednesday with my DS so I reckons it'll be a little while still

Fingers crossed!

ChunkyMonkeyMother · 18/10/2011 20:15

Biscuit where do I sign up for this boot camp! Although I don't know if I could handle the little pudding being away too long ha ha

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 20:16

Oh my goodness, I hadn't thought of it the other way round - imagine if your job was constantly to train toddlers - bleh!

After the party we went to at the weekend, I thought the world's worst job (or one of them) might be a children's entertainer, but maybe this would be worse!

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Shaz2011 · 18/10/2011 21:59

Update on ds had 2 wee in potty this morning than dh put him in pull up which he had a nap in when he woke up it was wet so I took it of & let him go bare which was great as we had a poo and wee in potty than we went to uncle's with pull up on cos dh didn't want him in pants but he asked for wee twice while we were there so tomorrow I might put him in pants & see how we go now he has asked for potty even wearing a pull up Smile

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 18/10/2011 22:02

Good effort Shaz Smile

Good luck with the pants tomorrow....

Am feeling a lot more positive now I know he can do a poo in the potty!

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cara2244 · 18/10/2011 22:12

Hi all
I'm watching with interest as I'm planning on starting my 2.9 year old DS on Sunday as I'll have time at half term. Biscuitsandtea, like you, I had been waiting on DS deciding to ditch his nappies and have done some pant wearing with him. But he loves his nappies so I plan on going cold turkey next week.

I massively wish I'd done the gentle training thing where you start sitting them on the potty with no pressure at 9 months.....but hey ho, we were too busy blw, working, having another child etc etc! So cold turkey seems the only approach left!

cara2244 · 18/10/2011 22:14

Boot camp....hmmm.... My mum tried this back in April, declaring she could 'train him in a weekend' it was a dismal failure. She said he had amazing control as he held it for hours and then did a pee on her aviary.

Kingsroadie · 18/10/2011 22:46

Biscuits - yay! That is great news - he can do it and that must have made you feel like some progress is being made...

I feel like I have become a potty training bore in the space of three days and found myself telling friends who had come for dinner tonight about it - they have no kids. I must be so dull Blush Only briefly but still...

So we had her pants on all afternoon, except for just after dinner when she took them off. Then did her poo on the potty. She has done every one in there so far but of course she hasn't needed to poo wearing pants yet so we'll see what happens then. Hopefully my role play with dolly and her pants and pulling them up and down is sinking in - I turned it up a notch after nap time and have spent most of the afternoon reciting, up down up down in a singsong voice with her copying and showing her how dolly does it about 30 times, and how I do it. And how she does it and getting her to have a go at pulling pants down herself and praising massively if she does. Fingers crossed re tomorrow - hoping it will have sunk in more overnight - she is always worse in the mornings it seems!

Well done everyone - sounds like you're all (well, your children are) doing really well! At least relay every tiny detail on here and everyone else is in the same boat and pleased for us and every little step forward. Grin

Shaz2011 · 19/10/2011 06:52

Cara2244 your mum reminds me of some of my family members thinking they can potty train our children my aunt had hers potty trained by 1 & she said to me how comes I haven't started so I said I will do do it in my own time as I have to have patients, they seem to think cos they done it like that in their day we should do it but I feel like they have to understand what's going on first but hey moan over.
Right ladies today is the day I am going to give pants a go as I am at home all day other than school run wish me luck SmileGrinConfused

ChunkyMonkeyMother · 19/10/2011 08:03

Shazz + Cara I must share your relatives! My Mum was bugging me from my DS being about 1 that it was probably time for potty training - she reckons I self trained and did so at around 14 months - but I know for a fact that my brother was much older and continued to wet the bed till he was a teen - I don't count that as a succesfull train! My Nan is always asking if he's got undies on as well, he's a big boy (92cm tall) and quite advanced (thank god for nursery ha ha) so people expect more from him because he looks about 4! I hate the dirty looks some mothers give you in a changing room because he's got a nappy on, I feel like saying "not that its any of your business but he's only just turned 2 and what exactly would you do if I said he had special needs for a nappy even if he was 4?!?" It annoys me how much people do judge you - train them at 1 and your a bitch - leave it any later and your mummy-ing them! [Deep breath ranty emoticon]

Anyway - well done on the pull up/piddle front Shazz! And Kings I know what you mean about telling everyone, I work with a young lad and was telling him - his response "yeah well I just shit my pad so are you going to clap that?" Brought me down to earth with a thud ha ha

Good luck for day 5 - going quickly! Today is an undie free day (except for the dentist appt - well actually I don't know about the dentist but I can account for me n ds)

Let's train the little buggers!

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 19/10/2011 08:26

Ah yes, may I add my mother to the relative sin bin? She assures me I was dry in the day by 12 months (some days), 18 months (other days). Hmm and definitely at night by the time I was 2. So I've had a very long time of the nagging as DS has just turned 3. We almost fell about it too when I told her we would train DS when DH and I thought he was ready!

I think my mil thought we should do it sooner too but was much more discrete about it and never nagged. She would often tell me she was happy for DS to go nappy free there but never in a naggy way.

So far, woke up with a full nappy, asked me to take it off and did a nice wee in the potty. Hope those poos go well today.....

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Shaz2011 · 19/10/2011 09:15

Well update ds woke up got undressed & sat on potty & done a wee & poo but pull up was full from the night, so put him in pants stayed dry on the school run & I asked him if he needed a wee he said no but he was showing all signs of going so I put him on potty & he went wee, also warned dh he is in pants today so be warned & have mop ready as got flooring through the house he was ok with itSmile so far so good keep u all updated as we go along

Original poster
Biscuitsandtea · 19/10/2011 09:19

That's a great start to the day Shaz Smile

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