1. Your toddler will prefer weeing/pooing in the toilet/potty and will make every effort to do so as soon as he/she is developmentally able.
2. Your job is as a facilitator and a guide; you make the toilet/potty available regularly and provide brief instruction in its use, then let your toddler get on with it.
3. Start offering whenever you're ready; don't be surprised if your lo does nothing with it for weeks/months.
4. Communicate with your toddler. Say "I need to wee, do you need to wee?" Or "We need to change your nappy because it's wet from when you made a wee." There's no such thing as an "accident," rather there are "opportunities" for communication and learning.
5. Assess your child's development, your daily routine/schedule, and make a plan that fits both.
6. It's not a race and it's not a competition.
7. Have a "nappies saved" not a "nappies used" mentality.
8. Don't bother with knickers until your child is approaching predictable/reliable or you can stuff them with something that saves you cleaning up puddles/changing outfits.
9. Developmental leaps that are helpful (but not essential) with BLPT are:
- nascent bladder control (e.g. waking up dry from a nap)
- processing sequences
- fledgling communication (baby signs/pointing/grunts/jargon)
- following short instructions
- mimicking
- a Blatantly Obvious Poo Face
- going to a corner to poo/wee
10. Even if all you manage with BLPT is to dump poos in the toilet and let your child watch them flush away, you are building a very early association with the toilet as the place for elimination.
11. The toilet session is over when the toddler says its over. Forcing the issue will lead to negative toilet/potty associations.
12. It's okay to take days off from BLPT, but do acknowledge all requests to use the toilet/potty. E.g. "Yes, I know you need to wee, but Mummy can't stop the car right now so you'll have to wait until we get home or make a wee in your nappy."
13. It's helpful if both parents are involved. You don't want to build a "Mummy is the only person who helps me on the potty/toilet" association.
14. Enjoy the process! The eye-to-eye, one-on-one interaction is very rewarding.
. Doesn't seem to understand she'll only take herself if the potty is on the floor and she's naked, or she'll repeat weewee at you if you ASK her if she needs one. Though probably a good thing really since he thinks "keep her on the potty" means hold her down rather than read her a book for a second. I know the man works hard for a living but sometimes I dread to think of the attitude Sweetpea is being bought up with about men and women. Daddy goes to work so Mummy does EVERYTHING else in the house and with the baby, and eventually will go to work as well (though possibly not long before I die of exhaustion!), Bitter? Me?
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It could be toddler SA, but about half the time Johnny screams blue murder if DH tries to sit with him and hasn't pooed for DH in ages, which is ironic as his first poo was for DH.