Daughter WANTS to potty train

[raynjen]

My DD is showing every sign of readiness - she stays dry for hours at a time, she is imitating people, she discusses pee/poop, can dress/undress herself, loves to wash her hands, etc. She reliably poops in the potty and not in the underwear. However, she NEVER knows when it is time to pee. Does this mean that she isn't ready? She is requesting big-girl pants all the time and while I don't want to discourage her I am getting tired of all the messes!

Help!

Jen in Okinawa
Mom to Noelle (10/25/01)

[brubeck]

It sounds like she's making some great progress!

There were two things that helped me when my daughter was at this stage. First we let her run around naked. I don't know why but the air on her bottom made her more sensitive to having to pee. I actually had 'pee parties' with my neighbour and her kids and the three of them ran around naked using each other's potties. When she got the hang of it that way then I put her in underwear a size too big, so it wasn't snug on her privates. I also had her wear underwear that had cotton over the waistband (instead of just elastic) so it was easier to pull up and down.

After we moved to underwear I also had her wear leggings. If she did have an accident the pee went all the way down the legs and her whole lower half felt wet which was much more uncomfortable. I think this helped clinch the whole thing.

HTH!

[raynjen]

Thanks! This will definitely make my daughter happy as she prefers being naked to anything else!

Jen in Okinawa
Mom to Noelle (10/25/01)