Potty Training - Tampa, FL

I saw the coolest item that I wished I'd had when my son was small. I was at Once Upon A Child (a consignment store, one in Brandon, one near Lutz/Tampa) and there was a travel, folding potty seat cover that goes over an adult seat. Just buy one of those, and bring along a little pack of santizing wipes or spray, and you're set. She won't need diapers even when you're out with her then. Just remember to take her before you start shopping or whatever you're out doing, so she doesn't have an accident from not being able to get to a toilet fast enough.

Hope this helps you some!

I did the same thing with a pull up when we would go out. I would constantly ask her if she needed to go potty and sometimes she would tell me yes. When she would say yes I would bring her to the adult restrooms right away, I put her up on the adult seat, I would squat down and she would put her arms around my neck to feel secure. I was constantly telling her to tell me if she had to go potty and she still does even now that she can do it all on her own. Unfortunately, when the diaper is on, they remember that it is a diaper and are more apt to go potty in it then panties. Hence the constant nagging and asking, "do you have to go potty??" Hope that helps :)

Why do you say she is too small for a regular toilet? My daughter basically self trained at 25 months. We had the potty chair in our bathroom from the time she was 18 months so she'd get used to seeing it when it was time to start. I think she used it only a handful of times here and there. Then one day a few weeks after her 2nd birthday, she said she needed to use the potty, marched into the bathroom and insisted on using the regular toilet. Granted I had to hoist her up, but no way was I allowing a 2 yr old to go potty unsupervised anyway... so that was no big deal. She was completely dry within a week, but we used pullups in public for a few months longer. She never went back to use the potty chair.

Maddie was itty bitty - 15 lbs at a year and I think only 25 at 2. She was consistently in the 5th percentile at all her dr. appts, so size definitely doesn't NEED to be a factor. I hated cleaning out that stupid potty chair. I was thrilled she decided the big toilet was the way to go!!

If the big toilet freaks her out, then they do have a collapsible potty ring you used to be able to get at Babies R Us... it folds in fourths and can easily store in a diaper bag. That is what a good friend of mine used with her daughter when we were out.

Hi J.,

I have two little girls ages 6 & 3 1/2. I'll tell you what has worked for me really well when my girls needed a potty while we were out running errands and still does work for us today. I purchased a small fold-up potty stool(Babies R Us)that uses disposable absorbant liners that you can toss into the trash. I keep it in my van along with a small roll of toilet paper and a small square/rectangular piece of a waterproof mattress pad. I placed the waterproof matress pad under the potty just in case we missed. When my girls were in the early stages of potty training, I always kept my little potty fully assembled and ready to go in my van so we could use it at the drop of a hat. This way we didn't go back and forth between panties and pull-ups. They could wear their little panties and practice staying dry. It was quick, easy, convenient and I never had to worry about using the public restrooms. Now that my girls are older, I still keep my portable potty in the car but it's all folded up in a nice small bag and all I have to do is take a few minutes to set it up. I've had several friends who found this to be a lifesaver too. Another friend of mine used a regular potty chair in her van, but I found it took up too much room, it smelled because she couldn't dump it until she got home and it could spill. The portable potty with the disposable liners is wonderful. I hope this helps.
L.

Hi J.!
I have two boys and when I started potty training I completely got rid of the diapers and used pull ups. It was to confusing for them to use diapers even at night. Most places now even have the Family Rooms and they have built in toilets that are kiddie size (they are tooooo cute!) so I would suggest using the pull ups and contiune having your little one tell you when she has to go and finding the bathroom. Pull ups are easy to go up and down and if you have an accident there is no mess just toss and grab a new one.
Best of Luck!!

My daughter was always too small for a public adult potty....and still is at age 3 and 26 pounds.....but we always still go and she just gets helped. We always use the paper seat protectors and hold her safely. She LLOOVVEESSSS using public restrooms and actually is far less likely to ever have an accident when we are out since it's such a thrill to use the 'new, exciting' bathroom and wash hands in the automatic faucets, etc. I don't even find any need to nag her when we are out, she asks as soon as we enter Lowe's, Target, and restaurant, etc....it's a pain, but so is cleaning up after an accident or changing a diaper! It's important to listen to her when she's out and says she has to go...otherwise you are slowing her training and confusing her about where she needs to be pottying...

Hi J.,

I don't know if this will help, but when my daughter was training I kept an extra portable potty in the car. I had a van at the time, so it was very easy to pull over in a parking lot and let her sit on it. I just kept wipes and tp handy. We used public potties only when we had no other choice, but used wipes and tp to clean and dry it as quickly as possible. You can't avoid germs totally, and from what they say the handles on doors and food coolers in the stores are more dangerous than the actual toilets. We took her first trip on a plane when she was almost totally potty trained and I was a bit stressed about the bathroom being unavailable when she needed to go, but put her in pullups and it all worked out fine.

Good luck. Before you know it, she's going to be into makeup and boys. :-)

G.

Regarding the adult seats: I bought a travel fold-up potty seat to help with my daughters tiny tushie, but it felt unsteady to her and she hated it. I just had to hold her there until she was big enough to do that herself.

Regarding taking her out: You just have to be ready for the commitment and ready to just leave everything where it is when she says she has to go and bring a couple changes of panties and shorts/pants/skirts. Our first outing was to the library, where I knew everyone and knew how to get to the bathroom fast. I limited our outings to a few places, but within 2 weeks, when I felt comfortable, we ventured everywhere. She's almost 4 and I still bring a change of clothes, just in case.

We brought a portable potty along for long car rides or parks without potties. We had toilet seat covers for all the public rest rooms we visited. We brought extra changes of clothes and prepared for regression of toileting around age 2 1/2- don't be surprised by LOTS of accidents and refusals to use the toilet after a very smooth beginning (it's quite typical).
D

About a month ago I finally got serious and started training our 22 month old. She was ready but I think what made the biggest difference was putting her in big girl underwear. I bought her a pack of princess underwear and she wears them all day (some days more than one (or three!)pair). When she gets up I take her to the potty, then put on big girl panties. I even put her down for her nap in them and only at night do I put the diaper on. I was hesitant to go out in public but I felt if I put her in a diaper in public she may feel that it's oaky to go potty in your pants sometimes but not others. I just make sure she goes before we leave the house and I too have a potty in the car. Usually when we get where we're going I'll take her to the potty, especially if it involves playing because then she will not tear herself away to go to the potty. Rather than ask if she needs to go potty, I just take her and I would say 98% of the time she pees, even if it's just a little. At home she goes to the potty by herself when she wants and seldom has accidents. At home anytime she goes she gets a sticker which amazingly is a huge hit! And cheap! In public bathrooms we go in the large stall and I turn her facing the wall and she holds the bar, (that way she's not touching anything else) and I hold her. It can be challenging but it's already rewarding to me to not have to be changing diapers all day! And she is thrilled to be a BIG GIRL! Good Luck J.!

It is important that she realizes that you have faith in her ability to go on her own and that means in public places too. My son was trained a week before his second birthday! Babies r us, target, and wal-mart have fold-up potty seats. I bought one and kept it in my diaper bag. That way when ever we were out my son could go and be able to sit on the large potties. I also got a portable potty, that I keep in the car. It is small and folds flat and it has bags that attach for the child to go potty in. It was alos at Babies r us. I think I spent $20 total. Both of these helped make it easier to go in public places! Good luck!
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2304657
http://www.toysrus.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3055781

My 2 yr old daughter potty trained very quickly. I was nervous about the public bathroom. However, she was not. The first time it happened, my sister-in-law was with us and my newborn in a store. She took Maddie and cleaned off the seat put her on and had her lean forward holding her. No problems at all. I suggest you grab some seat covers when possible. Carry antibacterial wipes. I've found that if you treat it like it's not a big deal, they will to!!! Good luck.