How to potty train my 2 almost 3 year old

Yvette - posted on 03/29/2009

Put a dab of food coloring in the potty...tell your daughter...let's see what color you can make in the potty...but you have to go potty to find out.  Change up the colors each time...your daughter will love it. Then when she does go potty in the potty...give her a sticker or make a potty chart where she can put the sticker on all by her self. Major pride...Hope this helps. Good luck..

Ronda - posted on 03/29/2009

my daughter is late in traing too. The moorning time is  usually the best time to potty train for me. Most other times she doesnt go. but hey when they are ready they are ready.

Tabitha - posted on 03/29/2009

Quoting Sarah:

 I did not potty train my first until he was 3 and a half, and my daughter was not even two! She decided she wanted to go on the potty too. I ignored her for the first week, but she became more insistent. I started potty training her at the same time, by the end of the second week BOTH of them were accident free.

My third was a little trickier. He was 3 and a half and I was worried he was not going to be potty trained for preschool. I had tried a couple of time with him but he just was not interested. It got to a point where I knew he could do it he just wasn't thinking about it. I resorted to a reward system. I gave him 3 chocolate chips for pee in the potty and 5 choc. chips for a pee and poo. He was potty trained in 3 days! 

I am a daycare provider and have the same philosophy as a provider I once used, who was a provider for 17 years. You wait until they are ready, or you think they are ready.

I don't use pull-ups, how are they different then a fancy, more expensive diaper, right? I use training underwear, normally with vinyl over pants. The vinyl pants are NOT recommended for the summer! They should already know that pee and poo goes in the potty. Potty training is not the time for them to learn. If they don't get it at all in a few days, they are not ready. You go back to diapers and try again later. You can’t try every week or they will get confused. If you try and it does not work, then wait a couple of months. If they do get it, but not all the time, they should be accident free in two weeks. If they are not, then they are not fully ready.

I know, I know….how convenient it would be not to have to change those diapers. And think of the extra money, by not having to purchase diapers. Why shouldn’t everyone start trying now?

The problem is that if you encourage children before they are ready, it can lead to severe problems later. One, a child should never be disciplined for not going on the potty.  I know, there are a FEW, RARE cases where children will purposely go in there pants…that is another problem all together. Two, child may learn to go on the potty to please you but is not mentally ready to remember all the time. After a while the child does not get the feel good feeling of pleasing mom and dad and regresses. Some children go back to peeing and pooing in their pants all the time, some just poo. Either way, you really don’t want to be in that place.

In conclusion, if you wait, you will be happy knowing your children made it through without emotional harm and are now ready for a new challenge, even if Betty’s kids down the street were all potty trained by the age of 2.

usually there is more than one way to do something and this applies to potty training.

i started getting my daughter used to sitting on the potty when she was 1 year because she was eating solids regularly and i could tell when she needed to poo. so every time she was about to poo i would quickly pull off her diaper and put her on her potty. the key was that i got her an activity table so that she was not just sitting there getting bored. this way she got used to pooing in her potty and not in her diaper. one day, she peed in her potty and she noticed, so i started putting her on her potty with activity table more often.

this process is about getting your child used to using the potty, not 'fully trained as fast as possible', so there are no expectations/discipline/rewards.

once she was pooing/peeing regularly in her potty and i was throwing out worn but clean unusable day-old disposable diapers more often than not, i switched to cloth diapers. then when the cloth diapers were rarely used, that was it for diapers!

of course, at this young age(she was 20 mos.) they do have to be reminded to use the potty but that is much easier than having to carry around and change diapers on a fully mobile little person. my daughter is not fully trained in the sense that she will tell me 100% of the time when she needs to go or can even use a toilet by herself but she is diaper-free and knows what to do when put on a potty or toilet.

my daughter was never encouraged/disciplined(emotionally harmed) to not use diapers - i fail to see why that is the only alternative to 'waiting til they are ready' as the above poster has mentioned. an alternative is to gradually wean a child(at their own pace) off of diapers early on so that they aren't relying on diapers.

this is a long gentle process that won't work for everyone but i think it can be advantageous for stay-at-home moms.

 i still have to remind my 2 yr. old daughter to use the washroom/potty(and maybe for a while) but that is a lot easier than changing diapers for one or more years.

Jennifer - posted on 03/19/2009

Unfortunately, they seem to only do it when they are ready!  My daughter was completely potty trained by 2 years old, but my son wanted nothing to do with it.  He kept saying that he would do it when he turned 4, and sure enough, the week before he turned 4 he started going in the toilet.  You can try a sticker chart, it almost got him, but if they aren't ready (or don't want to do it) you'll just have to wait.

Kristin - posted on 03/18/2009

My daughter really liked "The Potty Book for Girls".  We read it several times a day at her request and she would say "No more diapers for me" just like the girl in the book.  Before getting the book she could have cared less about using the potty. 

Laura - posted on 03/17/2009

Try putting big girl panties on with rubber pants over them.  It's messy at first, but they usually don't like all that wet on them.  Pampers and pull-ups absorb it all and they are still comfortable.  Patience is the key.  Let her pick out the big girl panties.  When she's wet, don't be too quick to change her.  Tell her she will get a special surprise when she finally does go in the potty and not in her pants.  Make it something really special.  Good Luck!

Jennifer - posted on 03/17/2009

 Every child is different when it comes to potty training.  As you already know.I am in the middle of potty training my 3 year old boy. He just turned three on the 13th of this month. When he goes potty I reward him with a sticker he gets to put on his sticker chart on the refrig. He seems to like it. The only thing he doesn't do is tell me he has to potty. He has only done that maybe 2 times that I know of. I even got a potty training dvd from pull ups.com He likes to watch it. It is a free dvd. Just keep trying. It will come. I know it is frustrating, I am there with you. When they are ready they will do it. It is just we want them to do it on our time.

Lori - posted on 03/17/2009

There is a great video called "It's Potty Time" It is all about potty training and there are a lot of songs all about pottying. My kids loved it. I put my kids in a long t-shirt with no underwear--on a day that we were home. If they needed to go, they would just lift up their shirt and sit down and go. Then we would have a celebration-sing and dance! Pull ups are not very helpful unless you are traveling. It is just permission to go. It is a little messy, but it is better for them to have an accident and experience the unpleasantness than to wear pull-ups.

Sarah - posted on 03/16/2009

I did not potty train my first until he was 3 and a half, and my daughter was not even two! She decided she wanted to go on the potty too. I ignored her for the first week, but she became more insistent. I started potty training her at the same time, by the end of the second week BOTH of them were accident free.

My third was a little trickier. He was 3 and a half and I was worried he was not going to be potty trained for preschool. I had tried a couple of time with him but he just was not interested. It got to a point where I knew he could do it he just wasn't thinking about it. I resorted to a reward system. I gave him 3 chocolate chips for pee in the potty and 5 choc. chips for a pee and poo. He was potty trained in 3 days! 

I am a daycare provider and have the same philosophy as a provider I once used, who was a provider for 17 years. You wait until they are ready, or you think they are ready.

I don't use pull-ups, how are they different then a fancy, more expensive diaper, right? I use training underwear, normally with vinyl over pants. The vinyl pants are NOT recommended for the summer! They should already know that pee and poo goes in the potty. Potty training is not the time for them to learn. If they don't get it at all in a few days, they are not ready. You go back to diapers and try again later. You can’t try every week or they will get confused. If you try and it does not work, then wait a couple of months. If they do get it, but not all the time, they should be accident free in two weeks. If they are not, then they are not fully ready.

I know, I know….how convenient it would be not to have to change those diapers. And think of the extra money, by not having to purchase diapers. Why shouldn’t everyone start trying now?

The problem is that if you encourage children before they are ready, it can lead to severe problems later. One, a child should never be disciplined for not going on the potty.  I know, there are a FEW, RARE cases where children will purposely go in there pants…that is another problem all together. Two, child may learn to go on the potty to please you but is not mentally ready to remember all the time. After a while the child does not get the feel good feeling of pleasing mom and dad and regresses. Some children go back to peeing and pooing in their pants all the time, some just poo. Either way, you really don’t want to be in that place.

In conclusion, if you wait, you will be happy knowing your children made it through without emotional harm and are now ready for a new challenge, even if Betty’s kids down the street were all potty trained by the age of 2.

Sarah - posted on 03/16/2009

I did not potty train my first until he was 3 and a half, and my daughter was not even two! She decided she wanted to go on the potty too. I ignored her for the first week, but she became more insistent. I started potty training her at the same time, by the end of the second week BOTH of them were accident free.

My third was a little trickier. He was 3 and a half and I was worried he was not going to be potty trained for preschool. I had tried a couple of time with him but he just was not interested. It got to a point where I knew he could do it he just wasn't thinking about it. I resorted to a reward system. I gave him 3 chocolate chips for pee in the potty and 5 choc. chips for a pee and poo. He was potty trained in 3 days! 

I am a daycare provider and have the same philosophy as a provider I once used, who was a provider for 17 years. You wait until they are ready, or you think they are ready.

I don't use pull-ups, how are they different then a fancy, more expensive diaper, right? I use training underwear, normally with vinyl over pants. The vinyl pants are NOT recommended for the summer! They should already know that pee and poo goes in the potty. Potty training is not the time for them to learn. If they don't get it at all in a few days, they are not ready. You go back to diapers and try again later. You can’t try every week or they will get confused. If you try and it does not work, then wait a couple of months. If they do get it, but not all the time, they should be accident free in two weeks. If they are not, then they are not fully ready.

I know, I know….how convenient it would be not to have to change those diapers. And think of the extra money, by not having to purchase diapers. Why shouldn’t everyone start trying now?

The problem is that if you encourage children before they are ready, it can lead to severe problems later. One, a child should never be disciplined for not going on the potty.  I know, there are a FEW, RARE cases where children will purposely go in there pants…that is another problem all together. Two, child may learn to go on the potty to please you but is not mentally ready to remember all the time. After a while the child does not get the feel good feeling of pleasing mom and dad and regresses. Some children go back to peeing and pooing in their pants all the time, some just poo. Either way, you really don’t want to be in that place.

In conclusion, if you wait, you will be happy knowing your children made it through without emotional harm and are now ready for a new challenge, even if Betty’s kids down the street were all potty trained by the age of 2.

Josephina - posted on 03/16/2009

let them do it when they are ready. Thats the easiest way. Also mybe if they see a friend do it that could encourage the too. don't make them. That only makes it worse.

Mercedes - posted on 03/16/2009

#1 be consistant. start with pull ups. I just potty trained 2 year old twins. I put the toilet in the living room(where we spent most of our day) and I made them go every time they ate and drank. You can tell when your child has to use the restroom. It will be tough but most babies catch on after 3-4 weeks of being consistant.

Tara - posted on 03/16/2009

Love the piggy bank thing-- I bet you could use Pennies and they wouldn't know the difference!!



Jayden is only 10 weeks old, but we have him on this routine where we hold him over the toilet when we're expecting a poop... he Pees and Poops 95% of the time. We just sit there with him and make "MMM MMM" noises and he goes within a few minutes. Many days he doesn't Poop in his diaper, we get it in the toilet. It's a combo of timing when you're expecting a Poo, and him learning to go when he hears the sound. We've been doing it since 6 weeks. Much nicer than him sitting in his dirty Poop and we don't have to clean it up!! Crazy, I know, but my Mom did it with my brother when he was a baby and he was pooping in the toilet on his own at 6 months. They get used to pooping whenever they hear the MMM MMM. Make sure you cover his Pee if it's a boy! Or it will squirt everywhere!!

Shanna - posted on 03/16/2009

I totally love the $ in the bank idea! My niece wasn't really into it and then one day she was. Try putting her in little "fancy pants" (aka undies), and then let her go about her day- ask her to sit on the potty as usual, but she might not like peeing in her "fancy pants" and that might help motivate her to go on the potty.

Nicole - posted on 03/16/2009

I actully found something by daughter was very into. She loves her piggy bank it took one roll of quarters and 30 1 dollar coins and she was completely potty trained and never wore pull ups at night. she was 27 months old

Tonya - posted on 03/16/2009

Most importantly.. DON"T FORCE THE ISSUE! She will do it when she is ready. My daughter was fully potty trained at 2yrs and 5months.. I definitely suggest NOT using pull up... What worked for her was the elmo potty dvd and book.. we also made potty time fun! When she would go in the potty we would do a little song and dance.. it worked for her! She loved going to the potty. I feel she also learned by watching me... her potty seat sits in front of our "big" potty and she and I would go potty at the same time.. we turned it in to a race.. we would count 1..2..3.. GO! I don't know.. silly things I know.. but it worked for her.. one day she just woke up and said mommy no more diaper big girl panties!!

Eve - posted on 03/16/2009

I just pottytrained my daughter. I tried everything, but nothing worked. I just kept on encouraging her. She eventually caught on. She was just a couple months over 3. My son was a couple months shy of 3. It just seems like it takes the second one a little bit longer. I worked in daycare and every kid is entirely different when it comes to pottytraining. She'll get it, don't be discouraged.

Lisa - posted on 03/16/2009

just try leave her on potty or make it routine give her some juice then 5 mins later take her to toilet or potty then reward her with stickers when she does it she will want to go more have fun in training

Kelley - posted on 03/16/2009

Hello my name is kelley,you might be able to try a sticker chart it worked for my son.