Thursday, October 12, 2006
Bye Bye Baby, Hello Little Boy
The time that many parents dread has come...the taking away of the bottle.Now, we're much later in doing this than most parents for several reasons.
Snuggle Bug has always been quite attached to his "ba ba." At his 18 month doctor's appointment, our pediatrician told us that normally he recommends cutting off the bottle cold turkey. Since Snuggle Bug has been consistently in the 3% range for weight and since he wasn't drinking enough from a sippy cup to get the required daily intake of Vitamin D milk, our pediatrician advised against the cold turkey method. He just encouraged use to work harder at getting Snuggle Bug to drink more milk from his sippy cups.
For the past month, Snuggle Bug has been doing much better with drinking from his sippy cup, in large part due to the fact that both Oronzo and I have been better about ignoring his requests for a "boddle," handing him his sippy cup instead.
I think this transition of giving up the bottle has been harder on us than it has on Snuggle Bug because it forces us, in yet another way, to accept the reality that our baby isn't a baby any longer. He's a little boy.
Last night, I decided it was time. After getting Snuggle Bug to sleep, I went into the kitchen and packed all his bottles into a box. As I was packing them, Oronzo walked in and observed what I was doing. The only thing he said was, "Leave just one out, will you?" I realized that Oronzo is not totally ready to let go yet. Perhaps at least being able to look at one of those bottles comforts him, so I left one out of the box.
I shed some tears as I wrote on the box with a Sharpie "baby bottles" and then tucked them away into storage. I didn't just pack away Snuggle Bug's bottles, I packed away the sweet memories of cradling my swaddled baby in my arms, rocking slowly, singing softly, and drinking in the sight and smell of him as he drank his bottle. Oh how I will miss that time with him. I savored every precious moment of that time and now it's gone.
This morning when Snuggle Bug awoke, I made a point to take him to the drawer where the bottles used to be and I told him, "look, bottles all gone." He peered down into the drawer and repeated, "all gone." I made a point to praise the fact that he was a big boy now and didn't need bottles anymore. It'll be interesting to see if he asks for a bottle anymore. If and when he does, I'll take him back to the drawer, now filled with his sippy cups.
All to soon comes the next big milestone in Snuggle Bug's transition into becoming a little boy...potty training! A few questions for you parents out there, What signs should I be looking for to clue me in as to whether or not Snuggle Bug is ready to start potty training? Is the fact that the last 3 mornings I've found him naked in his crib, possibly because he didn't want his wet diaper on him, a sign? Any recommendations for successful potty training methods? What type of potty chair did you like?
19 Comments:
Conventional wisdom:
Does he know if he is wet or dry?
Can he tell you that he's gone?
Can he stay dry for 2 hours at time?
Can he follow simple instructions?
These are the signs most say to watch for.
Everyone is different. My sister had to potty train her daughter before she was "ready" because she was outgrowing diapers too quickly (this was before all the different types they have now) It worked. :)
I"ve heard of toddlers just shy of 14 months who were day trained.
My boyo is 15 months. He uses the potty occasionally. Most of it's me needing to remember to take him... Some of it's him getting that "look" and me taking him quickly to his potty. He ALWAYS checks to see if he's gone. I expect another couple of months and he'll be day trained, but I"m not pushing it either. :)
Let him lead...
The more you pressure the more stressed out everyone will be.
I had a lot to say on the subject, search "potty" on my blog and it will come up with past posts.
Boy, I really have to dig in my memory about the potty training. The one thing I remember is that it wasn't traumatic for us at all. I firmly believed in not starting too young. I'd read somewhere that if you start before the child is ready, you're really only training yourself to catch them before accidents happen.
Let's see. We started with a potty chair that sat independently on the floor. Then we progressed to the kind that fits on the toilet seat. Didn't want to use that kind until they were able to sit there without making it shift which would scare them. I just don't remember it being hard. I think the first sign they were ready was when they made it clear wet or dirty pants were uncomfortable.
About the bottles? That's just a hard one for everyone. It really is a transition from "baby" to "kid" which is bound to tug at your heart. I so understand Oronzo asking you to keep just one out.
We just potty trained. D just turned 3 in September and was trained a couple of weeks before his b-day. He was more than ready. He could tell us when he was wet/dirty and needed changed. He showed a strong interest in the potty. I bought a Mickey Mouse Pez candy dispenser (I know probably not the best thing to do) and every pee got one candy and every poo got two candies. Once they were gone, that was it. I did not buy refills. A couple of accidents here and there, but nothing major. Once he gave up the diapers during the day, he wanted nothing to do with them at night either and is able to stay dry all night long.
One more thing. D didn't want anything to do with a potty chair. He only wanted to use the big potty like everyone else.
No suggestions to share! Devyn has started asking "Potty too?" And I think that's a great sign she might be ready but I'm so hesitant to start with baby so close to arriving. (I'm scared she'll regress back into diapers!) Keep me posted on anything you learn.
I absolutely HATE packing up her clothes, my breast-pump, bottles, etc. It just means they're getting bigger. *Sigh*
I didn't stress out over the potty training thing and Isabella was totally potty trained in panties before 2 1/2 years (she had been going for a while, but not always) - so I can't complain. I think if there is any interest in sitting on the potty, let him do it, but don't stress out too much because it might just take him a while to get the whole control thing down. We went out and bought a seat (Elmo since she loves him) that goes on top of our seat. I knew that she needed and would like to learn to use the "big" potty. I also knew that she would probably just try to play with a little potty and I surely didn't feel like emptying it out. She loved having the new seat and the day we got it, sat on it and actually went. Of course, I think it was a novelty, not because she was totally ready. She still didn't have the bladder control. I tried pull ups for a couple weeks, but she thought it was fun to feel "cool" -- the kind of pull ups that when they pee, it gives them a cool sensation - she would laugh at this. So at that point I knew she was being able to control her bladder and we opted to go to panties. What worked the best for her was to give her little rewards, after she would go in the potty, we would let her wear her panties that she picked out and I put a big "calendar type of thing" on the bathroom wall and she would get a sticker after everytime she went -- she loved this, the child is addicted to stickers!!!! Oh and sometimes after she went we would sing a little potty song that we made up -- she loved to do this as well! :) Of course, every child is different and I don't think just one method works, my nephew is 8 months older than Isabella and wasn't potty trained until recently - just about nothing was working for him, it finally just clicked with him. I would say, get whatever seat you are going to use, sit him on it and see if he's interested - if not try next month. If so, just keep asking him throughout the day if he wants to go and see how it goes. Just don't stress out about it - just find what works for him!
And I know how you feel about the transitions!!! It makes me sad that time goes by so fast -- even though I've enjoyed every minute of it, it still has flown by!
It's funny how those transitions always seem to be harder on us then on them! Sounds like he's well on his way to being find w/out the bottle though!
Good luck with the potty-training! We liked the kind of chair that you can take the top off and put on the regular toilet. I didn't like using it as a small sized one just for the fact of having to empty and clean the bowl of the little one! :)
I agree the transitions are way harder on us than on the kids!
He will rock with a sippy cup, wait till he goes to a regular cup...then he will be a big boy!
Becca showed signs around her second birthday for potty training, however every kid is different.
It would not hurt to introduce it!
OW, All three of my kids were weaned from the bottle at 12 months. Our oldest son Kevin won a baby race on his birthday! We used the sippy cup to egg him on...it was so cute!
Boys and girls are different when it came to potty training the boys were much harder for us. They were both about 24 months. The doctor did not advice us to start to early as not to discourage them. We used the little attachment on the big toilet, so height did play a part. Our daughter came automatic pilot, seriously, we sat her down and walah! lol We also used a sticker book and jumped around and said yipee and bravo and cheer them on like we were happy as could be. :) All kids are different, you will know when the time is right and if not, give it a rest and try at a later date.
Your post made me cry, but then I'm already an emotional wreck about Miss I's accelerated transition from babyhood to new found independence.
As for the potty, when he shows interest when others use it, that's a good sign. We have one in the bathroom, and she tries if someone else is in there, but we're going the very low pressure route for now because of her early experiences.
When my son was ready (two and a half) it took a week, and I'd rather do that again than on and off for six+ mos.
Awwww! It is hard when they start to grow up. I have 6 my youngest is nine. Every stange is hard.
First, awwww... you made me nostalgic and I still have a baby in the house!
Second, potty training. La lalalalalalala hands in my ears cuz I can't hear you saying that awful awful phraselalalalalalaLA!
Um, every kid is soooo different. Don't get too excited over little progressions without being prepared for serious regressions. Best piece of advice I can give you.
If you CAN find something that works for him, great. But there isn't, unfortunately, one magic way to potty train a kid or know when they're ready. More the question: Are YOU ready? Ready to brave the potty battle? Lord help us all. Invest in serious paper towels, Shout, and liquor.
I have to say the only reason I quit nursing right before one year instead of keeping on is because I was SO ready. But it was a hard time.
Sorry I've almost disappeared from the blogosphere! I have been SUPER busy, but I've gotten alot accomplished.
Good to read your blog again!
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When it comes to potty training I am the wrong one to ask. It was so hard with both my boys.
My first was PT at 2.5. She was hard to train. The PT itself was fine, but she refused to use a bathroom outside our house, and it made for some very stressful times. Eventually I took to carrying a tube of mini M&Ms to bribe her to go while we were out. My second daughter PT at 22 months. She started showing interest at 17 months, but my son was born when she was 18 months, so I didn't do anything about it. Then when she started showing interest again and the baby was 4 months, we started. I was really low key, figuring she was so much younger than my first was that she might not be ready. Well, she fully trained in about 2 weeks, and I was astounded. When she went at first, I would give her an M&M, and she was thrilled. Then after a week or so she was pretty consistently using it, so I bought her some Elmo underwear and made a big deal out of it (she loves Elmo). Told her not to get Elmo wet. She loved the underwear, oh and the treats aren't necessary for very long. She still has occasional accidents, but overall she is great, and no aversions to foreign bathrooms like my older one. I will say that while it's a pain to empty the little potties, sometimes it's easier for them to use them (heightwise) but also because it can be hard to do #2 if your feet can't touch. Had this problem with my first (but then she was my resistant to change child). I am going to work on getting rid of the little potty (using rewards, not just taking it away, because I don't want her to backslide) now. Check out the flip-n-flush that attaches to the seats. Those removable ones would slide out from under my little one, and she fell in.
I hated PT, but it really only took us two weeks.
You could always introduce him to it, give hugs and rewards when he "goes" in the toilet and then just see if he's ready. It may be fun at first, but then he'll get frustrated. I didn't push it with my daughter. Every kid is different.
Good luck, you'll do a great job. ;-)
I remember trying to potty train my first. She wasn't ready. I waited a few months and then it was a piece of cake. I think you just have to wait until they are ready.
I was kind of the same way with the bottle. Maybe living on a farm I just wasn't worried about it. I mean I breast fed my first for 14 months. She pretty much weaned herself and bottles were so nice at the time. She drank from a bottle until she was 2 and then she wanted the "cup". We didn't have nice sippy cups like you do nowadays but tupperware had cups with lids and little holes so that worked nicely.
All my kids were different. Some needed the bottle longer than others, they all potty trained at different ages.
I think kids are the best "teachers" so to speak. Snuggle Bug will let you know when he is ready. Don't rush it. At 18 months he is still a baby.
Oh, I forgot -- when potty training throw in a cheerio and have him aim for it! It's a cute little games by two boys and all my nephews enjoyed...but wait until he is ready :)
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