Potty Training

One of the things I dreaded when having more children was potty training!  I had mixed experiences with my other children and dreaded the idea of it not going well.  A few months back I decided to potty train Hyrum.  His communication skills were weak, but I figured he was old enough and I had the time.  So, I read up on it, refreshed my memory and went for it.  It wasn't clicking and I remembered what would happen if it didn't click.  Now back in the day when I was younger once we decided to potty train there was no going back.  But now that I am older and a little more mature I was willing to realize that it wasn't working, and so we went back.  It was one of the best decisions of my life!  After several months his verbal skills improved, he became more aware of his bodily functions and wanted to potty train.  I am actually wondering if trying to potty train and then going back helped.  Interesting thought.  So, a few weeks back we could tell that it was time to potty train.  The problem was that I didn't have any time.  We were getting more chickens and getting ready for pigs, but he was very clear about his readiness.  He told me he wanted to wear underwear again and not wear a diaper.  He was trying to change his own diaper and even went to the bathroom at the end of a bath.  So, I decided if he wanted to do it, then he had to do because I did not have the time.  So, I gave him two days, spent them with him and low and behold he did it!  We have only had one #2 accident.  Phew!  And a handful of wet accidents usually when we had company or there was a movie playing.  It has been a couple of weeks and things are still going well.

I have learned a few lessons.

1.  Wait until your child is ready.

2.  Wait until your child wants to potty train.  Now I know diapers are expensive, but it was worth it to me!

3.  Remind gently but do not force going to the bathroom (unless you are going for a car ride, bed or other similar events).

4.  Do not reward for 'almost' doing it right.  I did that the first time and it did not work.  I believe I read it in a book, but that is a no go!  This time if he didn't do it right I told him so.  I did point out what he did right as well, but I taught him what was wrong and didn't just smooth it over.  Rewards only came for doing it all right including keeping those panties clean!

5.  Getting underwear with characters they know is helpful.  The first time we trained he only knew Nemo and not the rest, so he was mad if Nemo was wet because he had to wear others.  By the second time around he was happy to wear other characters and was careful to keep them clean.  Funny enough he wanted to change underwear often, but I told him he could only change if he went to the bathroom.  He would go to the bathroom just to change underwear.  That didn't bother me one bit.

6.  Just love them and help them be successful.  It amazes me how proud of himself he is that he can use the toilet and stay clean all day.  I love it!  There will still be minor problems when there are major distractions, but that is ok and it doesn't mean he is reverting.  Love, teach and move on.

This experience has given me hope in potty training my last one when the time comes.   And we have bonded over the experience, which I love.  Now we are enjoying our pigs, chickens and not changing extra diapers!