Potty Trained... in 3 days!

Yes, you read that right... and no, I'm not exaggerating.  I successfully potty trained Bellamy in 3 DAYS!!!  At 27 months I decided it was time to seriously start the potty training adventure.  I found an awesome post through Pinterest about potty training in 3 days (you can read it here) and I thought I might as well at least give it a try... surprise surprise, it WORKED!  I followed the tutorial pretty closely but changed a few things here and there.  Here are the main things that worked for us:

1) I planned to devote 3 full days to potty training.  This meant no outings, no laundry, no household chores, etc.  We basically lived within 20 feet of the bathroom for three days.

2) If you have two levels in your home, have two pottys.  We have a toddler potty in the upstairs bathroom and I put a toddler seat on our toilet in the powder room on the main level.  This way, where ever we were playing we had quick and easy access to a potty.  I also liked having both types of potty seats to get her used to going in the big potty as well.

3) Understand that there WILL be accidents.  Be prepared to handle them with a good attitude and don't get discouraged.

4) Before beginning potty training make sure that your child is ready.  I believe the longer you wait the easier it will be on both you and your little one. 

Okay, so let's get down to it.  Here's how we potty trained in 3 days:

Day 1:
I told Bellamy that we were going to have "Big Girl Day" where she'd get to use the potty all day long just like Mommy.  She loves to run around naked so I took advantage of this and told her she didn't have to wear a diaper or pants all day!  I set the timer on my cell phone to go off every 20 minutes, which meant it was time to try going to the potty.  Every time she tried she got a goldfish and a "big hug" (she loves giving big hugs).  When she actually went in the potty we would clap, cheer, and sing a silly song.  We made a game out of it.

Results: Bellamy only had two accidents this day.  The benefit of having no pants on was I could easily know when she was going and I would scoop her up and say "hold it for the potty!" and run her in to the bathroom.  Yes, it meant a little more cleanup on my part but it helped her to understand that the goal was to get the pee pee or poo poo in the potty.  I put her in a diaper for her nap and bedtime.

Day 2:
We started the same way as the day before with the timer and treats.  It was another diaper-less, pant-less day. 

Results: Day two was full of accidents (probably around 5).  She was a little more resistant to using the potty but the treats kept her going for the most part.  When she didn't want to use the potty I led by example and would go first and then she would get excited to try after me.  Or, if we were upstairs on the toddler potty we would try going at the same time.  When that didn't work, we would see if Suzie (her baby doll) had to go potty, and then Bellamy would show her how to try.

Day 3:
Today was the day we introduced "Big Girl Undies".  I used Gerber's training underwear and highly recommend them.  We stopped setting the timer on this day but I continued to consistently ask her if she had to go.  She only got a treat if she asked for one after going (which I believe was only once) and we still did big hugs and clapped after every pee pee or poo poo in the potty.

Results: I call this our turning point day.  Bellamy woke up dry (which is extremely rare for her!) She went straight to the potty and went all day without a single accident.  I put a diaper on her for her nap but she woke up dry from that as well (again very rare for her).  She only told me one time that she had to go potty but that's probably because I was constantly asking her before she got a chance to express it to me.  She did amazing!  I put a diaper on her again for bedtime but she woke up dry the next day as well!

We are currently on Day 6 and Bellamy is doing AWESOME!  I still use diapers for bedtime and I will most likely continue to do so for another week or two, but naps she stays in her undies and has woken up dry every day. We've been on two long shopping trips for about two-three hours each and I put her in a diaper for those (with the training undies over top), but both times halfway through she told me she had to go potty and we ran to the restroom and sure enough she pee peed in the potty. After she went I let her get rid of the diaper and she did great and went again when we got home.  I still can't believe it only took 3 days to potty train and I am forever grateful to Happy House of 5 for the inspiration and ideas.  I am beyond proud of my big girl! WAY TO GO BELLAMY!!!



Side note:

this is the potty seat we use, purchased from Walmart, highly recommend!