Potty Training
Potty Training. Ugh. Those 2 words just make my heart sink a little.
As you may know, the twins have had absolutely no interest in using the potty…until very, very recently! It’s a bit of an exciting development, and I don’t want to jinx anything, but Big C actually made a poopy on the potty.
Yes. It was only one time. And yes. He hasn’t done it since. But still. Hooray!
So, even though they may not be totally ready, I’m going to get prepared for the day when they are.
Supplies
First things first. I need to get all the supplies to entice the twins to want to go on the potty.
Potty Chair
The most important thing…The Potty, of course. I went over to Amazon and purchased 2 Thomas the Train Potty Chairs. Not only do they look like that silly blue engine, but they also play the Thomas theme song when you make a pee pee…or when you press the button underneath, which the twins have already figured out.
I know we probably don’t need two, but I didn’t want fighting. Plus, I figure they can try to go at the same time. Yeah, right.
PoGO Potty Panda
Next, PoGO Potty Panda. What is PoGO Potty Panda, you ask?
I had a company contact me about trying their new potty training system. Since I need all the help I can get, I, of course, said yes. Also, the system was developed and inspired by Dr. Maria Darcy, a licensed psychologist, and her potty training experience with her children…who are TWINS! Perfect for us.
We received 2 systems, which each had a stuffed animal (PoGO Panda,) a book (PoGO Potty Panda Book,) and 2 sets of stickers for each. From their website:
All three were designed to be incorporated into a comprehensive potty training approach, “Positive Potty Training,” that Dr. Maria utilized successfully with her own children. Positive Potty Training centers around the principle of positive reinforcement aimed at fostering a child’s self-esteem and self-efficacy. Positive Potty Training is also designed to minimize the occurrence of power struggles in the potty training experience.
The boys were super excited about their Pandas. They pressed each button, listened to what he said, and hugged him a lot. They also insisted their stickers be put on their potty chairs, so we put one set on each, and will save the others for when they are ready to use the potty.
The stuffed animal is really cute and cuddly, plus they loved listening to him talk. Big C thought it was pretty funny that he said poo.
We then had PoGO try out the potty chairs too. He seemed to approve of Thomas.
Next, we read through the book a couple of times. I love that the pages are nice and strong, with bright colors and adorable illustrations. It was a cute story that reinforced the phrases that the Panda says.
Other Supplies
I also have plenty of underwear (Thomas the Train, of course,) Pull-ups for night, and wipes. I have fun, purple soap, a stool to reach the sink, and a Thomas towel to dry hands.
As soon as the boys give me the go-ahead, or when we run out of diapers, the fun will begin.
What’s Next
Since I’m not going to force the boys to use the potty before they are ready, we’re just going to keep getting used to the idea, get excited about using the potty, then find a couple days when we can devote the whole time to training. I’ll be sharing a follow-up in a few weeks.
The PoGO Potty website has a ton of great tips for how to tell if your child is ready, and how to start the process when you are. If you’d like to learn more, you can visit their site www.pogopottypanda.com, and check them out on Facebook or Pinterest. You can also win your own potty training system by just clicking right HERE.
Have you been successful with potty training your little ones? Do you have any tips you’d like to share?
My daughter (who has been potty trained for a year) saw your pictures and wants a Thomas potty now, lol. I think you’re on the right track to not push your boys before they’re ready. My second son took FOREEEEVER to train and I think it would have gone a lot more smoothly if I’d just waited. I did the three day method with my daughter when she was showing signs of being ready and I was shocked that it worked like a charm. Wish I’d known about it for my older two 😛
Yay, at least one time is a good first step! I love their potties, those are so cute – and the pandas!
These are some great ideas Shann! I never thought about how with twins, you have to double everything… haha. I know it’s super obvious, but more props to you mama!
Oh goodness! Good luck! It took so long to get our son interested in going potty. I’m kind of terrified to see what it will be like with the twins. I love the little pandas, though! I’ll have to pin this so I can come back to it’s time for the girls to start potty training.
the best tip I have for potty training is to wait until they are ready! if they aren’t ready it is just a huge headache.
Good luck, mama!
I’m not a mom, so thankfully I haven’t had to deal with this. Good luck on getting the kiddos potty trained!
Potty training was never something I looked forward to. I guess most parents don’t! Lol! I love the idea of making potty training a big deal for the kids. These potty chairs look pretty cool and I love the book!
Thank you!
OMG those potty pandas are SO cute! We potty trained my son last summer, and it was hard but I think he likes being more independent. I agree with the people who say wait until they are ready. Definitely something I learned the hard way with both my kids!
Yeah. In some ways I think the boys are ready, but not completely, so I’m not going to push it. Thanks for sharing your experience 🙂
The twins sure seem to be having fun using the potty training toys one way or another! Those pogo pandas look so adorable, love how colorful the whole set it. Hope you and the twins get through with potty training soon, good luck!
xx, Kusum | http://www.sveeteskapes.com
Our potty training is going horribly, with the exception of the occasional “pee” on the potty before or after his bath. Maybe a Thomas potty would do the trick!
Oh no! Well, I’ll keep you posted on how we do.
Potty training our oldest wasn’t too bad. We did try a couple different times, the first time he just wasn’t ready, a couple of months apart. The second one picked up on things so quickly! It was super east with him. Our third won’t be training for a while, but I’m going to look at it as a whole new experience because he is just so different from my other two. 🙂
Tips: let the twins run around naked for a couple of days and don’t tell them that they can pee in the pull ups. Just tell them they are special nighttime undies.
Great tip! I think I’ll be doing that as soon as it gets warm here.
Glad to know that companies are also catering this area and promoting it with tremendous marketing strategies to lure the little one’s for their potty training. It’s amazing!
We did a slow introduction to the potty with our oldest (currently 3.5), starting around the time he was about 2.5. We bought him underwear, put a special seat on the regular toilet, and made up a fun potty song. We’d ask him periodically if he wanted to sit on the potty. Sometimes he did, sometimes he didn’t. If he asked, then we’d put him in underwear, otherwise we kept him in a diaper. We did this for months. Probably about a year, actually. Just kinda let him know it was there, and didn’t push it. Then one day a couple weeks ago, it was like it clicked for him and he never looked back. He still wears diapers at bedtime, but otherwise he’s doing great. It’s been just under a month and this past weekend we went on a 4.5-hour roadtrip to visit family for a few days, then the same drive home, and he was accident-free the whole time!
We don’t send them to preschool, which means we don’t have the pressure of making sure they learn by 3 as many people do, so this worked well for us. Our next boy is 2.5 and we’ve been doing the same thing with him – I can’t tell if it’s going to “click” sooner for him because he’s trying to keep up with his big brother, or if he’ll just take his own sweet time ’cause that’s his personality. We’ll see. 🙂
Thank you for sharing your experience Rebekah! It’s good to hear how it finally clicked with your older one. I’m hoping the twins will start to like it and click with it too.
Ha ha! I wish that worked for the twins!
Yes, they really love them. They’ve been sleeping with them every night. It does freak me out when they occasionally roll on them and they talk in the middle of the night, though. 🙂
Exactly. Thank you 🙂