The Dreaded Potty Training...

"WiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEpE please mama!" Ah, potty training. I was DREADING it when it came time for Bennett to be potty trained. I took him in to the doctor for a check up and she asked me if I had begun potty training yet. I had not and she said, "well, spring is a good time for that." Really, it doesn't matter when you potty train your child. It just so happened with Bennett, he potty trained himself. I knew I didn't want to PUSH him, I didn't want to have the impending FIGHT on my hands of trying to get him to train when he wasn't ready. I decided to just wait and feel him out as we had done with everything else. For me, that worked with Bennett. Will I do the same thing with Parker? Probably. Will it be as easy? I don't know. It might, it might not, it might be easier since he wants to do EVERYTHING his big brother does. The point is, it is different for every child.

Bennett started showing interest in potty training after we made our big move in August 2013. He was almost three then. I had people that were shocked that I wasn't working with him, and I know that some people judged me but I was confident in the fact that I was doing the best possible for who Bennett is. And guess what, it worked. He is now potty trained! We still have struggles, there are days that we go through three or four pairs of undies, but accidents happen, growing up and testing happens, but he is fully aware and uses the potty like a big boy!

So, how exactly did my potty training method work?

Step 1. Wait for the signs.
Bennett gave me clear signs that he was ready to be potty trained. He began to show an interest in "big boy undies" - always a winner! He began wanting to sit on his little potty, he started trying for chocolate chips ;).

Step 2. Practice, practice, practice!
Potty training won't happen over night, or the very first time. At least not for everyone. I know that some children are that easy, but Bennett was not. We had to continue to practice. For Bennett practicing took about a week and then he was ready to wear big boy undies full-time. I had to force him to stay dry over night by letting him wear undies over night. For Bennett, he knew that he had a diaper or a pull-up on over night so he would let himself go. If he had undies on, he would stay dry and wake up if he needed to go. Awesome! Made my job easier!

That's it. Like I said, I just really felt Bennett out. I used the fact that I knew his personality and learning method well enough to be able to let him learn on his own. I encouraged him and let him know how proud I was of him whenever he went. There were frustrating days, of course, but for us, letting him work at his own pace was very successful.

What method did you use to potty train? How is it going?

Thanks for reading, I wish you all the best on your potty adventure!
Blessings,
Kayla