Potty training boys

My son is 2 years and 3 months old, and I just started the potty training process. I keep his potty in the living room, and he wears pull ups during the day. If I ask him I can usually get him to pee in the potty, and I do so every 30 to 45 minutes. But he seems to make little pees throughout the day in his pull ups anyways. Unless I say something, he doesn't really think to use the potty. I know he has bladder control, but he will pee in his pull ups even when he only has to pee a little bit. Any suggestions on how  to potty train him would be apprieciated. How could I get him to hold it a bit longer? And how long should it take me to potty train him?

[AndiJ78]

It all depends. It is really something that you should allow him to lead on, otherwise it could turn into a major battle you won't win. This is the one area a child has control over and they like to maintain that control.

With my first, I started early like you. He started pooing in the potty before he would pee in the potty (totally reversed) We tried several methods and eventually I just let go. Let him go at his own pace and by 3.5 years he was completely potty trained. With my second, I didn't push it at all. Then one day about a week after having my 3rd son, he just started going pee in the potty chair and never had another pee accident. Less than a year later he was completely potty trained, he took almost a year to go poo in the potty exclusively.

The only thing we did was celebrated the success, they each got a simple potty prize during the first month of peeing or pooing in the potty along with a really flamboyant song and dance by mommy. It worked beautifully!

[Jenny100]

Lol I am picturing the "really flamboyant song and dance" by Mommy and chuckling heartily! That's cute!!  :)

[pertykitty]

lol caleb didnt totally do it till 3.5 too.  he had the nerve to say no you change me mommy lol.  i worked full time and i think he wanted every sec he could have with me.  we tried putting cheerios in the potty to aim at-he didnt care.  had him go outside that he enjoyed lol.  you cant be forceful, he will do it when he is ready but please dont punish or say anything bad about his peeing in his pull up.  

[AndiJ78]

***dances a jig with a jump and a wiggle***

Pee-pee in the Pot-ty, pee-pee in the pot-ty!

The kids would laugh hysterically, I think that was more motivating than the potty toy!

*takes a bow*

[pertykitty]

im going to that dance just for myself now!! haha.  its so cute to see their face when they feel proud for accomplishing a new task

[Jenny100]

Lol Wow, what we do for our kids!!!!  ha ha Too bad you can't post a video clip of that Andi!!!

[anxietyX5]

Thanks for the comments, So you think if I leave the potty where he can get to it, and just remind him from time to time, he will eventually use it instead of his pull ups?  I hope he will soon.

[AndiJ78]

Don't hope for miracles, but keep encouraging him. Don't harp, be pleasant about the process. I kept the potty chair out and with my second one day I looked over and he was using it. Not a word out of me about using it before, he just modeled his big brother.

With my first he modeled his dad and I.

And no video clip of me, but I bet I could get my 3 year old to do it for you!

[SeeingSpots]

For future note for myself, as my oldest is only 17mo., but I was talking to my dh about this the other day... uh, do you start off with your boys pee-peeing sitting down, or doing it "Daddy style" standing up?  My dh said, "Guys do NOT sit down to pee!", but I figured it might be easier at first to learn by sitting.

My ds is already going "Ewwwww...." whenever he has a wet or poopy diaper, so at least he is aware of it.  Don't know if we should try buying a potty for him yet or not though, since he can't pull down his own pants or anything yet.  Any recommendations on if we should get a ring for on our toilet seat (with stepping stool) or one of those cute little potties that sit on the floor?

P.S.  Maybe we can get Andi to record her song/dance for us tone-deaf people who can't sing.  My son actually scrunches up his nose and says "no mama" if I try and sing!

[AndiJ78]

Let's see, my boys stand to pee, always have. My little brother was potty trained by me and still at 24, sits to pee. Sad, very sad. My boys raise and lower the toilet seat on their own and don't leave dribbles (mommy trained them well, their future wives will be ever thankful)

We have a potty ring for T as it helps him to relax without worrying about ":falling in" He puts it on and takes it off all by himself and has a special place for it.

Never used those pee guard things, my little brother tried to flush his and it cost a bucket of money for a plumber, figured I would save the headache.

By a potty and set it out for him to get used to. Let him sit on it clothed, try it out. Don't waste money on the fancy ones or the ones with lights and music, all too quickly they figure out how to "trick" it into singing and it just wastes batteries ;-)

We had two potty chairs and a potty ring. And my advice with the potty chair is to always keep a little bit of water in the bottom, makes cleanup easier!

[mary345]

my son was very hard to potty train he will be 5 this july and we started at about 2 and he just wouldn't do it we even put big boy undies on him and he would actually hold it all day till i put a diaper on him at night and then he would finaly go. He just about 2 months ago decided he didn't want to wear diapers and potty trainded himself he hasn't had an accident in 2 months and even goes through the night dry. i also think that the fact that he is autistic has something to do with the whole thing but i am just very happy he is out of diapers it was getting expensive especially since i have a 15 month old and am due to have another the end of june. lol

[Crritter]

My first son was what we thought we be an early trainer.  He would stay dry all night before he was 2 and would get upset when wet.  Turns out he was just as stubborn about going in the potty.  We had him sit since it's hard to tell them to sit for one and not the other, plus aiming is not so good...Cars was okay, we did the whole song thing too, works great!  Andi, I pretty much know the song by heat too, but I bet your dance was better!  We didn't push and he did well at home, but was stubborn at daycare, then one day he wanted to go outside with the big kids out back and our daycare provider told him if he didn't wet his pull-up he could go.  Seriously that was the day.  He drug it out till about a week after he turned 3, but then he was done.  Worked out nicely as I was then pregnant with baby #2.  Watch for signs of interest, Andi is right, they kinda hold the cards here, and if you push too much, they will have nothing to do with it.  Have fun, I'll be back in your shoes in another year and a half to 2 yrs!

[Jamie21]

Hello Ladies,
was just reading this forum on potty training. I have twin boys who are 2 yrs and 4 months old, and they have reached the potty training stage. My one boy will go poop and pee and loves it and one week he will ask me constantly to go, and the next week he just doesn't care and that can be frustrating. Then the other one thinks he just has to sit on the potty and not do anything and he feels proud of himself, it gets frustrating because he won't actually go in the potty he just sits there and thinks he is doing yucky, guess as long as he is interested in the potty its alright.
Having twin boys and a 3 month old baby diapers become expensive.

[Lex09]

My son wont go pee or poop. He'll be 3 in May. And I Can't get him to go. Can someone please help me...