Why I Don’t Push Potty Training
You know what doesn’t bother me at all?
Changing diapers.
I mean, I’m not LOOKING for more excuses to do it, but now that I have a potty-trained child, I recognize how much easier life is with diapers for a good long while.
(And any mom who has been in the far back corner of Target with a full cart and then is told by their 3-year-old that they need to go to the bathroom right. this. minute knows just what I’m talking about).
When I was pregnant with Ani, lots of people asked me if I was going to try to potty-train Ella before Ani was born so I wouldn’t have two children in diapers.
But I was pretty sure the last thing on earth I wanted was a barely-trained child when I was.
Also, Ella just didn’t seem quite ready to me, and I didn’t want to push it.
When Ani was about four months old and settling into a regular nap routine which meant we didn’t leave the house as much, and Ella, a few months shy of three, seemed ready to make the leap, we went for it and she was fully trained in a couple of days with only a single accident (and no temper-losing on my part).
Waiting a few extra months made all of our lives easier.
And now I’m in no hurry to ditch the diapers for Ani. Maybe this fall, when we’ve settled in to our new home and she’s getting closer to three.
But in the meantime, I don’t mind a bit having two children in diapers.
I am also feeling superbly grateful to have partnered with Munchkin and their Arm & Hammer diaper pail, since one downside of having a big house is that it’s a total pain to take the diapers out to the outdoor garbage can multiple times a day.
We’ve never owned a real diaper pail before (I’d used other peoples’ when I was babysitting in the past and when they were opened, they smelled so terrible, I decided it was just better to make the walk outside frequently), but this one not only seals off after every diaper, but also sprinkles a little bit of baking soda in after every diaper to eliminate the smell.
Plus, I’ve been working really hard in this house to get things I actually love, rather than just whatever the cheapest thing available is.
When I bought a shower curtain for the girls’ bathroom, instead of buying the white plastic one for $2 like I have every time before, I sprang for this one which cost a whopping $20 instead (yes, I really know how to spend – and yes it did seem ABSURDLY expensive to me).
Every time I go in this bathroom, it makes me happy to see it.
And I was equally happy to swap out my ugly $2 trash can for this sleek diaper pail.
Since I plan to have at least two and a half or three more years of diapering (and probably more if we have a fourth child), I anticipate many many many days of being delighted by how good-looking it is.
So refreshing to read this! I also do not push potty training and feel like we are a dying breed! We wait and it is so less stressful. My first daughter was over age 3 before she was dry 24/7 and my son was a little over age 2, but they both trained when they were ready. My younger daugher is 2 years and 1 month and not trained yet although she does love running around in the buff so maybe soon 🙂 And every single time I have had a baby (#4 is due in June), I have also had an older child still in diapers (except the first time of course). I'm with you, it's not so bad.
Have you mentioned where you got those aquatic prints? Love them!
Ok, I feel like I am going crazy? I swear when I read this post in my email browser there were some aquatic prints as the very first picture, but now they are gone? I remember there was a Nemo fish and an octopus and then I couldn't really see the rest. My in-laws surprise decorated my kids bathroom while I was out of town which was super nice, but it is also extremely kid-ish which I tend to avoid. So I am looking for ways to make it slightly more mature and those prints looked perfect! But now I am so confused because the picture is gone! Hah
I totally just got that shower curtain and it was on clearance for $13.98. I absolutely love it and based all of my bathroom decorating around it. Ah! I'm a long time follower but don't comment very much. Love your blog and all your recommendations though! Thanks!
I TOTALLY agree with you. Accidents in underwear make me far more squeamish and irritated than changing a diaper. And, like you said, being out with multiple children when one of them has to use the bathroom is something of a disaster. So I don't push it until they're close to three either.
Yup. I'm cool with the double diapering for now. My older son was 100% done, day and night, by 2.5 years. My middle son? He was pretty much trained at 2.5, and then he, well, wasn't. Some kind of control issue or manipulation, I think, because he's that kind of child. But if wants to wear diapers for now? Fine with me. He'll be three in July. For some reason, this is A Big Issue with my husband, but until he's the one dealing with toddler accidents involving excrement–plus a baby–he has no say in the potty training decisions. So basically, never.
I had three kids in diapers at one time after Lily was born. That was awesome. I agree that it's not something worth stressing both mom and child over.
Thank you! I needed to read this. I was stressing because my son, who will turn 2 next month, is no where near ready, and I'm having my second child in August. I also do cloth diapers, so besides taking up more drawer space, the extra washing is no big deal. I just felt the pressure that I "have" to do this. My son isn't even talking yet, so to try to teach him the potty is just something none of us are ready for. Thank you for making me feel abundantly better about it! Yay!
I smiled to myself as soon as I read the title of this post. It's nice to know someone feels the same was as I do! Just had my 3rd a couple weeks ago and my 2nd is almost 2 and I can't tell you how many times I was asked about the whole potty training thing! No rush here either – diapers are SO much easier for everyone involved!
Same here too. My kids are a little over 2 years apart, and it didn't take long for the baby to be wearing the same size diaper as the toddler.
Both kids basically potty trained themselves. My son right at 3 and my daughter shortly before. The best part of this is we never had to do the "abandon the cart and run for the bathroom in target" thing because three year olds are old enough to hold it a little.
That's so funny, I literally just bought Evelyn some undies on amazon right before I clicked over. We're those crazy people who do it really early because we hate changing/buying/throwing out diapers. I did Atticus a few weeks before he turned 2 because I didn't want two kids in diapers. We loved it and it worked out really well for us, but I know lots of people that feel the same as you and prefer to wait. Evelyn already tells me when she has to poop, so we're getting ready to jump on that train again!
Yep. The Tiny Dark Lord was 3 and that was fine by me, even though buying flipping SIZE SIX diapers stings a bit. But he had such a hard time adjusting to the new baby, I'm sure toilet-training on top of all that would have been a train wreck for both of us.
A friend recently read that the toilet-training age has been going up in the United States, with one possible reason that parents are willing/able to keep buying diapers for longer in exchange for the convenience you mentioned. My own parents had 3 kids in cloth diapers at one time and disposable diapers were still seen as a super-expensive luxury, so I'm sure they were much more motivated to get us potty-trained ASAP.
I share the same sentiments. I especially appreciate diapers on road-trips.
Oh, potty training is the worst. Stuck my little girl on the potty… nothing, and then within 2 minutes, she peed on the carpet in her room. Ughhh. My mother in law had 4 boys and a girl and said that she found 2 years 10 months to be the perfect age to train boy or girl. I'm thinking I may just back off!
Amen. Long car rides are so much simpler without a brand-new potty trainer, too. Due to some unexpected circumstances, Jonah was 3 1/2 before we potty trained him, and it took a little over a weekend. That said, Caroline was practically begging me to potty train her at 2, so I did it. The whole process was more stressful, but I'm not sure I cared enough to try to force her to wait.