Potty training is a real hoot. Truly, it's a gem of parenthood. There are so many different ways to teach little people how to pee in the potty. There is the “wait and pee” and “potty planner” or the “eyes on the prize” or the “Panty Raid”. Let’s be honest, cutesy (and kind of disturbing) names don’t make the ensuing mess and drama any less real. Guys, there is gonna be pee. There is gonna be poop. There is gonna be a lot of mop buckets. But there is also help and hope on this journey.
My son might be one of the most natural rule followers I know. He is meticulous with cleaning his room, excellent at school, always colors in the lines, just aims to be awesome at whatever he sets out todo. When he was just 18 months old, he hopped out of the tub, ran to his Elmo potty and never looked back. There were some issues with him building confidence to go, shall we say, number 2. But we ditched wearing diapers, and switched to underwear without thinking twice.
My daughter might be one of the most creative and free spirited children I know. She intentionally wears mismatched shoes on the wrong feet. She colors a rainbow on her page with no concern for the lines. She dances like no one is watching, and laughs with her whole body. When she was fifteen months old she hopped out of the tub and pooped on the potty--and then didn't do that again for a LONG TIME.
Reese was more stubborn than her brother about potty training. Not that wouldn’t use the potty like we were teaching, but at times it was like she couldn’t be bothered to stop her game, her lunch, her…creativity to go to the bathroom. When she turned eighteen months (the age her brother was when he mastered this endeavor), transitioning her straight out of diapers to underwear just wasn’t what she needed. The kindest solution that we learned with Reese, that I'm very glad we stuck to, was simply this: TIME.
Sounds simple, doesn't it? But really, I stopped stressing out, I stopped bribing with sticker charts, I stopped giving myself straight anxiety at the thought of accidents because I just knew. I knew that Reese was different, and that as independent as she longed to be, that potty training would be OKAY. It's amazing what you remember in your child's lifetime and the things that you don't. I have friends ask me what age we started solids and with my son, I remember that he was six months old exactly. But with her, I have no idea?! I do however, remember potty training with BOTH of them.
Pretty shortly after Reese turned two, she announced that she wanted to be done with diapers. Instead of underwear [which we immediately went to with our son], we let her pick out Pull-Ups. She has always been a girly girl, and instantly drawn to everything princess related. Thanks to Comforts™ Diapers we found the happy medium, and were able to purchase their Princess Themed training pants (which she LOVED). Within several weeks of wearing training pants, Reese was able to transition to little girl underwear during the day; however, at nap and bedtime, she still slept in a pull-up. The Comforts for Toddler Training Pants that we use, have really made potty training engaging for Reese. She loves the princess characters, and the product itself is thin and comfortable. They are simple for her to pull up and down, and the flowers fade when wet, letting me know if she had an accident.
To go along with the Comforts Pull-Ups that she wears, we mostly have used their Sensitive wipes. I'm not sure at what point we'll stop purchasing wipes, I like to always keep a package in the car for meals on the go and for when and if accidents happen! These ones in particular smell very refreshing, are gentle on my kids' skin, and they serve many purposes beyond cleaning up toddler bottoms-- like teaching Reese how to care for her baby dolls for instance ;)
Now our big 4-year old only relies on a pull-up only when she sleeps at night, and they're easy enough for her to pull down, put herself on the potty, and go BACK to bed. (Motherhood goals, right?!) Thank you, Comforts for Baby brand for helping us through this process and for all my readers, these products are exclusively at Kroger® Company family of stores. You can check them out and read more about Comforts on their Facebook page here.
