Ways to Make Potty Training Fun {& This Week’s Giveaway}

As Moms, we are expected to take on many roles, perform many tasks, and teach our growing children so many things each day. One thing I’ve accepted, is that there will be some “mom tasks” I am good at, some I am great at, and then some that i’m pretty awful at, but still have to do. If there’s one thing that I certainly do NOT do well, it’s potty training. I’ve attempted potty training 5 times…. and I only have 2 children. Yes, that’s right, it never worked the first time around for either of my girls. I read websites and books, asked for tips from everyone, etc. I’d say it’s that my kids are “tough to train”, but my girls are so very different in personality, that I am quite sure it’s my poor potty training skills that are at fault here. So, if you try the “3 day boot camp” and the results are not so hot, here’s my advice (if you even want advice from a “not so hot trainer”): relax, know that eventually it will happen, and try to make it fun. 

My most recent trainee needs to be potty trained by the 1st day of school, which also happens to be her 3rd birthday. My first trainee wasn’t potty trained until quite some time after her 3rd birthday, so I was getting a little nervous. I was stressed, and knew that wasn’t going to help matters at all. So we got the 5 items pictured above and started making the potty seem “fun”. 

1. Books: Our favorite is Princess of the Potty

2. Corolle Drink and Wet Bath Baby Doll: This doll comes with a little potty and a bottle. You can fill the bottle and watch the baby go on the little doll potty. This was very entertaining for my kids. 

3. Let’s Potty board game: Even though we are done with potty training, we still play this game almost daily. My kids think it’s fun and the fact that Mom seems to always draw the “Super Pooper” card, makes them laugh hysterically. This game is as simple as Candy Land (actually very similar to it). Kids get to move ahead in the game for selecting cards that relate to potty training milestones. The Let’s Potty game certainly made our potty training a lot more fun and involved the whole family. 

  4. Get fun stickers to hand out when they “go” on the potty

5. Gold BABYBJÖRN Smart Potty

She was still not interested in actually “going” on the potty UNTIL I announced that a special delivery came in the mail from the royal castle: it was a golden princess potty, that the queen lent out for little princesses ready to give up their diapers. Well, it worked. After trying most other techniques,  all it took was a golden potty. A few days later, no tears and no accidents, we are a diaper free home (for a whole 3 months, until the baby arrives!)

The gold Smart Potty is a limited edition potty from BABYBJÖRN.  You can’t order it online, but one lucky winner will receive one. Along with sending us a golden potty, BABYBJÖRN was kind enough to offer some real potty training tips, since I am far from qualified to provide any (besides the fun ones).

These tips come from Dr. Robyn Strosaker, a pediatrician at Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital:

• Most children can be ready to start potty training between 18-24 months. Children will train easier before 24 months; some can become willful after that point.
• Both the family and the child need to be ready. Review the signs of readiness and make a plan with your significant other.
• If your child is having trouble, stop for 2-4 weeks and then try to restart.
• Find a time when you can be around during the week to start potty training. Summer vacations or holidays are the best times.

• Sticker charts are great. If your child earns a certain number of stickers, they can earn a non-food reward.
• If your child still wants to go in their diaper, take them out of it. If they are wearing underwear, they will feel uncomfortable when they are wet. If you are concerned about the mess, you can put the underpants on under the diaper. For those kids who don’t like wearing underpants, encourage them to wear them for a short time and offer rewards when they keep them clean and dry.
  • As a side note, there is nothing developmentally different between pull-ups and a diaper. Training will go quicker with underpants.

• If your child has a certain area of the house he/she prefers to go potty in, it might be a good idea to get a portable potty and let him/her try that.
• Put the portable potty in a room where the child typically plays to help them get used to the idea.

• Most kids aren’t ready to be dry at night until they start waking up dry from naps and some mornings.
• To help keep them dry at night, stop liquids 2-3 hours after dinner, depending on your child’s bedtime.
• When traveling: take a portable potty or potty seat with you, but you may need pull-ups for long car trips or plane rides.

We’ve teamed up with BABYBJÖRN for this weeks giveaway and they’ll be  sending this “royal seat” to winner! You can enter using the Rafflecopter below. Good luck fellow potty trainers! 

a Rafflecopter giveaway