Three Son Wont Let Go of Diapers!

My kids love to have books read to them. We made a big deal out of getting "very special" new books for them. We bought every book on pottying there was at the bookstore (the $$$ was well worth it).

Then, we would ONLY read those books while on the potty. We read them over and over again.

With my first daughter, she was in daycare and just wanted to do what all the other kids did! Potty training was a charm!

Hi M.. I know how you feel about not wanting to buy more diapers. I am not sure if your son has a male figure to emmulate. Whether he does or doesn't, you should let him know that everyone peepees and poops on the pot. Give examples like 'mama pees on the pot' and 'grandma poops too' I think that gives kids comfort that what they are doing isn't weird, it's natural and everyone else does it. My sister friend used fruit loop cereal as little targets for her son to hit while he stood on the stool and urinated in the toilet-I like that she made a game of it and made it fun. Good luck with your boy, I hope everything works out.
-A.-

From my personal and professional experience as a children's counselor and parenting coach I will tell you that this is simply ripe ground for a power struggle. There are only two things young children realize they have control over... what they put IN their mouths (thus battles at mealtime often) and what comes OUT of their body (thus battles around potty). The advice I will share is drop your end of the rope and tell him, "When you decide you are ready to wear these big boy underwear I have for you here in the drawer, you just let me know!" It will be his choice whether you let it be his choice volunarily or not. Also, I find if you give young children "very important jobs" they can do IF they choose and give them lots of opportunities to make choices ("Help me decide what we should have for dinner tonight. Do you think we should have chicken tenders or spaghetti?" for example) they will be less likely to battle you over the potty thing. But bottom line is, don't battle. He won't be in diapers forever even though it may seem like it right now. By the time he is 4 I guarantee he'll be on the potty like all his friends. Good luck!

Hello there M.. My name is M. I also live in Maryville. What I would do is make it in to kind of a game. Put something in the potty for his to aim at when he wee wee's. Also you can give him some kind of candy or cake when he pottys in the potty. Or let him do something that you really dont let him do. Like well, if it was a girl I would say let her put on a little of your make up. but its a boy so I really dont know.lol I have all girls. Well, I hope he does and good luck..

M.

My son was also protesting against going to potty until I started giving him a chocolate cookie. (He is 3 as well, and I have a baby) I know it was not the best idea but I was desparate, and it worked. I just told him if he went potty he would get a cookie. (He rarely gets such treats so it meant a lot to him). It took only 2-3 days, and he was, all of the sudden, going to potty like a real big boy. And I did not have to give him a cookie anymore. I guess he realized it is so nice to be without a diaper. It's been 4 weeks since he was potty trained, and he now goes by himself without any assistance. I am sure he will be potty trained but just getting there is a lot of work if he is not ready. Good luck!

We found our solution by accident. We were having the same problem. He just didn't want to use the bathroom. His younger sister was already potty trained. Then one day, my husband was driving down the road and our son pipes up "I have to go to the bathroom"! He was so excited, but had to find somewhere to take him. He held it until my husband found a restaurant and could get two kids out of the car and to the bathroom. Those of you with two or more young children in car seats understand the time lapse involved, lol.
When he helped him pull down his pants, he realized he had forgotten to put on underwear! Obviously we couldn't just let him free ball the rest of his life, so we bought him boxers. He was fine ever since. I guess the tight fit of briefs felt too much like diapers. The boxer concept worked for my sisters-in law too.
With three kids I learned that bodily functions (eating, pottying, sleeping etc) are battles that can not be "won" by the parent. All we can do is encourage proper behavior and limit opportunities to do the wrong thing until they develop good habits.

Although my children are grown, and didn't have pull-ups back then, I had to use the "training pants" and had them potty trained in no time. (1 boy and 1 girl) At least only after a few messes. Anyway, I am now raising two young grandsons, one is now almost five and had him trained before he turned four. I used "potty treats", individually wrapped gummy candy, kept him motivated, and he liked to earn a treat. The other child just recently turned three. He wears the pull-ups also. I have been trying to get him interested in the potty, but to no avial. I have decided, it will just eventually click in. He sees his big brother in the bathroom, so he does have a role model. But in the meantime, I will continue to ask him, throughout the day, if he needs to use the potty?
By the way, I love the book "It's Potty Time", you can pick it up at Toys R Us. There is one for boys, and one for girls. It even has a button you push that makes the flush sound of the toilet. It is so cute. I periodically read it to my youngest and hope that helps him to get the concept also.

Have you tried just not using diapers or pull ups? It's hard to motivate them to use the potty while still in diapers. Try some big boy underwear and then just accept that you'll be doing some laundry and cleaning some messes. My son did really well after just a few accidents.