Potty Training ... The Beginning
This post is TMI. But I think in two years when I'm doing this again I'll want to know some of this.
We've been talking about going in the potty for ever. If I see him going I would ask him if he wanted to go in the potty. Sometimes he'd say yes. Sometimes he wouldn't say anything. Sometimes when he was in the bathtub he'd have to go and we'd grab him and throw him on the potty and that would work out. Something about that warm water, man.
But other than that I've put it off. For numerous reasons. Fear being a big one.
But as of Sunday it sort of was taken out of my hands. Several of the kids in his class are potty trained and I think they take everyone and some go in the potty and some get diapers changed. This helped plant a seed.
And I'd been telling him for weeks that you get prizes and toys and candy for going in the potty like a big boy. So Sunday or Monday, he said he wanted a prize and he'd go poo-poo in the potty. And he did. Twice.
So I got online and ordered his underwear. Those came on Wednesday. And we put them on to see how'd they'd fit (I was pretty sure I'd have to take them in). Well he's enamored with them see. So he wouldn't take them off. So Wednesday was our first attempt.
It was then I realized I was going to need more little boys underwear. Like a lot more.
Thursday was a preschool day so we went to preschool in a diaper and with diapers. And then came home and put on our big boy pants. Many accidents later, we went to bed (in a diaper).
Brings us to this morning and our first "real" day of "training." We've had one accident, andthree four successes (in two hours - can you say long day ahead?). I can now see the pee-pee dance (ha) and he is learning what that means too. So he runs to the bathroom (one time he didn't make it). So the concept is clicking along.
Which brings me to motivation. G loves prizes of any sort. And a friend of ours told me the only thing that worked for their daughter was a muffin pan with each hole filled with a different prize. So I did that (thank you to his schoolmates for bring sweets and treats yesterday, they supplied my muffin pan) and then I have one larger prize, or rather five or six, and it's mickey mouse and his toon plane, donald and a car, and some smaller accesories. Not surprisingly, the first prize he choose was the plane. The second prize was the basket that goes with it. His third prize was m&ms.
My overall process? Well first let me say I have no idea how to do this. None. So I'm kind of just going by the seat of my pants and trying to work with what I know of my son. I have read very little. I've heard stories of what's worked. So we're doing some of this and some of that. I've loaded him up on juice so there's lot of opportunity to practice. We're only wearing our big boy underwear (to make it easier to get their quickly), and about every 15 minutes I ask if he has to go potty, and I take him in their to go try. That was the first hour or two. Since then he's started running in the bathroom himself (me chasing him). It's a marvelous game apparently. He just went in there and I left him to check on the baby and then I heard the kiddie potty being moved and then the toilet flushing. I gave him a prize even though I can't be sure ... but he's a fairly literal and straight forward kid. I don't think he'd try to trick me. Plus, good on him for trying to do all that by himself!
Might I point out, his fourth prize was Donald and his car, and now he is pretend playing with Donald and Mickey. His pretend play has gotten very elaborate. It's awesome to watch. Hi Donald, how are you? How is the toon plane Mickey? Very good. Now mickey race donald ... Mickey we missed you! It's awesome. He is a wonderful little boy.
Growing so fast it hurts my heart. But ... tis the way of things.
We are homebound for the weekend to get the base of this started. We might try jaunts to the park. But we're pretty much homebound while he gets used to this idea.
Long road to go. Filled with lots of laundry. But he's recognizing the sensations and trying very hard. Which I'm feeling pretty good about this morning. By this afternoon hopefully I'm not screaming and cursing all the mess I'm cleaning up (a la yesterday afternoon).
We've been talking about going in the potty for ever. If I see him going I would ask him if he wanted to go in the potty. Sometimes he'd say yes. Sometimes he wouldn't say anything. Sometimes when he was in the bathtub he'd have to go and we'd grab him and throw him on the potty and that would work out. Something about that warm water, man.
But other than that I've put it off. For numerous reasons. Fear being a big one.
But as of Sunday it sort of was taken out of my hands. Several of the kids in his class are potty trained and I think they take everyone and some go in the potty and some get diapers changed. This helped plant a seed.
And I'd been telling him for weeks that you get prizes and toys and candy for going in the potty like a big boy. So Sunday or Monday, he said he wanted a prize and he'd go poo-poo in the potty. And he did. Twice.
So I got online and ordered his underwear. Those came on Wednesday. And we put them on to see how'd they'd fit (I was pretty sure I'd have to take them in). Well he's enamored with them see. So he wouldn't take them off. So Wednesday was our first attempt.
It was then I realized I was going to need more little boys underwear. Like a lot more.
Thursday was a preschool day so we went to preschool in a diaper and with diapers. And then came home and put on our big boy pants. Many accidents later, we went to bed (in a diaper).
Brings us to this morning and our first "real" day of "training." We've had one accident, and
Which brings me to motivation. G loves prizes of any sort. And a friend of ours told me the only thing that worked for their daughter was a muffin pan with each hole filled with a different prize. So I did that (thank you to his schoolmates for bring sweets and treats yesterday, they supplied my muffin pan) and then I have one larger prize, or rather five or six, and it's mickey mouse and his toon plane, donald and a car, and some smaller accesories. Not surprisingly, the first prize he choose was the plane. The second prize was the basket that goes with it. His third prize was m&ms.
My overall process? Well first let me say I have no idea how to do this. None. So I'm kind of just going by the seat of my pants and trying to work with what I know of my son. I have read very little. I've heard stories of what's worked. So we're doing some of this and some of that. I've loaded him up on juice so there's lot of opportunity to practice. We're only wearing our big boy underwear (to make it easier to get their quickly), and about every 15 minutes I ask if he has to go potty, and I take him in their to go try. That was the first hour or two. Since then he's started running in the bathroom himself (me chasing him). It's a marvelous game apparently. He just went in there and I left him to check on the baby and then I heard the kiddie potty being moved and then the toilet flushing. I gave him a prize even though I can't be sure ... but he's a fairly literal and straight forward kid. I don't think he'd try to trick me. Plus, good on him for trying to do all that by himself!
Might I point out, his fourth prize was Donald and his car, and now he is pretend playing with Donald and Mickey. His pretend play has gotten very elaborate. It's awesome to watch. Hi Donald, how are you? How is the toon plane Mickey? Very good. Now mickey race donald ... Mickey we missed you! It's awesome. He is a wonderful little boy.
Growing so fast it hurts my heart. But ... tis the way of things.
We are homebound for the weekend to get the base of this started. We might try jaunts to the park. But we're pretty much homebound while he gets used to this idea.
Long road to go. Filled with lots of laundry. But he's recognizing the sensations and trying very hard. Which I'm feeling pretty good about this morning. By this afternoon hopefully I'm not screaming and cursing all the mess I'm cleaning up (a la yesterday afternoon).
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