It’s true, our 18 month-old is potty trained. She rarely has accidents, and keeps her little pink Dora panties dry all day long. She wears thick training pants and plastic covers for naps and cloth diapers at night, but let me tell you that having a fuss-free day with no bulky diaper bag to tote around is wonderful.
Granted, experts might recommend potty training at a later age, and in fact the school psychologist still remarks to my husband about the potential damage we’ve done to sweet Summer Elizabeth, but bottom line is, it worked for us & I’ll happily try it again with our next child.
Before you begin potty training, it’s helpful to get your little one excited about the process. Prepare your toddler for potty training by reading potty training books, watching all the YouTube videos you can find (here’s Summer’s fave), talking about the bodily processes going on when you change their diapers, and even developing a “potty” hand signal with them that you use when you go to the bathroom yourself or when you know they’re eliminating. It might be a good idea to invest in a toilet with a soft-close lid (Toto toilets offers these) as that will eliminate the worry of slammed fingers. All of these things will help your toddler understand what will be expected from him when the time comes.
Keep reading:
- Part II: Tools for Potty Training Success
- Part III. How to Potty Train Early {The BIG Day!}
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Oh man, can I tell you how glad I am that both of my boys are older and have been potty trained for several years now!!
Our experience really wasn’t bad at all. It was incredibly much easier & less mess than I’d imagined. Thanks for coming by, Robin!
Totally couldn’t agree with you more and my second was also pretty much fully potty trained day and night by 2 years old. I think the earlier the better and loved not having to carry around a diaper bag either. Thanks for the wonderful advice and also another great linkup this week!
Honestly, you need to do what works best for you, your child, and your family! Thanks so much for hosting this — I always love your tagline of “moms cultivating moms”. Such a sweet thought! Hope your week is going well. 🙂
Damage? I think my mom had me potty trained by 18 months old. Violet though young has started showing an interest when I use the bathroom and I encourage that. I let her explore the bathroom and tell her what I’m doing. I figure it can’t hurt!
Reading this gives me hope! Oliver has been showing signs of readiness for awhile now (telling me ‘clean nappy’ when it needs a change etc) and is very interested in the toilet. So today I got him his first potty, some books, training pants etc. I am really looking forward to reading more tips!
Believe it or not, Summer showed no signs of real readiness when we tried this. She still didn’t sign “potty” or let us know when she had to go. She seemed pretty content in diapers too, so I was incredibly happy when she picked it up really fast. For us, the “readiness signs” that so many experts tell you about just weren’t necessary. Hope the upcoming tips help you out, Luana.
Wow, Jelli! This is inspiring! We have a 19 month old but believe it or not, I have never considered potty training her before! This is GREAT! You’re amazing, and I so much appreciate the resources you mentioned… Will look into them all!
Blessings, my sweet friend…
Wow, that’s awesome! Now I feel behind on the game! Sofia is 19 months old and while I think she shows some signs that she’s ready to start potty training, I haven’t made an effort yet. I think I’ll read up on some of your past posts and at least get a potty for her to “use”. How long did it take you with Summer? It would be nice if I could have Sofia almost potty trained by the time baby #2 comes in September.
Finally linking up for the first time in a WHILE… 🙂 Thanks for the potty training tips. My little one is now 15 months old and I am watching her for the signs. She is starting to show *a little* interest in what Mommy is doing when I go to the bathroom, so the spark is starting. I will be looking forward to your next installment!
So glad you’re back, Carrie! Here’s hoping the series will help your little one get out of diapers faster than you’d ever expected. I read all about your baking for Kate fundraiser this morning. You did a great job putting that together!
You are clearly too nice. I would have it the gal who said it was damaging! Each child is different and unique and does everything in their own time. My sons…they were much later but my daughter potty trained herself! I did NOTHING and she never had an accident after saying she wanted to pee in the potty! Congrats on raising a “big girl” and thanks for hosting!
That’s awesome, Jelli! 18 months potty trained is really wonderful and you at least have one less thing to worry about! 🙂
By the way, I have a new blog now, so don’t get confused about the URL! 🙂
My sister is about to start the potty training process with her little one, so I will tell her to check out your site!!
I sure hope she and her child have a great experience. It isn’t nearly as terrible as some people might lead you to believe.
that is awesome that she is potty trained!! I hope I can do that with my daughter!
It’s definitely worth it to at least try starting early. You’ll know within a day or two if she really “gets” it or not. Thanks for stopping by, Katie. I hope the remainder of your pregnancy is smooth & wonderful!
For medical reasons, my youngest sister got started with potty training at 11 months–and I know that the rest of the family sure appreciated how quickly we didn’t have to change diapers any more!
Sounds great to me, not changing diapers so early. I know some people do elimination communication super early, but completely PT’d? Awesome. Thanks for stopping by, Rachel.