Potty Training - Howell, MI

Some children are easier than others to potty train. What works for some doesn't necessarily work for others. She is still quite young and apparently just isn't quite ready yet. Try to be patient. Keep asking her if she would like to go potty but don't make a big issue of it. Definitely don't force her to sit there if she doesn't want to. With my youngest grandson it seemed like forever before he was ready, but he wants to be a big boy and go to school like his cousin who is only 8 months older than him but who potty trained really easily around 2-1/2 years of age just by offering him a couple of M&M's every time he used the potty successfully. So, we kept telling him to go to school he had to use the potty all the time like a big boy. It didn't take too long before it sank in and once he decided he was ready, we just praised him every time he used the potty about what a big boy he was. It is still a process, but now he rarely has an accident. You just have to find the trigger that will work for you. With my girlfriend's child, it was being able to wear Disney Princess costumes that were for "Big Girls" who use the potty.

My daughter just did it on her own at age 2, so when my son came along and didn't even want to try, I was at a lost. I never pushed him and it seemed to help. He hated the little potty so I bought a seat that fits on the big potty and that seemed to help. I tried only putting underwear on him, but I got really tired of cleaning them all the time. I also allowed him to pick out a treat (1 gumball, 1 M&M, etc) each time he went on the potty. But what really helped him was sending him to preschool 2 afternoons a week. He saw what the other kids were doing and boom he didn't want a diaper anymore.

Just let her decide on her own and try whatever fits her the best.

At this point take a step back. If she screamed anything else you do will just make this a horrid experience. Your best bet is to continue to let her 'play'.

My daughter showed signs of readiness at 2.5 but really never got it till 3. (Even then at 3, getting her to poop in the potty took almost 6 more months.)

Be patient. It can take a long time to really be ready after they start showing interest, but you are doing the right things...allowing her to sit, practice and try. Two suggestions when you are really ready. One is get a flip n flush. You can order it on-line for about $12. It hooks right to your toilet between the lid and the adult seat. This is much more sanitary and helps them to not be afraid of the big toilet ultimately. I found that the portable potty was too much like a toy. We use the base as a step stool now. Second don't waste too much time or money on pull-ups. They child can't tell they are wet (any different than a diaper) even with all the "cool alert" systems. I used them for 1-2 weeks then did they old fashioned training pants for 1-2 weeks and went straight to underwear. This was very good advice from other mothers and daycare workers. It is worth the mess of accidents that will happen and greatly reduces the potting training time. Save the pull-ups for naps, bedtimes, or those events out that bathrooms aren't readily avavilable! Good luck!

my son was at that age and wouldn't use a potty chair. I put him on the big potty and he preferred that. sometimes you also (don't want to) but need to be mean. if making it fun doesn't work anyway. but at any rate, I wouldn'treally worry too much until after she turns 2. kids usually do better after 2.

It sounds like she's intrigued by the process, but not ready to take that step. Let her see you go and point out that it's done without pants, but don't force her to try it. When she goes in to sit on it, ask if she'd like her pants down to try it. If she says no, let it go.
My son showed interest when he was about 1 1/2. I was thinking GREAT! so we got a potty and he didn't really train for more than a year and he still wasn't night trained until shortly after he started Kindergarten at 5.
It's a long process and they go when they are ready. Just keep exposing her to the potty and showing her how it's done will help her see the proper way to do it.

Good luck!

I tried to make the process fun. When I thought my daughter had to go, or we were leaving the house. I would act like I had to go really bad. Running or hussling to the bathroom,say I gotta go, I gotta go...me first.They loved it !!!They would want to go first and I of course would act be doing a silly dance , that I still had to go. This routine worked wonders for me and my girls (Now 13 & 9) Don't get stressed, it will happen.

Take a step back. It was probably a shock to wake up with no pants on and that may have made her feel insecure. While I have boys and my 2 oldest are using the potty (mostly) they were both 4 before it all truly clicked. Don't push, 2 is still young. If you must get her trained for a daycare/preschool situation or whatever, I still swear by pull ups, but I have been told that with girls, get them nylon or silky type underwear (let them pick out their own, sometimes that alone will make everything easier) and let them go around the house with just a top and the underwear. Especially at this time of year, the nylon/silky underwear gets VERY cold quickly when wet. Plus, most girls don't like the feel of anything running down their legs. I have been told that if you can put up with the accidents in a positive manner, usually it takes 1-2 weeks, if they are truly ready. Then again, sometimes their brain is ready, but their body isn't. If she can go down for a nap and wake up dry, then she may be ready for daytime training, only you can make that observation and decision. Hope this helps.

Potty training is a wonderful world of rights and wrongs. One minute you think they have it, and the next it is possible for them to revert right back to acting as if they want nothing to do with it. Be patient, she is after all still young. It seems as if we want potty training to be done younger and younger these days, but there is no rush. My son is almost five and he was trained earlier than most but I'm not sure if it was him, what I did with him etc. Who knows, but here are some of my suggestions. My first one sounds silly, but worked for us. I worked in daycare for over 10 years and I think another parent passed this down to me one day. Try putting the potty chair in the room where you are the most, or where her toys are etc. For example we put my son's in the living room, where not only we would be, but his toys were there as well. Why? Because children often don't want to "miss out" on anything. Including taking time to go potty, so if she can stop and go and still know her toys are ok etc. it makes it easier. 2nd, did you try just flat out underwear only. It means a lot of accidents and laundry but honestly, most children can not stand the wet undies. Let alone pee going down their legs. And if they have a number 2 accidents with underwear on, it will catch on real quick! I did this with my son, I tried the plastic underwear to go over top, but he didn't like those so I did just plain old underwear. If at home, she doesn't need pants on and everything else to get in the way, just let her go. Plus have her help pick them out, she will feel like a big girl. Also at home, try getting into a schedule, take her every hr for a while, IF she fights, then don't do this, but if possible, go every hour, make it routine, eventually you'll get the right time and you can praise her well. Play music, sing songs, and make it fun. Don't make her feel forced. Now for me and having a boy I'd put him on the potty backwards, to help with keeping the "stream" in the toilet. I heard for girls this may work as well because it's different, plus on the back of the toilet seat put up stickers or colors, shapes and make a game, sounds silly but keeps her mind off the "pressure" of having to go. The last thing for night time training is wait until day time is more concrete. I said I'd never (after working in daycare) pay the extra for a pull up- but especially at night they are good because of the fact you can pull them up and down. Anyhow, I'd set my alarm and get up once in the night to go wake my child up, make them walk, don't carry, turn on the lights, and take them potty. It's no fun for mom but the child really gets a sense of getting up in the middle of the night, which also mind you can be scary. Besides potty training brings you right back to losing sleep again because accidents happen. But, again, put the underwear on, there will be many wet nights, but sooner than later she will get sick of sleeping in a wet bed. (Get the plastic mattress cover, take off the sheet, spray off the cover with a cleaner or warm soapy water, grab your spare sheet and off you go.) Take off any other stuff on bed, stuffed animals, etc. because night time accidents you are tired and want to make the clean up and change quick. Anyhow, hope some of these things help. Good luck. Main thing is be patient. It will come. Remember even with an accident show love and affection, so she doesn't stop and revert due to fear of you getting mad at her. Once I caught my son changing his own sheets cause the night before I admit I was very tired and showed my crankiness by being quick with him etc., he was scared I'd be upset if he had another accident (talk about making you feel bad, that broke my heart!) So, even when tired and frustrated with it all try to still smile and give your hugs! Good luck!

I would hold off on the PT if she's acting like that. Kids will go through phases of being interested...then not. I would offer it to her and if she wants to try, fine. If not, that's fine too. If she screams when she sits on it, I would just put it away for a month or two then bring it back out and try later.

I had a very rough time PT'ing my ds because I though he was ready when he wasn't. He decided when he was ready and there was nothing I could do to make him train before he was ready.

My suggestion is don't force it. My daughter did all the same things as your daughter at the same age and now at almost 3-years old we are still working on potty training. I think what you've been doing is great but you don't want to force the issue. They'll use it when they're ready. I've had a lot of ups and downs with my daughter using the potty over the past year (she will be 3-years old on March 10th) but we are definitely moving forward. One day around 29-months she woke up and decided that she wanted to wear training pants. We've never wore diapers (during the day) since then. I still put her in diapers at naptime and bedtime.