Background and Goal

Hello! I am sitting here at my computer tonight with the goal of starting this blog in hopes that at least one other parent can benefit from it. Potty training is not something to be taken lightly. It is a task that takes effort, patience, and persistence. Once you start, there is no going back.

I have decided to potty Evan early for a couple reasons. Reason 1 - I am pregnant and don't really want 2 kiddos in diapers! Reason 2 - My aunts, uncles, parents, brother, and myself were all trained by or right around 18 months, so I know it's possible no matter what other people tell me. Reason 3 - With reason 1 and 2 in mind, I don't want to have to pay for another 18 months worth of diapers if I don't have to!

I have done extensive research on when to potty train and the 2 schools of thoughts are either early (18-21 months) or later (2 1/2 - 3yrs) - there doesn't seem to be much for the in between time frame. People who like to potty train early do so because their child has shown signs of being mature enough (more on that below), and in general, the parents want to cut down on cost or waste. People in the older camp want to generally wait until the child really shows they are interested in being out of diapers and when potty training is only going to take a couple days. There is no right or wrong time to train your child - just remember to do what is best for you and your family, and once you start, it's best to just keep on going!

There are pros and cons to both, but I took the major cons of early training (ie: it takes longer, you still have to help the child with pulling down pants and underwear) and weighed it against paying for another 18 months worth of diapers, and in my case, having 2 in diapers, and early training won out. I will say though, I have no expectation for Evan to be night time trained by the time we're done or even soon afterward.

There are some basic signs that you should look for in your child before you start early training.
Child should be able to communicate somehow the need to urinate
Child should be able to stand and walk well
Child should be at a point where his/her bowl movements are consistently at the same time each day
Child should be able to follow simple 2 step commands (ie: "Go get the brush and bring it to mommy.")

I think that's about it on that. I may come back and edit and add, but for now, I think that's a good start.