Potty Training Resistance – How to Avoid a Power Struggle

Encountering a potty training problem is the most natural thing in the world. Why? Because for a toddler, learning to use the potty is the latest game in his world. It’s new. It’s interesting. And everyone is excited about it!

But…if you are the parent of a toddler, you understand the meaning of “short attention span”. One and two year olds are famous for their lack of focus. Combine this reality with the need to learn something as complicated as toilet training and it’s easy to see why the honeymoon with this new “game” is over fairly quickly for most children.

Then what? Then you get potty training resistance.

What happens next is crucial if, as a parent, what you want is the smoothest possible potty sailing.

Why?

Because once a toddler realizes that Mom or Dad is not backing off from playing the potty game you have the perfect environment for that most dreaded of parent-child encounters.

The power struggle.

A power struggle is a very straightforward concept. A child, young and bright, realizes that despite all of a parent’s sweet-talking, no one can MAKE them actually GO on the potty.

Considering there is very little within a toddler’s life that IS within his control, this is heady information.

Potty training resistance is all about this simple confrontation. Mom says “go potty”. Toddler says “maybe – but only on my terms.” Once you break the scenario down in these terms, it becomes fairly obvious that the only way to win a power struggle is to diffuse it – and even better – to avoid it altogether.

The good news is, avoiding a power struggle is mostly within your hands, Mom or Dad. You can control this part of the action. Here’s how.

- Ask backwards.

Use a bit of reverse psychology here. You want your child to practice using the toilet, right? Then you need to be interested in her bathroom habits but not overly so. Certainly you will benefit from using a plan and a structure for training your child, but sometimes hiding that structure from a kid – especially a strong-willed toddler – is a useful strategy.

“Did you use the potty this morning?” often works better than “go use the potty now” in these types of cases. You can ask the first question a hundred times, followed by a matter-of-fact response to whatever your child answers.

Using the second phrase about three times was all I got before my children would start saying “no!” and a power struggle would ensue.

Uh-oh. Mommie lost. Again.

- Who cares?

The second part of this power struggle avoidance strategy is to remain indifferent, no matter how you may feel. I’m not saying let your child get away with intentional defiance. I am saying that it makes a big difference if you deal with the defiance separate from the potty training problem.

Does that make sense?

Keep the potty learning fun. Lighthearted. Kind of a “if-you-don’t-do-this-you-sure-will-miss-out-on-a-whole-lot-of-fun-but-that’s-up-to-you” sentiment.

Believe me. Not a lot of toddlers like the idea of missing out on anything. So instead of pushing them towards potty training, entice them with it.

It helps at this point to remember your true goal here: healthy bathroom habits that are second nature. To make any habit second nature for any human takes time and practice. Your job is to keep your toddler (or preschooler) practicing the potty game for long enough that a habit is formed and second nature kicks in.

That’s why you can introduce potty training in a three day training blitz easily, but making the process stick takes time, patience and yes, daily practice.

Avoiding a power struggle is always the best strategy when it comes to potty training resistance. You may have to let training go for a few days during the process to give everyone a breather. During that time, happily help your child clean up her accidents (and help she must to the degree she is able) and casually – but repeatedly – remind her that being potty trained is more convenient for HER than cleaning up potty accidents.

She’ll get it. When she’s ready she’ll finish her training quickly.

Remember: she has to do the pottying. You provide the support.

And the hugs.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Do you know all you can about toilet training? Use these potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training resistance by visiting this website today.

How to Start Potty Training – Are You Feeling Overwhelmed?

Have you checked out the immense amount of info about potty training online lately? Well, if you and your toddler are at the stage where you are asking how to start potty training, then you have probably researched the topic a bit.

Sometimes that’s all it takes for the overwhelm to begin!

Seriously, after toilet training four kids of my own, I can tell you two things for sure about the potty process.

1. It’s a natural thing.

2. It’s a frustrating thing.

After listening to lots of mommies and evaluating my own experiences, I think we moms have a bit of an expectation issue.

As in, “he’s ready to potty train and in two days (weeks…months…insert your own time frame) I’ll be diaper-free!”

Note that the quote says “I” will be diaper-free; not “my child” will be diaper-free.

And therein lies the problem.

Your toddler has absolutely no stake in being potty trained at all. So as long as it’s an interesting game, she will give the process some effort.

However, a toddler’s focus is about as long as a gnat’s tail. And there’s not a lot a parent can do about that.

So instead of us mommies overloading with overwhelm, a better option might be to sit back and enjoy watching our delightful toddlers explore their new worlds.

Which includes the exciting stage of learning to use the potty!

Back to the question: how to start potty training?

Certainly gather data and information. If this is your first trainee, you’ll be more comfortable and exude more confidence if you feel well prepared. Just do an online search and you’ll get inundated with info!

Browse through the websites. Skim the info. Look for similar suggestions. No matter what anyone says, potty training itself is pretty straightforward. You do it and you can show your child how to do it.

After you gather general facts, even before you see potty readiness signs in your child, start the potty conversation with him. That means let him see Mom and Dad use the toilet – preferably more than once. Keep the whole process casual and matter-of-fact.

A toddler needs time to digest this new information. Just like learning to handle a spoon took some serious practice and working with language takes a long time, the whole process of potty training really begins before your little one ever sits down on a potty chair.

Talk to her about toilet habits. Keep the conversations light, short and upbeat, but repeat frequently. Answer any questions. Point out big girl/boy undies and potty chairs in the store. Do all of this before you even begin to actually potty train.

What you are doing is setting the stage. Getting your toddler on board.

And last, but not least, take a good long look at your own expectations when it comes to toilet training. Understand that while a handful of children DO train very quickly and with relative ease, many more do not. That’s normal.

The truth is potty training is usually an inconvenient process and we moms like to be efficient and wrap things up.

Trust me, it will help both you and your child if you can let that idea go when it comes to potty training.

By all means, prepare and train your child. You must. But when the (nearly) inevitable potty training resistance sets in, you’ll want to be ready with a matter-of-fact attitude and lots of hugs, no matter how you feel on the inside. Anything else can set up a power struggle during which your toddler or preschooler will impress you with their steel-like will.

Hmm. A steel-like will. Sounds like someone who is more than able to handle potty training. So give some thought as to how to turn that will towards getting the job done and you’ll be well on your way to completing the potty training task.

And that is how to start (and finish) potty training.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms enjoy mothering more at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty charts and creative ideas plus uncover just one more thing about how to start potty training by visiting her website today.

The Dismal Task Of Potty Training

From personal experience, I can tell you that potty training is a lesson in patience. Being the mother of tree children, I can also attest to the fact that not one of my children learned the ability of potty training at the same time or at the same age. Some of today’s ‘modern’ ideas on potty training will get you to believe that this task can be accomplished before a child even reaches his first birthday. Unless that parent is so observant of their child’s bodily functions that they have it down to an art in regard to time, I say balderdash!

Observance would be my first recommendation. Most small children will give signs of a bodily function having had occurred, or about to occur. They may suddenly stop what they are doing or even pull at their diaper. Any such small signals will indicate that are becoming aware of what their body is doing and this is the time to move to the next step which may be purchasing a training panty and a comfortable potty chair. Yes, you can get the type that attaches to an adult toilet seat but if this is the only household bathroom, you will find yourself putting it on and removing it numerous times per day. In addition to that, children of potty training age are small and usually are more comfortable using something sized for them.

Once you have acquired these items, and maybe spoken with your child about ‘going potty’ like a big boy or girl, you have to be on the lookout for the ever important signs that indicate the readiness of your child to go. Sometimes this may be as simple as checking the training pants for wetness and if it has been a while, you may wish to place them on the potty. Regardless, you should always remember to praise your child any time the task is achieved.

Some parents will give treats but I personally shy away from this method as I feel a child needs to realize that normal day to day learning’s in regard to their growth are not always met with treat treats. The praise on the other hand, should be a constant.

Some things can be taught through example. A little girl may accompany her mother to the bathroom and the same can work for a little boy and his father. Children love to emulate their parents, especially if they know it is going to bring the parents pleasure and in turn, they are praised.

Potty training is a dismal task and one that most parents wish could be avoided and handled by some magical fairy that comes along and renders the child potty trained, but sadly that is not how it works. There will definitely be accidents and I would also recommend continuing extra night-time protection as young children often cannot hold themselves over long periods especially in the state of a deep sleep. Keep your anger at bay, your praise unceasing and over a period of time the ultimate goal will be achieved.

Doc.No:CB-600-ULT-A6B235

Colby Brister is the loving parent of one boy and one girl, he is also a writer for MyBabyBeddingShop.Com. Check out his glenna jean baby bedding or his glenna jean madison or his Modern Baby Bedding.

Underwear Potty Training – When It’s Time to Give Up Diapers

When your toddler approaches potty training age, it is natural to get both excited and apprehensive.

Being done with diapers sounds like a wonderful thing!

But you’ve heard all the toilet training horror stories and frankly, you’re worried.

You realize you don’t even know where to begin. Should you take your child out of diapers and use underwear exclusively? Somehow, that looks like a mess waiting to happen.

What to do?

First of all, relax.

Underwear potty training is not as hard as it may seem, especially if you get armed with a little information first.

Think about it this way. When you are confident of the next steps to take, your toddler will take her cues from you and relax, too. So let’s explore making the transition from diapers to toddler underwear.

- Make sure he’s ready.

Don’t mess around with this one. Don’t start toilet training until you are sure your child is showing regular, consistent potty training readiness cues. You cannot push, talk, or bribe your child into training.

If you’ve already started training, even though you realize now your toddler wasn’t ready, don’t panic. This just means your child is going to take longer to train. She will still get there. I promise!

- Making the switch.

Once you’re confident your child is ready to begin training (see the author’s resource box at the end of this article for a link to a readiness log you can print out and use to determine your child’s potty readiness) you need to make a decision or two. Here’s what you are considering.

Do you want to use training pants or toddler underwear? Also, do you want to use cloth or disposables?

Toddler training pants are thick, cushy pants that will allow your toddler to feel wet or soiled when he has an accident, but will hold most of the mess.

Toddler underwear is thinner (more like adult underwear) and easier for your child to get up and down at potty time, but will not hold accidents. At all.

You can put plastic pants over both of these options to help hold accidents. Still, messes will occur. Some of the toddler training pants come with waterproof outer layers. These options are washable, obviously.

Going the disposable route is different. It sounds convenient – less mess – and that’s true. But just like it is more convenient – and like a diaper to you – so it will be to your toddler, too. Most kids can’t tell the difference between disposable toddler pants and diapers. So they use both like diapers.

This can seriously delay potty training for your child.

When training my four kids, I had the best luck with transitioning to thick toddler training pants while the initial training was going on. My children were very excited to be wearing big boy/big girl underwear and they still got the message clearly when they had an accident.

After they got the hang of things and there weren’t many accidents, I introduced an even more grown up underwear; regular toddler undies. My kids thought this was simply the next step in growing up and as thus, another exciting milestone.

Did we have accidents? Absolutely. Did you learn to ride a bike without falling down or overnight? Probably not. Potty training is messy and inconvenient; that’s part of what challenges your child to accomplish it and get to the underwear stage which will be more convenient and less messy for HIM.

Remember, lots about parenting will be messy and inconvenient. Letting your child know now, at this stage, that you know best and need to be listened to, will go a long ways towards helping you both as your child grows.

Underwear potty training is only the first of many challenges you will tackle together. Relax and enjoy the ride!

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and offers you a free potty readiness log. Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about underwear potty training by visiting her website now.

Toilet Training Tips – Proven Favorites

If you are in the middle of potty training, you know you can always use more toilet training tips.

After training four children of my own, here are my favorite ideas for keeping training moving forward.

- Use rewards and prizes but make them count for something.

A young child knows when he hasn’t earned the prize. Make sure if you are using rewards it is clear to your child exactly what he has to do to earn the prize and then pay up promptly.

If a toddler has to wait for her prize, she will lose her connection to the event that earned her the prize.

Make sure the prizes you are offering are of value to your toddler. I once trained using candy with my youngest only to find out she really didn’t care if she got candy or not.

That seriously stopped the motivational process.

In fact, here is some serious toilet training advice. If there’s something your toddler really wants, tie getting it to potty training. Use a chart to keep things visual. If it is big make sure there are subgoals and prizes along the way; toddlers cannot delay gratification well enough to work towards a large project over several weeks.

- Stop when there’s a problem.

I learned this the hard way. If you encounter serious resistance (not just a grumpy toddler on a napless afternoon), stop potty training for a few days.

Sometimes a toddler simply needs a break.

It helps to remember you are asking him to grow up. To change and mature.

That sounds good, until you have to do it 24/7. Then it becomes awful. And resistance is the natural outcome of feeling that way.

So listen to your toddler or preschooler. They might need a few days off. A few days to feel like a comfortable ‘little’ person again – maybe even feel like a baby.

Let them. Give extra cuddles and hugs. Talk about how great it was to be little and how much fun it will be to grow up. Completely take the pressure off. Remind him he can use the potty chair whenever he needs to – after all, someone as smart and grown up as he is certainly will be more comfortable doing so.

Then back off.

Do not put your child back in diapers at this point, if he has been out of diapers. Simply tell him you understand he needs a break and that if he chooses to go in his pants he will need to clean it up.

Now, you’re going to have to help with this, of course. Just be matter-of-fact and calm. Use plastic pants over the undies if you wish, but he needs to feel uncomfortable if he has accidents.

Then it will be his own body telling him it is time to grow up; not just Mom or Dad.

Remember, keep the ‘idea’ of potty training ever present; just not the pressure. Sometimes this method will train a resistant preschooler in just a few days. Odds are it won’t be long and he’ll be ready to train again.

- Train a doll.

One of the most effective toilet training tips I ever used was to train a doll alongside of my daughter.

Even when she didn’t want to train, we trained the baby doll – together. I put her in charge of the doll’s potty training.

She took the bait and started insisting the doll go potty regularly. We would always check to see if the my daughter needed to go potty, too, after all she was showing her baby what to do.

We made real strides forward using that technique with my strong-willed daughter.

Are you stuck in the middle of potty training with no end in sight? Collect toilet training advice and try new ideas regularly. You never know when you’ll hit upon the right combination of tips and timing.

Before you know it, your child will be potty trained completely. And you can celebrate together.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about toilet training tips by visiting her website now.

Toilet Training Problems – You Have a Very Smart Child

Are you experiencing toilet training problems with your preschooler?

Then I know something about your child.

Probably, she’s smart and creative.

After all, she’s still a child, she has got the adults in her life baffled (don’t worry, you’re not alone), and she is in total charge of preventing herself from being potty trained.

That’s a smart little cookie.

I had four smart little cookies. Two of whom were so smart they managed to stay un-potty trained for a couple of years after starting the process.

Sure I can laugh now, but at the time it wasn’t so funny!

So what’s the key to moving past toilet training problems when you have a little genius working against you?

Assuming you don’t have a medical condition at work here – check with your pediatrician to rule that out – two things will eventually help you get the results you want.

1. Taking responsibility.

Never forget the first rule of potty training: you, Mom or Dad, cannot MAKE your child go potty!

So don’t try.

Explain matter-of-factly to your preschooler that this potty stuff is really all about her.

It is her job to get herself to the potty chair and do her business. If she needs help, all she needs do is ask. But you won’t remind or nag her anymore.

Giving her something to work towards is always a good idea. Post a potty reward chart prominently in your home and let her collect stickers or stars or something similar every time she does what she’s supposed to do in regards to the potty.

Let her work towards a prize that will mean something to her; an extra book read by Daddy, a long cuddle time with Mommy, a trip to a park, a playdate with a special friend.

It is a good idea if you can fashion the prize to be only available if she stays on track with her potty business. In other words, it is an exclusive reward and can be only earned by moving forward on potty training.

2. Get out of his way.

As your smart cookie realizes he has to actually DO this business called potty training, you may encounter more resistance – temporarily.

After all, what’s more fun? Stopping what he’s doing every few hours to go and sit on the potty chair (boring) or needle Mom or Dad (lots of attention that way).

So don’t attempt to take responsibility back from your child by constantly reminding, nagging, sighing, throwing your hands up in the air, yelling, and all the other ways we parents reveal we don’t know what else to do.

If he has an accident (and he probably will) gently remind him to clean it up; help him if he needs you to, but have him do as much as possible for himself.

Yes, it is messy and inconvenient. That’s the working definition of parenting.

Toilet training problems are real and frustrating. For most children, potty problems involve a power struggle and as parents the solution is to show our children what to do and then get out of the way while still providing guidance.

Easier said than done, to be sure, but also great training for all the other times as parents we’re going to need to do the very same thing.

Potty troubles? Dive right in. Your smart and creative preschooler is waiting for you.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about toilet training problems by visiting her website now.

Toilet Training Toddlers – What You Need to Get Started

Do you have a toddler who is ready for potty training? Once you have established the fact that she is physically and emotionally ready to be trained, then what?

Here is an easy list of items needed when toilet training toddlers.

- Potty chairs.

This, of course, is the first consideration. You’ll need a potty chair, a miniature toilet that sits squarely on the floor and is the perfect size for your toddler. You also have the option of choosing a potty seat, which is a kid-sized detachable toilet seat that fits on top of the adult toilet in your bathroom.

A potty seat means your child can climb up, through the use of a step stool, and sit on the adult toilet as she is potty trained, thus eliminating the need to empty out and clean a potty chair bowl.

However, this technique is rather advanced for some children. Many toddlers simply don’t feel comfortable climbing up high on the big toilet and some kids require help in doing so. Consider the bathroom space you have for a separate potty chair as well as your child’s temperament when choosing between a potty seat or chair. Or choose a potty chair that can turn into a potty seat when necessary.

- Clean clothes and undies.

Trust me, you’ll need LOTS of clean clothes and toddler underwear. Accidents will happen and if they don’t, you are one of the rare cases.

Make sure clothes are easy on and off and that your toddler can get them up and down by himself.

Toddler underwear is an important issue, too. There are many different types of potty training underwear, some washable and some disposable, some waterproof and some not.

In general, you need to know that disposable training pants can be a convenience, but they also prevent your child from feeling the wetness of an accident and thus don’t work well with all children.

It is often motivating for a young child to get “big boy” or “big girl” underwear with either pretty colors or beloved characters decorating the undies. Consider the physical size of your child (how much urine there is in case of an accident) and how you will use the training pants (at home or on the go) when you choose potty training underwear.

- Wipes. And more wipes.

Obviously, you’re going to need a mountain of wipes while toilet training your toddler. You probably already have these on hand, so just make sure to stock up before you start training.

- Protective surfaces.

Beds, furniture or car seats need to be protected from potty training accidents. Sometimes it is just a matter of a waterproof or water resistant piece of fabric added to a chair or car seat.

Sometimes, you’ll need something more substantial, such as a waterproof mattress pad to protect your child’s mattress at night.

- Fun – and needed – stuff.

You’ll also need some motivational toilet training resources. You probably won’t want all of these; just a select few that will appeal to your particular toddler.

Potty training dolls or stuffed animals, watches, training books and videos, prizes and rewards all fall under this category. Do some research on each, such as the reasons why each can help and listen to other parents who have used them, then choose accordingly.

Keep in mind that resources designed to motivate a toddler are only going to work for so long. Be prepared to cycle items out of your child’s potty training and reintroduce them at a later time, when “new” again.

Toddlers have a notoriously short attention span, so you’ll need more creative ways to use your resources than actual resources themselves.

So remember, when toilet training toddlers, get ready before the actual training begins. You’ll need a potty chair or seat, extra clean clothes and undies, lots of wipes and items designed to reward and motivate so as to keep your toddler’s interest in this potty training game high until it becomes second nature.

Don’t forget to add your patience, flexibility and lots of hugs to the potty training method you choose. Your toddler is counting on you to lead the way to this important milestone on his journey to growing up.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about toilet training toddlers by visiting her website now.

Trouble Potty Training – Use a Checklist to Get Back on Track

Are you experiencing trouble potty training your toddler? Toilet training problems are very common but that doesn’t stop them from being immensely frustrating.

For most parents, the first question they are struggling with is “what’s wrong?” Here is an easy checklist you can use to determine why you are having trouble potty training your little one.

- Is she trained at all?

There’s a world of difference between a toddler who has had two days of potty training and one who has been mostly trained for six months. And there’s a world of difference in how you help these two young potty trainees get back on track.

If your child is new to toilet training, then perhaps she simply doesn’t get it yet. That’s quite common. A great solution to this simple problem is to use a potty training doll to explain in explicit detail how the potty process works.

If your potty-er understands what’s going on and is just resistant, then taking a break from toilet training is the answer. Take the pressure off for a couple of weeks and then do a potty training restart.

- Is he ready to be trained?

Is your toddler showing any signs of potty training readiness? Is he dry when he wakes from naps? Is he asking to be changed when he wets or soils?

Your toddler needs to be showing several readiness cues before you begin toilet training. If he is not ready, then you are pursuing an exercise in frustration for both of you.

And make sure you’re ready to go through toilet training, too, Mom or Dad. Your calm and matter-of-fact attitude will give your toddler the confidence he needs to successfully achieve this growing up milestone.

- Where’s the calm?

If your home life is chaotic and stressful right now then it’s not a good time to potty train. Toddlers need calm and stability to focus. They need a mom or dad’s undivided and positive attention.

If you can’t currently arrange that then put off toilet training until a better time. For both of you.

- Diaper confusion.

Are you putting your toddler in and out of diapers depending upon what’s convenient for you? If so, you could be causing your little one a lot of confusion that can manifest itself as trouble potty training.

Let’s face it; your toddler knows what a diaper is for and it is not for staying clean and dry! Once you make the decision to move into toddler underwear, unless you have a compelling reason to go back to diapers (such as a medical issue), don’t! She needs the chance to move forward into being more grown up and part of that is saying good-bye to diapers.

It may take her awhile to move on, but eventually she will. The two of you together will successfully navigate the process that is potty training. Remember, this is but the first of many exciting times the two of you will need to work through – together.

So dive into the potty training adventure. Your toddler is eagerly waiting for you!

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about trouble potty training by visiting her website now.

When to Start Potty Training – Don’t Make My Mistakes!

Almost all parents wonder when to potty train; when the appropriate age is or the magic time when their toddler will effortlessly toilet train.

Leaving them looking like hero-parents. And diaper-free, of course.

That’s why I want to share this information with you. I have toilet trained four children of my own and I remember clearly wondering when to start potty training. What was the perfect age? How would I know?

Well, you don’t need to wonder any more. Here is what I learned the hard way about starting training.

- It’s about him, not me.

I remember the day I decided my oldest should no longer be in diapers.

He was about eighteen months old and very independent.

Little did I know those were not even close to potty readiness signs.

What are readiness signs, you ask? Those are the physical and emotional cues you see in your child that tell you he is actually ready to start potty training. Not some arbitrary date on the calendar. Not my own mother’s wishes.

But cold hard facts. Measurable realities. Things like waking up dry from naps. Telling me when he was wet or soiled and wanted changed. Imitating me in the bathroom.

My son showed none of those signs. I pressed on.

I bought a cute little potty chair. I bought even cuter toddler underwear. I showed them to my son. He was delighted with his new toys.

Again, none of that was a potty readiness sign. I was setting myself up for failure and didn’t even know it.

I collected potty books from the library. My son and I cuddled on the sofa and read together. He jumped up and down and I was thrilled with his enthusiasm.

Uh, none of that was a readiness cue.

We started potty training. Which meant I put him in the cute little undies, showed him how to sit on his cute little potty, read some cute little potty books and waited for him to pee in his potty.

Nothing happened.

But my son was very happy and excited. Me, not so much.

I stayed positive and pressed on. We visited the potty chair regularly that first day. At last, totally by accident, my son peed in the potty.

I was ecstatic. I praised and loved on him. We danced around the room.

He pulled on his cute new underwear and went and played in his room. When I went to check on him a bit later, he was sitting on the carpet in his new cute WET undies.

I frowned. He smiled and pulled at his pants. He thought everything was going great. I knew otherwise.

Weeks and then months passed. It took my son over a year and a half to get potty trained and we fought most of the way. He would deliberately wet his pants in front of me to watch me get mad. He didn’t care if he was wet or soiled.

I was frustrated. I cannot tell you how frustrated.

And all because I didn’t know about potty training readiness cues and how important they are in deciding when to start potty training.

But I know now. And the rest of my children certainly benefited from my self-taught education.

And I hope you can benefit, too.

If you really want to know when to potty train, take the time to learn about the potty process. There are many excellent resources, both paid and free online. Listen to other parents who have already passed this way. Take the time to get to know your child and that will help you determine the potty training method that’s right for her.

Above all, wait until she’s ready. Trust me, you’ll both be grateful.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about when to potty train by visiting her website now.

Toilet Training in Less Than a Day or the Potty Chair Express

Wow. We’re really in a hurry these days.

Movies that download in minutes, cell phones that surf the web, takeout meals ready to pick up on the way home.

All good stuff, I’ve decided. Then I saw this trend about toilet training in less than a day.

Less than a day? As in less than 24 hours? Wow again. I’ve potty trained four kids and I can tell you they experienced potty training in a day – about 428 days in a row.

So I was fascinated to check out this method. What I found has convinced me that if I had a kid to potty train again (any takers?) I would seriously prep and use this method.

It just makes sense.

It also needs to be taken with a grain of salt. Here’s what I mean.

Toilet training in such a short time, in order to be in any way successful, has to establish certain basic ideas and practices in the child.

- Absolute clarity about what is expected. In other words the child needs to be very clear with the answer to the question “how do I go potty, anyway?”

- Intense practice until both the toddler’s body and his mind get it.

While there are different approaches to using this method, they all do indeed seem to address those two points. Most recommend using a potty training doll that will pee on demand and that the child be in charge of training the doll.

This is crucial on two accounts. One, the child sees the doll model potty training. Liquids go in and they come out. In the potty chair.

Two, by teaching the doll herself, the child is cementing these important potty concepts in her own brain. She’s internally practicing while helping the doll. She understands that if you don’t make it to the potty chair, you’re going to have a mess to deal with as she cleans up her doll (the training doll should have a few accidents as well as successes to thoroughly teach these points).

What is left after these points are firmly instilled is the need for daily practice to solidify what’s been learned. (Did you learn to ride a bike in one day?)

Certainly many children, by the end of one long, intense day, can have these basics significantly planted in their minds and bodies. Some will be, indeed, trained; others will need weeks and months of practice. That is what I mean by taking these methods with a grain of salt.

I’ve read a lot of moms’ comments about using these methods. Overall, mothers report varying degrees of success. The most satisfied parents were the one who understood that “potty basics” would be taught in a day and follow-up would be required.

I want to add that any potty training and certainly a focused training like this cannot happen at all if a toddler is not ready to be trained. That is hands down the first and most important thing to look at when deciding whether or not this method is something for you to try.

A toddler or preschooler must be physically and emotionally ready to train and you, as a parent, must be ready to do your part, too. That includes assembling all the potty aids necessary and clearing your schedule so you can focus exclusively on your child and the toilet training process.

Bottom line? Yes, you can actually say that by using proper methods and adequate preparation, you can potty train in a day as far as the fundamentals to toilet usage are concerned. Toilet training in less than a day is a real possibility if you and your child are ready.

Just remember the most important part is working together in a positive and trusting manner. You’re going to train your child many times for many reasons over the years. Set a good foundation now, with toilet training, and reap the rewards for years to come.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about toilet training in less than a day by visiting her website now.

Potty Training Videos – Knowing the Pros and Cons Before You Buy

Or they can be a complete waste of time and money.

Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of this popular potty training resource now – before you buy.

The pros of using potty training videos.

- Motivational value. For many toddlers, watching one or more toilet training videos gets them excited and eager to try the potty game. Most of these videos have silly songs, dances or rhymes to help your child and the information connect. Using these songs can be the most important part of the video. (You’ll know you’ve got a success on your hands when you find yourself singing the “potty song” with your child multiple times a day.)

- Educational value. Depending upon the video you choose, you can use it to actually teach the potty training process if the video actually models toilet training. Some videos do not use the modeling process, however, so you’ll want to decide what method will work best with your toddler.

In addition, some videos use famous characters to explain toilet training, others use live action teaching. Both can be very effective, depending upon your child’s temperament.

- Repeated training. Most children who enjoy potty training videos love to watch them over and over again. You as the parent will be bored, but not your child. This has the advantage of emphasizing both pros stated above; keeping your toddler’s head in the potty game by keeping him excited about the potty process and, at the same time, continuing to train on the fundamentals of pottying.

But the news isn’t all good. Here are the cons of using potty training videos.

- They don’t appeal to all children. You can figure this out by borrowing a handful of videos from friends or a library to try with your toddler before you buy.

- These videos must be used as an assist to potty training to work properly. While this point seems obvious, nonetheless, many parents seem to think they can plug in a toilet training video, leave the room and come back to a trained toddler.

No way. You’ll need to use these videos to reinforce your own training and instructions; thus it’s important you agree with the fundamental messages contained in the video.

- Your child may out-grow the video’s usefulness. Depending upon how long your child takes to fully potty train, your child may mature right out of the training video’s target market. You can always replace with a new video designed for preschoolers – indeed, many parents do this very thing – but you need to keep that in mind before you buy.

Bottom line? Potty training videos can be highly useful toilet training resources, but only if you take the time and energy to use them correctly. Many a parent has used a song or dance from a training video to help their toddler stay enthused throughout the potty training process.

Making an informed decision will help you get the results you’re looking for with your potty training toddler.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training videos by visiting her website today.

Toilet Training Boys – 3 Things That Make a Difference

Are you getting ready to potty train a boy? Are you already in the middle of training a little guy? Is he cooperating? Or is he excited one minute and bored with the process the next?

Toilet training boys can be quite the adventure. I know. I’ve trained two little boys. And since generalizations don’t always hold true, not all toddler boys will react exactly as I’m going to describe.

Still, when it comes to potty training tips for boys, these 3 things are what you need to know first.

1. Boys often prefer to do things that they think are their ideas. If potty training is seen as your idea, Mom or Dad, the excitement level will wear off fairly quickly.

This new undertaking of “going potty” will be interesting while it’s new, like any fun game you teach him.

But once your little boy feels like he “gets it” – whether he truly understands what you’re explaining to him or not – he will be done working on it.

Believe me, this will be very frustrating to YOU.

The simple answer to this is to make potty training your son’s idea. Simple, but not necessarily easy.

I toilet trained a son very much like this. He took a long time to train, because I was fighting against his natural bent of wanting to do his own thing.

When he was convinced potty training was in his best interest, he trained in a matter of days. This was accomplished by trying different scenarios with him until we hit upon the one that connected with him, that he felt was “his” idea.

How do you accomplish this with your own child? Start by making a list of what’s important from your son’s perspective. Those insights will help you lead your toddler towards deciding that potty training is exactly what he wants to do.

2. Boys like to imitate other boys.

If you’re reading up on potty training tips for boys, remember this one: boys love to watch other boys and practice what they see.

You can put this information to work easily. Does your little boy have a favorite stuffed animal or action figure? Well, give this animal or figure a male name and potty train him. With your son’s help, of course.

Sound silly? Not when you watch the principle at work. When you potty train your child’s favorite male toy, you have your son’s undivided attention.

- Rush the toy to the potty when he needs to go.

- Clearly demonstrate all the parts of using the potty chair.

- Verbally talk to both the toy and your son, explaining exactly what’s going on.

- Involve your son by having him help his toy get pants off, sit on the potty, pretend to wash hands, etc.

And don’t stop at a day. Keep this training up for days and weeks. Occasionally make your son wait to do things because “Bear” has to go to the potty (“I’m sorry, Tom, I can’t read a book to you right now, I’m going to read to Bear while he sits on the potty. You can turn pages for us.”).

You get the picture.

3. Boys like potty humor.

Sorry to tell you this, but potty humor starts when they’re young. For example, if you can stand the humor and sometimes the mess, tapping into the natural joy little boys get when they can aim their pee and playing games with that ability will keep them practicing their new potty skills, such as identifying their bodies’ urge to void, getting to the potty chair on time and letting go.

Potty targets are great fun for little boys at this stage or simply dropping bits of toilet paper in the water and letting them aim and shoot delights most toddlers. If you’re having trouble with potty training resistance, take a day you can focus solely on toilet training, keep the fluids coming and the potty games fun.

Using silly potty songs and rhymes also appeals to toddler boys and keeps their interest level high for using their potty chairs. Generally, the sillier the songs, the better, so be prepared to teach some goofy ones!

So remember, when toilet training boys focus on making the whole process as much of their idea as possible, give them another “boy” to imitate and train alongside, and keep the potty humor coming.

Honestly, this is a great time to learn what makes your little guy tick, since you’re going to be teaching him many things over the years. Practicing with potty training tips is only the beginning.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about toilet training boys by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Rewards – The Good, The Bad and the Ugly

If you have been toilet training for any length of time or if you are just getting ready to begin, you have probably considered the topic of potty training rewards.

These are little prizes we give our toddlers and preschoolers for working on their healthy potty habits.

I have toilet trained four children and while I think potty rewards are indispensable, I also think they can backfire on us parents when we don’t pay attention to what we’re doing.

Potty training rewards – the good.

- Everyone likes to get prizes. Toddlers do, too. Nothing motivates them in the moment like the promise of a reward.

Some toddlers will move their version of a mountain for a tiny and insignificant prize. If this describes your child, use this to your advantage to help him move forward.

- Using toilet rewards does more than just help your child learn to use the potty. It also sets the stage for goal-setting and goal-getting as he grows.

The skill of personal achievement is just that, a skill to be learned and practiced. When your child is two, the skill is about learning to use the potty for a piece of candy. When she’s thirteen, it’s practicing her flute each and every day and earning the right to be in jazz band and when she’s twenty-two it’s studying six nights a week and relaxing on night seven so she can get into grad school.

Potty training rewards – the bad.

- Potty rewards generally lose their luster with toddlers rather quickly. That’s not because the prize is no good; it is because the toddler is an imaginative human being. So as parents we must tweak our use of prizes regularly.

If a prize is working, fine, stick with it. If not, cycle it out for another and have several more options in the wings.

- If a toddler is tired, tired, tired of potty training, then the rewards will stop working. Remember, the small prizes are a motivation to keep working towards the real prize, which is growing up.

Toddlers and preschoolers are normal people and sometimes they get tired of this growing up stuff. So they stop. It helps if we can respect that for a few days or a week while giving lots of extra hugs and love.

When your little potty trainee is ready to grow up some more, he will. And you’ll be ready with the prizes to gently push him a long the way.

Potty training rewards – the ugly.

- Overusing rewards until they’re worthless is a very real problem. If the whole concept of rewards gets tainted in your preschooler’s mind, she’ll be suspicious every time you offer one and you’ll find it hard to motivate her with anything.

Remember, there’s a huge difference between awarding a prize for a job well done and tossing prizes at someone hoping they’ll do what you say. Toddlers are bright people and they can definitely tell the difference.

What’s the takeaway here? Simply that potty training rewards, used correctly, can be a huge help to you and your toddler as she’s learning to make her new toilet habits second nature.

Rewards cannot – at any time – take the place of actual training and encouragement. They are a supplement to make the process go more smoothly and be more fun. They are NOT the process itself.

Enjoy your potty training season with your child. This is the first of many times the two of you will work together towards a goal. Keep your perspective and teach your child how a journey of many miles involves taking one step at a time, day after day.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training rewards by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Seats – Investigating the Pros and Cons

Many parents today opt for using a potty training toilet seat exclusively when toilet training their child.

A potty seat is a child-sized seat that fits on top of an adult toilet, thus eliminating any need to empty out the bowl from a potty chair which sits on the floor.

There are both advantages and disadvantages of using a toilet seat instead of a potty chair to train your child and we’ll explore those distinct differences in this article.

Potty Training Seats – Pros

- The most obvious advantage to using a toilet seat is the one already referred to. By having your child sit atop an adult potty, all the waste goes directly into the adult toilet. No potty chair bowl to spill, tip over, clean up, smell, etc.

- Using a potty seat means you’ll never have to transition your child from using a potty chair to using the seat. He’s totally comfortable with the adult toilet from the get-go.

- A toilet training seat is portable. Simply throw one into your car and you always have an appropriate sized potty for your preschooler or toddler wherever an adult toilet can be found.

- A potty seat often makes a toddler feel “big” right away, since she’s aware that the grownups only use the adult toilet. And now so does she.

Potty Training Seats – Cons

- Potty seats can have a safety issue attached to them. You’ll have to provide a step stool of some sort for your child to climb up onto the training seat safely. Some children love this, but some toddlers intensely dislike this part of using a toilet seat; in fact, they’re downright scared.

A frightened child does not potty train well. If at all.

- Potty seats can be in the way. You’ll need to move it each time an adult needs to use the toilet. Of course, you’ll want to leave the seat on the adult toilet when your toddler is new to training as accidents can and do happen while a child is trying to put the potty seat onto the adult toilet or wait for help.

- A potty seat needs a place where your child can firmly plant his feet so he can push during bowel movements. On a potty chair, the floor provides that automatically. Sometimes the step stool doubles for this with a potty seat, but sometimes the step stool is not the right height once a child is sitting down.

- A training seat mounted on top of an adult toilet doesn’t work for little boys who want to stand and pee like Daddy. So think about how you want to toilet train your son before automatically reaching for a potty seat.

Potty training toilet seats are a great convenience when used appropriately and accepted by potty training toddlers. Some parents adopt a best-of-all-worlds model and use a potty chair at first and then switch to a potty seat as a child becomes more advanced.

Bottom line? Choosing a potty training toilet seat clearly depends upon your method of toilet training and your child’s unique personality. Some parents will be happiest having both a potty seat and a potty chair; and in fact, some potty chairs come apart to use as both chair and seat. A parent also needs to be flexible as a toddler may initially favor one or another and then change their mind as they advance in age and maturity.

The most important factor to consider is what will make your experience potty training your child go as smoothly and seamlessly as possible. The toilet training process has its share of built-in ups and downs and what you’ll want most is to know that the potty chair or seat you choose does its job by being safe, comfortable and fits in with your home life comfortably.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training seats by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Twins – 3 Steps to Success

Potty training twins, just like other aspects of raising multiples, is an adventure.

If you are parenting twins, you’ve already learned that patience, flexibility and humor are your best friends.

These same qualities will serve you well when it comes to potty training your twins. Apply them to the following basic toilet training steps and you’ll see success more quickly than not.

1. Who’s ready when?

Potty training readiness is vital before toilet training any child. It’s counterproductive to attempt potty training just because you, as the parent, want your child out of diapers.

Children potty train when they’re ready. Period. Double this truth if you’re parenting twins.

You will have to be ready to go with the flow here. If both twins show readiness cues at the same time, that’s great. But quite often that is not the case and you’ll find yourself needing to toilet train one at at time.

This may involve setting up a time when the not-yet-ready twin goes to Grandma’s for a couple of days while you are training his brother or sister.

If that’s not possible, perhaps someone can come in and focus on the not-training twin while you focus on the trainee.

The challenge here is that the not-ready twin will distract the ready twin from his business. Leaving you with a lot of frustration.

So determining readiness will enable you to know what you’re going to need to set up in terms of both twins’ schedules to make potty training as smooth as possible.

2. Personality counts.

Personality will really come into play while potty training twins. Do you have cooperative guys? Strong-willed gals? One compliant and the other simply – busy?

When planning your potty training adventure, do more than simply keep your twins personalities in mind.

Actually plan your training methods to directly address those personalities.

A strong-willed twin is going to need to believe that potty training is his idea. It’s your job to convince him of that.

A compliant twin is going to need to be clear about the exact steps you expect out of her and those steps need to appear to be quite easy and short.

One size does not fit all in this scenario.

3. Fully prepared.

To make potty training your twins go as smoothly as possible, think ahead a bit about the types of resources you may need.

Potty chairs (you’ll need at least two), toddler underwear, easy on/off clothes and a ton of wipes start the list.

Depending upon the personalities of your twin toddlers, you may decide to utilize potty training dolls or stuffed animals, prizes or rewards and toilet training books. You’ll want to consider if your children will respond to any additional types of motivation through the use of potty watches or training dvds.

Some of these resources you’ll want to gather ahead of time before training your twins even begins. But other resources you can just take notes on and put together only what you actually need later on in the training.

The point here is, by being fully prepared and thinking ahead, you’ll have less need to throw up your hands in frustration at any given moment. Instead, you can easily move on to the next training concept seamlessly.

Less frustration for you and less chance of a power struggle between you and your twins.

So remember, when potty training twins, double check for readiness signs, consider their unique personalities when designing a training structure and plan for needed resources ahead of time.

After all, potty training your twins is only the first of many such adventures you’ll share with them as they grow.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training twins by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Reward Chart – When it Won’t Work

Using a potty training reward chart can be extremely helpful in keeping your toddler interested in the potty training process. But it doesn’t work for everything. Here are some areas that a potty chart does not perform well in.

- All by itself.

It sounds obvious, but if you post a reward chart and expect your toddler to magically potty train himself, you will be disappointed.

A potty chart, like any chart, needs to be a part of a comprehensive plan to work effectively. When it comes to potty training, a chart is a visual aid for your toddler; a way to help him see his progress and thus keep working. You’ve got to design the training structure first, then use the chart to track the structure’s usage.

- Potty resistance.

There are exceptions, but in general, a potty chart will not overcome training resistance. You need to discover the cause of the resistance and deal with it independently. In fact, pushing chart usage when a child is resistant can actually make things worse and escalate a power struggle.

Once you resolve the potty resistance, then a chart can get your child excited about the process again.

- If overused.

Like any other potty training aid, overuse will kill a potty training chart’s effectiveness.

So give it a rest. Here are some ideas for doing just that.

- Take a couple of weeks off from using a chart. Instead you can move buttons or macaroni from one jar to another, keeping track of successful potties.

- You can print out bright tickets which your child can get every time she uses the potty correctly. Enough tickets will earn a prize of some sort.

- Or write on craft sticks several fun things to do or small prizes to win. Every time your child has a toilet success of some kind, she gets to grab a random stick and earn the prize or activity. If you let her “help” you write out the activities on the sticks, she’ll be even more excited to earn them.

- Instead of a chart, use a large wall calendar. Let your toddler put a colorful dot by each day he worked hard at potty training. This sounds like using a chart and it is, but it will look different to your toddler.

- Cut out magazine pictures of children your child’s age. Let him make a picture collage of children who might be potty training “just like him”. He can glue on a picture every time he uses the potty chair. Of course, add his picture to the top of the collage!

- Start a potty club within your child’s playgroup. Make a poster with all the children’s photos on it and generally keep track of potty information shared by the parents. This works great for children who have a competitive nature, even at a young age.

- Make a potty video of your child, for her use alone. Young children LOVE to watch themselves and seeing herself using the potty is a powerful reinforcement for her. This may become the most popular video in your home!

As you can see, using a potty training reward chart is a smart thing, but the real power is the idea behind the chart, not just the chart itself. Being creative will help your child stay interested in the potty process long enough to make his new potty skills second nature, which is what you are aiming for.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster by getting her free potty training reward chart plus creative ideas for using it by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Targets – Do They Work? The Pros and Cons

Are you potty training and need something to ramp up the motivation in your toddler?

Then consider potty training targets. Simply put, you drop flushable material into your toilet and let your toddler aim and shoot. These can be as easy as bits of toilet paper or fancy purchased targets.

By examining the advantages and disadvantages of using this training resource, you can decide whether or not using the targets would help your toddler or preschooler move along in the potty training process.

* The pros of using potty targets.

- Fun, fun, fun.

Many parents think that only boys enjoy using potty targets, but that’s not true. Little girls find this game fun and many training targets are designed to be used by both boys and girls.

The high fun factor is what makes this resource work so well. Most children find the idea of “shooting” their pee at something irresistible, which is why I often recommend saving targets for when you need to move a resistant child along.

- Developing good habits.

When you are trying to help your toddler understand the connection between his bodily urges and using the potty chair, training targets can help.

Give lots of water for a day and offer to use potty targets whenever your child fills the urge to void.

Your child must identify that urge, hold it, get to the potty chair, release (and aim). All good for practicing healthy toilet habits – without you nagging.

- Use creatively for longterm effectiveness.

You can use bits of toilet paper and round cereal bits (remember, must be flushable) to initiate training.

Then you can purchase fancier potty targets for special occasions. Some purchased targets actually look like targets, some expand in the water and some are bright and colorful.

Save these special targets for those moments when you know you’re going to encounter frustrating resistance. For example, pottying in a public restroom or at a friend’s home. Maybe when your child is tired and doesn’t want to cooperate. Or as a special treat for a well behaved toddler.

* When do potty training targets not help? The cons.

- You can’t flush everything.

A parent definitely wants to have a conversation about potty targets and explain that they are okay to put in the toilet. Many a parent have used these little resources only to have their toddler stuff all kinds of things down the toilet to pee on.

- Overuse will sink the idea.

While kids love potty targets, the newness cannot last forever. The wise parent will use these selectively – and thus effectively – cycling them with other potty training resources for maximum punch.

- Things can get messy.

Remember, you are asking an untrained toddler to aim and shoot his pee. This is a little being who has no care whatsoever about where that pee ends up.

Things can and will get messy, especially if you have two children trying this together.

If you get mad at your child for making a mess while practicing with potty targets, you will lose any of the good you might have gained.

Bottom line? Potty training targets are a super fun way to motivate toddlers and preschoolers to do their potty business. Targets can also help beginners learn basic potty habits.

But you’ll need to use them with thoughtfulness and a strong dose of humor to maximize their effectiveness.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training targets by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Regression – How to Stop it Now

If you are in the middle of a season of potty training regression, then I don’t have to tell you how frustrating things can get.

You’ve already watched your patience and flexibility fly out the window. Maybe more than once.

I understand as I have been there. I have potty trained four children of my own and potty training regression has been an unwelcome visitor at my home on several occasions.

Let me share with you what I’ve learned so that you and your toddler can move on quickly and with a minimal of fuss.

- Stop everything.

Truthfully, I think I caused several sessions of regression just by pushing my children too hard at the potty training process. See, no one told me that potty training IS a process – not an event.

Subsequently, if my child was not moving in a straight line forward, I panicked. Needlessly.

Toilet training regression is very normal and quite common. Once you know that, your first instinct is usually the correct one: stop everything and take a break.

By taking a breather from structured potty training you are able to keep the frustration levels down. By the time regression happens, usually there have already been a few tense words and your child gets the idea that Mom or Dad is less than pleased with his performance.

Unfortunately, that’s the path to a full-blown power struggle; the nemesis of potty training.

To avoid this nonsense, we want to interrupt the cycle. Temporarily stopping structured potty training and taking a step back, is a sure way to diffuse the situation.

How do you do this? Tell your regressing toddler the truth. Tell her that everybody needs a break from practicing potty training and the two of you are going to take a few days off.

During this time, be sure and give your toddler lots of extra snuggles and positive attention. Make sure she understands how much you enjoy her, just the way she is.

Casually mention from time to time how much you might enjoy doing ______ (insert something she wants to do) with her – once she is a bigger girl, of course. You are setting the stage for her to reinvest herself in the growing up process.

Whatever the toilet training structure has been in your home, the point is to significantly downplay it for a while and let your child rest and you relax.

No yelling, no dragging to the potty. A few days of this will prepare her for the next step, which is….

- Do a restart.

To move on from a potty training regression, you’ll first need to take a breather and then fashion a toilet training restart.

Simply put, tell your child you are going to do the next fun thing in potty training.

Then pick two or three days when you can focus on your child and do a highly structured toilet training blitz.

If your child has been back in diapers, tell him the diapers are going away since he’s ready for only big boy pants. And mean it. No more diapers.

Make sure you have prizes (don’t overdo – small is fine), books and videos, songs, potty training dolls, etc., anything that will help you create a culture of positive potty training.

Make it a Mommy or Daddy and me time with your child. By the end of your training restart, your toddler should be significantly farther along the potty training road. And the potty training regression should be a distant memory.

Bottom line? Expect resistance and accidents. Handle them matter-of-factly. If you and your child find yourselves in the land of potty training regression – STOP – then do a concentrated and fun restart after a few days break.

You’ll get there. I promise.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training regression by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Watch – The Pros and Cons of This Popular Resource

If you are like many parents who are potty training their child, you have wondered if the toilet training resources available today can actually help train your child.

That’s an important question. For example, the potty training watch is a great concept. There are different styles available for this watch, but the basic idea is that a parent can set a time – say, 60 or 90 minutes – and when the time is up the watch will vibrate or play music to remind the child that it is time to go potty.

Let’s take a look at the advantages and disadvantages of using this popular resource.

The pros of using a potty training watch.

- No hovering; no nagging.

Probably the number one reason parents love potty watches is that it puts the responsibility for going potty back on the child. The parent doesn’t need to constantly remind the child “it’s time to go potty” or “do you need to go potty?”, since the child is expected to simply use the potty whenever the watch tells her to.

- The watch is flexible.

In other words, as a parent, you can set the potty watch to go off at whatever intervals you choose. If your child is new to potty training, you can set the watch for shorter periods of time. Once your child has progressed in his training, you can set the watch for longer periods of time.

- High “wow” factor.

Most children are highly attracted to and motivated by the potty watch, at least initially. They feel they are being given something “adult” to use and are therefore excited to use it.

A parent can take advantage of this natural attraction by regularly checking their own watch in front of the toddler or preschooler, thus encouraging their child to stay enthused about the potty watch.

The other side: the cons of using a potty training watch.

- The excitement can fade.

The initial excitement of using a toilet training watch is generally high but often that interest fades quickly. Parents must be prepared to use creative and subtle ways to reinforce the child’s use of the watch.

- Age matters.

A very young child may not have the developmental maturity to effectively use the watch. Most children would need to be at least two years old and possibly older in order to connect the ideas that when the watch goes off the child needs to head directly to the potty chair.

- Value considerations.

Some potty watches are quite inexpensive, making them reasonable potty resources. Some watches, however, are quite expensive and are marketed with the notion that a child can continue to use the potty watch as an everyday watch beyond the toilet training target window.

This is a good idea; however, these days, children’s watches are quite inexpensive so paying a lot for any kid’s watch is dubious.

Bottom line? Potty training watches are a clever idea that can be used to get a resistant child over a toilet training hump. However, the cost needs to be factored in and that depends heavily upon an individual child’s interest in the watch.

Stack a training watch up against all your other potty training resources, consider your child’s unique temperament and you’ll be able to make a reasoned decision that will get you the results you want.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about using a potty training watch by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Issues – Things I Have Learned & You Want to Know

There are many frustrating potty training issues – things like regression, being uncooperative, resistance, constipation and so on.

After toilet training four children of my own, I can tell you I’ve experienced all these potty issues and more.

Here are the things I learned that would make potty training today go much, much smoother.

- Slow down.

Like most parents, once I decided to begin toilet training my child I wanted it to be finished quickly.

However, instead of accomplishing that through smart and adequate preparation (see the next point), I tried to hurry things along by yelling. Pushing harder. Engaging in multiple power struggles.

The harder I pushed my toddlers to be potty trained, the more stubborn they became.

What started as a simple potty training issue of, say, not wanting to stop playing when the need to potty presented itself, would blow up into a matter of full-blown resistance.

The truth is I would have had more success moving slower, working WITH my kids maturing personalities instead of putting us all on an arbitrary schedule.

Slowing down is really about listening to your toddlers and preschoolers and working with their natural rhythms; first they want to grow up – today – and then they want to be a baby again – for a bit.

Working with those bents would have meant we moved forward at the fastest rate possible given the people involved.

How could I ask for more than that?

- Prepare fully.

I confess, my idea of preparing fully before I potty trained my oldest was that I bought a potty chair.

Well, that’s certainly necessary, but that lack of complete prep work meant the potty training issues that came up stopped me in my tracks.

The sad thing is, it didn’t have to be that way.

If I would have done my upfront research, I would have thought through exactly what I was going to do if and when my child got bored, tired of, or mad at potty training.

I would have assembled toilet training resources that I could have used to work through all of those scenarios. Books, videos, potty dolls and stuffed animals, small prizes and more.

If I would have thought the potty process through before I ever started, I would have known before I began that I had a son who was very active and imaginative and liked to think he was in charge.

All of that was vital information I could have used to my (and his) advantage by structuring potty training to work with his personality.

Instead I tried to simply do it my way. Result? It took two years to potty train him.

- More cuddle time.

Toilet training is about patience. Patience is more than a word. When you realize you don’t have any patience is precisely the point you need it the most and must reach down deep until you find more.

For me, this is best illustrated through cuddle time.

When my children resisted training, when they argued, when they were openly defiant, these were all messages my toddlers were sending me that I was pushing too hard and not listening to them.

Having an immediate cuddle time would have diffused a lot of tense moments and put us back on the same team instead of giving my kids reason to dig in their heels. It also would have allowed me to catch my breath and gather more patience.

Don’t get me wrong. If you have an intentionally defiant youngster you MUST deal with that. But once you’ve taken care of the moment, you need to heal the situation so that your child will continue to hear you.

One excellent way to do that is through hugs, cuddles and listening.

What’s the bottom line here? If you are toilet training, you are going to deal with potty training issues. Period. (If you don’t, you are a rare breed.)

So learn from my mistakes. Slow down, prepare fully and find ways to be patient and listen to your child, especially when you don’t want to.

Those are good life lessons for all of the parenting you’ll need to do as your child grows.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training issues by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Resistance – 3 Ways to Keep Your Cool

Been toilet training lately? Experiencing any potty training resistance?

Yes? Then you have probably been in the frustration zone – big time!

A lot of advice for parents who are potty training their toddlers mentions staying calm and patient.

That’s good advice, to be sure. But it’s also extremely hard to follow.

Based on my own experience toilet training four children here are suggestions for even the most harried parent who wants to stay calm but just doesn’t know how.

1. Take a time out.

Time outs aren’t just for your kids, they’ll work for you, too, Mom or Dad. And you have the advantage of using one to its full benefit.

When another potty accident happens with your child, make that your cue to take a deep breath, turn around and count to twenty – slowly.

You’re doing a couple of things here to help yourself respond to your child instead of react.

You’re injecting time into the situation. Emotional blowups are almost always based on the desire to do something NOW. By allowing yourself the luxury of time – even a few seconds – you give the rational side of your brain time to catch up with the emotional side of your brain.

In other words, you can think clearly.

Also, there’s a physicality to this approach that helps you stay in control. The act of taking a deep breath is widely known for its calming effects. Turning around gives your body something to do in a heated moment; in other words, you’re letting a bit of steam escape and that helps you get a measure of control back.

And the counting to twenty is another time trick. If you are in the throes of potty training resistance, then you may be in the middle of a power struggle with your child. If that’s the case and your toddler or preschooler has learned that having a “potty accident” sends you into orbit, then your first job is to stop reacting and take back control of the situation.

Sometimes the effectiveness of this simple method is underestimated. Don’t make that mistake yourself. Try this idea and see how it can put you back in control which is where you and your child need you to be.

2. Expand your knowledge base.

Even in potty training, doing the same things over and over and expecting different results is a good definition for insanity – and frustration!

Just because what you were doing with your toddler worked two, four, or six months ago, doesn’t mean it will work today.

Your child has mastered that particular way of doing things and is looking for something new and interesting.

Doing a simple online search for “potty training issues” or “potty training regression” means you can get all kinds of advice – for free.

Taking ten minutes and sifting through what you find will enable you to glean just one or two nuggets of toilet training wisdom you may not have tried before.

Do this regularly and you might stay ahead of any potty resistance as well as your frustration.

3. It really is funny. Really.

This tip works – and it’s hard. Perhaps it is difficult precisely because using humor during moments of potty training resistance is so unexpected.

If you have a preschooler who is enjoying her newfound power derived from refusing to cooperate with the potty process, using genuine humor will totally deflate her power trip.

And that’s what you want.

The trick to effectively using humor is to keep the responsibility for potty training where it belongs – with your child. After all, you are already potty trained (right?) and you cannot force your child to train.

You are guiding your little one into a new stage of development. So when the next “accident” happens, try a response like “Whoa! That wasn’t supposed to happen! Did you forget where to put your pee? It goes over here (point to the potty chair)!” Now you have to do this with an exaggerated tone of voice; being silly helps.

I’ll warn you. The real problem with this method is your child will want you to do this all the time.

Hm. Constant humor instead of constant frustration. This is a method worth trying. Believe me, you’ll get a lot more cooperation with humor.

So the next time a potty training problem raises its head in your home, zap it under control with one or two of these simple tricks.

And say “bye-bye” to your frustration.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training resistance by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Chairs – How to Choose the Right One

If you are preparing to toilet train your child in the near future, you’ve probably been looking at potty training chairs.

You have a lot of choices, don’t you?

Fancy, plain, one piece, handpainted, multi-use, gender specific, and portable just for starters.

Since you’ve probably ruled out buying one of each, how do you decide on the one or two that will work best for your child.

That’s a great question. Let’s take a look at several types of potty chairs and see what are the main benefits of using each.

- Potty training chair or potty seat.

First things first; you’ll need to decide if you want to go with a potty chair (a child-sized toilet that sits firmly on the floor) or a potty seat (a child sized toilet seat which fits on top of an adult-sized toilet).

A potty seat means never having to clean out the bowl from the potty chair (that sounds good), but you need to know that lots of toddlers are not comfortable climbing up on the adult sized toilet from the get-go.

Multi-use potties refer to potty chairs that can come apart and be potty seats, too. Pretty clever, huh? Some of these also can be flipped over for a step stool. Just be sure and look for a tight fit for the potty seat when it’s on the adult toilet and no sharp edges when the potty chair comes apart.

- Gender specific – or not.

Most potty chairs will work just fine for either boys or girls but a few are designed specifically to be used by only one gender.

Frankly, while these potties work okay, if you plan on having more than one child you run the risk of needing a different potty the next time around. Things to watch for are splash guards that are high enough to do their job for little boys but easy to straddle for both boys and girls. Some splash guards are removable for girls, but watch for sharp edges when the guard comes off.

- One piece or removable bowl.

The simplest potty chairs are one piece, easy-to-clean marvels. They are sleek and rounded – no edges to pinch little thighs.

However, lots of parents, myself included, prefer a removable potty bowl. That means there’s a little more to the potty chair to clean but it’s well worth it when you’re dumping out the potty several times a day for months.

Look for a bowl that’s easy to remove, too. If you can do it one-handed, all the better. Eventually you’re going to want your child to do this task for himself, so you don’t want anything complicated or easy to spill.

- Travel and portable potties.

After potty training four children of my own, I can tell you, you’ll want to at least consider getting a travel or portable potty training chair to go in your car.

Then no matter how grungy the public restroom is (or if it’s not available at all), potty training keeps moving forward. You can get potty chairs that fold up, have disposable liners or even the entire potty chair is disposable.

You can also get foldable potty seats to fit on top of public adult toilets to help your toddler feel safe and comfy.

- Specialty potties.

These are the fun potty chairs. You can get musical potties (some make music when a sensor detects wetness, others simply have a button your child can push to play a song), character potties and handpainted potty chairs that become beautiful rocking chairs when your preschooler is done potty training.

- Summing up.

When shopping for potty training chairs, keep in mind how you want to train plus your child’s own personality. Remember you’re going to clean this thing A LOT and your child needs to feel comfortable and motivated while using it.

There are no wrong or right choices between these potty chairs. You may find you need one in each of your home bathrooms and one in your car. Or you may decide that a simple potty seat that can tag along everywhere you go is the best choice for your family.

That’s all good. The main point is to keep potty training positive and upbeat as you and your child navigate this important growing up milestone together.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps moms enjoy mothering more at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training chairs by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Readiness – Is Your Child Ready to Ditch Diapers?

It is a magical moment the first time the thought crosses your mind that your toddler may be ready to be potty trained.

Imagine! No more diapers!

Before you get too far in this fantasy, you’ll want to check with reality and determine if your child is truly ready to begin toilet training.

Why is this important? Not checking for potty training readiness signs before starting toilet training is probably the biggest mistake parents make concerning potty training.

If your child is not physically and emotionally ready to train, you will be setting up both you and your child for frustration and disappointment. And possibly delaying completion of training for weeks, months, even years.

I know. This happened to me when training my first child. He wasn’t ready but I was! What I learned is potty training is not about the parent’s convenience, it’s about the toddler and his needs.

Let’s look at some common potty training readiness signs you can look for in your child.

- Naptime dryness.

Does your toddler ever wake up from a nap dry? If so, this is an excellent readiness sign. To be ready for toilet training, your toddler will need to be able to hold her urine for at least two hours; longer is even better.

By the way, most of the time, urine training comes before bowel movement mastery. There are exceptions, of course, but often that’s the way it works for kids.

Try taking your child to the potty right after those dry naps. If you can catch his potty in the potty chair, you’ll help him get the idea.

- Asking to be changed.

Does your toddler ask to have her diaper changed when wet or soiled? Does she seem uncomfortable in wet diapers? Do you ever find her removing her used diaper?

All of these are readiness signs. Take note of how often they occur and how regularly. (See my author’s resource box for a potty readiness log you can use.) See if you can identify your toddler’s physical and facial cues before wetting or soiling. This information will help you get her on the potty at the appropriate times.

- Being cooperative.

Does your toddler genuinely want to please you? Your child will need to be in a mostly cooperative mood to potty train well.

This is a tricky readiness sign. After all, toddlers are not known to be cooperative people! If your child is truly belligerent or stubborn, you’ll want to improve upon that before potty training.

Also take a look at the level of stress in your home. If it’s too chaotic or undergoing tremendous change, it is best to put off toilet training until things calm down.

- Big boys and big girls.

Is your toddler excited to be growing up? Is that a favorite topic of conversation? He’ll need to be eager to “be a big boy” to be ready to potty train.

This is an area you can definitely work to your advantage. If you’ve got an independent soul who wants to do everything “by myself”, you can let him know repeatedly that you’ve got the perfect task for him to do – all by himself.

It’s called potty training.

In summary, this is not an exhaustive list of potty training readiness cues, but it will get you started.

Take note of your child in relation to this list for a couple of weeks. If several of these signs are regular and consistent, you probably have a child ready to be trained. The more readiness cues your toddler displays, the better.

Be excited when talking to your child about these signs so she can catch your enthusiasm about the potty training process. Do your research, gather your supplies and clear your schedule for your initial toilet training event.

And yes, it is time for you to get excited. Your child is getting ready to leave diapers behind!

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and has a free potty readiness log for you. Toilet train faster using her reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training readiness by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Age – Is Your Toddler Old Enough?

The first question most parents ask when considering toilet training is “what is the right potty training age?”

This is a crucial question; get this wrong and both you and your child will end up frustrated for months or even longer.

A toddler who is not ready to be potty trained will be uncooperative, confused, indifferent and resistant to your teaching. This attitude can spill over into other areas and cause difficulties between the child and other family members, too.

The solution to this frustrating scenario is to assess your child’s potty training readiness signs. There are a number of readiness cues which, when observed on an ongoing basis in your child, will tell you with confidence it’s time to begin potty training.

So while the average potty training age in the western world is between two and three years of age, that fact alone does not tell you if your toddler is ready to successfully toilet train. Some children are ready earlier than two and some are not ready until later.

Here are some common readiness signs for potty training.

- Telling you (the parent) that she is wet or soiled.

This is a great sign because it tells you that your child is becoming aware of peeing or pooping in her diaper. She cannot be expected to control those urges until she is aware of them.

- Asking to be changed.

This is closely related to the previous readiness sign. A child asking to have his diaper changed is uncomfortable with being wet or soiled. A child feeling this way may potty train very quickly.

- Waking up dry from naps or staying dry for two or more hours.

A child must be able to hold his urine for a period of time in order to be potty trained. Waking up dry is especially useful as a readiness sign. When you begin toilet training, taking him to the potty as soon as he wakes from a nap will usually result in him going in his potty chair – a success!

- Able to follow simple instructions.

In order to effectively use the potty chair, your toddler must be able to take simple direction from you. Can he put away a toy? Throw away a piece of paper? Shut a door? Give a hug?

- Be (mostly) cooperative.

The age of two is famous for being uncooperative. So making this the correct potty training age seems a bit daft.

Nevertheless, you are looking for a general spirit of cooperation in your toddler. A genuine desire to please you, because you cannot force your child to be potty trained. She has to do it for herself, with your assistance.

This is not a complete list of potty readiness signs, but if your child is showing several of these on a regular basis, pay attention! It may be time to begin potty training! (Check the author’s resource box for a free potty readiness log that you can use to determine if your toddler is ready to potty train.)

So remember, a potty training age is not a strictly chronological event. Checking for potty readiness signs is a far more reliable way to determine whether or not your toddler is ready for this important growing up milestone.

Colleen Langenfeld has toilet trained 4 kids and has a free potty readiness log for you to get right now. Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about the best potty training age by visiting her website today.

Potty Training For Girls – Using Insider Information

Potty training for girls is essentially the same as for boys but by using a little “inside information”, you, Mom or Dad, can help your little girl cooperate more fully with the potty training process.

For example, females in general are often social creatures (yes, there are exceptions) and if your little potty trainee falls into this category you’ll want to take notice and use this to your advantage.

For example, she will probably cooperate with you much more fully if you stay alongside of her during the toilet training process.

This is easy to do. Keep her potty chair in the main stream of activity in your home; even in the kitchen. Many families have several potty chairs to make it easier for a child to find one when needed, especially at the beginning of the toilet training process.

When your toddler is sitting on her potty, don’t leave her to work at this process by herself. Grab a pile of books and spend some quality time reading together. Use a small tray and color together. Sing songs and do finger plays together.

Obviously, “together” is the key word here. Potty training girls in isolation sometimes makes things harder than they have to be.

Here’s another way to use your daughter’s natural instincts to help her during the potty training process. Encourage your daughter’s nurturing abilities by using her favorite doll or investing in a special potty training doll she can “train” to use the potty chair.

She will enjoy helping her doll in this way and you will have the added advantage of learning firsthand how much she actually understands about the toilet training process by listening to what messages she gives her doll.

In addition, make sure your child’s clothes are easy for her to maneuver. Dresses are cute and seem like a good potty training choice since they don’t have to be taken off to use the potty chair, but the bulk of fabric can make it difficult for a toddler to get the dress out of her way – and in a hurry.

Letting your daughter choose between a handful of appropriate clothing choices means she will feel much more involved in the process and invested in successfully keeping her clothing dry and clean.

If there is a lot of stress or commotion in your home, then now is probably not a good time for potty training, whether you have a girl or a boy. Children need to focus on what you’re asking them to learn and it’s smart on your part as a parent to carve out some household calm during the training process.

Use a potty training chart (see author’s resource box for a free chart) to keep your toddler interested and motivated. Let her pick out stickers to use on the chart. Keeping a second chart just for her potty doll will help keep her excited, as well.

The bottom line here? Spending some time thinking about the things that interest your little girl and recognizing her unique personality will lead you to potty training ideas customized to work just for her.

Remembering that she loves approval will help you stay calm and patient with her so that she will listen to your suggestions.

Thinking outside the box will lead you to fun rewards beyond the usual candy and stickers (for example, a trip to the ice cream store when our new undies stay dry all week).

Potty training for girls is about thinking through what is best for your daughter and working the mundane details of toilet training to her advantage.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and has a free potty training reward chart for you. Toilet train faster using her charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training for girls by visiting her website today.

Free Potty Training Chart – 4 Steps to Getting the Results You Want

Using a free potty training chart is a smart way to help your child visually track his progress as he adjusts to the demands of toilet training.

Here are 4 tips for using a potty chart that will help keep this training aid fresh and useful.

1. Use rewards.

Most parents understand that using small rewards help their toddler get excited about working on the potty process. To a toddler, potty training is like a game – and you know how quickly toddlers tire and lose focus when playing games.

Small rewards such as candy bits and stickers are perfect to start with. Some kids are happy with these and continue using them all during potty training.

Many children, however, get bored with the same small prize and when that happens you’ll need to be prepared to shake it up a little and use something different, at least temporarily.

Try small prizes such as reading a book together, coloring a picture together, getting to do a “big boy job” (such as putting napkins around the table); you get the idea.

Just remember to keep these prizes small; once the child is more advanced in her training, then you can add longer goals and bigger prizes.

2. Start off slow.

At first, you’ll want to place a sticker on the chart for each and every success.

Did your child come willingly to the potty when you told him to? He gets a sticker.

Did she get her own undies off? She gets a sticker.

Certainly peeing and pooping get stickers – and lots of praise!

As your child gets more practiced you can change charts and requirements. A sticker for going to the potty all by himself without any help from mom is a sticker well earned.

3. Choose your chart.

There are a lot of different free potty charts online. Take some time to gather several of them. You’ll notice some are designed for beginner potty-ers and some for more advanced children. The truth is that while 10 potty charts look the same to you, to your child they can be completely different and each one an exciting treat for the week.

You can also use different characters or colors from day to day or week to week simply to keep your toddler interested in the process. Place the potty chart where it’s prominently displayed and your child can reach it. Make it a source of pride for your child and encourage her to share her chart of achievement with others.

4. Make it a team effort.

One trick to keep a bored toddler interested in her potty training chart is for you, Mom or Dad, to use a chart of some sort, too. Place your chart next to your child’s and let her watch you add stickers as you get your jobs done for the day.

Also, if your toddler uses charts for other activities he does throughout the day, the potty chart will become an automatic tool that makes sense to him. This can benefit him in many ways besides just toilet training.

Effective potty training chart usage means incorporating a variety of charts and rewards, as well as extending the chart usage to other people and activities. Used in this way, the potty chart is a great tool that your child can use to actually see his progress and stay excited about the potty training process.

Which is exactly what you want.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Visit her website and choose your free potty training chart today.

A Potty Training Child – How to Help Her Get the Job Done and Not Go Bonkers

A potty training child is someone nearly all adults will work with at some point in their lives.

Yet judging by the emotional stories parents share online, toilet training proves to be an area that many parents find intimidating and frustrating.

This needn’t be so! Successful potty training for most children comes down to a few basic principles.

- Is everyone ready?

This means looking for potty training readiness cues in your toddler before you even buy a potty chair. Determining your preschooler’s physical and emotional potty readiness is far more important than worrying about whether or not the rest of the parents in your playgroup are wondering when you’re going to get Suzi potty trained.

Another area that gets readily overlooked when potty training is determining your own state of readiness, Mom or Dad.

Are you willing to set aside several days to help your child focus solely on toilet training? Are you ready to behave patiently even when you don’t feel patient? Potty training a child is not something that can be added to an already jam-packed schedule and then expected to go perfectly. That attitude is a set up for failure and frustration.

- Plan, plan and oh, plan some more.

The most successful and least stressed potty trainers are the ones with a Plan A, Plan B, and Plan C.

For example, what will you do when your potty training child gets bored with this new potty game you are asking him to play?

What will you do when your sweet little cherub shakes her head profusely when you ask if she has to go potty, then stands in front of you and pees in her undies quite intentionally. Don’t think it will happen? I have four kids and have potty trained them all. Chances are, it will happen.

Obviously you cannot plan for every problem that may come up in toilet training, but you will be way ahead of the power curve if you simply do a little advance research on common potty training issues and give some thought as to how you will handle them if they come up in your home.

Those answers will prepare you to calmly handle most toilet training challenges that your toddler will toss your way.

And that brings us to our next point.

- A calm and matter-of-fact attitude always wins.

Potty training has great potential to become a power struggle. This is because you cannot force your toddler to use the potty. Only he can do that for himself.

And it doesn’t take long for a two or three year old to figure out this profound truth for himself.

Getting frustrated, yelling, becoming angry and impatient, are all signs to a potty training toddler that Mom or Dad has lost control.

Such a heady moment for your youngster.

And too much power to give up easily.

So the way to not go bonkers in potty training is – to not go bonkers.

Keep your cool. Hold your temper. Bite your tongue. And then play the potty game in a way that you can play extraordinarily well, but your toddler is clueless about.

Use clever ideas and fun creativity to convince your toddler that this potty training thing is to HER advantage.

When you can do that, your child will train herself very quickly.

So remember.

- Check for potty training readiness. Both for you and your child.

- Prepare for your toilet training adventure. Make sure your plans are in place before you begin.

- Remain confident and matter-of-fact throughout the training process – no matter how you really feel.

If you follow these steps, your child may potty train quickly or he may take quite awhile. Either way is fine actually, and greatly depends upon your own child.

Most importantly, either way you will remain relaxed, confident and serene. Which will definitely prevent any unnecessary potty training obstacles from rearing their ugly heads.

A potty training child is a child making genuine progress towards growing up. This is an exciting time, Mom or Dad, and the more you understand how to work with your child towards this important goal the smoother this special season will go for all of you.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about a potty training child by visiting her website today.

Potty Training and Constipation – Avoid These Common Mistakes

The word constipation sends a shiver through most potty training parents.

The reason is clear; once constipation begins in a toddler it can be notoriously difficult to “fix” the problem.

The child suffers. Mom and Dad suffer. Sometimes the whole family suffers.

If you’re currently in the throes of constipation with your toddler or preschooler, you want to find relief quickly through suppositories and high fiber diets (a tablespoon of honey each morning did the trick for one of our toddlers. Don’t forget to brush the teeth afterwards, though).

You also want to take a look at these long term solutions for most constipation so that you never have to deal with this frustrating challenge again.

- What’s the hurry?

After potty training four children of my own and experiencing plenty of constipation along the way, I came to realize that one of the most effective habits I could instill in my children was to teach them to take their time when it came to using the bathroom.

Let’s face it. This is not how most of us parent our little ones.

We’re always in a hurry. We’ve got places to go and things to do. After the initial days of potty training are completed, we (secretly) feel that our child knows what to do and should just do it – on command and in a quick manner.

However, that’s not how our bodies were designed.

Teaching your child to take her time on the potty chair will pay off rich dividends. First of all, you’re really teaching her to be comfortable on the potty. Kids who suffer with constipation are often anything but comfortable using the toilet.

Secondly, bowel movements often take time to occur and your child is just now learning how to relax the correct muscles at the correct time to let a bowel movement happen. You may take this process for granted, but your child does not. He’s never thought about all of this before. He’s curious. He might be a little worried, too.

An unhurried bathroom environment helps to address all these issues. Is this inconvenient sometimes? Absolutely. The nature of parenting means that much of what we do is often inconvenient.

You can either sit with your contented and regular child and talk, sing or read a book together while his body does its thing naturally or you can sit with your crying, tense and constipated child trying to desperately calm him down enough that he can let go and do his job.

The choice is yours.

- Diet matters. Really. No, really.

A lot of parents give lip service to the notion that our bodies are regular due directly, at least in part, to our diets and exercise.

We all KNOW that, right? But even as adults we often don’t practice good nutrition and exercise.

This is a great area because there’s so much we can actually control about it. Your child (and your whole family) needs serious fiber every day. She also needs plenty of water. Not too much juice and certainly not soda (keep that a treat, if at all). Frankly, if the family diet is in disarray, the chance of your toddler eating healthy are pretty much nil.

This is totally in your hands, Mom or Dad. There is a wealth of information online to help you get this done. If you need them, there are food charts, recipes and support groups. These are longterm solutions that will serve your child into adulthood.

Activity is equally important in this equation. Bodies that move…well…move! If the word “exercise” trips you up, no problem. You want to find activities that you and your child enjoy. You’ll want variety, too.

Go to the park. Run in circles. Dance to music. Play silly wiggle games. Or be more traditional and walk, bike, swim or do sports. The possibilities are endless. Just move; as often as you can. Not only does activity have the advantage of keeping a toddler regular, but it also wears a toddler out and helps when naptime and bedtime roll around.

So if you’re struggling with potting training and constipation, hang in there. Deal with the mind and attitude through slowing down and deal with the body through nutrition and exercise. Teach your child to respect his body, daily.

That’s a valuable lesson that applies to so much more than just potty training.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training and constipation by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Babies – Is it Even Possible?

Potty training babies is an idea that has been widely used around the world and throughout history. The real question for parents in westernized countries today is, does it work?

The answer is both yes and no.

It all depends upon how you define the words “potty training”.

If by potty trained, you mean a small child who can recognize the urge to use the toilet, get himself to the toilet, use it and go about his business with no help from Mom or Dad, then potty training infants is not possible, for several obvious reasons.

A baby (under the age of one) who is still learning to walk cannot perform these simple tasks – yet. (Yes, I’m sure there are exceptions out there, as there always are. However, for parents needing to know if this version of potty training is a viable alternative to waiting until toddlerhood, for most children the answer will be in the negative.)

However, if by potty training babies, you mean working with your child’s natural bodily rhythms in order to help your baby connect the dots between the sensations her body is producing and using the potty chair, then, yes, potty training an infant can result in some advantages.

Simply put, to potty train an infant, a parent will carefully and continuously observe their baby’s bodily cues for urination and elimination. When a parent notices that the child is about “to go”, the parent quickly gets the diaper off and the baby over a potty chair so that all waste goes in the chair and the diaper stays as clean and dry as possible.

Obviously, as the baby grows into toddlerhood, this child will be very familiar with using the potty chair. The connections between bodily urges and using the potty chair will probably be quite clear. It seems like an easy thing for the toddler thus conditioned to, on his own, use the toilet as he masters walking and dressing.

Sometimes this is true. However, sometimes, children who have been potty trained in this manner show surprising regression as they enter toddlerhood.

Potty training babies involves a great deal of effort on the part of the parent. To be sure, at the younger stages of training, the parents are far more trained than the infant.

Using this method of toilet training is not for every family. But for the families that do utilize it, many report a closeness not associated with other forms of toilet training. The reason is obvious when you consider that parents need to be in close daily contact with their baby to make this training work at all.

Is potty training babies the right method for you and your child? Only you can decide that. Carefully consider the effort involved and what you can reasonably expect as results.

The bottom line is, of course, that no matter what potty training method you use, starting early when your child is a baby or waiting until toddlerhood, your child will get trained! How you get the job done is up to you.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training babies by visiting her website today.

Potty Training – Bowel Movements and Keeping Things Simple

When it comes to teaching their child to use the potty, few things get parents reacting more quickly than a problem with bowel movement training.

It can be so frustrating to have some sort of success with helping your child understand what peeing in the toilet means, and then have no success whatsoever with pooping. The truth is that bowel movement training is more confusing to many toddlers.

Based on potty training my own four children and listening to a wide variety of moms, here are some guidelines to help your potty trainee connect the dots and poop in the potty chair.

– Reading the signs.

Does your toddler understand the physical cues telling him that a bowel movement is imminent? Help him out by watching him yourself for a few days and reading his body language for him.

Some kids get very quiet or go hide by themselves right before bowel movements. Some grimace or strain, or get a faraway look. Now is not the time to be shy with your child. When you take notice of any of these bodily cues, take your toddler or preschooler by the hand and usher her into the bathroom with words to the effect of “I can see you are ready to poop into the potty chair now (or whatever bathroom language your family uses) and when we feel like you feel right now, it’s time to go sit on the potty chair.”

Of course, you will need to repeat this procedure daily for as long as it takes for your child to pick up on his own cues and use the potty on his own. This may take a very long time and you’ll need to be extremely patient. It’s helpful to remember that while you as a parent are anxious for your son or daughter to complete potty training, your child honestly doesn’t care as much.

– Look for a schedule.

Just as in adulthood, many children experience a bowel movement at a similar time each day or in connection with eating a meal. Observe your child’s rhythms and begin a schedule of sitting on the potty each day at the appropriate time.

If nothing happens after a reasonable time (say, 10 minutes), let your child up from the potty chair. If your child does have a bowel movement, however, praise, hug and talk a bit about the success and how it felt – literally. This, too, helps connect the dots in a child’s mind between what you are talking about and what you physically expect of her.

– Having trouble.

If your child has experienced difficulty in passing a bowel movement before, it’s easy for him to get scared, tense up, and magnify his difficulties for future movements.

Helping a child “re-set” himself, so to speak can be tricky. The first thing you want to check is your child’s diet.

Make sure all food is healthy and contains an adequate amount of fiber. Fruits, veggies and whole grains contribute to fiber intake. Make sure that plenty of liquids are being consumed. Kids get active and forget to drink; worse yet is drinking too many sugary drinks.

Kids need plain water. Period. If you’re complaining that your child won’t drink water, then may I gently ask if YOU have adequate, plain water throughout your day.

A parent who is modeling drinking regular water will have a child who is more likely to ask for water for themselves. It really does work that way.

Natural remedies such as honey or prunes often work. I had a toddler with constipation issues and a spoonful of honey first thing in the morning – every morning – helped tremendously. Remember, if you try something like this, brush your child’s teeth immediately after the honey to prevent cavities.

Trying a natural remedy often helps to regulate bowel movements, too, which means it’s easier to spot the daily time when your little one needs to sit on her potty chair. Putting these ideas together will solve many bowel movement issues, but certainly not all.

If your child’s difficulties continue, do see your pediatrician for advice. By staying calm and matter-of-fact yourself, your child will eventually learn to read his own body language and understand what he needs to do at the appropriate time.

And remember, when it comes to potty training and bowel movements, unlimited hugs go a long ways, too.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training and bowel movements by visiting her website today.

Potty Training a Boy – What’s the Difference?

Often moms ask “is potty training a boy harder or easier?” Having toilet trained four of my own children, two of whom were boys, my experience is that gender doesn’t matter.

But personality matters – a lot.

Having said that, there ARE a couple of guidelines to consider when potty training your boy that will often make the process go a bit smoother.

- Boys are often adventuresome and competitive; even when they’re toddlers.

Use this knowledge to your advantage. Give the potty training process a competitive edge. “Can you get more stickers on your potty chart today than you did yesterday? If you do, we’ll go to your favorite park to celebrate.”

Also put up a chart of some sort for yourself. Race to see who can get the most stickers the fastest. (Adding extra water to your son’s diet will allow him to need to pee more often. Practice makes perfect!)

Knowing your son has a yearning for a bit of adventure means you need to keep the potty training process fun and engaging. Don’t expect the same rewards or methods that work on Day 1 of toilet training to still be working two weeks (or months) later.

In fact, gathering a collection of potty training resources and methodologies is a smart thing to do. At the first hint of boredom in your potty trainee’s attitude, switch gears and potty activities. For example, take the first potty prizes completely away; that allows you to re-use them later on in the process and they will feel new again for your boy.

- Watch your own attitude.

This definitely goes along with the last recommendation. If a potty training boy knows that Mom or Dad is bored, angry or frustrated during the training process, a power struggle may well ensue.

Trust me, you don’t want this.

You see, you may want your child to be potty trained yesterday, but, frankly he doesn’t care. Life was moving along just fine for him before you introduced this new game.

And that is how most male toddlers in the western world view potty training. As a game.

What you want, of course, is to smoothly turn this game into a habit. And as quickly as possible.

Most little boys will be happy to practice something as long as:

* it’s their idea,

* and it’s fun.

The moment you lose your cool (and we all do it, believe me), your little guy realizes he has power. Just by saying “no” and refusing to cooperate he can watch you swell up like a balloon.

Don’t give him this power. Retain your authority by maintaining your composure. Treat potty training for boys as a matter-of-fact part of life (which it is). Stay calm and positive. Take a breather when you need to. Stay firm when you need to. Recognize the whole process will take longer than you think (it probably will).

And celebrate each little step you and your son take. Potty training will only be one milestone you reach together. Learn how to work as a team now and you will utilize those same skills all during your parenting years for your son’s benefit and your delight.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training a boy by visiting her website today.

Potty Training Aids – What Do You REALLY Need?

If you are currently potty training a toddler or preschooler, then you’ve probably looked over the dizzying array of potty training aids available to you on the market today.

Whether it’s dolls, stickers, books, videos, targets, watches, seats or chairs – and have you seen how many different types of potty chairs there are?

The real question is, of course, which of these toilet training aids do you really need to train your child?

Here is an explanation of some of the different potty aids available today and what they are helpful for.

- Potty chairs.

Let’s start with the big one. Potty chairs. You’ll want something safe and easy to clean. A splash guard is nice if you’re training a boy. Beyond that, it’s really up to your personal preferences and which one your child is attracted to.

You can take your child shopping with you for his new potty chair, if you want, or you can think about his personality and purchase what you know will work for him. There are character chairs, musical chairs, rocking (!) potty chairs, and multi-use chairs.

One kind of chair you’ll want to consider is the portable or travel potty. Trust me, there will be times when this will be indispensable, such as in the park with no toilet, the dirty public restroom or simply when driving down the highway and your toddler cannot wait anymore.

Potty seats are different from potty chairs. They are child sized seats that fit on top of adult sized toilets. While they are convenient to use, some toddlers are uncomfortable climbing up a step stool to get on top and do their business. Personally, my kids used this particular potty training aid once they were more advanced in their toilet training.

- Potty Dolls.

Training dolls can be very useful IF used properly. An actual potty training doll takes in water and then “pees” on demand, showing your toddler exactly what’s expected of her. That clarity is often enough to train some children.

You can opt for using a favorite doll or stuffed animal from home and “pretending” potty use. That, too, helps a lot of kids, especially ones who already understand the potty process. Think about your own child and his learning style to determine if a potty doll would be useful in your home.

- Books and videos.

You’ll probably get a selection of these. Start at your local library to learn what’s available. Read and watch first by yourself, without your child, so that you can make sure the message presented aligns with what you want for your toddler.

Books and videos are potty training aids that children often use over and over – it’s the repetition that makes them powerful. So choose ones that you can stand to read/view again and again! All the better if there is a silly potty song or dance involved; those are excellent tools to keep your young potty trainee in the game.

- Targets and watches.

Potty targets are flushable items you place in the toilet and then let your child aim and shoot. As you can imagine, these are a lot of fun and highly motivating, at least at first. They tend to lose their luster quickly, so I recommend holding them back for special treats or when a child needs help getting over a resistant moment.

Potty watches are a tool you can use to help your preschooler take responsibility for getting themselves to the potty. You decide when you want your child to use the potty, say, in 60 or 90 minutes, and you set that time on the watch. The watch will vibrate or play music when it’s time to go to the potty. This can be an effective tool to help you stop nagging and encourage your child to pay closer attention.

- Stickers, candy, prizes.

Use these potty aids in conjunction with a potty rewards chart to help your child visualize their potty training progress. Generally it’s a good idea to switch around charts and prizes (keep the prizes small, by the way) to ward off boredom.

In summary, these are some of the most popular and useful potty training aids available. Give some thought as to the personality of your child as well as your own personal preferences and you’ll make good choices to get your child started with the potty training process.

You may even have some fun along the way!

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training aids by visiting her website today.

Potty Training 3 Year Old Children – Avoid These 3 Mistake

Are you potty training a 3 year old? Are you experiencing resistance or even regression?

These are common problems when potty training preschoolers, however a simple checklist of common mistakes that are easy to solve may help you understand what you need to do to get your potty trainee back on track again.

1. Ignoring readiness signs.

While most 3 year olds are definitely showing potty training readiness cues, a few are not.

Just like a handful of toddlers are ready for toilet training quite early, a few are not equipped until much later on.

That’s okay. It’s also true that if your 3 year old is developmentally delayed, then potty training may need to wait a bit. Checking with your pediatrician can clear up any confusion and give you the confidence to train your child when she’s ready and not because you’re feeling guilty.

2. Training during stressful times.

Making a move, divorce, death, changing jobs, adding a family member; all are stressful events and all will impact your 3 year old.

Honestly, the bottom line here is if you are stressed then your child is subject to that stress, too.

A calm and stable household is a very helpful thing during potty training. You will need to be able to give your 3 year old your undivided attention, not a divided focus.

Sure, everyday stuff comes up, but if you are in the middle of challenging times, plan potty training for after you’ve worked through these issues, as much as you can.

3. Going back in diapers.

It’s easy to get frustrated while potty training a 3 year old and remember that in some ways, diapers were more convenient. After all, you didn’t have to wait on your child to go potty or wonder if there would be any accidents when you were on the go. You just changed the diaper; topic closed.

Or perhaps you have a 3 year old who has decided to regress into having daily accidents. You’ve tried everything – bribes, punishments, yelling, listening – everything you can think of.

No change.

So at your wit’s end, you’ve told your child he’ll just have to go back into diapers if he’s going to act like a baby.

Maybe you’ve actually done it and put him back into diapers. And that doesn’t seem to have helped, either. He’s still having accidents, whether he’s in underwear or in diapers.

You’re so frustrated. Maybe she’ll never train!

Relax.

First things first. Take a breather with your 3 year old. Stop the potty training for a few days or a couple of weeks. Get your head on straight and your heart calm again. And let your child catch her breath, too.

Then have a talk with her. Explain that she really is big and getting bigger. Diapers are done. They are no more (in the daytime, at least). You understand she’ll have an accident sometimes, but you are confident she can stay clean and dry anytime she chooses.

Then do it. Put her back in underwear and stick to it. No more diapers. It can be very confusing for a 3 year old to go back and forth from underwear to diapers.

It may be more convenient for you to have her in diapers. It may simply be an act of frustration on your part. All understandable.

But not helpful for your preschooler.

Once in undies, stay in undies. Try different types of underwear, if you like. And make sure that when your child experiences an accident, he feels it. The more uncomfortable the better.

Over time, he will get two ideas. One, that wet or soiled undies are uncomfortable. Two, that Mom or Dad mean what they say.

Both are ideas your preschooler needs to take to heart.

So remember, when potty training 3 year old children, avoid the mistakes of ignoring readiness signs, trying to train during stressful times and going back and forth between diapers and underwear.

Give your preschooler a big hug and tell her how excited you are she’s growing up and you are there to share the ride. That’s what she’ll remember.

And that’s what is important.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training 3 year old children by visiting her website today.

Potty Training in 3 Days – Does it Work?

If you are preparing to toilet train your child, I’m sure you’ve seen the ads or heard other parents talk about potty training in 3 days. And now you’re wondering if that’s possible or if this type of training is too good to be true?

That’s a smart question to ask and the answer is not straightforward. Simply put, yes, it is very possible to potty train a child in 3 days with a solid introduction of the basics. Then that same child will need to practice their newfound toilet skills for weeks and months.

And that makes sense.

Let’s talk about how this method of potty training works.

- Intense preparation. This is not casual toilet training. This is making sure (very important) that your child is ready to potty train. There are plenty of lists of potty readiness signs online and your child should clearly be both physically and emotionally ready to train or you need to wait until he is.

Additionally, to potty train so quickly, YOU must be prepared, too. You must assemble all the tools and potty aids you need so that you can focus on your child during the 3 day potty training marathon and not need to be running to the store all the time.

There are several good guides you can buy online that will walk you step-by-step through 3 day potty training. I have already trained 4 children and I can tell you definitely that if I was starting over I would get one or more of these guides and study it start to finish BEFORE I began to potty train.

- You need a clear schedule. You and your child are going to be best buddies and teammates during this 3 day event. You’ll need to focus exclusively on your child, so it’s helpful if other children can go on adventures with Grandma or someone special during this time.

If there is a lot of stress or chaos going on in your home, don’t try the 3 day method of potty training. You will struggle unnecessarily due to the distractions in your household and both you and your child will be quite frustrated, which means you may need to “unlearn” some habits when it’s time to toilet train again when circumstances are better.

- During the 3 days of concentrated training you will be helping your child use his potty chair on a strict schedule. Usually this involves pushing fluids and Popsicles to the child and/or using a potty training doll to model the potty process. If you use a potty training guide you should follow the directions carefully for best results.

The idea behind this method is simple enough. First of all, your toddler or preschooler needs to understand clearly what’s expected of her. Then she needs to practice that behavior intensely for a couple of days so a new habit begins.

Sounds easy enough, but there are human beings involved and connecting the dots is not always so straightforward. And no matter how well the 3 days of initial potty training go, your child will needs weeks and months of practicing his new bathroom skills until he gains proficiency.

That means accidents. Maybe only a few, maybe more.

Potty training in 3 days is not a miracle method to get your child out of diapers, but it is a highly reasonable approach to toilet training if the method is followed correctly. Many parents have used this method to get their child out of diapers and well down the road to being consistently trained.

You’ll still need patience and lots of hugs. Just remember how long it takes YOU to learn a new skill and you’ll have more empathy for your toddler.

Nonetheless, if you have the time and dedication to give this a go, potty training in 3 days can be a great way to introduce toilet training to your child.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about potty training in 3 days by visiting her website today.

How to Start Potty Training – Step by Step Help

Do you have a toddler approaching toilet training age? Are you wondering how to start potty training?

Relax. I have trained four children of my own and here are the steps you need to know to begin to potty train your child.

- Is she ready?

You never want to begin working towards this important milestone without assessing the readiness signs in your toddler. In other words, you potty train when your child is ready, not when it’s convenient for you.

I know, I know. That’s frustrating.

But what you need to know is that much more frustration will occur if you attempt to potty train your child before she’s ready. If she’s not physically or emotionally ready to train she will be confused and resistant; two qualities that lead to the opposite result you want!

Readiness signs you are looking for include a general spirit of cooperation, waking up dry after naps, asking to be changed when wet or soiled and imitating older siblings going potty or wanting to sit on the potty chair. These are vital indicators that must occur at least in part before potty training can begin.

- Are you ready?

Your child will need you to be confident, calm and focused on him for the scheduled potty training session. Decide when you want to do the initial training and clear your calendar for a few days during that time.

Make sure there are no overly stressful events going on in your child’s life during potty training time. If your family life is currently difficult or chaotic, put off potty training until things calm down, if you can.

- Gather your supplies.

This includes items such as a potty chair or potty seat, easy on/off clothing for your toddler and more wipes than you can count. It can also include motivational items such as potty training videos and books, potty dolls or stuffed animals and small potty training rewards. A potty training reward chart is also a helpful tool; you can get one at my website for free (see author’s resource box).

Supplies also include any educational materials that would help you be more comfortable with the potty training process. There are many excellent potty training ebooks and dvds available that will help you know what to expect during the toilet training process and also what to do when you encounter resistance, which is normal.

Taking the time to get as comfortable as possible with the potty training process will keep you calm and patient and help you keep your child’s interest high in toilet training until the process becomes second nature.

- Put it all together.

Your toddler is ready, you are ready, your supplies are ready, your calendar is clear.

It’s time to potty train!

There are several different methods of potty training, but here is an overview of the basics.

- Prepare your child. Talk to her about what you’ll be teaching her.

- Let your child watch you use the bathroom. Modeling is important!

- Give your child plenty of fluids throughout the potty training day.

- Take him to the potty chair regularly, every one to two hours. Eventually something will happen in the potty chair!

- Make a big deal out of his successes. Be matter-of-fact about everything else.

- Repeat this process until your child is potty trained.

- Realize the initial training may take only a few days, but making the process a habit will take months.

As I said, there are too many variations on this process to go over in one article so I strongly recommend you keep reading potty training articles and discover the methods that make the most sense for you and your child.

Wondering how to start potty training is just the beginning. Research what you need to do to go from start to finish and your child will be out of diapers in no time.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about how to start potty training by visiting her website today.

Late Potty Training – When to Worry

Are you experiencing late potty training in your home? Is your child three, four, five or older and still not potty trained?

Few issues cause more worry to the parent of a preschooler or elementary aged child.

Let’s take a look at when to take action and when to relax.

- Medically speaking.

The first and smartest thing to do when faced with late potty training is get a medical evaluation. Talk to your pediatrician and make sure there is nothing medically holding your child back from toilet training.

For the majority of these children, there is not; late potty training is most often behaviorally based.

What does that mean? Usually that means there is a bright and creative preschooler who has totally figured out how to NOT be potty trained.

Pretty smart, huh.

He just needs some guidance in turning around that potential and using it to his advantage instead of to his disadvantage. Here are a couple of areas that you can address today to evaluate your late blooming child.

- Readiness counts.

Do make sure your child is physically and emotionally ready to be potty trained. Almost all children are by the age of three, but there are some late bloomers and a quick assessment of potty training readiness cues will tell you where your child falls on this spectrum.

- She won’t listen to you.

You say use the potty chair, she uses her pants.

You say be a big girl, she begs to go back in diapers.

Sound familiar?

This is a power struggle. The way out of a power struggle is to stop participating in it.

If you’ve been potty training for awhile, then your child knows what to do. There is simply no good reason (in her mind) to do it.

It’s time to put the ball back in her court by saying something like the following.

“These are special new undies I got just for you. You are a smart girl and I know you’ll do a good job keeping these undies clean and dry. Let me know if you need any help.”

Generally, at this point, less words are better. Smart kids are often excellent talkers and will keep you off center through the use of conversation.

Don’t play that game. Make sure he knows there are reasonable rewards (something he really wants) available to him once he is actively taking charge of being potty trained. Have him plot his progress using a potty chart of some sort.

Help him when he needs it – cleaning up accidents, for example – but have him do as much as possible for himself.

At this point, relax. Your child will handle it from here. Your job is to be the support person; encouraging and helping, but totally out of the way.

Warning: some potty-ers will get the message right away and train quickly at this point. Some, like one of mine, will get very resistant.

Hold your ground. Cheerfully and nonchalantly. “I’m sorry you can’t play with your little friend today, but that is a treat we agreed you’d get when you are staying clean and dry. I’m sure you’ll do better next time.”

This is when my child would throw a fit. And when she would get sent to her room to calm down. This often took a long time.

But take heart. I’m happy to report that my daughter is potty trained.

Hang in there. Mom or Dad. Late potty training needn’t derail you. You can do this. Toilet training is only the first of many times you’ll need to guide your child through some challenging places.

That’s what parenting is often all about.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about late potty training by visiting her website today.

Portable Potty Training – Making Your Life Easier

Portable potty training is a great idea that can actually make your life easier while toilet training your child at the same time.

Let me explain.

When I was potty training my four children, going out anywhere – to shop, to go to the park, just to visit friends – struck terror in my heart.

What if my potty training child didn’t want to use the bathroom at my friend’s house?

What if there were NO bathrooms at the park? (Check that park off the list!)

Worst of all, what if we were shopping and my child said the dreaded (and yet desired!) words, “Mommy, I have to go potty?”

I mean, a public restroom? With my child?

I spent more time worrying than training. Certainly my apprehension carried over onto my child.

All that’s over, however, for today’s parent!

Portable potty training tools and resources abound in today’s marketplace. They are affordable, too, giving you, Mom or Dad, excellent materials to make potty training your child on-the-go easier than ever.

You can choose from travel potties that are easy to clean (a must!), foldable (they even fit in a backpack) or disposable (no cleaning out the potty at all).

These are smart resources any family with young children can use to their advantage.

You might find, as do many families, that a combination of portable potty resources works best for your needs.

A stationary travel potty fitting neatly onto the back floor of your vehicle insures that no accidents need happen while traveling down the road. When your child needs to use the toilet, simply pull over, safely stop your car, and help your child do his business. Be sure and keep a tote bag of wipes, toilet paper and sanitizer in your vehicle, as well.

A folding toilet chair means that your potty training child can go places (think walking, biking, etc.) that would be far more difficult elsewise.

A disposable potty chair means that there is no mess to handle. What’s better than that?

One thing to keep in mind.

Portable potty training really can keep your child moving forward smoothly in the toilet training process. However, like all tools, using them appropriately is important.

For example, your child needs to have a firm grip on the basics of potty training before you expect him to do well while traveling, shopping or any out-of-the-home activities.

Your toddler needs the chance to focus on what you’re helping him learn before he becomes “mobile” with his potty training.

No product, no matter how useful, can substitute for individual experience and practice. So give your child the chance to fully understand the basics of toilet training, then, when she’s ready, by all means move on to portable potty training.

So remember -

Train the foundations of potty use first.

When ready, introduce the concept of using these new potty skills on-the-go.

Be sure and get the right resources for the job and make sure your child feels comfortable with those resources before you expect him to use them.

The more secure you both are with the potty training process, the less surprises you will have!

Potty training is an exciting time in a young child’s life. Besides using all the excellent portable potty training resources available to you, be sure and have plenty of hugs, patience and understanding on hand. This is only the first of many jobs you and your child will tackle together.

So enjoy learning from each other.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty reward charts and creative ideas plus uncover more about portable potty training by visiting her website today.

DVD Potty Training Using Live Action or Characters – The Pros and Cons

Since toddlers can get bored quite easily, using a DVD for potty training is a great way to introduce toilet training to your toddler as well as keep her motivated long into the training process.

The two main categories of videos used for potty training education are live action movies, which feature actual children explaining the potty training process, or character movies, using either celebrity characters such as Elmo or animated creatures such as teddy bears or children.

It can be difficult to decide which type of DVD will help your child the most. Let’s look at the pros and cons of both in order to make a useful decision.

Live action potty training DVDs – the pros.

- There is far less room for confusion when using a live action DVD. A toddler watching other real children explain the potty process generally comprehends what the actors are talking about. Always watch the DVD with your child the first time and ask questions to determine his level of understanding, as well as clear up any misunderstandings that can occur.

- Often the children in the DVD are a considerable ways past potty training age, making them a sort of toilet training role model for your toddler. The point is that your younger child will want to look up to and emulate the older child. You’ll have to decide if this is a good idea or not, but the process does take advantage of that natural inclination in most children.

How about the cons of live action DVDs?

- Precisely because the children on the DVDs tend to be put into the position of role models for your child, you’ll want to be sure that the messages conveyed in the DVD are what you want for your child. For example, you’ll want the stars of the DVD to spend more time focusing on potty training than on how well they sing, dance or flaunt their costumes.

Character DVDs for potty training – the pros.

- If your child has a beloved television character, watching it explain and encourage potty training is quite powerful. You don’t have to build empathy for the character, it’s already there and your child is naturally predisposed to listen to and cooperate with the character.

- Many toddlers respond positively to happy animated characters, whether animals or children. And why not? These types of characters are often warm and engaging and provide a sort of companion for your child as she potty trains. You can even take advantage of this idea by purchasing a companion doll or stuffed animal featured in the character DVD to potty train alongside your child.

What are the cons of character DVDs?

- Again, make sure the message is what you want your child to absorb. Otherwise you’ll find yourself needing to help your toddler or preschooler unlearn unwanted attitudes at the same time you’re trying to potty train.

For either type of video,

- remember that a DVD for potty training will often be watched over and over – and over again. So make sure the video is something YOU can stand, Mom or Dad!

- Look for accurate and clear potty training information as well as good use of a song, dance or a rhyme. It is quite frequent (and was true in our household) that one good potty song or dance will motivate a child to keep using the potty until those new bathroom habits become second nature.

Which is exactly what you want.

Colleen Langenfeld has potty trained four kids and helps other moms get more out of their mothering at http://www.paintedgold.com . Toilet train faster using her potty charts and creative ideas plus uncover which dvd potty training videos will help your child train by visiting today.

Children Birthdays Are a Celebration of Life

Birthday parties are perhaps the favorite and most frequent gathering. Planning a birthday party can be a difficult and time consuming task, but it is all worth it if the party is a success. Birthday parties are important occasions and should always be made special with the best of supplies available in the market.

When guests arrive at the birthday party everyone has a great time, they all enjoy the food and everyone likes when they receive a favor. When searching back birthday parties can be traced all the way back to Germany where they call them kinderfeste.

Plan the birthday party well and there is no way the party will be stressful or boring. The birthday party can be made interesting by adding special touches, by doing this the guests will talk about to other friends. Anyone who hosted a party knows that stress always seems to come with it.

For theme birthday parties always try to be original when planning them. If the party is planned with all the special ingredients the birthday boy or girl will thank you later.

Normally during birthday parties the noise level is loud from everyone talking and singing so this needs to be controlled. If there is a dress code required for the birthday then it is the host’s responsibility to notify the guests. Many times the invitees don’t know if the party is for adults or children, the nice thing to do is to indicate what type of party it is on the invitation.

A creative way to celebrate a birthday party is to display it in many different languages. When having the party in many different languages the guests are usually surprised and the children have the ability to learn some new languages at the same time. Children love something different and when there is something different they get more excited.

One of the newest type of children parties is desert parties, you do not need to include the entire meal just have a cool desert; add some ambiance and everyone will have a great time.

Those of you with babies will know that the 1st birthday parties are primarily more for the relatives than they are for the honored guest. Birthday parties are a ritual in which all family members can participate. Birthday parties are designed to have a good time, they are festive and fun, and there’s lots of good food and great party favors.

Birthday cakes are always a big hit, children faces light up when the cake is brought out. The cake takes the center stage when it is brought out, everyone likes to get a look at the cake, first to see what kind of icing, second what theme is it and third what are the decorations. Planning the party and cake does take some planning, so make a list and plan it out this will keep everything organized. Make sure the cake order is placed on time and the baker or whoever is preparing has a enough time to do so.

The possibilities are endless, and a good theme can really help pull the entire party together. Once the theme is chosen, planning the party becomes much easier. Personalized party favors are generally the highlight for children at a birthday party, and they love getting little gifts to take home.

There are so many ideas for children’s birthdays today, you can find many ideas on the internet. You can put together a special cake that fits perfectly with your party theme. When children are having birthdays they want them to be spectacular, so many parents tend to throw the parties out at a party center to give their children that extra something.

Learn more about parenting children. Stop by Ashley’s site where you can find out all about children behaviour and see the children today

When is a Child Ready for Toilet Training to Begin?

It is important to be aware that toilet training is a process and not all children are ready to begin it at the same time in their lives. Most pediatrician’s recommend that parents start the process of toilet training (or potty training as it is sometimes referred to) when a child is somewhere between the age of two and three. Starting it too young is not advisable, as toilet training has to be in sync with a child’s physical development and awareness of their bladder as well as their rectal muscles. It is around a child’s second year of life that they start to become aware of the fact that they need to go the bathroom and that they have control over these muscles. Before that age, urination and bowel movements are involuntary. Be aware that toilet training goes through stages and is a gradual transition. Some children seem to go through it more smoothly than others.

There are both physical as well as cognitive signs that your child will make known to you that let you know that the time to begin toilet training is now. It is important to pay attention to the signs and respond appropriately. If your child’s attention span is sufficient enough that he or she can play with any one toy for a period of five minutes or longer then he has developed enough attention span to be able to pay attention to using the toilet.

When your child is able to dress and undress himself with very little help from you other than a button here or a zipper there then he is showing motor skills that speak of both maturity in a physical and cognitive sense. This could be a good indicator that potty training should commence.

Other areas of cognitive maturity also play a role in knowing when a good time is to begin toilet training. A child who very easily knows where to put his clothes and toys away in his bedroom is showing enough cognitive maturity to understand what toilet paper is and what it is meant to be used for. As well he probably understands enough to be able to flush the toilet once he finishes uses the toilet.

If your child has a consistent movement of his bowels then he is probably ready for the potty. In other words if he manages to remain dry in his diaper for a period of two hours or longer and if his bowels moved approximately the same time every day then he is ready to learn.

If your child is aware that he is wearing a diaper and especially if he is aware if the diaper is wet or dry then he is very likely ready to begin the potty training process. If you ask your child where his diaper is and he points to his pants then that is an excellent indicator that he has awareness of his bladder and bowels.

If you have taught your child to wash his hands with soap and water and he remembers to do it regularly and he also seems to enjoy doing it then that can be helpful in regards to toilet training.

If your child wants to please you then it is a good time to begin. When your child is going through a stage where he is obstinate and constantly says “No!” then the process of potty training should not be started just yet.

Finally when your child can wake up for many days in a row or even a week at a time and has a dry diaper then this is good news for potty training. This shows that your child has developed a fair share of motor control.

Traveling with a Potty Training Child

Sometimes travel is a necessity while a child is in the process of being potty trained. Some parents wonder if they should put potty training on hold while they are away on vacation. To this a doctor will answer an emphatic no. Being away from home provides a wonderful opportunity to teach your child about learning to use toilets while traveling. It provides another aspect to the whole procedure that is imperative.

Potty training that takes place while a family is traveling, whether it be by car, train, plane, bus or a variety of modes of transportation carries with it new challenges for the potty training child. Before you set out on your vacation venture remember to pack a healthy dose of patient, encouragement and understanding for your child. Remember that potty training can be a daunting prospect for some children. While some children take it in stride others find it a long and involved process that they wish they didn’t have to go through. However tell your child that everyone must be toilet trained and once you have learned it, it is learned for life.

Parents should tell their children that sometimes during a vacation the child must “go before you go.” In other words sometimes you might have to go long stretches of time where you have no access to a toilet therefore even if you don’t need to go at the time it is advisable sometimes to go to the bathroom and try.

Incontinence in the day and bed wetting accidents at night can happen on trips so always make sure you pack plenty of extra clothes for your child to change into. Always put his comfort first. Make sure to pack either disposable wipes (which can be purchased at any pharmacy or grocery store) or a roll of toilet paper in the event that your travels take you where there is no bathroom (for example if the child must urinate on a child’s potty in the car) or in case you go somewhere where there is no toilet paper readily available.

Teach children what signs for public washrooms look like and encourage your child in using the ladies or the men’s room whenever possible. Accompany your child into the washroom up until they are at an age when you don’t have to worry. Some parents also worry about strangers in public washrooms and decide go into the washroom to use it at the same time as their children do. If your child is six or younger always go with him or her to the bathroom. Many children are both fascinated by bas well as frightened by new washrooms. Help ally their fears by answering their questions and being of assistance in every way you possibly can.

A child’s potty is an excellent idea when you travel in the car, especially if it arises when you are not in close proximity to a public washroom. A “potty emergency” can be prevented if you have a child potty handy in the trunk or backseat of your car. Try to give your car as much privacy as possible while using it as some children are very shy about pulling down their pants and urinating or defecating in front of family members.

Children Who Don’t Want to Potty Train

It is a fact of life that not all children want to be potty trained. Some will resist and fight it every step of the way. It is worthwhile to note that no connection has been found between children who don’t want to become potty trained and those who wet their beds. This situation can be frustrating for both the parent and the child and it is so important for the parent to remain calm and not lose their temper around their child.

In order to encourage potty training make it a room your child wants to be in. Make the bathroom warm and welcoming by hanging pictures that the child likes. Hanging up pictures the child has drawn is a good idea as well. Along the same line make the child’s potty as comforting as possible. Purchase it in a color that your child likes and allow him to decorate the outside of it with stickers or let him draw his own pictures on construction paper and then attach them to the potty.

Allow your child to have positive associations with the potty by encouraging him or her to bring a favorite doll, toy, stuffed animal or book into the bathroom when he or she has to go. By way of example have the doll pretend to use the potty to encourage the child to do so. This is an excellent time to read a book you have bought or borrowed from the library about potty training. Let your child look at the pictures and share the experience together.

Encouragement goes a long way in helping a resistant child do what he needs to on the potty. Turning on the faucet on the sink might help as it will make the child think of water which can lead to the need to urinate. Be sure to tell your child that everyone uses the toilet, as it is a necessary part of life. If you have a cat in the household you might want to point out that Fluffy has to go the bathroom too, only his toilet is his litter pan.

If your child likes to sing learn or make up a potty training song and then sing it together while he or she is sitting on the toilet. Or if he or she wants to make up his own song or a rhyme let him do so.

If your child has a difficult time passing a bowel movement then you need to soften his stools. This is a common reason that some children don’t want to use the toilet. If this is the case then you will need to incorporate more fiber into your child’s daily diet. Foods that are high in fiber include such things as raisins, prunes, prune juice and a variety of stool-softening supplement available at grocery stores and pharmacies. Prune juice is particularly good for cases of mild to severe constipation.

If all else fails you might want to speak to your child’s doctor and see if he or she has any suggestions for you that you haven’t thought of already. Let him know what stage of potty training you are at and where the problem seems to lie.

Pre-Toilet Training Necessities

Before you first introduce toilet training to your toddler you need to routinely go through four simple steps that will help make the process flow as smoothly as possible. According to doctors the key to successful potty training is “modeling language and demonstrating procedures.”

The first step in pre-toilet or pre-potty training is to make up simple names for the child’s bladder and also his bowel movements. Some people use the words “pee pee”, “pee” or “wet” to describe urine while others use the words “poo poo”, “poopie” or “jobbie” to describe a bowel movement. Make any name up you like just make sure you use it consistently so your child will learn what it means through the process of association. Learn to ask your child questions regarding his bladder and/or bowels so he can learn. For example ask the question, “Do you have a poopie in your diaper?” or “Do you want to go pee in the potty?”

The second step is to go through a “potty walk through lesson.” This can mean one of two things. First of all it can mean taking your child into the washroom and allowing him to go through the necessary mechanics of using the potty, from pulling his pants down, using the potty, wiping his bum with toilet paper, pulling his pants up and washing his hands without actually needing to do it at the time. This is practice for when he needs to do it for real. Let your child ask as many questions as he needs to and answer him in a straightforward simple manner. Or a “potty walk through lesson” can mean allowing your child to accompany you to the bathroom and watch you go through the process. Not all parents are comfortable with this as it involves the child seeing their genitals. This can be especially uncomfortable especially in the case of a different sex parent than child (such as a mother and son). Do only what makes you feel comfortable as a parent.

The third step is to not allow your child to sit around in a dirty diaper. By changing a diaper as quickly as it becomes soiled this allows your child to experience the difference between wet and dry. This helps teach your child that a dry diaper feels better against his or her body and soon the connection with using the potty will be made. As your child gets older he or she will let you know when a diaper is dirty or wet and that is what you want to happen.

The fourth step involves devising a specific signal or symbol for when your child has a diaper that needs to be changed. Make it something simple that your child can easily communicate to you. Some mother simply point to their child’s diaper and ask if it is dirty. The child then learns to point to his or her diaper when it is wet or dirty to let mom knows that it needs to be changed. It is important for a mother to praise her child for letting her know that a diaper is wet. This creates a positive atmosphere for toilet training as opposed to a negative one.

Checklist for Potty Training

Potty training is a gradual process that can go very smoothly or can provide plenty of obstacles along the way. Generally girls are easier to train then boys as girls tend to faster in many developmental areas than boys. Boys often required an extra level of encouragement and support but eventually will catch up to their female counterparts. Most pediatricians recommend that parents begin introducing their children to potty training as toddlers (approximately two to three years of age) and often you can pick up cues from your child that they are ready to move onto the next phase of potty training. For example a child that is upset when his or her diaper is wet and can point to or tug at the diaper to tell you so is ready to begin potty training. Some children will go as far as to take the dirty diaper off their own body so they no longer feel wet or dirty.

When it comes to potty training, there are certain things that you need to check off on a regular basis to ensure that you are establishing the required potty training ritual with your child. There are a number of questions that you must ask of a child in potty training mode to ensure that the process is following along on a smooth, even course. Always take the time to assure and reassure your child that you are there to help her as she gets used to this very important developmental step in her life.

Ask your child if she remembered to push her pants and her underpants as far down her legs as possible in order to use the potty, without pulling them off all together. Next make sure that your child sits properly on the potty so he or she won’t fall off. Caution him or her that perching their bum on the edge of the toilet can result in the potential to hurt oneself and/or the chance the urine will spill onto the floor. Ask your child if she feels that she has sufficiently finished emptying her bladder? In other words, “Are you all done?” Let your child know that she can sit on the toilet as long as she needs to.

Whether or not your child has cleaned herself properly is very important. Teach your child the way to wipe her bum and always tell her to wipe from front to back (as this prevents the spread of bacteria from the anus to the urethra). Teach your son that he is to stand up when he urinates and that when he sits down for a bowel movement he should wipe from front to back. Tell your child to make sure that he or she has not dribbled on the toilet seat and if so to wipe it up with toilet paper.

Once the child has finished on the toilet, make sure she pulls up her underpants and then her pants remembering to button or zip up the pants all of the way. Remind her that she must make sure both pieces of clothing are adjusted accordingly and are not twisted and turned in such a way that they will irritate her skin or movements. Tell your child to flush the toilet and then to wash her hands with lukewarm soap and water.