Last Monday, without really planning to, I started potty training DD who is 2 and a half next week. We'd bought some knickers that morning so on a whim I thought I'd see what she'd do if we put them on and, hey presto, she made a run for the potty which we've had for a while but she hadn't shown much interest in, and managed to pee in it beautifully. She was incredibly proud of herself and I was frankly flabbergasted (we did have an accident later that evening).
The following day she pooed in the potty but then we had to go out so I put her in nappies, though she managed a pee in the potty when we got home. And then on the Wednesday we went out but in pants and she did have a little accident but actually managed to hold most of it until I got her on the potty.
So I thought, brilliant, somehow, without any cleverness on my part, we've managed to time this just right...
But then we hit a bump in the road because that evening she came down with a virus which made her throw up for a couple of days so we eased off on the potty training a bit - that, and a combination of her having much less liquid in her so she wasn't peeing much anyway - and then she went away to my mum's for a night (with potty in tow but didn't use it at all - just hung on for hours not peeing).
And since then she's becoming more and more anti the potty - holding on and on when it's obvious she needs to go (holding her bottom) but denying she needs to and refusing to sit on the potty, whereupon she has an accident. This morning, we went to a thing at the Children's Centre and she wouldn't go on the potty and ended up peeing in the ball pool thing (lovely other mums who all rushed to my aid) so later, to avert a second accident when we round at a friend's house and because she was really getting distressed about not wanting to sit on the potty I eventually put her in a nappy (it was nearly nap time anyway).
I know none of this is particularly unusual but what's everyone's advice? Is cold turkey the best way (i.e. should I not have put the nappy on earlier, even when I knew we'd have an accident within minutes if not?) Is doing potties and knickers at home but nappies out and about an easier way to start or does it confuse them more? Is she maybe not ready to come out of nappies, even though physically she obviously does have the control - in which case we stop the training and try again in a few weeks - or is there a risk of actually missing the window so that you then REALLY struggle to get a child out of nappies?
By the way, I should have mentioned that I have a 10 week old too - which is why I hadn't really planned to start potty training DD right now - but I actually don't think he's the issue here, as after some classic jealous behaviour at the beginning she's completely relaxed around him now and doesn't particularly want to regress in other ways. In fact, at the start of this potty training experience she was absolutely delighted about being a 'big girl'.
Anyway, any thoughts or tips gratefully received - and if nothing else it's just nice to download! I know we're only just over a week in so I probably have nothing to worry about - it was just that we had such a good start it's rather disappointing that things have ground to a halt.
My next move will be buying an insert for the loo seat - any suggestions on good ones to get would also be great!