The Start of Potty Training

I say the ‘start’ because I think it’s going to take a bit longer than I originally imagined it would. There are people who claim they’ve potty trained their kids in 3 days flat, and I thought I was going to be one of those moms. Turned out I was wrong! But that’s ok. This is truly one of those things you have to do at your child’s pace.

I got a lot of questions and requests on IG to share what we’re doing, why we’re doing it, the products we’re using, tips, tricks, etc. So that’s what today’s post is about. But please note, we are not some magical success story. Like I said, this is going to be a journey for us and this is just the starts.

Why now?

A lot of people told us we were starting too early. But I really wanted to start right after K turned 2.5 for a few reasons. One – in case it didn’t go according to plan and took longer, we’d have more time (and that’s what happened). Two – his school won’t move him up to the next classroom until he’s potty trained. Three – I have some travel coming up between now and the middle of the year, so I needed to factor that in when thinking about Kaiden and what he would need at this time. Essentially, for K, it’s better to have minimal disruptions to his routine for him to feel comfortable with something as big as this.

Approach

Ok, so because I wanted to see if the 3 day method would work for us, I had Vishnu take a Friday off (I already have off), and we kept K home from school too.

The plan was to stay home Friday-Sunday and take Kaiden to the potty every 15 minutes. We did that…kind of. It didn’t end up being every 15 minutes because after a few rounds Kaiden was getting super annoyed. Haha! We kept him commando from the waist down the first 1.5 days and then let him wear underwear. Also, if K successfully went pee in the potty, he got one M&M. And if we went poop (which he didn’t), he would get two M&Ms.

We also transitioned him out of diapers and only used Pull Ups for naps and night time sleep.

We did end up leaving the house for soccer class on Sunday because I think we were all a little crazed from being inside for so long!

So that was our ‘simple’ approach. We didn’t quite stick with the original plan as strictly as we probably should have, but in retrospect, I think we’re fine!

Where are we now?

It’s been a little over 10 days since our introduction to potty training, and I’d say Kaiden is getting the hang of it slowly but surely. He does fairly well with peeing in the potty, tell us when he has to go, can thankfully hold it, etc. That being said, he still has accidents, especially when he’s distracted!

In terms of pooping in the potty, he’s not there yet. And I read that this part can take a lot longer. We did have one semi-victorious incident, but that’s it!

We’re lucky in that Kaiden’s school also works with him/us on this journey. There’s a potty in his room, and the thinking is they also learn by watching other kids go. And his teachers are great about taking him regularly and talking to him about the experience (sounds strange but telling a toddler they’re turning the potty water yellow is a great way to get them to go!).

Final Thoughts

Expect this to be a longish process and really just go with your kid’s flow (literally!). Like most things parenting, your experience will just depend. Don’t compare yourself to other people and their experiences…just do what’s best for your child. They will eventually get it!

For us, I’m hoping that in the next couple of months, we’re able to say we’re daytime potty trained! Fingers crossed!

A few other notes – expect some type of regression when starting this process. For K, it was in the sleeping and behavior department. His nighttime sleep was punctuated with random wake ups, so we had to work through that for a few days. And he went from being independent and generally really happy to whiny and clingy (with me!). Thankfully both were short lived! And finally, try to stay as calm as possible. This can bring out some frustration from you and your partner (I speak from experience) but know that it does get easier and focus on the wins!

Tools

Here are some of the tools we used to help us get started…

Underwear – I got K three packs of this Sesame Street underwear since he loves the show and all the characters! It runs a little small, so keep that in mind when ordering.

At home potty seat – We opted to not get a separate mini potty for K, as a lot of friends (and his teachers) told us that would be yet another thing to ween him off. We really like this particular seat – basic but does the job!

Folding (portable) potty seat – We have yet to use this, but I keep it folded and in K’s diaper bag for when he starts going places without his Pull Ups!

Chucks – So I had no idea what a chuck was prior to starting this process. Vishnu brought some home from work and told me that we had to use them (we asked my BIL to also bring some home – helps to know doctors!). We kept one on the couch and one by K’s potty, and boy did these bad boys come in handy! Especially when we had messy accidents. Having a chuck around made clean up a lot easier. They aren’t cheap by any means, but this is definitely a must have IMO!

Leave any questions you have in the comments! OR if you’re an experienced parent who’s been through this before, please share your thoughts, ideas, tips, product recs, etc.

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