Happy Friday, lovelies! You know what today means- Friday Five link-up.
I thought I'd change things up a smidge and do my Friday Five on a topic. Today it's all about the potty- potty training that is. There are endless resources out there for this topic and I've found some great ideas to help make the transition a smooth one.
We have been potty training since about mid October. Mary Grace does great when she needs to 'tee-tee', she's good about saying 'I potty' to let you know. When it comes to the other, we are not so good. She let's us know after the fact. I think a lot of it has to do with her tummy woes and the fact that she poops so much during the day. Still, to be shy of two, I feel she's doing a great job! Our goal is to be in big girl undies by her second birthday.
Here are a few tips that we use to make potty time a bit more enjoyable.
One. The Perfect Potty
When you are potty training, your whole world revolves around the potty. Since you will be spending a great bit of time in the bathroom, it's good to find the right potty. We chose the Munchkin Arm & Hammer 3-In-One potty chair {$25 at WalMart or ToysRUs}. I like that it has odor control, built in side compartment for easy access to wipes, and it's just the right size. We've recently transitioned to having the toddler potty seat on the big potty, and we use the base as a step {or my seat ;) }. It's highly recommend finding one that grows with your little one- it will save you money down the road.
Diapers are a hassle when potty training. We use the Huggies Little Movers Slip-On diapers. They are super soft, plus they can still open up like a diaper for when you need to change a messy little one. While I haven't used them, Pull-Ups are a great option as well. I chose Huggies because I get more bang for my buck. Pull-Ups tend to be on the pricey side.
We use a simple little chart to help keep track of MG's successes. It's really more for my benefit since it's a visual of how we are doing each day. Other than flushing {which just thrills her}, she loves putting a sticker on each time she 'goes potty'. Pinterest has dozens of cute, free printables. I have been printing ours off, but I plan to laminate one and use a dry-erase marker to make it easier, and save ink :)
 |
| Our sucker station :) |
We reward with dumdum suckers. The first couple of days though, Mary Grace would want to go potty every five minutes just to get a sucker. After her first 'tee-tee' it just clicked with her- I think it was the sound. Now we only reward when we have actually 'gone potty'. Sometimes we sit and nothing happens, I verbally praise her for trying, but there's no reward. Lately, we've stopped rewarding 'tee-tees' since she's good in that area, and instead are rewarding the 'boo-boos' since that is where we need to work. I've even seen parents keeps 'Potty Bags' filled with $1 toys as rewards {for completing a row on the chart, etc..}. I like the suckers/skittles- cheap, easy, simple.
During the first few weeks you will spend quite a bit of time just waiting on the magic to happen. My little one would get restless and fussy. To keep her happy an on the potty as long as possible, I kept a small basket of educational toys/books for entertainment. It's less used now since she recognizes the urge, let's me know she needs to potty, and gets right down to business. It was a life saver in the beginning, though.
If you are in the potty training process, or plan to be soon, I hope these tid bits help! If you have any suggestions or ideas, please feel free to share!
Happy Friday! I'm looking forward to a fun, relaxing birthday weekend!
No comments:
Post a Comment