Monday, February 20, 2017

The Great Potty Training Adventure!





I have read a lot of blogs on the  brilliant topic of getting the small ones out of nappies, and after sharing some ideas we used for both our boys with friends recently, we were delighted to hear our tips worked just as well for them. So why not share them with the readers of my Blog?

Now, I don't profess to being any kind of potty training guru in the slightest but, a few years ago (how time flies) it was time to tackle the subject head on...The huge expense of having both boys in pampers (25 CHF a pack out here) was becoming ridiculous, we seemed to spend as much on nappies as gas for the car and furthermore changing nappies was, of course, not my favourite way to spend a significant chunk of my day..

We had tried some time before during a previous hot summer with the trusty potty but, BIG absolutely hated the thing, he'd rather go on the floor than sit on the bloody pot!

Then, one day,  Nana sent over a great book from England "Pirate Pete's Potty" All about a little kid getting used to doing wees and poos on his potty and not in his nappy. (I believe there is a girls version too.) The book has a charming little story with some lovely illustrations and a little button that rewards a good result on the pot with an enthusiastic cheer! The book worked well with BIG as he loves stories and it at least made him want to have a go at the task in hand, if only just so he could get a cheer by pressing the little button. Unfortunately BIG still hated the pot and despite a few weeks of almost getting there, BIG would rather go in the nappy...  He knew exactly what he was supposed to be doing and even insisted on pressing the little cheer button each time he did something in the nappy.....Thanks to Pirate Pete we were almost there but, ultimately I had to go back to the drawing board...






Later that year I was away with the band in France for a few days, staying with the bassist and his young family one night we were sharing stories on toilet training (maximum Rock n Roll)  His wife said "Oh you must try the little toilet steps, the girls hated the potty so, we found these and they started using the toilet immediately" Off we all went upstairs to the bathroom there sat a little set of robust and colourful plastic steps that sat on the existing toilet seat, brilliantly allowing little ones to safely climb up and use the toilet, there were even a couple of handles for them to cling on to....bloody brilliant!!!





I ordered said Toilet Step from eBay and we eagerly awaited their arrival, in between times I came up with the idea of an award chart...Our boys are very competitive and love a little challenge...


The idea is the child get awarded a sticker for each wee or poo they do on the toilet / potty and after several successful attempts they get a small prize... for BIG and later on Small,  this was a ChupaChups lolly....when the ultimate goal of being nappy free was reached, the Grand Prize was a much prized Star Wars Lego set. I set a target of one month to be free of the Pampers forever....






And so the steps arrived, the Pampers were ditched and replaced with "Pull up's" and the chart was duly put into action, BIG was super keen to impress and despite a couple of small accidents, he was going great guns in the first week, there were a few times he just was so engrossed in whatever he was doing he couldn't make the bathroom in time, the Pull Up's were a bit of a godsend there...

BIG absolutely loved the steps and felt like a proper big boy by using the toilet, he also loved sticking the stickers on his chart and was able to see his own progress..the surprising side effect was that small, who at this stage was still a little too small to potty train, also wanted to sit on the toilet steps, and did so often whilst still wearing his nappy, it got him into the habit early simply by watching his older brother...


Anyway, after 17 days of stickers and prizes, BIG was out of nappies for good and 6 months later we did the same with small. The plastic steps allowing them to use the grown up toilet, coupled with the excitement of a sticker chart and the prize incentive, certainly provided our two hooligans with the required amount of enthusiasm to make a sometimes painful and thankless task, relatively simple.

Finally we were nappy free, my early morning super sensitive nose was extremely thankful, I seemed to have much more time on my hands and we had saved a significant chunk of cash to boot!

So to all parents out there doing the whole potty training thing, stick with it...there is a light at the end of the tunnel, honest.  Your nose and your bank balance will thank you in the end, just find a suitable form of inspiration for your little ones and you'll be nappy free in no time!






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