Hi,

I think the time is coming soon that I have to start PT. I have no idea how to start. I do know my girls like to sit on the toilet with a potty seat and do not like the small potties. I would love to hear stories from experienced potty training moms!

thanks

Karen
mom to ggg trips born 4/5/07

HiKaren,
My GBG trio is one day younger than yours and I am also at a loss. Currently we have "naked time" which consists of about 30 minutes of them trying out the potties, but so far no one has actually gone. They get the concept, but we're just not there yet. I'll be following this thread with interest.
Hang in there.
Kelly

I did have them sit on the potty occasionally. However, I waited until they showed signs of readiness before potty training. One DD showed signs before she was 2.5 but she wasn't interested in really training. I just decided to wait until she was older.

My other DD woke up dry one night. I took that as a sign and started training her. She was ready. Then I used the fact that Abby had cute panties to motivate Katie to resume potty training. I knew she was capable but it wasn't going to work until she decided to do it.

After the girls were trained I tackled my DS. He wasn't showing as many signs but I needed him trained before preschool. I stuck him in cotton training pants with nothing over them one day when I knew we would be staying home for a few days. I didn't have him wear other bottoms so it would be less laundry for me. (it was summer) Then, I just took him to the big potty or had him sit on the little potty frequently. Predictably, there were a lot of accidents the first few days. In less than a week he had a breakthrough and the accidents became fewer.

You need to use cloth training pants or the naked method so they can feel when they go. Pullups are great for leaving the house and overnight but they aren't great for actually learning to use the potty.

Lori

http://yesidohavemyhandsfull.blogspot.com/

I started mine naked in the backyard when they were 2.5 and I carried around a hose and a shovel. I wish I was kidding.

Michele
Sarah, Gregory, Amanda
born 1/22/04 at 35w1d

Our surprise baby Austin born 06/15/2005

www.fourtimesthefun.blogspot.com

I had a hard time with my guys, but I did it..finally! I found that training them one by one worked best. I tried training them all at the same time, but it was too much poop and pee to handle!

I also used a manual timer. I started off at 20mins intervals and worked them up to 40 mins. After that they didn't need the timer and would just tell me when they'd have to go.

I tried the naked thing too....it didn't phase my trio, they did their business everywhere.
Also, my sister in law really helped me out and assured me that once you go to undies, there's no going back to pull-ups.

Good Luck!

Mary
BBB Born 07/01/2007 - Happy Canada Day!

We started last week. We'd been talking, reading, playing with dolls and doll potties for a long time. They had all started asking to go on the big toilet and actually going, so I thought it might me time. I got 3 little ones form Ikea and put them in the hallway. I did three days of "potty bootcamp" with them in training undies. I really stressed it, seemed I did nothing but deal with potty, toilets and wet clothes all day. Totally exhausting. After taht I put pullups on them. Felt like going backwards, but I needed to reduce some stress! They're doing pretty well. Still some wet pullups, but they will all go on their potties and often on their own!!!!! I do offer a sticker or a tiny snack when they go, which helps with motivation (sometimes!) I've wished I hadn't started a few times (it's much more work!), but I guess you gotta do it sooner or later, and I think they were ready. Good luck!!!!!

GGB miracles born 9/07
34 weeks!
Emma 4.4
Lauren 4.11
Andrew 4.9

I started this past summer when they were about 2.5. Naked outdoor training did NOT work for us at all. I had 3 IKEA potties outside and a potty seat on the toilet inside. I had one DS who would literally poop on the concrete next to the potty, rather than just sit down and do it.

After all that, I gave up for a couple of months. While they were still wearing diapers, I gave them the opportunity to sit on the potty several times a day, just to get used to it. Then I phased to offering underwear for about a month, and just dealt with the accidents of whoever was wearing undies. I still had 2 that would pretty consistantly choose a diaper.

About 2 weeks ago, I decided this it was time to totally ditch the diapers except at bedtime. My kids always handle transitions best when we go cold turkey. It's been a messy 2 weeks. Some days, 1 or more of them will not have a single accident all day (even thru their nap). Then there are days like today, where they all pee in their underwear about every 30 minutes, despite the fact that I get them to do potty pit stops about every 45 min, remind them to pay attention to their bodies, etc. It's maddening.

If I had it to do all over again, I would have just ditched the diapers one day, and skipped all the other crap I did, which is proving to be a total waste of time.

Jenny
single mom to spontaneous BBB 34w 2d

http://lilypie.com>

We have been potty training my DD for about 2 weeks now.

About a month back I decided to see if my trio was ready to be potty trained. For the following month every time I went to the potty, they went with me to watch me go. I would make a big deal about myself going in the big potty. Then after about a month of them watching I let my trio go naked one day. I explained to them if they needed to go potty to tell me and they could sit on the big potty like Mommy. My DD peed in the floor 2 times before she realizes what she was doing but after that she started to come tell me beforehand. I knew she was ready to start. Neither one of my DS realized they were peeing until it was too late. I decided my DD would be first. I found that she did best when she was naked. The panties gave her a false security, so for the first 4 days I kept her lower half naked. She is now starting to wear panties during the day and has had 1 accident a day at the most.

One DS is now starting to show some interest but it has been so much work with DD I am waiting to start him a little later.

Tanna

06/22/07 29 weeks 4 days
Lincoln 2 lbs 13 oz
Colton 2 lbs 14.4 oz
Dakota 2 lbs 11oz
http://tannastriplets.blogspot.com/

We also started last week, well, re-started for one of them. We have talked about it for months, my Mom came for a week and one of my DD thinks Mimi hung the moon so I thought she might do it for her. We just put panties on the girls first thing and set a timer for every 20-30 minutes. I rewarded success with candy (bad mom) but it' been a week ( a very long stressful week) and so far today no accidents! I did not try my DS yet, he is not at the same level as the girls maturity wise. Good luck, I think this is one of my least favorite parts of parenting...

Kelli
GGB 28.3 weeks 5/3/07

http://yesihavemyhandsfull.blogspot.com/

My dh and I always take the week between Christmas & New Years' off as vacation time so last year we dedicated the entire week to potty training. We talked it up for weeks and told them the day after Christmas we were having a "potty party." Santa left them panties in their stockings and the next day we put them on first thing in the morning. We tied a helium balloon to each potty (they said Happy Birthday but who cares - they can't read) and had special treats throughout the day and unlimited juice (they drank more and therefore had more opportunities to practice). We put a chart on the fridge for each child and they got one sticker for pee and two for poop. It was a gross and stressful week but really by the second day they were getting it and by the end of the week pee accidents were minimal (poop took a bit longer for them to get).

Good luck!

-Christine