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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.

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Original poster

Possibly a silly potty training question but what happens at mealtimes?

17 replies

iwouldgoouttonight · 22/04/2009 10:34

We're planning to start potty training DS this weekend. He's 2.8 and has been ready for ages but I've put it off until he'd got used to DD being born. Having spoken to friends and read a couple of books it seems I need to put him into pants and then encourage him to sit on the potty every twenty minutes or so until he gets the idea.

But what happens at mealtimes? DS tends to take a lot longer than twenty minutes to eat his dinner, and as he has a drink with it as well it likely that he will wee while at the table - do we need to interrupt his dinner to put him on the potty in case he needs to go or just wait and see what happens?

OP posts:

Are your children’s vaccines up to date?

Set a reminder

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 10:35

Eat outside? Weather good enough at the moment!

rubyslippers · 22/04/2009 10:35

i never did the sitting on the potty every 20 mins

ask him to use the loo before the meal ...

WowOoo · 22/04/2009 10:38

Would just wait and see what happens. We are jsut doing pre-training for potty training so far...!!

At mealtimes, he has not done anything at table so far. But, after there is usually a poo or wee lurking. Ds takes ages to eat too.
Can he tell you when he wants a wee/poo? Would have potty on standby just in case.

popmum · 22/04/2009 10:38

yes, good practice to get them to go to loo/ wash hands before a meal. If he's ready you won't need to do the 20 min thing anyway.

Think of it less as training and more of just using the pot instead of a nappy, I'd tell him what's happening on the day you start and just remind him during the day...

Original poster

iwouldgoouttonight · 22/04/2009 10:56

Everyone makes it sound so simple! The reason I think he's ready is that he is now asking to wear pants because his friends at nursery do, and he takes off his own trousers and nappy and sits himself on the potty (and says he's done a wee although so far has never actually done one!). I just can't imagine how he'll go from sitting on the potty pretending to wee, to actually doing one! He knows when he is doing one in his nappy and will sometimes tell me but he doesn't seem to know in advance.

OP posts:

WowOoo · 22/04/2009 11:10

The knowing in advance isssue is what is stopping us for doing proper training so far.
( and I'm a lazy scaredy cat?!) I just want to be sure that he's ready.

Sitting himself on potty and trying are good signs as well as wanting to be like his peers. He'll learn with practice. (ours learnt a lot by weeing in bath and saying 'look what's coming out of my willy!'

Good luck. I don't think it's easy at all!

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 11:13

We started sitting ds on the potty when we knew that he was likely to do something - but reading a book to him so that he felt quite happy about the whole thing - we probably did this pre-bath time from about 21months, and this increased to a pre-breakfast session too - at 26mo he potty trained himself over the weekend - very few accidents. He always was asked to go before a meal - and wash hands, but quite often needed to go in the middle of a meal anyway - and rapidly progressed to going on his own - but with the weather as it is, if you're going for it this weekend, spend as much time outside as possible - this will cause the least amount of angst!

compo · 22/04/2009 11:16

how do you do it outside? do you take the potty outside and let them run around with no pants on? how do you stop them from just weeing everywhere and not using the potty at all?!

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 11:29

Yes, take the potty outside - but the benefit is that, if they do have an accident, you don't have to clear up (if its wee ) and therefore everyone is less stressed by the whole thing!

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 11:31

In fact, the potty came with us on walks round the park too - much better to have it and reinforce positive behaviour by being able to whisk it out and sit them on it rather than desperately look for a loo and potentially have an accident - they're only young, no one is going to really object (unless you're in the middle of a restaurant or a shopping centre or somewhere )

compo · 22/04/2009 11:34

thanks mistlethrush, might try that after lunch!

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 11:36

Compo - some people say just plan not to go out at all for a week. However, we have a dog, so couldn't do that. Just popped the potty under the buggy and went from there - no problem. Just make sure you have wipes, some rubbish bags, and at least one if not two changes of clothes with you!

compo · 22/04/2009 11:37

yes I was wondering how on earth I was meant to do the school run
she normally falls asleep in the pushachair so I thought I'd sit her on a towel and take a spare change of clothes if necessary
it is tempting to put her ina anppy for the school run but I take it that is a big no no?

Sidge · 22/04/2009 11:47

Don't sit him on the potty every 20 minutes. 1, you'll cheese him off and 2, it only promotes toilet timing and not an awareness of needing to wee or poo.

Get him to go to the loo and wash his hands before dinner; eating stimulates the gut so you may well find that 20-30 minutes after finishing a meal he needs a poo so you can get into the habit of sitting him on the loo/potty at that time.

mistlethrush · 22/04/2009 11:57

School run - does that mean you've done this before?

compo · 22/04/2009 14:52

yes but it was ages ago and I didn't have a school run to do

compo · 22/04/2009 14:52

or another child to look after

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