This post was sponsored by Acorn Influencer, all opinions expressed are my own.
On March 31rst, 2013 my beautiful daughter Esuun was born (her name is pronounced E-Soon). Now that it’s 2015 she is 2 and a half years old, she can count to 40, knows almost every nursery rhyme and loves Macaroni and Cheese. She has always been ahead of my other 3 children and had learned to walk at 7 months old and knew her entire ABC’s at the age of 1 years old. Once it came time to potty train her I knew it would be a struggle.
My experience with my first 3 children were a huge learning curve for me. It seemed as though every method had to be changed or they had to learn it differently. Finally it clicked, why not make every instance she goes to the potty a fun experience? Why not gather products that I trust to assist me in this adventure. Essun and I packed up and headed to Sam’s club to see what we could find.
The first thing on my mind was a tissue for her bum, I headed to the toilet paper aisle in the store and found an awesome deal. Charmin is this mom’s FAV tissue brand. I know, I know you’re thinking well what makes it so awesome? Well in my opinion it’s the cadillac of all the tissues and withstands the wear and tear my kids seem to cause. It’s super thick which means you need less to get the job done. Which means more tissue for the next person!
Out of the two choices, Ultra Strong or Ultra Soft. This mom picked Ultra Soft, I love my tissue paper super soft. It’s perfect for my little 2 year old’s bum, as well as my other 3 big kids. When I picked up the tissue I noticed on both packages, each pack gets an extra 1000 sheets! This is exclusive to Sam’s Club and will only be available for a limited time. So if you want to score this amazing deal, make sure you head over to Sam’s Club and get your’s now! Now that I had my tissue I made my way to the book aisle to find a book for her to read.
I found a Mickey Mouse Musical book that seemed to catch her eye, I will be using this as a gift for her whenever she goes potty. As a reward for going potty, she and I can sit down and read one story together. She loved that idea and gladly agreed to this proposal. I also found some balloons and a box of her favorite stickers then headed to checkout. 
Once I got home I laid out my supplies and got to work on the stage (the bathroom)
The Stage
What I found amazing was that if I turned the bathroom into a party zone, she was more excited about going. So I ran and grab some balloons and blew up as many as I could without passing out. Filled the entire floor and let her walk in. She was more than excited to see one of her most favorite toys and couldn’t stop smiling. She loves to grab her own tissue and loves to do all of her little dirty work herself. I’m so glad Charmin can withstand her attempt and keep her tiny hands clean. I also let her know when she enters the potty that once she finished she would get to receive some stickers, and read from her Disney Jr. Musical Book.
Although we had a lot of happy moments when she made it to the bathroom, sometimes we were just a little bit to late. But that’s okay. This is an entirely new learning experience that she and I are going through. I love that she keeps trying and is always excited to get her little surprises at the end.
So! Here are the 10 Things I learned:
- Not every child is the same and learns differently with the potty.
- Make going potty a party! Fill your bathroom up with balloons and clap every time you enter.
- Get a toilet paper brand like Charmin that you trust to take care of successful potty trips.
- Stickers make everything fun! Get some stickers that your daughter or son will love to show off.
- Timing is everything, you make think you have her schedule down pact, but surprised can happen so be ready for that.
- Go potty with your child, sometimes both of you sitting down together can really help them learn what to do.
- If your child is a “big kid” skip the normal potty and just get a seat that connects directly to the “big person potty”.
- Don’t hoover, let them sit alone in the potty a few times so they get used to doing this on their own.
- Use pull ups until the child is ready, then remove them and try to go a day or two without them. I would not recommend pulling them off diapers quickly and suggest you slowly and gradually take them away. Eventually just putting them on at night, then none at all yay!
- Have fun! This is something fun and amazing, and isn’t easy. Laugh, giggle and enjoy this learning experience with your child and rejoice in every accomplishment or fail. Because you can only fail if you tried, and trying is the first step to learning.
What are your potty training stories? Share with us below your ups and downs in the comments below. Offer helpful advice for other mom’s or ask question’s for other mom’s to help answer.
A party zone is a good idea. My boys loved doing the sticker chart thing. It’s all about making them comfortable and happy!
I remember those days! We had more of a problem with our son not wanting to stop playing to go. If he was doing nothing he would remember, but when a friend would come over there was not getting him on the toilet.
Potty training has definitely been different with all three of my children as well! My daughter had a large vocabulary and she was potty trained at about a year old. It was so simple and quick! My two boys on the other hand have speech delays, my middle child didn’t potty train until just before (like the week before) his FOURTH birthday! My nearly 4 year old (youngest) is still not potty trained, he will be 4 years old next month, but he has started school and I am really hoping this will help him potty train soon.
Great idea about turning the bathroom into a party zone. It reminds me of a similar concept I heard about years ago.
This is some great advice. I really think making it fun helps a lot. We had a sort of sticker system too.
Potty training can be tough and challenging. Thanks for your the tips!
Potty training is such a milestone for kids. I will pass this on to my friends with kids just hitting that age.
I agree, kids are really different when it comes to potty training. It’s nice that your daughter is now learning and you are learning too along the process.
A potty party sounds like a great idea. Potty training your kid can be a real challenge.
I love charmin! I wish you patience and luck on your potty training adventure!
It has been years since having to potty train but I do remember it got a little easier with each child. My third daughter was potty trained so fast because she wanted to be like the big girls.
That is a pretty awesome idea turning the bathroom into a party zone! Full of pink balloons who wouldn’t want to go in there?
Your daughter is adorable! I love th party scene going on in your bathroom…LOL!! And Sam’s always has the beast deals on paper products, I get all of my toilet paper, wipes, paper towels, trash bags, and baggies there!
Great tips! I think #10 is the most important, because if its not fun, they’re not going to do it.
Tips like these are truly helpful and useful, especially for first time parents. Thanks for sharing this up!
I potty trained my daughter last summer and I’m so thankful it was an easy process. With my oldest it wasn’t such a nice experience.
Great idea about turning the bathroom into a party place! I brought shelves and my son’s accomplishments as he moved forward, would be displayed there, so he had rewards to look forward to..
Doc Mcstuffins pull ups? That is amazing, hope it comes to South Africa soon. We don’t have much of a variety.
I have 5 kiddos that have been potty trained and I have found that each one was a little different to potty train. The reward system and stickers worked really good for us. =)
Ahhhh we are doing the whole potty training thing with my duaghter right now!!! Not as easy as the Internet makes it out to be lol
What finally worked for me w/my last one was a toy train (matchbox size). I’d run it up and down the wall while he pottied. I don’t know why it worked, but it did, lol
Your post is something that ever parent with a toddler should read and learn from. IT is a challenging and yet exciting journey for both parents and kids.
I totally love the balloon idea! Potty training don’t have to be stressful, we can make it fun. I wish I knew this before! lol