Ok, my son is 2.5 and has no interest in potty training. Im going to start a sort of potty training boot camp. Meaning Im going to be on it non-stop. With my daughter, potty training was a breeze and we had all hardwood floors. My problem now is that we have a brand new house new carpet, and expensive new furniture, I cannot let him pee/poop all over the house when he has an accident. Im wondering, and I heard that some people do this, is putting big boy underwear on him underneath his diaper, so if he has an accident, he feels wet but there isnt a huge mess. Has anyone tried this and had success?
Any tips on potty training a boy would be greatly appreciated. I have tried the bribing, I will tell him while hes on the pot that he can have cookies (or whatever) if he goes potty. The second he hears the reward he will say "Cookies!" and instantly get off the pot and want cookies. So, that didnt work. Or he will take his pants and diaper off, get on the pot for 2 seconds and say hes done and wants to flush. I have tried giving him books while hes on to distract him from getting down too quick and its not working.
The thing that helped with my daughter was just going diaperless, so she quickly learned that she had to go on the pot or she would have a big mess. I dont see this working with him though. Ideas?
Please go back and re-read the first sentence of your post: "...my son is 2.5 and has no interest in potty training."
It is not about when you are ready. It is about when he is ready.
Please save yourself a lot of heartache and trouble and wait until he lets you know he's ready to do it. If you push him, he will push back. That is what 2 year olds are supposed to do!
Just be patient. Please.
I haven't read the other responses, but I'm wondering if he's just not ready?? Maybe don't try so hard? My guess is that he is trying to get control of this situation...and unfortunately the control is his. We are Love and Logic parents and I think they have some tips...maybe check out their early childhood book to see if it's got some advice you can use. I'm sure they have a website as well. Good luck! Hang in there.
My sister came up with a brilliant way to get her son to pee for the first time on the potty. Ever notice how kids will pee as soon as their feet hit warm water? My sister sat her son on his training potty and put his feet it warm water. BOOM he peed in the potty! Then he was like, "Oh THAT's what you want me to do!" and it has been going more smoothly since. :)
Don't drive yourself nuts and remember girls are easier to potty train than boys. My first girl was 21 months, second 2 and a half. My boys were 3 and a half and 4. Same training different response.
I have girls, so I can't give you much first hand advice, but my friend put Cheerios in the toilet and had her son try to "sink" the Cheerios with his pee. Another friend had her son sit backwards on the big toilet because she figured out he was afraid of falling in.
Also, start reading books about using the potty - "Once upon a potty" is good, but there are tons out there. When he starts realizing what you want him to do and how to do it, it will be less scary and new. We also let our daughter watch us use the toilet. She would even clap when we would "tinkle," so she understood that it was a positive thing. Get him more interested first, and then he'll gravitate toward it.
Um, he might not be ready. But if you want to continue, try letting him go #1 outside. I let my son do that and it was so liberating for him. He got to work on recognizing the need to go, how much pressure and force to use w/o making a mess, and overall aim and "technique". It got to the point where he preferred going outside for #1, so I had leverage for teaching him to go in the potty..."if you go in the potty, next time you go you can go outside". Then I just weaned him off of going outside by making him go inside more than outside.
I do suggest lining your walls around your toilet w/cheap plastic tableclothes and line the floors w/newpaper. It is easy clean up and will be worth it in the long run.
As for #2, my son was 3.5 when he finally agreed to use the potty to poop. I did the underwear first and then a pull up and he hated that b/c he hated being dirty. Some kids don't mind being dirty though, so its all about how much he can tolerate.
gl!
You stated "Ok, my son is 2.5 and has no interest in potty training."
Don't waste your time.
The reason it was "a breeze" with your daughter was because she was READY. He's not ready. He'll be ready when he's ready, not when you're ready for him to be ready. Why spin your wheels?
