My daughter (2 1/2 years) just started using the potty(YAY!!). It has only been a week so she is still using diapers at night and for bowel movements. My concern is that she is still very happy sleeping in her crib. She does not climb out and is very attached to her crib. I would like not to pull her out until she is absolutely ready, especially since she is still dealing with potty training being new. So my question is, in a few weeks when I will not want to have her in a diaper every night is it better to take the crib away so she will be able to get up and go to the potty if she needs or just try to be available quickly if she wakes up and has to go. I know I have read responses from some mommies on here about having children sleeping in their crib till they were three or four years old, so how did you guys deal with this? She stays dry while sh eis sleeping most nights but needs to go immediately when she wakes up, so if we are not in her room lierally the second she awakes, she pees in her diaper. I have no experience with potty training so any tips are greatly appreciated :). I do not believe in pull ups.
Hi Monica, Why don't you give it a little time. See how well she is doing, sometimes kids go back and forth with potty training. When she seems consistant, ask her if now that she is a big girl, would she like a big girl bed. Hope it works. Grandma Mary
Hi Monica,
I hope they daytime training is going well, and good for you in not using pullups.
Is your daughter waking up dry at night? I don't think you need to worry about the crib at this time. Night "training" is not necessarily at the same time as day training. Night training does not mean that the child wakes up at night to empty their bladder, it means that they outgrow the need to empty their bladder at night. If your daughter is still waking up with a wet diaper in the morning, then she's simply not ready for night "training" as her body would have taken care of it, so you can continue diapering at night. The bladder is often not ready to go all night without being emptied until a later (sometimes much later) time than daytime training, and better to sleep in a diaper and wake up wet than to disrupt her sleep by getting her out of bed in the night to use the toilet. I know some parents do this, but what it does is trains the child's bladder to empty at that time rather than outgrow the need entirely
good luck
Don't worry. It is going to be a long time before she is potty trained for night time. Most kids don't start to get that until about 4 or 5 and she'll be out of her crib by then.
Do you have a convertible crib? If so you could convert it into a toddler bed with a side rail instead of a full crib. Another option is just to be ready for her when she wakes up and have her sleep with plastic pants covering her underwear just in case she does have an accident. We're also in the process of trying to potty train our daughter and she's still in her crib as well. I'm not quite sure what road we're going to go down when we hit that point either. Good luck!
Hi Monica,
Congrats on your recent strides with potty training! Since you asked...here're my thoughts:
You are right to question whether or not to take her out of the crib. Unless the crib has become unsafe because she's climbing out (or attempting to) then I suggest you keep her in the crib as long as possible. We transitioned my daughter's crib to a toddler bed right after her 3rd birthday. She had been fully potty trained for over 6 months. I felt bad putting her in a pullup every night when I knew she'd stay dry but felt bad NOT putting her in one since she couldn't get up and go to the potty on her own. But it was most important to me that she be safe in her crib. I suggest you get some padded undies for nighttime and some plastic lined sheets (they make ones that snap right over the regular crib sheet so if she does have an accident you can pull it right off and put her back down with minimal effort knowing that it's very unlikely that she'll go twice in one night). However, keep in mind that it might be another 3-6 months before she's ready for this. And by then you might be ready for the toddler bed anyway.
I'm glad we waited. Even though my daughter is old enough to know that she can get out of her toddler bed she still doesn't unless it's to go potty. Even then, she usually comes to me first, unless it's an "emergency", so I know she's up and so I can confirm that she gets back into bed safely.
Keep her safe in the crib as long as possile. That's my advice. Good luck!
Hi Monica,
When my son climbed over the crib railing the first time it was clear that it was time to get rid of the railing!! From that time on for the next year or two, he slept with the railing in the lowered position so he could climb down easily without our having to worry about falling from the heights!
So, all you need to do is lower the railing--she can stay in the crib as long as she likes and still be able to go potty.
BTW, though I am glad that your son and fiance are the center of your universe (especially your son), you need to have other things that you feel are "your life," because when he grows up you will not be the center of his life. Just make sure you are planning/developing that other part of your self now so you wont wake up one day feeling very scared and lonely.
Is your crib convertable to a toddler bed? I bet it is, becuase most cribs are. Even if it is not, you may be able to convert it with an attachment. That way you get the best of both worlds, she gets to keep her crib and you get to continue potty training.
Your daughter will go through many stages and every child is different.
Continue taking her to the potty and praise her when she is done. But don't rush the training process...keep it pleasant as long as she is willing to use the potty. At some point she might change her mind...go with that too...in time she will change her mind again and want to use the potty. She's got to be ready for moving on with things....
I think keep her in diapers over night until her body adjusts to not having to pee during the night.
You might want to make an exciting thing out of her soon being able to sleep in a big girls bed. You might even want to set up a childs bed in her room without removing the crib. Let her get used to seeing it there and let her know it's all hers and ask her if she wants to sleep in the big girls bed when you are putting her to sleep for the night. If she says no, don't push it, put her dolls in it instead. Then one evening try putting her in it with her dolls at bed time or start this with her naps and see how she does. If she's ready for it, you'll know by her reaction. She might change back and forth until she's ready to give up her crib.
If you have a convertible crib you can take off the one side that slides up and down and put a safety gate there. That way she does not yet have to give up her crib, but instead it becomes a toddler bed. Most cribs these days have that option so yours probably does. This way she can get out of bed to go in the middle of the night if need be without hurting herself.
I have four girls so I guess I have some ideas for you. you can either wake up before she wakes up and then take her to the bathroom or you can buy her a toddler bed but it has to be a very special bed, i have seen some of them with a canopy and decorations and leave it in the room until she feel scomfortable with it and sleeps in it. like you i dont believe in pull ups so thats no option. hope my advice was helpful.
Hi Monica- When I potty trained my 2 year old son he was still sleeping in his crib. I just made sure I woke up when he called me at night to use the bathroom. I still kept a monitor in his room so I could hear him almost immediately. Good luck.
Pull ups werent that bad .. but think of it this way .. summer is coming and it has just got to get easier...
Hi Monica!
Congratulations! I will tell you that I would keep her in the crib as long as possible :o) We did not believe in pull ups either so we used diapers (or what my daughter called sleepies since she said diapers are for babies :o) for almost a year for naps and bedtime. She was completely potty trained during the day and even 99% of the nights. It was about 6 months ago that she decided it was time to take those sleepies off too and she has been doing great.
S.
Hi Monica!
Good for you for potty training already! It's such a huge thing really. I have an almost 2 1/2 year old too and this is my second time around...i thought i'd remember from my first, but it's like a whole new experience again. :)
Anyway, with my first little guy we started when he was 2. He was in his crib until 3 years (when our second was born). I had him in diapers or pull-ups at night for at least 6 months because he would like have 3 dry nights and then he'd like pee a river. Eventually he just stopped waking up wet and we started "chancing" it and he was FINE. I can count on one hand the number of accidents he had. So, in your case, if you're going to keep the crib for a while I would use the diaper for a little while. It may take longer than a few weeks. I understand when you say you don't believe in pull-ups. My son (when he was awake) would pee in the pull up the instant he felt it. My second, however, is pretty consistent with going on the potty whether he has a diaper on or not. They're all so different.
I don't think a crib is a problem though. Make sure you have a mattress pad on so if there is an accident the mattress won't be wet and maybe keep a small potty in her room and explain that when she wakes up and has to pee to call mommy and I'll come right away to help you. Then maybe when it works out one time give her a couple of M&M's to quickly give some positive reinforcement.
Hope that helps. Good luck. :) Hopefully mine and yours will catch on quickly!
I would like to know the same thing but you beat me to the question would you mind sharing your respones with me please lol. Thank you so much!
