Guest Post by Judy R of What I Live For

Potty Training

Potty training…a task many parents approach with trepidation. I doubt any parent dives into potty training their child thinking it will be effortless. I also doubt most parents have any idea how much work potty training will be if this is their first go at it.

When I first started potty training my son at 2 1/2 I thought it would take a month tops. I stayed home for almost 2 weeks with him focusing on staying clean and dry, and I knew that there would be accidents and frustration for a while. I was well aware that it would take a considerable amount of effort on both of our parts.

I didn’t know that there would still be occasional accidents over a year and a half later (though by this point, they are very rare and he usually cleans up after himself). I had no idea that wetting the bed is common up until age 7 or 8, and that most doctors won’t do anything about it until your child reaches that age. I was clueless that I would be wiping bottoms over a year after starting potty training. Basically, I was completely ignorant as to what I was about to face and frankly am still facing many, many months later.

I spent great amounts of time scouring the internet looking for advice, checking out potty training books at the library and asking practically every parent I know how they potty trained their children. I just wanted to know that I wasn’t the only one going through this.

Ultimately, these are the things I learned:

• “Potty Trained” has a different meaning for every parent and child
  


• Every child is different and will master this task at their own rate and in their own way
  


• I was causing much more stress than my son ever was…my attitude, in focusing on all the minor failures we were experiencing, was holding me back from seeing all of the progress my son was making.

Once I was able to realize that my son was ok-that in fact he would not go to college in diapers (probably the number one piece of advice I received from other parents!) and that attitude had a lot to do with how well I felt we were doing, potty training started stressing me out a lot less. We still have our struggles and I am by no means thrilled to be starting the potty training process soon with my youngest son, but knowing that it will happen eventually and in his own way and time, it is a lot easier to face.

Judy blogs at What I Live For where she seeks to find the things in life that bring her joy. Come join her as she shares crafts, kids activities, recipes, tips and reviews/giveaways. You can also find Judy on Facebook and Twitter.

Please leave comments and your thought below. Does anyone else have any great potty training stories???