Potty Training Tips, Supplies and Advice.

This Potty Training tips article features a product that was sent to use for review purposes. All opinions are our own. This article may also contain affiliate links. But again, we only mention items we personally believe will be beneficial for potty training. There, silly legal issues taken care of; lets get to the good stuff. 

It’s that dreaded time every parent has to face. Potty Training. The end result is something that all parents long to happen. But getting there is the battle. They always say that potty training boys is the worst. Well; no. No it isn’t. Potty Training a special needs child is the hardest. I’ve done two boys and they were a breeze compared to my Miss Jade and her communication barriers. But after a long process; we are finally on the road to begin potty training. So I pulled out all the stops gathering up all the old information I stored away from when my boys were potty training. And I’m sharing them with you now! Hopefully we can help make this transition a little easier for you with these potty training tips, potty training supplies and potty training advice from real Moms!

Potty Training Supplies:

Lets start at the beginning. Before you begin you need to make sure you have all the necessary potty training supplies. here are the most common you will want to consider. You don’t need all of them. Just gauge your child and pick what you think would be best for them.

Books– This is for you! If you are new to potty training, or if it’s been a while, you may want to brush up on some potty training books. There are lots on the market. I remember I read Toilet Training in less than a Day and Potty Training for Dummies. I took bits and pieces from both books to help my boys potty train. I found helpful information in each one. But there are tons of Potty training books online.

Potty Chair or seat- Most small kids who are ready to potty train, are not quite big enough for a regular toilet. It can be scary, or they are just too small for that big hole. You definitely want to look into getting a potty chair. One of my favorites is the Pourty Potty chair. No cracks or grooves to get “dirt” stuck in and start stinking up your bathroom.

Or you can skip the potty chair and go straight for an extra attachment to your toilet seat. The benefit to this is that the child sits directly on the toilet. You don’t have to worry about dumping a potty chair. You don’t have to worry about finding extra space in your bathroom. It’s just super easy.

We started with the Pourty Potty chair for Miss Jade when she first showed signs of wanting to potty train. Apparently it was a false alarm and she regressed and wanted nothing to do with it. Well; I know better than to push. So we put it away. Now she is ready to potty train again. Only she is rather too big for it now. I love the Pourty Flexi-fit toilet trainer.

The Flexi-fit is the first toilet trainer that adjusts to fit any toilet seat! Seriously! It doesn’t matter if you have oblong, more round or what! The Flexi-fit actually adjusts and fits every single toilet seat in our house without sliding around! They have two prongs in the back of the toilet trainer that you can adjust to fit the toilet seat. And it is really easy to adjust to. I had our Flexi-fit out and set up fitting perfectly on our toilet in less than 3 minutes.

I also love how snug it sits on the toilet seat. When Miss Jade sits on it; and wiggles; the Flexi-fit doesn’t wiggle at all! It is very snug and doesn’t move until you lift it off. Which has been amazing at helping Miss Jade get over her fear of the toilet! When toddlers have a solid surface to sit on; it takes away a large part of the fear of the big toilet.

The Flexi-fit potty seat is made from a sturdy and smooth plastic and is contoured to make it comfortable for the child to sit on with confidence. It also incorporates a full splash guard below and above the seat to prevent unwanted spills. The Flexi-Fit comes in a stylish but discrete white with a blue rubber rim. It has really been helping us work with Miss Jade through her potty training. It is her favorite toilet trainer as well. Yes we have tried others. They didn’t offer the security seat, nor were they easy for Miss Jade to put on or off. So the Flexi-fit is a dream for her potty training needs.

You can learn more about the Pourty from their website. You can also find them on Facebook and Twitter.

Stool– if you are going to be potty training on the toilet with a toilet trainer seat; you will need a potty training stool. This is great for little ones to have confidence that they can climb onto the toilet seat themselves. But also that they can have their feet on solid ground while they sit. Plus it doubles as a stool for when they wash their hands afterwards!

Trainers– As the parent you will have a decision to make here. Many claim to just have kids run around naked. Well that didn’t work AT ALL with my kids. Not a single one of them. They hated being naked. They had to have clothes on. Silly modest kids. We had to have training underwear. You can pick between regular underwear, thicker fabric underwear, or the special potty trainers from Huggies and Pampers. But you will definitely want them out of diapers and in something that they can easily put on or take off on their own. So they are able to learn to be independent when it comes to going potty.

Flushable Toilet Wipes– Lets just say, sometimes potty training can be messy. You may find it very helpful to have flushable toilet wipes to help clean up the mess. Plus my kids hated the feel of regular toilet paper on their behinds after they went “poo poo”. They much prefer the fresh feeling of a wet wipe. Plus it leaves them a lot cleaner too.

Potty Training doll– Depending on your child; you may want to invest in a potty training doll. They have dolls specifically for boys and for girls; as they are SLIGHTLY more anatomically correct. It is just another helpful teaching tool to help the child understand how your body works and where going potty fits in. For my 2nd son; this was a must. He was terrified of going potty. After we showed him how it worked on the potty training doll and that it was normal; he wasn’t scared about the potty coming out of his body. And it made potty training for him a lot easier.

Tinkle Targets– If you have boys; who are learning how to go potty standing up, you will want to invest in these! It is basically just a fun way to teach them how to “aim” right. They have official tinkle targets online you can purchase. Or you can do it the old fashioned way with cheerios in the toilet bowl.

Potty Watch– When you potty train, you want to set up a system/schedule so you can be sure to get the toddler to the potty chair often enough. Usually the first few times getting the toddler to go potty on the potty chair is a trial and error. You have to hit it just the right time when they need to go potty for it to actually happen. Often when you take the child to the potty every 20, 30, 60 or 90 minutes; you are making sure that the odds are in your favor that one of these times they will actually go potty on the potty chair! After it syncs up often enough the kid learns that is how going potty is suppose to be. Then your job gets a lot easier.

A potty watch is just that. It’s a fun watch that you or the kid can wear. You set the interval timer and it will ring, flash lights and make it exciting that it is time to visit the potty chair again.

Reward chart– A reward chart is a must. Not only will it help to reward your child for successful attempts; but often you can use it to track a routine. Each time your child has a success you mark it. Each accident you can track as well. Although make sure not to “punish” your child for any accidents. It will work against you. After a while you may see a pattern develop and you will better be able to tell when they really need to visit the toilet.

Rewards– For a successful potty training, you will want to make it a very positive experience. Giving toddlers a reward when they actually go potty in the potty chair is a great way to reinforce the action! Often times parents use small pieces of chocolate like M&Ms, or fruit snacks, or a pretzel, or even a sticker. Just something small for each successful trip! You can also even make larger rewards such as a new book for a full week without accidents. A new toy after a full month of no accidents. If one reward doesn’t seem to spark the response you want. Just try a different reward. It took me 5 tries before I figured out my 2nd son didn’t care about anything except getting a sticker and watching mommy do a funny dance in celebration of him going potty. Once I figured it out; I did the embarrassing dance and gave him a sticker each time. He was potty trained within the day.

Books for kid– There are a lot of fun potty training books available that help approach the subject. Some of the most popular ones come from the favorite characters such as Elmo. But there are lots to choose from. Having a kids potty training book helps you to have some sit down time and be able to talk about potty time at the toddler’s level of understanding.

Movies for kid– Potty training DVDs work very similarly to the potty training books. Another way to approach the subject of potty training to your child. In a manner they can understand. And in an entertaining way.

Potty Time– Potty time is an American Sign language DVD, book, and potty watch system. This is great for those with kids who have speech delays or other developmental delays. It uses another stimuli of sign language to help the child understand more about potty training. It also gives them words if they are unable to speak them with their mouth. So they can communicate better.

Top 15 Potty Training Tips and advice

So it’s time for some great Mom advice about potty training. So where do I turn? To brilliant moms that I trust! And they have fabulous words of advice to help make your potty training experience much easier. 

1. Don’t push it. Wait for your child to be ready. We tried everything to potty train our 3 1/2 year old son. Then we stopped. About 6 weeks later, he did it all by himself. No work. No bribes and only 1-2 accidents! My best advice…WAIT. When they are ready it will happen. -Kristen from Mudpies and Tiaras.

2. Offer a reward. Our son really became interested in peeing in the potty when we told him he’d get an M&M every time he went!- Kecia from Southern Girl Ramblings

3. Sometimes it’s easier to put little boys on toilet backwards. The front of the toilet seat is smaller to hold little bums hands free and they have a much bigger area to aim into! Jennifer (mom to 3 boys) – Jennifer from Mom VS the Boys.

4. Set a timer and have them, at least, sit on the potty at set times throughout the day. Consistency is key… but only when the child is ready to start training. – Staci from 7 on a shoestring.

5. If you have a child who is being resistant to training–especially, say, pooping in the potty; do NOT push it. With strong willed children it can quickly become a power struggle and it will leave everyone exhausted and feeling defeated. If you back off and be firm but encouraging it will come! – Nicole from Wyoming Girl turned Coastie Wife.

6. Simon Says Get On the Throne! Potty training two girls, I found that getting on the porcelain throne and showing your child how to use the potty helps. Also, taking their lead, trying to force them isn’t good for either of you. Understand accidents will happen, don’t make them feel bad about it when or if they do. Always reward successes and encourage, encourage, encourage. -Nancy, Whispered Inspirations.

7. Challenge them. We have the potty chair right next to the ‘big potty.’ I set an alarm on my phone to remind me when it’s time to go, and tell Abby I’ll race her to see who can potty first. She loves it! -Meagan from Sunshine and Sippy Cups

8. Age is just a number. There are no stead fast rules that say your child needs to be potty trained by a certain age, date or milestone. Stay positive and let your child take the lead and potty training can be a pleasant experience for all. -Michele from Just 2 Sisters.

9. There is no rule you have to day and night train at the same time. Often the pressure of night training can set back the daytime goals. It’s okay to not focus on nighttime at first, it will happen eventually, and is less stressful to the child. My first son potty trained at 24 months old with very minimal accidents, but it took another full year for him to get night training down -Emily from Family Life In Las Vegas.

10. We put the little potty right in the main living area where we were hanging out. That way, it was always accessible and it served as a reminder to them and me! Gena from Life with Captain Fussybuckets

11. Gradually switch diapers during the potty training process. If you’re using cloth diapers or disposables full-time, try to use them half-time (only during the night) at first. During the day use pull-ups and/or underwear to get your little one used to the habit of pulling down their diaper/underwear before using the potty. Make sure you take them frequently when starting out- every 20 minutes -Aly from The Michigan Mom.

12. Use the naked and $75 method. 2 weeks of nothing but naked time at home with the potty seat in the living area and a reward for every success. The $75 is to clean your carpet when it is all over. It works, I promise -Diane from Turning the Clock Back.

13. Don’t get frustrated. I know, easier said than done right? But it’s true. Your child will feed off of your energy throughout the process and they’ll take your frustration as a leveraging tool against you. They know they have control over you when you react negatively to the process. -Danielle from Simmworks Family Blog.

14. Involve older siblings, if you have them. When Xander was training, ALL of the kids got an M&M every time he went. So they were always asking him, “Hey buddy, you need to go? Why don’t we try going to the bathroom?” They encouraged him in positive ways and he loved the attention. – Maureen from Made By Marzipan.

15. Let the child pick! Every time my kids are ready to potty train, I take each one to the store and let them pick out their new big boy or big girl underwear. We talk about being a big boy and big girl and the importance of keeping the new underwear clean and dry. They are just so excited for new underwear that they picked out, in characters and colors that they like! It makes them more excited to give potty training a go. – ME- Amber! JadeLouiseDesigns.com

 

We are also offering one reader the chance to win your own Flexi-fit Toilet Trainer seat! Flexi-Fit Giveaway is live from March 19- April 3, 2014. Giveaway is open to USA. Plus the first entry is simply to comment on this post, so go ahead and do that now so you don’t have to come back.

What are your top Potty Training supplies?

What are your top Potty training tips?