Do you have to go to the bathroom?

    Do you need to go to the bathroom? This phrase is being repeated over and over again here at the Vanden Top's for the second time. Thankfully my oldest is past me asking her over and over again and can go by herself, so it was on to the next child. They say child number two will be easy, the older one will help her, ect.. ect.. But the first one took a whole year to complete this process in totality so when my youngest turned 2 the thoughts began again, when and how to start this process. I write this to encourage any mom that whether it is the first time or last you can do this simply and with less stress when you pick what works for your family and roll with it. As my mom has told me, when it gets hard, "Molly when she leaves for college she will be able to go to the bathroom all herself!" Meaning- it will happen and connect and be over soon!

   There are so many schools of thought for the potty training processes and I do not pretend to know how this goes. I just remember cleaning up lots of pee all over. My oldest and I tried the three day intensive of no undies, one close space to the bathroom and entertaining them in this small space to be able to catch them to go to the bathroom at any moment. Talk about stressed. We set up shop upstairs big old tarp on our carpet, a potty seat on a Tupperware, to us buying a fancy potty is just not a must and filled with toys around. Did it work? Well, it started the process and kept the potty from our carpet better than just running around and not knowing when she peed trying to find potty spots to spray. Peeing was easy for my oldest it took a year to actually get comfy going number 2 on the potty without crying or asking for a diaper. (And all the moms with stories of crazy moments we high five here!)

 So this time we are doing a second child version. ( If you have 2 or more it gets more and more relaxed as you repeat things- not stressing as much).

For our version you need:
1. A potty seat for traveling or using on the toilet in the bathroom (we add a storage tub that fit and is clear so you can hear and see when they go)
2. Cleansing spray- we use vinegar and water mix to help clean up and sanitize spills- also to spray the inside of the tub we use after she peed we poured it into the toilet, wiped, flushed, and washed before given a star.. (We do sing the Daniel Tiger potty song to... didn't think we would but it stuck so we are using it!)
3. Regular old Tarp- we use one to cover our main carpet room to make it easy to find spills. optional
4. Reward chart- print one, buy one, write on a piece of paper if you are using this method. We find it helps motivate her more. optional

Set up:

We take a large tarp to the room we use a lot to play. We have so much carpet so we protect a bit. We also use a tarp to travel with us to play around the house to help keep most of the pee off the floor. (if this seems stressful don't do it just have clean up towels ready). Traveling potty seat as shown in the picture above goes with us outside to play and into rooms, we play in. This is just for the beginning and will soon turn into the bathroom only. First, we are just trying to catch the pee as much as possible. 

   So we tarp our main carpeted room and started with 1 pair of undies to start the day and taking them off once they were peed in. So she has run around the upstairs playing with my other daughter and if she peed we would get to that potty seat on the Tupperware and then get a star on a chart to encourage her to finish at least on the potty.  Then as it progresses, we add more and more regulations such as not peeing in her undies for a few days she gets a small prize or going for a few days without being wet during the day etc. These take a while to add but have helped motivate as the process takes us a while accomplish. For us this process is done better when we are not super busy with vacations and can carve out a few hours in the morning and afternoon to practice undies and potty inside and outside. PS. Summer is great I love to potty train when we are playing in the backyard too so there is less clean up!!

This is a 3 dollar chore chart turned into a potty chart! Last time I made my own and used stickers but I love that this is magnetic and we can reuse the stickers. 

Our relaxed schedule looks like:

700 wake up- take off diaper put on undies and sit on the potty for a minute to remind her
           what we are doing.

7- 12 using the potty often, no diapers (unless we leave) 

1-3 nap time diaper

3-6 try using the potty with or without undies 

6-7 we use a diaper just to give me a and her a break from always thinking about it and if she hasn't pooped sometimes it gets her time to get out anything left from the day. 

7- bedtime- diaper

Remember:

1. It is up to the kid.
       I found this out after the first (1 year till she pooped in the potty). You may want this to be done but the kid really has control. Try to relax in that, they will get potty trained. You can't pee for them..

2. We leave the house or change our schedule slap that diaper on.

  I have learned that since rule number 1 is true for kids then allowing us not be stressed and never leave the house or have to travel with so many towels and clothes for the first bit is freeing for me. Find your breaking point and remember they will be potty trained.

3. They will be potty trained but it will take time.
   It could be perfect and work in 2 days or take 2 years or more, you don't know and can only encourage them to practice but you can't pee for them so don't stress yourself out comparing them to other kids just do what works for your family and be ok with the process! You got this!

I write this to encourage. The way we have tried to potty train doesn't work for everyone just spreading the words that you can do this but keep it reasonable! No need to rush something you are in very little control over! Blessings as you begin this journey. 


2 weeks since started writing this UPdate: My Youngest did about 3 days of a movable potty on the tarp being at home or outside the home but close to a potty and then has gone potty on the big potty with no tarp protection. She picked up the pee thing pretty well with a few accidents and she tells us when she has to go now. We have filled up her chart 4 times (crazy how many she went at the beginning just to get it all cleared out). We do not have the poopy thing at all still poops in her undies at the beginning of the day but like it says #3 takes time. we have started implementing some little rewards to encourage her with her stars stickers and trying to sit longer to try and poop!  It has not been so stressful this time and with a long-term plan, we have been less demanding allowing her to do her business and learn from it. We are doing a day out of the house today taking a potty seat and trying to have undies for most of it. Wish us luck!