15 Apr 2008
Objective: To potty train Mieja.
Plan: Start on a weekend. She is not even two, so might take approximately the whole of summer.
Note to self: Be PATIENT. She is just a baby.
Operation commenced on: April 5th, Saturday.
Statistics at the end of the first day: The patio had to be washed at the end of the day. We ran out of all the 8 Gerber cloth training underpants. The clothes dryer had to be switched on as the sun wasn’t drying the clothes fast enough.
Mommy mood-o-meter: She is never going to potty train.
Note to self: Be PATIENT. She is just a baby.
Observations on day two: Candidate expressed interest to sit on potty for the sole reason of flushing, using the toilet paper and washing hands. The time she sat on the potty became a joke. It kept decreasing and by the end of the day, the bum would touch the potty seat for just one millionth of a second. She kept repeating the tear-wipe-throw-flush sequence till the toilet paper roll was over. Same with the hand washing. No significant improvement.
Mommy mood-o-meter: With all that paper the toilet is going to get clogged. She is never going to potty train.
Note to self: Be PATIENT. She is just a baby.
Results of observation from day3-present: Here by I present to you all a fully potty trained Mieja….TA-DA.
Every time she has to go, she goes in the pot. But every time she says she has to go, she does not go. On a good day, she says ‘pee-pee’ approximately 45 times out of which she goes 8-10 times. Add the fact that she says baby as ‘peepy’, which I end up thinking is ‘pee-pee’.
KEY NOTE TO JINX MONSTER: KEEP AWAY.
I have no idea how it happened. May be she has been observing her sister do it and was ready all along. The first two days were just initial novelty and then she was on track!
Anyway, she surprised me couple of days back. Both the bathrooms were occupied and she wanted to use the potty. So I strapped a diaper on her and explained that this is an exception. She can do her business in the diaper. She simply refused. She understood what I said, but refused. She said, ‘Peeee Peee. Only in the puuuty’ and with that resolution held on for a few minutes. Then she started running from this bathroom to that, knocking on the door, first demanding the people to come out and then she was in the verge of tears, ‘Peee Peee, peas. Appa peas.’ Poor thing. Finally after what seemed like an eternity in toddler time, she was able to get access to the pot.
Now, I don’t know if I am prepared to handle two girls who are fairly recently potty trained/training. Before every time we step out, we do a potty round. As soon as we reach our destination we do another round. In between that there are numerous false alarms. In the 45 minutes we are in a restaurant, we have to visit the restroom at least four times. 🙁
26 Responses for "Potty Tales"
Mieja is potty trained? MIEJA IS POTTY TRAINED? WOW! Thats awesome! Good Job Mieja! Very Good job, amma! Tell me about visiting rest rooms. Ashu absolutely refuses to use the bathroom before we leave the house. she ll go only when shes *this* close to peeing in her pants. So every time she says “susu”, we have to find a rest room pronto! Btw, any thoughts on night training? Im going crazy as I dont even know where to begin. 🙁
Same here..UTBT..Nash gives me jus few sec to rush to the bathroom..and he keeps warning me “Amma, itz coming”..i got to rush and run like a fire engine to the bathroom. I too would need advice on night training ..i take him to restroom before bed but he still has a full diaper when he wakes up in the morning. He usually drinks one sippy cup full of milk before bed and sleeps ..maybe that is the problem..i am not sure thou. Any advice?
Boo, Nash mom: Night time training? I have theoritical ideas tha I can pass on.
Nash mom, all liquids stop an hour before designated bed time. Bathroom trip once before bed time, once or twice(depending on the child) in the middle of the night and once in the wee hours of morning, must do it. It will be a combination of potty conditioning and potty training.
Boo, for night training Ashu the window is either now or 8-10 months later. Do not do it around the time the new baby is around. Too many new things for her to handle.
Right now the plan is to night train Chula only after two months, when I am very sure that Mieja is absolutely done with the day time training. Night training for Mieja only next summer. Until then she can use diapers.
but hey, no more diapers!! so I say it is worth it, totally.
amazed at how quick it went, good job! and what does mommy-mood-o-meter say now? Elated? Relieved? 🙂
(at Nash Mom and Boo: yes, liquids right before bed time guarentee a night time wetting, even if they go to the bathroom right after. I’ve been observing dry diapers, if I cut out that last drink of milk/water. and if you get to that point, I think it might be worthwhile to try diaperfree at nights, if not, from what I’ve read and heard, don’t even bother – way too soon)
Moomy-mood-o-meter is knocked down by awe. Still waiting and watching if this is for real 🙂
Such a delightful post! Such a magical Mieja!
Congrats to both of you.
How quick u’ve trained ur kid. Congrats mom and Mieja
Is 2yr, the correct time to start potty training?
My paediatrician suggested me to start by 16th month.
But he is not sitting in the seat at all..
I am going to India, will that help to train him soon?
As a witness to this tear-wipe-throw-flush, I can say it is a wonderful sight to see. So when are you bringing her over again to my place!
Thanks UTBT and Kodi’s mom!Will surely try to do away with this milk habit right b4 bedtime..Nash is a boy who can survive without food but not without milk..Milk is his world!! U ask him what he wants and he will say “MILK”..
He is 2 yrs and 8 months old now..Hopefully by 3 he should be atleast day time potty trained.
Manjari: I started potty training for Nash when I went to India for a 2 months break. He was 2 yrs old and he did pretty good.However,after coming to US, somehow he didn’t show interest and he was back to square one.Even if i let him wear gerber training pants he wouldn’t tell me at all and wet it all the time..I totally lost hope…and 2 months back i spoke to his day care teacher and we both decided to leave him in underpants in day care too , he showed interest and doing it pretty well again.
Dipali, thanks.
Manjari, it can be frustrating. I have been there.
1.5 – 2.5 is roughly the age, but readiness is totally different with diferent kids. Something in their little mind clicks, they make a connection and then there is no turning back. Till then it is frustrating for both the mother and teh child.
What I did with both of them was stopping diapers except nap and bed time. The minute potty training started, no diapers. With Chula nothing other than bare butt worked. The first two days, I made a mental chart of their frequency, made sure that they didn’t climb on couch, had a bucket of detergent water ready to soak and clean the clothes, rag cloth(like hubby’s old t shirts..etc) that I can use and throw, anti bacterial wipes. The first two days I did a lot of mopping. Then I had a rough idea when to make the kid sit on the potty. Close to milk time, they had to go every 15 min and the other times every 1-2 hrs or so.
You will have lots of flexibility to do this in India. Have fun. With potty comes potty humor. The best phase I would say 🙂
8-10 months later? Its 11 pm now. Off I go to wake up Ashu and take her to the bathroom. The night training has officially began!!! Wish me luck!! No, seriously as your blog is a witness!!
Potty trained b4 2? Impressive! I think we tried to train Karthik first when he was 2 1/2 and our diary read:
Statistics after 1st accident: Back to pull-ups!
Had a few more false starts after that, primarily due to our laziness. But happy to say he’s finally trained. Its been 2 wks so far. The good thing was that when it did finally happen, it did so in just a day with no accidents 🙂
Cool! I think second one’s are real easy. Actually, for us first one was easy too. Elder one was potty trained at exactly 2 yrs too ..just on a weekend. One or two accidents and that was it. We never tried with Aparna until she started asking us (lazy parents!). 🙂 One morning she said, “Amma, you have to potty train me. Only then I can go to big girls school”. 🙂 It was very funny. Then we tried once and didn’t really give the kid a chance to learn. In just half a day, we switched her back to diapers (lazy parents again!). Then couple of weeks back we tried again and she was trained almost with no real effort from us. 🙂 I am so happy that the potty training days are over in my life. phew!
Don’t scare me. I am dreading the day I will have to start potty training Kevin. I am not so patient 🙁
Awesome job – both mom and kid! 🙂
I so relate to this post – I started this process last friday – I have been meaning to do a post on it – will do sometime…but this whole thing is so new – first thing I do when I go to any new place is to find out where the restroom is…until now I didn’t know where the restrooms are at the nearest Target or even at the local park…poor child I keep asking him if he needs to go even if he went just 15 min earlier – if we end up having to go out some place…
Really good – I wish I could have done it when he was two instead of waiting till 2.5plus..but KG had just arrived when he was 22m – just could not imagine potty training at that time…but it is a great feeling to see them without diapers!
I’m amazed! Truly amazed!! Just 3 days??? Are you sure you have the numbers right??
And I don’t know whose back to pat..yours or hers? 😀
good job both !!
the false alarms reduced in about a week o so didnt they?
On night training-what worked with Anush -just do a loo visit pre sleep- no need to cut down on liquids- it just works.
Wow…amazing. My 20 mth old is refusing to sit in the potty 🙁 Wish me luck pls…
Wow. I am too shocked to say anything else. And oh why is everyone talking about night time training so soon? Please tell me I still have time!
Yaadayaada, any time. She is pretty kicked too. She as looking at your photos yesterday and kept telling your names.
Poppin’s mom, you have time. PLENTY of time 🙂
Chitra, loads of luck to you. 20 months is young, younger than Mieja!
nm, definitely Mieja. I don’t think I have any part to play in this.
Noon, you are right. Around the time KG was born wouldn’t have worked – you would have been over worked and KB ould still be sorting out his ‘sense of displacement’ 🙂
Asha, think of it as consistency, rather than patience. Sure Kevin is going to surprise you. As I said, towards the end of potty training comes potty humor. I promise you it will be very interesting and will give you some good laughs. Tell Kevin that the things he says will be used against him well in to his adulthood 🙂
San, wow. The elder one got traines so soon?! The chinna kutti ‘asked’ you? They are real smart cookies 🙂
Balaji, following thalaivar style? Late-a senjalum latest-a senju mudichachu 🙂 Some how pull ups never worked for us. And I have two boxes of pull ups sitting in my garage 🙂
Boo, LOL. So how did it go?
Mission failed even before it began. When I went to check on her at 11 pm, her pull ups were already heavy! Darn! Should have read your comment earlier! 😉 Anyway,I shall persist.
That was quick 🙂
On night training, I did not cut on fluids either. A visit to the pot just before sleep works. Oh, and a forced visit as soon as she wakes up.
UTBT,
you know how I know you ;). just dropped by to say hello..That is awesome progress by Mieja.. enjopyed your posts..
Good for you Boo. Persist, persist and persist.
Hi Daisy, welcome here.
Art, DDMom, really?! But it depends on the child. Chula has no liquids close to bed time, but stil her diaper is so loaded that I had to lift it with a fork lift in the mornings!
Wow! So this is what they mean when they say ‘have the kids close together and they’ll grow up together’ 😀
Seriously, that’s remarkable. Moppet is more or less day-potty-trained, but I’m not considering night training for some time. I’m just about getting used to having her sleep through the night in her own room and I want a few nights of undisturbed sleep before Munch arrives. Totally selfish, I know!
Thanks for your ideas, both moms..
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