Full Time Working Parents Want to Potty Train Full Time Preschooler- Please Help

I trained by 3yr old twins over a weekend. I would say try a weekend, and see if it works, and then have the teacher at preschool bring her to the bathroom during the day, and then you can continue in the evenings.

If your only choice is afterschool or on weekends then that is your answer. Just because people take off a few days in a row doesn't mean that the child will train when it is convenient for them. Trust me on this.. I had a friend who announced that her week-long vacation was going to focus on potty training, at home.... well, I just hope she was more successful in getting other things accomplished, that week, because her son didn't succeed in potty-training boot camp!

Personally, when I potty trained, I purchased a child-size toilet seat which attached to the large toilet seat. Both my children did great on this. If you have two bathrooms, then, just keep the seat on one bathroom toilet, full time, for now. Introduce her to the potty, buy her frilly underwear for when she succeeds or at least gets to the point that she is excited to wear them for a while without soiling them. If you choose to buy a small toddler toilet - you may like that better. Personally, I never wanted to clean another toilet if I didn't have to. Don't ever scold her for accidents - they will happen. She may not have total control over this yet. Eventually, try her on the weekends to go bare-bottomed. If she is uncomfortable with a diaper on when she does go.... you may be one step ahead of the game. She cares! Encourage her every time she chooses to sit on the potty (i.e. a sticker, one M & M, etc... maybe two or three if she actually goes). Have her get used to sitting on the potty - 10 minutes after she eats or drinks so that she can make that association. Make it a good experience - read to her, play music (or guitar) make up a "potty song" when she goes (sorry for being so corny! Just keep it positive). Yes, there will be times that she has no intention of going and just may do it for the reward and your attention and praise. Soon, you will learn the location of every decent bathroom within a twenty mile radius... it will happen.

I don't agree with the teacher about "beginning when she is ready". She WILL potty train when she is GOOD AND READY, however, it is a process and she needs to be nudged in that direction and her efforts need to be encouraged. Yes, it is more work for the teachers but I would think that they could work with you, at least letting her try to sit on a potty, during school time. I'm surprised that they aren't giving you more direction on this.

Good luck to you.

ND,

I would make a BIG deal out of saying goodbye to the "baby" diapers, take her out to pick out her own BIG GIRL training pants/underwear. Personally, I would skip the pull ups. My kids both thought they were made to pee in.

We picked a nice weather weekend, played outside a lot and put the potty chair on the deck. Anytime someone had to pee they got on the potty. If there was an accident, there was minimal clean up (since we were outside). We didn't make a big deal out of "accidents". They hated the feeling of pee down their legs and got the idea fast. pull ups allowed them to keep peeing in their pants.

Now we did OWN pullups. We used them for car rides - they understood that it was to keep their carseats clean. Because sometimes they just CAN'T wait. They don't yet have the ability to "feel it" and "hold it" yet. But once we did potty training, no more diapers. At night, we did Nighttime Pull ups, but again, we had some wetness problems - the nighttime "dry" came much later than daytime dry.

Minimize drinks from dinner and afterwards.

My cousin gave us this great idea...put a fitted sheet on the bed (mattress). Then put a waterproof pad OVER that. Then put a second fitted sheet on. Then when she does have an accident or leak through Nighttime Pull ups - you can pull off the top fitted sheet and wet pad and automatically have a made bed to put her back into. It works great at 2am! We just rolled up the wet fitted sheet and pad into a ball, took it out of the room (without much to say), got her in dry clothes and went back to bed. We didn't make a big deal out of it at all. She felt bad enough being woken up and wet. The hardest thing was getting past the 5am peeing. Some people like to wake the child before the parents go to bed, to do one more pee. We were "stuck" with the 5am peeing for awhile. Again, she thought pull ups were MADE to pee in. (We couldn't get her to understand that pull ups can't hold a WHOLE BLADDER full of pee, just small accidents.) So eventually we had to just go cold turkey to underpants.

I love the "outside" training. It's a lot less messy and let's the child decide "peeing down my leg feels gross". We didn't yell, cajole, sit on the potty all the time, etc.

Good luck.

Sara

My mom did the Potty Training In One Day and it worked with my brother. He was potty trained in one day. I believe it was this book:

http://www.amazon.com/reader/0671693808?_encoding=UTF8&am...

I worked in a daycare center in the two-year-old room and those who used the Potty Training In One Day method when the child was ready really did have success in one day. Those who went the m&m and pullup route took WEEKS longer to do it.

If the child is ready, then one day should do it. The only way it would fail is if your child isn't ready (the book tells you how to tell) and if you don't follow the directions.

I would avoid the pullups entirely. They really do drag out the process!

P.S. My good friend potty trained his 1-year old. It was amazing. When they are ready, they are ready!

With both my kids, the daycare worked with us to help train when we asked them to. Yours won't help at all??

I didn't have to take time off to potty train. We worked up to the idea at home, practicing using the potty. With my younger son, we used underwear with plastic pants (Gerber - you can find them online) and sent extras to daycare with him. That seemed to be the most effective way. With my younger son we used pullups and it seemed to be a much longer process that way.

WE did it over the weekend and had the day care in line with our approach. I started it on Friday.

Emotional Prep
Before that I was taking her to Potty with me, letting her go diapers..after she was done in her diapers. She loved without being diapers.
Prep
Get the child potty seat. Rewards..small things that he she likes. Different ones for just going and sitting on potty, Pee pee and poo poo.
The process
Show them that diapers are going out of home and are not coming back. Take them to potty every half hr no matter they do or not. Take them with you. My daughter used to hug me tight when she did poo poo..first 5-8 times. For each visit I used to offer her reward, Any accident dont make a big deal, say we are fine and show where the 'output should go. She was trained over the long weekend and perfect in a weeks time including the night.

Every child is different and you may not notice when the kid is ready. YOu are the best judge. Tighten your belt and go for it. It will be done before you know it.

V.

If her teachers are not on board, I would wait. Otherwise, your daughter will get mixed messages.

Do it on the weekend. We had a "potty party" for our twins. i got the book at the library called How to Potty Train in One day. It seriously worked like a dream for us. You teach a babydoll in the morning and the afternoon you train your child. it was fun too. Good luck!

We did the potty-train in a day method for our younger two. Worked well.

You and your husband need to read a few potty-training books and decide first what method you want to use. Then you need to talk to the daycare about it so they use the same methods.

Good luck!