How I Potty Trained my Toddler in a Week!
Happy Thursday, friends! Today, I'm sharing how I successfully potty trained my toddler in a week! I've been heavily documenting, and taking notes just for you in mind! Every child is different, but I'm hoping that my experience will help you say goodbye to changing diapers during the daytime! So, if you're interested…keep on reading! I also linked my YouTube video below to give all you “potty training mamas” a little laugh in the meantime!
To bring you up to speed, my son is 26 months old. I introduced him to the toilet at 24 months when I caught him peeing in the bath multiple times. To address this, I started putting him on the potty before bath time and would say, "We can take a bath, but first go pee pee in the potty." I did this very consistently, and before I knew it, not only was he going pee in the potty before his bath, but he was telling me when he needed to pee while in the bath. He would hold his pee as I transferred him to the toilet, go pee, and then go back in the bath. This is the moment I knew he was ready to be potty trained!
I went straight to the library and picked up the book, "Oh Crap! Potty Training,” by Jamie Glowacki. I have heard great things about this book, and had multiple friends who successfully potty trained using it. I highly suggest it, and will link it below. In the following paragraphs, I share my first week of potty training based off what I learned from the book! One daunting thing made clear was once you start potty training, there is no turning back. I took a deep breath, and accepted the challenge. Here is what my week looked like:
Day One
On the first day I took my son out of his crib, and matter of factly told him, "Today is bye bye diapers!" (I had been prepping him weeks before with "One day, we are going to say bye bye diapers! Then, you'll wear big boy underwear!!) He watched me take all his diapers, and put them in a garbage bag. (I was still going to use diapers at naps and nighttime sleep, but the garbage bag helped him make the connection with no more diapers during the day.) Following the book’s guidelines, I then stripped him completely bare and introduced him to "the potty." It's important to establish that the potty isn't a chair, a drum, a stool, or a choo-choo train...it is only for going "pee pee" and "poopie" (replace with your bathroom word preferences). I placed him on the potty, gave him a brand new "Potty Time with Elmo” book, (affiliate link below) and we read together as he made his first pee of the day! I visibly placed the potty in the main living space, and was determined to make sure he had no accidents! (These accidents are expected on the first day, but the less of them, the more successful your child will be.) The first day of potty training is apparently the most tiring day of your life because you must stay inside with your child, watch their body language for signs of pee, and encourage them to use the potty every time! On the bright side, many parents say it's the best intentional one-on-one time they've had with their child in a while! We read books, did puzzles, sang songs, and then…it happened. My son stopped in the middle of playing and matter of factly stated, "Oh, I have to go potty." He stopped what he was doing, ran to the potty, sat, and went. No bribery, no m&ms, no sticker chart. (This reward method does work for some people, but I didn't want peeing on the potty to feel like a choice for whenever he wanted candy or a sticker.) He just did it! I WAS SHOCKED.
Every kid is different, but I think there were a few things that helped him self prompt more easily: 1. He had often witnessed mommy and daddy using the potty. 2. We prepped him for this moment with a lot of discussion. 3. Being naked helped him become more aware of his body's urge to pee, go, and sit on the potty. 4. It was laid out very clearly what was expected of him for the day. On the first day there were no accidents, and my son self prompted 8 times! I put on a diaper at nap time, which he kept dry, and a diaper for overnight. When doing this, I reminded him, "Where does pee pee go? (He answers correctly.) Yes. Pee pee goes in the potty. Since you're still learning, mommy will put a diaper on you in the crib in case you have an accident." Block One (referring back to “Oh Crap! Potty Training,”) was successfully completed, which meant my son proved he could feel the urge to pee while naked, and make it to the potty in time. All in all, I was shocked at the success of his first day, and very proud of us both!
Day Two
Block Two can begin once your child completes block one. This entails your child wearing easy elastic waistband pants, with no underwear underneath. That's right...commando. (You dont want to keep them completely naked for too long, or they will only successfully potty when they are naked.) They need to recognize that a diaper surrounding the bum is not the same invitation to pee and poo as pants surrounding the bum! As I decided to progress him to block two, I learned a very valuable lesson. I'll set the scenario for you: When my son woke up, I placed him straight on the potty. He peed, and I put his pants on, commando. However, he still had not gone poo from the day before, which was not normal for him. (Apparently, while potty training, many children are known for holding in their poo until their diaper is back on at night because they are afraid to poo in the potty). I didn’t anticipate that first poo, AND with the pants on I couldn't even see it coming to help prompt him. I wish I hadn't progressed to block two until I had helped him with his first poo naked during block one. Here I was basically grinning from ear to ear about my previous day accomplishments, when I realized my son was already positioned in the dreaded SQUAT. He was pooping, and I was missing it! Side note: When your child has an accident during this early time, it's important to recognize that they are still learning. Don’t shame, yell, or scold. You simply say, "Poopie goes in the potty. We will try again next time." When your kid misses the pot in the very beginning, it's technically YOUR fault for failing to watch him closely...not his. Intense, right?
On day two, my son had a total of three pee pee accidents, which is highly expected, specifically on the second day, so don't go too hard on yourself. All three times were after I suspected he needed to go pee, and he replied “No, thanks.” Mamas, trust your instincts! A good rule of thumb from that point on was to have him go potty every thirty minutes when he didn't self prompt. The book discourages from pressuring or asking the child repetitively, “Do you have to go potty?” Instead, simply tell them “Go sit on the potty.” That worked great for us. Ps. Throughout this process the book also recommends your kids guzzling juice for practice. We only do water over here to avoid unnecessary sugar intake, so if anyone's curious, that worked great for us too. Some shows we watched throughout the day to encourage using the potty was “Daniel Tiger Neighborhood,” “Elmo's World,” and “Mr. Roger's Neighborhood,” which he loved.
Day Three
Today I woke up to my son shouting, "I have to go potty, mama!" Before putting him to bed I had told him, "When you wake up, tell mama if you have to go potty." (His diapers were still fully wet after nighttime, but surprisingly his nap diapers were always dry!) We had completed block two and went to block three which was pants, still commando, paired with short trips outside the home! My husband had my son pee in the potty, and then took him downstairs to the lobby, and back with no accidents. Later on in the day he had a pee pee accident that I caught midway when I heard "Oh no, mama!” I calmly picked him up and placed him on the potty reminding him, “Pee-pee goes in the potty. You had an accident. We will try again next time, okay?” I realized my son didn't like getting wet, and that was encouraging! Side note: I listed some potty training options below! However, the nice thing about a floor potty with a removable bin is that you can see exactly how much the child peed, and then your child is able to proudly carry and empty that pee into the big potty.
Day Four
Day four was very exciting for us! He was doing so well, my husband suggested we go to the pool! I was a little hesitant, but felt comfortable as long as we brought the potty with us. (The bottom of the stroller has become the best place for our potty.) I made sure he peed before we left the house, once we made it to the pool, every thirty minutes after, before we left the pool, and once we returned home. (This may seem like a lot, but having the portable potty makes it pretty effortless to continue on with everyday life.) That first day at the pool my son told me, "The lifeguard says no pee pee in the pool, mama." I never told him that, and I know the lifeguard didn't either! That comment showed me he was making the connection outside of the home! My son wore a swim diaper the first few times in the pool, and then I stopped buying them because he held his pee, and used the potty so frequently.
Day Five
Speeding along, day five was a day of no accidents, and a successful poop in the potty! Not much to say here other then consistency is really key!
Day Six
I wish there wasn't a lot to say here...but there is. I woke up to every parent's nightmare. My son was all too quiet this morning. I entered his room, and found an abstract painting...of poo across the crib. I instantly remembered not to yell. (I actually strangely found it humorous), and with a somewhat straight face, I said, "Oh, baby, poopie goes in the potty." Thank God my husband was home to double team this disaster with me. I didn’t want my son to think he can play in the bath after he plays with his poo, so I firmly asked, "Baby, where does poopy go?" He said, “Poopy goes in the potty!” I said “That's right, now you can take a bath!" Oh boy. You never think it'll happen to you until it does! Remind your child firmly ahead of time, “We don't take our diaper off in the crib. We don't touch our poopie.” This incident only happened once. The rest of the day was great! We went to an actual store, and did our normal routine. (We place our potty in the trunk of the minivan, and have him go before we enter any store.) "First use the potty, then we can go into the store." We carried the potty with us everywhere, would find private spots, and have him go when needed. We also did the pool again this day, and in total, there were no accidents! Sidenote: For any single moms, or stay at home moms, I was alone majority of the time during this training! It can be done!
Day Seven
Today was a long day. Not only did I bring my 26 month old son, 5 month old daughter and three young nieces to church with me, BUT this was also the day we were evacuated from an electrical fire in our building and were left to wander Target for 5 hours with a cell phone on 5% battery, my stroller, and....the portable potty until we made it to our hotel at midnight. Yup, we continued to potty train that day with no accidents! Nothing was going to get in my way, haha! For anyone wondering what I did at church; Right before his Sunday school class I put him on the potty and said, "Where does pee pee go? (He answers correctly). Yes pee pee goes in the potty. I'm putting on a diaper to make sure there are no accidents in Sunday school." As soon as Sunday School was over, I took him straight to pee in the potty, and then put his underwear back on. I've done this for a month now, and he's never had an accident in Sunday school! (I don't put a diaper on him in the car because I only want him to associate a diaper with Sunday school and when sleeping in the crib. The last thing I want is for him to become comfortable peeing "sometimes" in the car which I feel can be confusing.)
Fast forward to Day 10
On day 10, I decided it was time for block four, and add underwear. I said "Son, you did such a great job going pee pee and poopie on the potty. Now you get big boy underwear!" He was very excited! Honestly, not much changed after that! He continued to pee and poo in the potty, and pull his pants up, and down. We continued to go on outings everyday…sometimes for hours…and never had any accidents because he knew what to expect, and the potty came with us everywhere! If you are potty training soon, look at your cell phone. Now look at your portable potty. They are now of equal importance. BRING THE POTTY EVERYWHERE! Sidenote: Have your child master the art of pulling up and down his pants before you even start potty training. I believe this can spare him a lot of accidents!
To bring you to current day, it's a month later and my son hasn't had an accident since the first week of potty training. Yesterday, I forgot to even remind him to go to the potty as we ran MULTIPLE errands throughout the day. Turns out he was simply holding it in like a regular “big boy!” Can I cry tears of joy now? When he finally peed in the potty I was shocked at the large amount he was able to hold! We go anywhere we want, but we bring the potty with us. He still only wears diapers at night, naps, or Sunday school just as a precaution. If he's not actively doing those things, then he is wearing underwear. (I'll eventually blog on how I cut diapers out of his nighttime routine.) This structure gives him a solid routine, and knowledge of what's expected of him when it comes to potty time!
In closing, I truly believe my constant communication, and consistency is one of the main reasons he has been successful in the area of potty training. Again, no child is the same, so dont beat yourself up if yours takes a little longer to learn. Remember that these tricky days are far and few in the grand scheme of your child's life. Take a deep breath, pray for patience, and trust the process as you stay consistent! I realize there is a chance I may have not answered every question, and I would LOVE to answer yours in the comments below. Leave a comment, and I'll respond! Thank you, and I wish you much success as you potty train your little one!!
Cool, Calm, and Collectedly Yours,
