How To Potty Train
In Two Days
By: Carrie Lauth
Ah, potty training!
Go to a local bookseller
and you will find dozens of books on the subject. Search the Net
and there are thousands of websites with information on how to do
it stress free. There are even people who are capitalizing on a
parent's frustration with potty training by offering to do it for
you, for a hefty sum! I honestly can't imagine anything more unseemly
than paying someone to teach my child to "go".
Ewwww!!!
I have successfully
potty trained 3 kids so far using this method.
I seem to be the envy of the playgroups when other Moms see that
my 3 year old son has been in whitey tighties for over a year. My
oldest was also 2 when he potty learned.
For me, potty training
starts with a newborn. Now don't get me wrong...I do diaper my babes
(unlike the native African mothers who wear their babies on their
backs and who, to avoid being soiled on, learn to read their babies'
cues so well that they know when their newborn needs to be held
over a bush...no, I'm not kidding!) but I have always used cloth
diapers, which encourages babies to train early. I'm not a longhaired,
barefoot, off-the-grid hippie (not that there's anything wrong with
that, but you're more likely to find me in Doc Martens than Birkenstocks!)
but I have been cloth diapering since the beginning.
It has saved me
hundreds and hundreds of dollars, but I also like the fact that
my babies begin to make the association with the uncomfortable wet
feeling and the knowledge that they can prevent it. Most babies
will wake up dry in the morning at several months of age, demonstrating
that they are physically able to "hold it". In my opinion,
Pull Ups are evil and yet another invention that some clever businessman
came up with that parents now think is a necessity. Along with formula,
baby swings, and the like. Pull Ups just enable a 5 year old to
keep soiling himself. Research has shown that cloth diapered babies
potty learn several months earlier than disposable diapered babies.
So here's Grandma's
recipe (and I do owe it to my Mother, like most of the good stuff
I know about parenting) for easy potty training, even if you choose
not to cloth diaper.
Let your baby come
into the bathroom when you go. That way, they know what's going
on in there. You don't have to get graphic, just talk to them about
what toilets are for. If you are a woman at home all day with boy
children, encourage Daddy to show 'em how it's done. You don't want
them thinking that if they go on the toilet their equipment will
fall off, like Mum's obviously did. Strange, but true...some tots
will come to this conclusion.
Buy 3 or 4 of those
cheap little molded plastic potties and put them around the house.
At least, one in each bathroom and one in the kitchen or the room
where you spend the most time with your child. Stick a towel underneath
for the sake of your carpet if said child is a boy. Speaking of
boys...you can take advantage of nature here by keeping an open
mind. I know at least one boy who was trained when his Mom let him
go off the side of the deck.
The summer that
your child is closest to two, take two days and don't leave the
house. Let your child run around naked from the waist down, with
a big tee shirt on top so that private parts stay private.
Every 10 minutes,
place the child matter-of-factly on the pot. DO NOT ASK inane questions
like "Do you need to go potty sweetie pie!?" We are talking
about dealing with a two year old here! Just do it like it's the
thing to do, and don't ask permission. Don't force it, and if he/she
wants to get up right away, let him or her.
If you have a resistant
child, set a timer to go off every 10 minutes. It's amazing what
a child will do when the power dynamic is taken away. When the "potty
timer" goes off, it's time to sit on the pot!
Use praise but
don't go overboard. Act like this is the expected thing. Be cool.
Say "You put peepee in the potty, just like Mommy and Daddy
(and big brother, and your older play group friend...3rd parties
are gold here!!) do.
Don't make a big
deal out of what's happening. Don't spend hours reading potty training
books or videos to the child. Again, be cool. If you make it into
a big deal, your child will be more likely to dig in and resist.
Have some "big
boy shorts" or "big girl panties" that you know your
child will like, perhaps that you have picked out together, ready
for the end of the two days. Your child will be less likely to have
accidents if s/he is going to mess up their new undies.
When the inevitible
accidents happen, don't scold. Be patient and gracious. This is
part of the job. Remember that even if you decide to spring for
carpet cleaning, you will still come out ahead if you don't have
to buy diapers for another year or two!
About the Author: Carrie Lauth publishes a newsletter for Moms doing
things the natural way. Get your free copy at http://www.natural-moms.com
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