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  1. #1
    Pilotbaby is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    Default A few potty training questions

    A few potty training questions as we approach time to potty train:
    1. Any favorite potty's out there? I see several with good reviews on Amazon but not sure what to look for?
    2. If your child is petite, how do they manage using regular toilets when you are out in public?
    3. When you first start potty training, do you keep pull up diapers on, regular diapers, or switch to underwear?
    4. Any other tips
    TIA

  2. #2
    Philly Mom is offline Diamond level (5000+ posts)
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    1. We used a Summer Infant potty.
    2. At first, my DD had no problem with the bigger potties when we were out, I just held her. For some reason, she won't go when we are out now. It is very annoying.
    3. My DD was very ready to potty train, she was 2.5. We use pull ups at night only. We did at nap time for the first month too. Otherwise, she is in underwear full time. Most mornings she wakes up dry now too. She used to be soaking.

  3. #3
    SnuggleBuggles is online now Black Diamond level (25,000+ posts)
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    1. Baby Bjorn
    2. Wasn't an issue
    3. Underwear- cold turkey switch during the day. Diapers at night. Ds1 was day/ night potty trained immediately but it was more than a year for ds2.
    4. Be patient and stay strong. We did cold turkey with ds2 and it took 6 days before he cared one lick about using the potty. Just when I was thinking about bagging the whole venture, a switch went off in his brain. Glad we stuck it out. However you also need to know when to fold them. Ds1 would hold his pee for 12 hours then let it out as I was cooking dinner. It became a huge, unnecessary power struggle with no winners. We quit and started again in a few months. Ds2 wasn't nearly as stubborn so I felt like we could push on. Ds1 was not going to give and we could tell.

  4. #4
    jam224 is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    Quote Originally Posted by Pilotbaby View Post
    A few potty training questions as we approach time to potty train:
    1. Any favorite potty's out there? I see several with good reviews on Amazon but not sure what to look for?
    2. If your child is petite, how do they manage using regular toilets when you are out in public?
    3. When you first start potty training, do you keep pull up diapers on, regular diapers, or switch to underwear?
    4. Any other tips
    TIA
    1. Love the Baby Bjorn potty, the one with the high back: http://www.amazon.com/BabyBj%C3%B6rn...dp/B000056J7L/. The simpler, the better. Nothing moves, nothing sings. Cleaning it is simple; you just pick up the white insert and dump out the waste.
    2. Honestly, I avoided using public restrooms for the longest time. Instead, I used the Potette in the back of my SUV: http://www.amazon.com/Kalencom-2-in-...dp/B0016L0MMS/. It just made it simpler for me until DD could get the hang of sitting on a big toilet and I could trust that she wouldn't touch everything in the bathroom stall!
    3. DD started potty training with cloth diapers, but at one point I really wanted her to be motivated to stay dry, so we went straight to underwear. We used the Gerber training pants, which has extra layers of cloth in the crotch area, so little accidents aren't going to ruin their outer clothes: http://www.target.com/p/gerber-onesi...k/-/A-15038681.
    4. No other tips, just hang in there! We tried the reward thing for a while; first special stickers and then I got desperate and tried M&Ms. Neither really motivated DD. It was frustrating, but she eventually came around on her own. I wish you lots of luck!
    Jennifer
    SAHM to DD1 (11yo) and DD2 (5yo)

  5. #5
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    1. We've had different potties at different points, and my favorite is the cheap insert you can put on top of your regular toilet seat. DD1 really preferred that one, but my others have liked the potty chairs.
    2. I hold both my girls up when we use public bathrooms. They're scared of "robot potties" (automatic flush) and hate to use them, though.
    3. When we started with DS, we did the whole cold turkey switch to undies, boot camp, all day in the kitchen for three days business. But it still took him 18 months to be accident-free in the daytime. After a few weeks of washing undies and pants and the floor constantly, I switched him to cloth training pants (various kinds, but the Gerber ones a PP mentioned are fine) to cut down on the mess. Since we had the cloth ones, I used them with the girls. I use cloth training pants at home and disposable pull-ups when we're out and about. We keep them in diapers at night a while longer--our kids take way longer to night train. Now that we're in an all-carpet house, I don't make the transition to undies until they are dependably accident-free most of the day. Even so, we've had to invest in a steam cleaner. Pee accidents are no big deal if your kid is a quick potty trainer (DD1 was) or if you have hardwood or tile. They're a huge pain if you're cleaning up for months (#1 and #3 for us!) and/or have carpet.

    4. DD1 was really motivated by M&Ms, and DD2 is motivated by sticker charts to earn a bigger prize (a Frozen ribbon wand, new coloring book, etc). They love the Daniel Tiger potty training episode (it's on amazon prime if I remember correctly)--we all have it memorized by now.
    Sharing advice/encouragement for homeschoolers at Homeschooling for Normal People

  6. #6
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    I was determined just to use a big toilet insert, but DS didn't really potty train until I got the Baby Bjorn stand alone potties. We took one with us in a huge plastic shopping bag for the first week or two. After that, he was able to handle the big toilets in public restrooms. My friend had this and took it everywhere:

    PRIMO Folding Potty with Handles, White granite by Primo http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BXHPEU/..._BYCHtb0QCH9BC

  7. #7
    Pilotbaby is offline Platinum level (1000+ posts)
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    Thank you. I can't tell from the pictures but it looks like the Potette comes with bags and that's where they actually go to the bathroom? Or is it just a toilet seat cover?
    Quote Originally Posted by jam224 View Post
    1. Love the Baby Bjorn potty, the one with the high back: http://www.amazon.com/BabyBj%C3%B6rn...dp/B000056J7L/. The simpler, the better. Nothing moves, nothing sings. Cleaning it is simple; you just pick up the white insert and dump out the waste.
    2. Honestly, I avoided using public restrooms for the longest time. Instead, I used the Potette in the back of my SUV: http://www.amazon.com/Kalencom-2-in-...dp/B0016L0MMS/. It just made it simpler for me until DD could get the hang of sitting on a big toilet and I could trust that she wouldn't touch everything in the bathroom stall!
    3. DD started potty training with cloth diapers, but at one point I really wanted her to be motivated to stay dry, so we went straight to underwear. We used the Gerber training pants, which has extra layers of cloth in the crotch area, so little accidents aren't going to ruin their outer clothes: http://www.target.com/p/gerber-onesi...k/-/A-15038681.
    4. No other tips, just hang in there! We tried the reward thing for a while; first special stickers and then I got desperate and tried M&Ms. Neither really motivated DD. It was frustrating, but she eventually came around on her own. I wish you lots of luck!

  8. #8
    Giantbear is offline Sapphire level (2000+ posts)
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    1. Any favorite potty's out there? I see several with good reviews on Amazon but not sure what to look for? we went with a potty seat that went over the normal potty. I never wanted to clean a little potty and had friends whose kids did not transition well from the potty to the toilet.
    2. If your child is petite, how do they manage using regular toilets when you are out in public? I bought a foldable seat i kept in the diaper bag, http://www.amazon.com/PRIMO-Folding-...ler+potty+seat It worked like a charm. Eventually she wanted off and, with encoragement at school, now balances on the end of the regular seat, although yesterday morning, for the first time, she fell in while trying to balance and holding her puppy and blanket.
    3. When you first start potty training, do you keep pull up diapers on, regular diapers, or switch to underwear? Initially, we kept the diaper on, but quickly went to underwear. DD did not want pull ups
    4. Any other tips be ready for slip ups even after a few weeks of good use. We had her sit on the potty every 2 hours or she would try and go as long as possible. Stickers are a great reward for usage and i played dd a special video on utube when she pooped in teh potty
    Proud father of dd 5-30-10

  9. #9
    lizzywednesday is offline Red Diamond level (10,000+ posts)
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    (1) We used the Baby Bjorn high-back potty. Having gone through toilet training vicariously with my siblings, I swore I'd never get a small toilet ... but DD was kind of scared of our toilet at first, so I backed off. I like the Bjorn because it doesn't have any weird nooks & crannies, so if your DC were to, um, "miss" the pot, you're not looking for a detail kit to clean it. (It wipes down with a Lysol wipe.)

    We ALSO used potty-toppers. My first selection was the Munchkin knockoff of the Bjorn topper and, later, the Bjorn topper itself (purchased for ILs' and my mom's houses) because they have a built-in deflector. We had a soft Ginsey brand seat as well, but I hate it and never figured out how to get the deflector in place properly. (DD pooped on it once and cleaning it was a bear; the Munchkin and Bjorn ones are smooth, one-piece, all plastic. So easy to clean!!) If using potty toppers, I really have to recommend the Potty Hook so you're not left with an awkward situation when an adult needs to use the toilet in the same household as a training toddler!

    (2) Mine's not petite, but she uses public restrooms just fine. We initially bought a folding seat (small enough to keep in a plastic baggie in my purse!) but she stopped using it after a week or two. Currently, the challenge is figuring out whether or not she wants me to come with her into the stall.

    (3) She needed to go straight to underwear during the day; pull-ups were too diaper-like for her to learn properly. We did use pull-ups at nap until she stayed dry consistently then, and we do use pull-ups overnight now, but I didn't expect her to be dry overnight at first.

    And, well, different things work for different people. Mine wasn't rewards-motivated, but I know other kids are. She's stubborn, so a lot of the motivation needed to come from her.
    ==========================================
    Liz
    DD (3/2010)

    "Make mistakes! Get messy!" - Miss Frizzle

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