Calling all moms of lil boys....

I've been asking the same question of my friends and family with boys and here's what they have suggested:

Try to start paying attention to them a short time after they've had a drink. See if you can tell when they go pee (we can all tell when kids go #2) :)

Then start asking all the time - do you have to go pee pee?

I've also been told that they are ready when they start to rip their diaper off and can pull their shorts or pants on and off.

My son is 26 months and we're just beginning to start the process. Try not to put pressure on you son regarding this subject. Good Luck & wish me luck too. We'll need it over the next several months.

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azpond is a discussion leader for arizonamoms and mother of two.

He was around 2 when we introduced the potty....we didn't push it, and I think it was another few months before he really took interest. We did it gradually.......we took him to pick out some underwear he liked with a character on it, and told him not to pee-pee on Spiderman, the Hulk, etc......we'd have him wear it for just an hour or so at first, then longer and longer and it seemed like he took to it after that. We'd prompt him to go every now and then to get him used to thinking about it.....he had very few accidents, but the ones he did have were because he was doing something he was focused on and didn't want to stop to go to the bathroom...........but I never made it punitive, I just cleaned him up and moved on. He was out of diapers completely by the time he was 3, no bedwetting or anything.

My stepmom told me to start as soon as he starts walking. Let him watch dad and talk to him about peeing where it goes little stuff. By the time hes ready it would be easy.

We started potty training at about 21mo, and it was all done by 2yrs. I got a potty seat at 15mo, and he started taking an interest around 18 mo, although we didn't really get serious about the effort unitl 21mo.

Get a potty seat early. They need a long time of seeing it around before they get the idea it is for them. Once they get the mind body connection, it's pretty quick, at least for us.

Going out in public for the first few months after you get the underpants on is a bit more of a pain, because when they have to go, they have to go NOW! In fact going potty in public is still a pain, because he doesn't like to sit to pee, and he's not quite tall enough to pee standing up at public restrooms. His parts get dangerously close to touching the edge of the toilet when he tries to stand there. Friends with older boys say this problem lasts a while until they get taller.

Let the Dad take the lead in the potty training. They have all the same parts (different scale, of course), and I think my husband found it to be a bonding experience with our son. That, and you get out of a lot of the work :)

My son showed interest at 18months, but then lost interest. He began to show interest again at 25monts. It took less than 2 weeks and he was done. No accidents! I let him run naked for a while which I think makes it easier for them to feel their body signals. We took away diapers/pull ups completely day one except for nap and bedtime. He had a sticker chart to putting 1 sticker for #1 and 2 for #2. I also found that the more I pushed him, the more resistant he was. So, remind him about half as much as you want to so that you avoid this problem. I also gave 1 or 2 M&M's with the stickers. We went shopping for big boy underwear and he loves wearing them! If you don't have a potty already, take him shopping to pick one out and set up so he can get used to seeing it. We let our son take it around the house and outside with him(in tile or wood areas), so that it was always near. After he master going potty at home, take short trips wearing undies and make sure to visit the bathroom in public. My son wouldn't use it at first(just liked to flush), but he caught on! Good thing I can pee on demand, so that he could see why went in there. Be patient and praise! My son now trains his dolls and stuffed animals! So cute!

Keep in mind that there is NO right age for potty training. Just because your husband was trained early, doesn't mean your son will. The diapers and pull ups of today are so much more absorbant than the ones we had it's no wonder why kids are potty training later. Good Luck!

My son was 3 1/2 - and so were a majority of his friends (during the 3 year old year). Pee Pee came first. Took some time for him to catch on to #2. I never pressured him. I waited until he was completely ready. I here stories all the time (especially from Grandparents) - that they has their child trained at 13 months, 18 months, 2 years... Every child is different!!! So I suggest go with the flow of what you child wants to do. Then if it is on his terms, it makes your life easier.

My son is almost 2 and he is showing a lot of interest as well. However, I am very relaxed about the whole thing, so we are not working on it very consistently. My daugther was just over 3 when she was trained (and it happened within a few days), so you just never know what will happen for your child. I would suggest getting him a potty chair or a seat insert, but really....try to make the process fun!

Hobbymommy, 38, is a discussion leader from Mesa. She is a happy stay-at-home mommy to a 3-year-old daughter and a 2-year-old son.

All my kids (4 of them) were at least two and I never had any problems with then. I really believe the age had something to do with how easy it was. They need to be old enough to understand.

Paz

I agree that, if you try to push it, the longer the whole process will last -- and there is no "right" age. For some reason, it seems to take boys a little longer than girls.

Here's what I've done with the toddlers who've been with me. After about a year old, I keep all the diaper stuff in a drawer at floor level, and I take the baby/toddler with me to fetch it. As they start walking, I'll walk them to the drawer. Then, when they're mobile and I know they need to be changed, I have them go to the drawer and bring me a clean diaper and the box of wipes (I had one Desitan addict who insisted on a third trip every time).

Eventually, I'd turn around, and there'd be a kid handing me a diaper. That's when I'd start with the potty training; the child is ready to stay clean and dry.

In a very short period of time, I've been able to shift the contents of the drawer, from diapers only to diapers and training pants to training pants and big kid's underwear to only big kid's underwear.

The most important thing is to not fret about it, and to not let anyone set any timelines or benchmarks for your child. In a national poll of the high school class of 2008, not a single one without a severe physical disability graduated wearing a diaper.

As an aside, at the time when you start with the potty, you really have to read the book "Everybody Poops". It cracks kids up. It still cracks me up.

When they are ready it will happen. I started with my first son when he was 18 months old. Now, three years later we have just succeeded. It was a hard, painful process for all of us. I tried everything and finally it just all seemed to click for him. It took the last two months to fully get him potty trained and he did the pee, poop, and night-time training all at one time. One month out now I can clearly see he was not ready. He went through the illness and death of his grandmother and a long-distance move through all of this, which was so stressful for him. I did offer every tool for him to be successful and it took him choosing it, not me. I am so proud of him and I am so proud of myself. This was my single, greatest struggle as a mother. Now onto boy #2!

arizona_mom is a stay-at-home mother of two boys, a kindergartener and a two year old. Just sharing my two cents worth. www.mops.org

I haven't read through all the replies, so I may be repeating some things. Here are some signs that I've read about that might show your child is ready to potty train:

-Stays dry for a couple of hours at a time
-Let's you know they have to go potty
-Is able to pull their pants down and remove diaper/pull-up/underwear
You also need to make sure that your child is verbal, or can communicate in some way their need to go to the bathroom. There's also bodily control; though it could be anywhere between 12 and 24 months, on average, most children learn bladder/sphincter control around 18 months old, so can "hold it". And while this may sound obvious to some, your child needs to be able to recognize the difference between poop and pee.

All this being said, my son is 3 1/2, and is not potty trained. He has autism, though, which is making it a bit more difficult for us to potty train. He has difficulty communicating (though is improving), as well as undressing. Of course, it doesn't help that he thinks poop comes from his penis!

Jennifer, mom to one special little boy

I tried to start the introducing at a year old hoping by two my son would be on his way to being fully potty trianed. Well he is three and I am still working with him. It was not until about 2 years old that I could get him to at the least pee on the toilet. His doctor told me that with boys it is not uncommon to have a harder time to get them to potty train.