Having a Baby

Maybe your child isn’t quite ready for potty training yet, but even if he is not, there are a number of different activities you can naturally incorporate into your daily lives to introduce the concept.

Here are five easy, effective tips you can start using today:

1. Take them to the bathroom with you and let them watch while you “do your business”. Making simple statements such as “mommy is going pee-pee in the toilet” explains the process and satisfies their natural curiosity. Casually mention “very soon you will go pee-pee in the potty, too, just like mommy and daddy”. To some parents, this is the most obvious suggestion, but others are very much concerned about their privacy and are horrified by the idea that their child would watch and start asking questions. If you consider yourself to be in the “I need my privacy” category, think about it this way: You have the opportunity to give your child the gift of growing up with the feeling that going to the bathroom is completely natural and that the elimination process is absolutely normal. You may not have been raised that way, but you can step outside your comfort zone and allow your child to feel okay about her body./li>
2. Read potty books with them or watch potty videos.
3. Comment on signs you notice, such as them pausing in play or walking as if they are uncomfortable after elimination. Use statements such as, “You are going poop,” rather than asking the general question, “What are you doing?”
4. Here is a tip I got from Ingrid Bauer’s book “Diaper Free”, which is really aimed towards infants, but it worked awesome for our son when we first tried it at 13 months: Most kids make a grunting sound when they poop. Imitate their sound while they are doing their business. When they go pee, make a sound like “ssss”. Then when it is later time to go on the real potty, you can use these sounds as a cue for them to go – it worked like a charm for us!
5. Watch your language when talking about using the bathroom. Avoid using words that will make your child think of his bodily functions as being gross or disgusting, such as “dirty”, “stinky”, “yucky” etc., since it could affect their willingness to use the potty. If they feel that something is “wrong” with going poop or pee, why would they want to learn it?

These are just some easy tips you can begin using right now, and they will make potty training much easier when the time comes.

See, you can start today!

I hope you enjoyed this article and are excited about how easy it is to prepare your child for potty training. Please pass this article on to others who would benefit from it, and also come visit my website for more free articles and other great resources!