Potty Training Pain

My first Daughter decided one day she wanted to potty train, and three days later she was done. Even through the night, she very rarely wet herself. Like once every six months rarely. It was amazing. How did I do it? I have no idea. She's just one of those awesome kids that pretty much potty trains themselves.

My second daughter is still young enough that she has interest, but isn't ready to actually potty train. My most helpful advice is: Wait until they are ready! I tried to get my oldest to do it a few times, it always ended badly. But once she decided it was her idea, it was easier than I could have ever imagined.

Seriously, you can't force your child into it. It won't end well for either of you. They will be screaming, you'll want to sneak into your closet with a chocolate bar and have a good cry yourself. It's just no fun. If there's one thing pretty much all kids are, it's stubborn. Therefore, I don't have anything that I can guarantee will work for you. But, here are a few things that seemed to help us:

1- Let your Child watch you use the restroom. It will make it seem cool and totally normal. Put a baby potty in there so they can sit on it while you use the big potty.

2- Let them pick out their own underwear. My daughter loved that, and tried really hard not to get her new princess panties messy.

3- Act like it's a huge deal. I mean HUGE. Like you just won the lottery big. When my daughter went in the potty I would clap, tell her what a good girl she was and dance around with her yelling "YAY!" It made her want to do it again.

4- Accidents happen. Don't shame them for it, they'll probably be upset enough as it is. Just tell them it's ok, it happens to everyone and eventually they won't have accidents anymore.

5- It's ok to give up and try again later. Kids may be interested but not totally ready. Don't compare your child to others. They all get there eventually. :)