If there is one thing that parents of toddlers should know about potty training, it is that each child will follow his or her own unique path to potty independence. There are many ways to approach potty training, and each method works well for some children. The question of when to begin potty training is as big of a decision as the method that you will use.
At my house, we are employing a laid back, no pressure approach to using the potty. We bought Dylan a potty when he was about two years old. He was curious about it, so we sat him on it and explained what it was for. Months passed, and the potty sat in the bathroom unused. Sometimes I would ask him if he wanted to use the potty, and he would say “no” in a very matter of fact way. Some days I wondered whether he would ever learn to use the potty.
By the time Dylan was two and a half, he would use the potty a few times each week. Around that time, my friend and her son came over for a play date. Somehow, the boys got into the diaper bag and Dylan found his friend’s Lightning McQueen Pull Ups. Of course, he wondered why his diapers did not have Lightning McQueen on them and asked me whether he could get some like his friend had. This was my opportunity to have the conversation with him about training pants, and what their purpose was.
The first few weeks in training pants resulted in no more trips to the potty than the diapers had, but by early July that was beginning to change. I had talked to him about knowing when he needed to use the potty, and he was starting to recognize when it was time to go. Potty visits increased to almost daily, sometimes more than once a day. He even stuck with the potty program on vacation and did very well. The other day he made even more progress. We were playing ball in the yard and all of a sudden, Dylan put down the ball and headed for the house. I asked him what he was doing, and he said that he needed to use the potty. As I followed him to the bathroom, I realized that we are truly on our way to potty independence. Dylan had voluntarily stopped doing his favorite activity because he felt like he needed to use the potty. I know that we are far from potty independence, but this is very encouraging.
