day 1 of potty training down!

today was the first day we officially potty trained our boys.
they wore underwear all day (except for nap time and at bedtime). one boy woke up with a dry diaper after his nap, too.
we've been using LOTS of incentive - every time they go they get a present of their choice.

we set a timer and put them on the potty EVERY 20 minutes today
- one kid had TWO accidents - he was upset but just told us he loved us.
- the other kid had ONE accident and was SO UPSET!!!!! SO SO SO UPSET! he wanted to wear a diaper but we encouraged him to wear his undies and he was ok.

- what can i expect for tomorrow and is this the 'right' or 'correct' way to do this? we carried a potty seat around all day and the kids loved peeing in public places. lol.
- do i continue doing this this way? every 20 minutes put them on the potty tomorrow? do i keep them in diapers at nap and bed?
- where (if at all) do pull-ups fit in?

and no one told me they really had to go. we told them to go.
is this going to take long? :grouphug:

 

It sounds like you found a system that worked for you. We did Gerber Cotton training pants. We called them Big <girl/boy> pants. We used pull ups only overnight when it was expected to stay dry... or we were out of diapers and did not want to buy another box. I just felt that pull ups were just like diapers only it was easier for them to pull on and off. If yours go straight to underwear, that is awesome. Perhaps just pull ups for naps and nights. It sounds like you've got a good system going, keep it up! Two and one accident on the first day is awesome! WTG Momma!

 

OMG THANK YOU SO MUCH!!!!
so do you have any idea how long this should take, lol?
should i continue to do this? 20 minutes everyday?

when i run out of diapers, i'll do pull-ups at nap time...
as for now i have a sleeve left - should i stick with diapers or go right to pull-ups?

they picked out their own big-boy undies and were so excited to wear them...

 

I agree with jackie, figure out what works for you, and go with it!

As for how long it'll take, that totally depends on the kiddo's. They could be trained in a week and be consistently dry, piece of cake. They could regress in a week or two and get confused and/or stubborn about going on the potty. It really depends on the kid.

For right now, continue to take them often, but you can start stretching the times out if they start getting upset, or if they are doing super good.

If they start getting upset about going, it's not going to hurt anyone to back off a little bit.

As for pullups, I quit buying diapers and use pullups for my twin son, for nighttime for sure, and when we leave the house. He's been potty training for about 2-3 months now, not quite getting it yet, but we're just being super patient, letting him help set the pace.

For example, my oldest son, I tried to pt him between the ages of 2 and 2 3/4, he was NOT ready. Did great the first couple weeks, then started having accident after accident. When it got to where we were both crying everytime I suggested going potty, we stopped. I tried again a few months later, for about a week, but he still wasn't enthusiastic about it, so we stopped. Just before he turned 3 he decided he wanted to pee on the potty like daddy...he trained quickly then.

Same situation with my second child, my daughter. I didn't push it, tried a couple of times but she wasn't getting it. Suggested her tinkerbell undies when she was 3.5, trained easily.

Tried my twins shortly after they turned 3. My daughter trained quickly and is already nighttime trained. As I said, my son is still struggling. He soaks his pullup overnight, and has several small accidents during the day, but he's finally stopped leaving puddles He just pees enough to dampen the front of his undies before he runs for the bathroom...so he's getting there at least. He completely forgets about going potty when we go out, which is why we still use pullups when we leave the house.

 

I agree with both Jackie and Danielle.

You are off to a great start with them and it sounds like what you are doing is working. :yahoo:
Honestly, since it seems like you are off to a great start, I wouldn't a change a thing. Keep it up for a few days and then start making time longer then every 20 minutes. As for naps and bedtime, it might take them longer to be dry during those periods, so you could always call the pull ups (if you do choose to use them) their special sleepy time underwear. Once they start staying dry during those times, then get rid of the pull ups. For me, I would get rid of the diapers completely or hide them.
For trips out, when I first PT-ed both of my kids, I kept the trips short, packed extra clothes & wipes just in case. Had a potty in the car too.

How long it takes each child to potty train really depends on the child. Like PP's mentioned, if there is regression, there is no harm in having to take a step back. My son started off well and then no longer wanted to PT and we had to take a break for a bit with him and put him back in diapers. The second time around with him was much easier and he stuck with it.

Good luck!

 

TY for the advice!!
The boys were 3 in May.
They need to be potty trained for school, so I hope there is no regression!!

 

Give it a couple of weeks and they will have it down pat! I don't think that you will have to continue with the 20 minutes for too long. The boys will start to actually realize what it feels like to have a full bladder.

My daughter decided at 2 that she didn't want to wear a diaper and we haven't looked back (with a few accidents...but i'm ok with that!) and her twin brother he has been potty trained for about 2 months now. We never used pull ups, and I still put a diaper on them around midnight when they are asleep to ensure that they don't have an accident. For some reason I feel bad limiting their water intake before bed during the summer....they are always so thirsty!

Praising them, letting them make the decisions and just watching their signs is key! You are doing a great job and all you can do is keep at it!! They will catch on soon enough!!!!

 

I think if it's working for you and your kids then it's the 'correct' way to do it! As for how long it will take, like pp's have said it's impossible to say as every child's different, although with such a positive start I'd say a week or two to have it mostly down.

For tomorrow (day 2) I'd say still put them on the potty fairly often (every 20-40 minutes, you can gradually extend the time). I would say though that by day 3 you shouldn't be making them sit every time but instead asking "Do you need to go to the potty?" so that they can start to take control. For them to be properly potty trained you need them to be able to recognise the feeling of needing to pee/poop and if you don't let them decide when they need to go they won't learn to pay attention to their bodies. So you might find that you get a few more accidents that way but often having an accident or two will help cue them into knowing when they have to go.

It's great that you're already taking them out without diapers. I don't think there's anything wrong with using diapers at nap and bedtime but if you'd rather switch to pull-ups you can. I would use up the diapers you have first though, there's no sense in wasting them. Pull-ups really are just diapers without tabs to stick-the main advantage is that kids can get them on/off by themselves. I wouldn't refer to pull-ups as underwear because it could make them confused as to what underwear they are allowed to pee in and what underwear they are not.

Good luck, I hope it continues to go well for you.

 

today was great. NOT ONE ACCIDENT FOR EITHER KID!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! :banana:
IM SO EXCITED!

tomorrow i will take your advice, twin nanny and ask then when they have to go.
my same one woke up dry from nap - the other one was not dry.
the one child has never pooped and still hasn't in two days. he is having a hard time, so hopefully he goes tomorrow.

 

:woo: That's great! Sounds like they are really getting it. :clapping:

I just wanted to add that from day 3 to about day 7-10 I did still occasionally make them sit (like they had to sit and try to pee before we went out anywhere or if they hadn't gone for hours-and sometimes they'd be hopping around holding themselves and then I would make them go) but most of the time I let it be up to them if they went or not.

For the one not pooping you could try giving him prunes or prune juice to help him along. You don't want it to get to the point that it hurts him to go as that could really put him off.

 

the LO that WONT poop on the potty had two poop accidents today.
he was so upset and so embarrassed. one was at a friends house and he hid in a room and held the door closed. i feel awful for him.
im not sure how to make him sit on the toilet and poop.

 

I agree with Zoe about giving him prunes/prune juice to help. With my son, I would take prunes and mash them and mix them into grape jelly when I made him PB&J sandwiches. For poop accidents, if it was flushable, I would have the child help me flush it and remind them that poop wants to go in the potty and their underwear wants to stay clean. It doesn't sound right to say it, but I say it is a good sign that he was upset by the accident (as opposed to pooping himself and acting like nothing happened) and just has to get comfortable with letting it go in the potty itself. A lot of kids have a hard time with pooping in the potty at first.
One of the other things I did was sing a song, "Everybody Poops" (to the tune of Everybody Hurts by REM) to my kids, reminding them that we all do it and our poop goes in the potty.

 

This is what I'd do. Just talk to him about it and explain gently that he should try and do his poop on the potty. Talking about how everyone has to poop is good too. You could also have him in the bathroom when his brother poops, again just to get him more comfortable with the idea.
One other thing to look at might be story books dealing with poop. There are many books out there all about potty training-we borrowed this one and this one from our library and they both went down well. E & E also have the book The Story of the Little Mole... A funny story where you get to see the different poops of many animals, which they enjoy as well and it was a good way to talk about everyone needing to poop and where you should go.