I am so excited to share that we FINALLY potty trained our 2.5 year old. It was not all sunshine and rainbows though. May have been one of the hardest things we had to do as parents so far. But towards the end, we figured out what worked for us and our daughter and finally have a little girl who tells us when she has to "mee mee". Still working on pooping but getting there.
Attempt 1:
Shortly after my daughter turned 2, we decided to start potty training. My mistake with this was I listened to what everyone else did with their child. I got so many advice and tips but didn't actually decide what worked best for me and my daughter. I also just did it instead of really seeing if she was ready or not. I also did it shortly after 2 because I thought I "HAD" to. That was honestly my first mistake. I followed everyone's examples, tips and advice and didn't listen to what my daughter needed. What she needed at this time was to wait. She was not ready which was why it was a complete disaster. I was told by a family member to set the time every "15-30 minutes" and make her go potty. And to make her go in a child seat instead of the big seat because they're too small for the big seat. I was also told, "just let them run naked". So I did that. It felt more like a chore than actual training. It was a nightmare. Accident after Accident and nothing was getting better. We did this for about two weeks. At the end of the two weeks, my husband and I reflected on the past two weeks and decided to take a break and come back to it later.
Attempt 2:
About a month later, we tried again. We read kid books, talked about the potty, we had her go to the bathroom with us when we went so she can "listen" to the pee. We did everything we could to get her to understand the potty. We would pick her up during mid poop and sit her on the potty. That worked a couple times. I was so nervous to get accidents on the carpet that I had her wear underwear for only an hour and called it "Potty Hour". She always had a diaper on before and after. Looking back on that experience now, I think about how stupid of an idea that was. She did understand the potty more than and understood the purpose of it. But diapers were still in her life and she was extremely dependent on them. This lasted about a week and I decided it was time for another break. No one in the house was ready at this point.
Attempt 3:
This attempt was horrible. About 2 weeks of battling going to the potty. We had MANY accidents, and MANY meltdowns. We would somehow convince her to sit on the potty and she would sit for maybe 30 plus minutes and nothing would come out and then as soon as she got off the potty, she would pee in her underwear or poop in her underwear. At this point, she knew exactly what the potty was for, but was unable to communicate and understand the feeling of going to the potty and making it before an accident. I felt so completely defeated. She just turned 2.5 years old. We had a doctor's appointment during this time. I explained everything to her pediatrician and told her it just felt like she wasn't ready. The pediatrician made me feel so much better about it by confirming that my 2.5 year old was not ready. She clearly understands the potty and what it's used for but the last part of potty training which is the hardest is recognizing the feeling and being able to communicate it. She was not recognizing the feeling and being able to communicate when it was time to pee or poo. The doctor said "take a couple months off" and then try again. It was such a relief to hear that and that's exactly what we did.
Attempt 4:
We waited about 3 months after her 2.5 year old doctor's appointment and I'm so glad we did. I was so determined to make this attempt successful. So I found a book. I will link it below just in case you'd want to check it out. The book basically lays out a game plan to potty train your toddler in 3 days. This book is incredible. It not only helped me feel focused before approaching potty training again but also helped me feel confident as the parent. It made all the difference. I followed the book exactly as written and you guys no joke, she was communicating going to the bathroom after day 1. We used m&ms as a treat, we did not set a 15-30 minute timer, we did not have her run around naked, we did not use a small training potty. We completely got rid of diapers, no pull-ups during the day, only at nighttime, and bought a special seat with Minnie on it to make going on the big potty special. We did not read a whole bunch of books to her, we just talked about it the night before introducing her new seat, her new underwear, that the diaper fairy was going to take all the diapers in the morning, and showed her the special m&ms in a clear jar just for her. She got it and she was ready. After the first day, she had 3 accidents by lunch time and then after started to tell me every time she had to pee. It is now two weeks in and she is so good at it. A couple accidents but rarely any. She communicates every time (even sometimes in the middle of the night). She never asks for her diapers back. She understands that the pull-ups at night are "sleeping underwear". The 4th attempt was such a different experience. I felt more prepared and more determined to make it happen and I think that reflected on the experience. My daughter was also more ready than ever.
If you are in the midst of potty training or know someone who is, my best advice would be listen to your child. They will tell you when they're ready. Trust the process. Also, if you like reading or reading parenting books. I found the perfect book for you to feel confident and ready for the training process. It is A LOT but it is a method that works! Trust me!
Thanks so much for reading!
Susana
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