Potty Training My 3Yr Old

my almost 3 year old son was potty trained at 2.5yrs because when we were all at home together we just would take off his pants & NO pull-ups, so he was basically naked. We found that he would just pee if he had a Pull-up on because it was easier for him & I couldn't argue, so we resorted to just having him naked & almost immediately he would start telling us "I have to go potty" or he would just run there on his own. He really did not like having accidents that actually made a mess on the floor, so he decided it was better to go potty on his own. We did that for about 3 weeks & then JUST put him in big boy underwear & only pull-ups at naptime or bedtime. He has only had 1 accident since & his diaper is almost always dry through the night now. I hope this helps. - L. (mom to Hawken 3yrs & soon to be mom to Hudson due May 28th)

Definitely running around naked is good. Bribery works too. Also, there may be some suggestions at whatever child-care provider that you use.

I never used pull-ups because, as far as I'm concerned, they're just underwear kids can potty in, which sends the wrong message.

i told my son in the beginning if he went potty he would get a sticker. so everytime he went i would reward him. after every meal put him on the potty and constantly ask him if he needs to go. hope this helps.

My now five year old son was actually closer to 4 when we finally got him potty trained. I bought every potty training book under the sun. We tried stickers as well as food coloring in the toilet, (red turns orange; blue turns green). His doctor told me to try backing off for a while and see
what he does on his own. Just remember, no child has ever gotten on the school bus in a diaper. It will happen eventually but each child is different (boys are a little harder than girls). Just be patient and it will happen.

L. S.

I told my daughter that the only way she could go to pre-school next year was if she started using the potty chair. I also give her a kiss, but she's counting down the days til school starts, Good luck!!!! When my stepson was little the only way I could get him to go was to water the tree, lol...I don't recommend that, it was hard to get him to stop!

Hi T.,

As you already know, potty training a child is really a test of patience. As long as no shaming or punishment is done, then keep doing what you are doing. Eventually, he will learn. Good luck. D.

Hi T., I gave this same advice to a friend of mine which said it worked like a charm for her. Though I have a little girl and the two of you have boys it the excitement that makes it work. Make the potty time fun time. Play little hand games with him while he is sitting there and as soon as anything hits the water do the potty dance. What is the potty dance the silliest dance you can think of while singing a made up potty song with your little boys name in it. They get tickled and want to see mommy do the song and dance again so they will want to use the potty again. Also if you have not tried the latch on seat instead of the potty you may want to try that. My daughter hated the potty but loved being able to sit on the big girl seat. Good Luck!!!

T.,
I also potty trained my boy at 3 yrs. What I did to help was to strip him naked when we were at home, and put his potty chair in the living room in front of the tv. When he would watch his programs I would have him sit on the potty chair. Eventually he went in the potty chair and then of course we throw a potty party including a parade. This took a couple of days until he finally got it and started peeing in the potty on purpose to get the potty party. I then just had to move the potty chair to the bathroom. I did leave him naked though, just so he would not pee in his pants thinking he still had a diaper on. It took a couple of weeks and pooping was a little harder but he caught on and within a short period of time we got rid of the diapers. It worked for him hopefully it will work for your little one as well.
A.

Hi T.,
I had the same problem with my 3 year old. We tried the "okay, no more diapers on your third birthday"... that didn't work. We tried the little potties...the bribes... the "target" practice... nothing worked. My son had one bad "hurting" poop experience and that was the end of it for awhile. Our son had also seen the movie flushed away and was totally scared of the toilet! At 3 1/2 we were all just tired of the diapers. So, my husband took my son to mint springs on a hike with no diapers. They had a picnic and drank a lot so a potty break was inevitable. He ended up going in the woods (both poop and pee)... once he realized he could do it and it didn't hurt he didn't use a diaper again... not even at night. After that hike day it was only undies and he hasn't had a single accident. By 31/2 they really do know when they have to go. He just had to get over his fear of the whole thing. Hope that helps.

For some reason, boys take longer to train then girls and need an incentive. Our daycare told us to change our son over to real underpants. The pullups were too much like diapers and he just wasn't getting it. It only took a two or three accidents for him to realize that he didn't like that cold wet feeling.
If you haven't changed over to regular underpants yet, you'll need to get some cleaner. There is stuff called Natures Miracle. They sell it in pet stores and I think Babies R Us. It removes all types of stains from carpets, rugs, etc.
M.

Hi T.

I just got my almost three year old potty trained. On 2/6 he just up and decided he wanted to go potty - however I mentioned to him about standing up like daddy and that worked like a charm - he has done great since but we also got a calendar and at the end of the day he gets to pick out a sticker to put on the calendar to show how well he is doing. After the first week daddy told him that if he went on the potty all week he would get a trip to the toy store to pick out a truck and it was great we have only had a few accidents when we are busy playing we tend to forget but it has only happened only a few times. He is so excited about being a big boy. Hope this helps take care A.

Go cold turkey off the diapers/pullups into underwear, all the time. This may mean staying home for a few days. Keep in mind, also that some kids really don't care if their pants or wet. But immediately after he has gone pee in his pants, it's off to the bathroom to change. And take your time changing him. Don't go too overboard with the celebration afterwards, this can be intimidating to a small kid. I use a reward box or treasure chest with small prizes in it (stickers, tattoos, small toys). When he's used the potty, congratulate him, give high 5's and a hug, then pick a treat. Do not use pullups at all, even for naps, because they can do well holding it until that pullup is coming.

Hi!
We started a potty chart for my son and that seemed to work really well. Every time he went to the bathrom or ever tried, he would get a sticker. He two stickers if he pooped. It really worked! Unfortunately, we got comfortable w/ the fact that he would tell us when he had to go or take himself and stopped reminding him so were back to having some accidents. It's a constant work in progress for quite a while but I hope the sticker suggestion might work for you. All the best!

I had a hard time and am still having a hard time getting my three year old potty trained. I understand that this option is not for every family, but placing him in a child care center really helped him get started with it. We did things like "shoot for the loops" We put froot loops in the potty and had him aim for them, we would spend all day with him on the potty so that he would go. The we spent all day at home once giving him drink after drink so that he would recognize that feeling of having to go. I must say that this is the hardest thing Ihave had to do with him and it has been a slow process. I was also told to set up a rutine with him, get up and sit on the potty, try again before we leave for school, again once we get to school, go before dinner, bed etc. Pretty soon it just becomes habbit. Good luck.

We tried so hard and then one day at age 3 1/2 exactly, he finally pooped in the potty. We had been taking him to the potty for probably 3-4 months.

I wish I had known to just follow his schedule and try not to push it.

Also, I am seeing a HUGE difference between my girl and my boy so don't worry if he's still not trained at 3 and they both were at 2. This is one gender difference that is for REAL.

Hang it!

put cherrios in the toilet and tell him to aim at them

Whatever approach you take next, I think you should take a break first. You both need a break from potty training. Make it a non-issue for at least a month.

Don't worry. He will get there when he's ready.

A.

My son seemed like he knew exactly how and when to use the potty, but he just didn't want to do it. Then I put him in swimming trunks, and he was perfect. After wearing nothing but swimming trunks all summer, he never had any accidents and switched to long pants for the fall without any trouble. I think the difference was that swimming trunks are very loose fitting, so he could really tell that he wasn't wearing a diaper or anything. Underwear didn't work because they were snug, so felt like a diaper.

It's a tough time - hang in there and good luck!

Let him run around naked and tell him that he MUST let you know when he needs to go potty. That worked with my oldest and he was in big boys the next day. Good luck!

I purchased a Potty Watch(purchased it online). It is a watch the child wears and it goes off with a song every 30/60/90 minutes whichever you set it for and reminds the child to go to the bathroom. My son would go potty anytime he was placed on the potty but getting into the routine of going was the trouble. He wore the watch for a couple days then it sat on the table but everytime he would hear it he would respond to it. He is trained during the day now but of course night time is another issue. Not sure what problem your son is trying to overcome but if this seems like it would help I recommend it.

Hi T.,
I potty trained my 3 boys relatively quickly with some of these pointers that may or may not be be helpful
1) cordon off your kitchen so your son has to stay in there for a few days, without pants on and a little potty seat. He'll see when he does have an accident, right away, and easy to wipe up. Potty's close, he's got toys to play with and there's no clothing absorbing the accident. After a day or two of getting almost all of the waste in the potty expand his area to play, but slowly to keep your clean up down.
2) when you do put him back in pants, forget about underwear for a while--it takes little boys too long to get them down and they are too tight when they are in a hurry to go (which they always are b/c they wait till the last possible moment b/c they resent the interuption).
3) When he poops on the potty do something fun to celebrate, like I let my twins do a stomp rocket (foam rockets that shoot across the downstairs by stomping on a pump). They still remember this and they are almost 5! I potty trained at 2 1/2 .
4)While potty training in an enclosed area, give him lots of drink so he gets plenty of opportunity to go and learn.
Hope something might be helpful!
J. :-)

We discarded diapers and bribed with "potty candy." Everyone, everyone not just my DS got potty a piece of candy when they went to the potty. We had some pretty gross messes and he was really resistant - but it finally worked. Good luck:)

I've only potty-trained a child once, but here's what worked for me. My daughter was 3 1/2 when I did this. After a month or so of misery and failure, I bought "The Little Mermaid" (a movie she wanted, but we didn't own) and set it on top of the TV, unopened. I told her she could watch it when she put pee in the potty. She ran straight to the toilet and peed. I let her watch the entire movie the first time, the whole time letting her drink water, milk, juice, whatever. As soon as the movie was over I told her she could watch it again for a while if she peed again. She ran straight to the toilet and peed. This time I only let her watch about 45 minutes of the show then turned it off and told her she could watch more when she peed. She tried, but couldn't right then. But about an hour later she ran to the bathroom on her own and peed and then demanded The Little Mermaid. I know this is way too much TV for anyone to be watching in one day - but I let her watch The Little Mermaid almost non-stop for about 4 days while she figured out the whole peeing in the potty thing. After that she was totally trained.
I think this worked mostly because the girl is totally addicted to TV. Watching a movie is a serious reward for her. So maybe if your little guy prefers candy, or a trip to some special place, or whatever - you could adjust this to work for your child.
I have heard boys are a little harded - I guess I'll find out in a year since I have a 2 year old son, too.

I found potty training in the warmer seasons easier. Just keep a potty in the room with them and let them run around naked. Worked for me. Good luck!

get the "potty power" dvd, he'll love it!

I was told that potty training a boy is really easy. If you toss in a cheerio or fruit loop and tell him to sink it, it is supposed to work really well for a visual aid. I'm hoping for a boy next because I have two wonderful girls already, and my husband is a little bit out numbered. I hope this helps.