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My son turned 3 last weekend.

My older son had woken up about 3 months before turning three, we hadn't even tried potty training, but he owned a potty and undies, and said "No nappies today Mummy." And that was literally it. He had two accidents over the course of a month, but other than that, he was 100% potty trained from that day.

Well, my toddler is *super* smart, and he loves to be like his older brother and sister and I thought it would be a cake walk, too. Gave him a potty and undies for his second birthday but jsut had them around the house, like with my older son.


Nope. And not only nope, but he wouldn't tell us if he pooped, and would just sit in it until I realised (you can imagine how long that sometimes took with a nursing newborn), so daily I was scrubbing poop off him.


He would RAGE if I asked him to use the potty.


I looked up stubborn potty training tips. Nearly all them started with "Sometimes you just have to wait. 4 is not uncommon."


And my brain panics. My son is in the 2 year old class at preschool but they'll boot him out if he's not potty trained for the 3 year old class and he won't have turned 4 when it starts.


I tell my husband we just have to do it. We lasted a morning, he kept deliberately peeing anywhere but the potty.


Well, last week at story time he picked up this book https://www.amazon.com/Big-Boy-Underpants-Fran-Manushkin/dp/0553538616


We got it Thursday and read it every night. It's extremely cute and funny.


On Monday night he said "Big boy underpants tomorrow!"


And so we did. It has not been the quick transition it was with my older son. He's done 2 out of three poops in his shorts, and an average 66% success rate with wees. The first day was about 50%, the next was close to 100% and yesterday he had three accidents. One he forgot I'd brought the potty outside to play and tried to get inside and couldn't hold it anymore, the second time he forgot to take his undies off, but was actually sitting on the potty (all successful wees he manages himself) and the third time he was 100% being a deliberate jerk.


But! We have gone out of the house with undies a few times, including to a playground and he's asked to go in time and he did three wees at preschool on Wednesday. And yesterday he was in full insane toddler meltdown mode, stopped, used the potty and resumed his tantrum.

Also, he LOVES to stand up at the regular toilet like his dad and brother.


So, I guess my advice is obtain some books and add them to your rotation so it seems fun and exciting.


Also, I cart the potty everywhere. Upstairs, downstairs, outside. The first day I set it up like a little desk, so he could have his toys in front of him and watch TV. It was great that first day, but it wasn't necessary the next two days.

​

So I specifically got new toys so they would be new and novel for the flight. New books, especially touch & feels books which my daughter loves, plus a couple all-time favorite books. For snacks, i found online the best idea that worked wonders - use a flat fishing tackle box - the kind that you can add dividers to ( https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B000E3C3NU/ref=ppx_od_dt_b_asin_title_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 ). Fill with all sorts of snacks, new and old favorites, and its the toddler sampler platter. Worked great and fit easily in my backpack. I just new if I packed a couple of her fave snacks, that would be the day she decided she didn't want them.

We also made sure to arrive at the airport early and left hubby with our stuff at the gate and her and I basically did laps up and down the terminal to burn as much energy as possible. And if you are flying an airline with first come first serve seating (like Southwest) try to sit by a family with a child of similar age. We sat directing in front of a family with a little girl about the same age as ours and after they both woke up from their naps, they entertained each other playing peek a boo around the seats.

Kid most recent fav is
Educational Insights Raccoon Rumpus Game https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00ATWSQR8/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_p3YKAbD0B4JSW

He loves this one since he was 18 mths and still plays it weekly
ThinkFun Roll and Play Game for Toddlers https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0070A9OUA/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_S4YKAbHTXCEA0

He also loves
HiHo! Cherry-O Game https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00D8VHIOE/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_C5YKAb4CTGWSV

My niece loves
Educational Insights The Sneaky, Snacky Squirrel Game https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00FNK6P6U/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_f6YKAb98Y9BHF

Lookup educational insight games on amazon or on the educational insight site and they have fun games - i find amazon has good prices on them.

My 3 yr old also loves kinetic sand.

This is the next one on my list for him since he now loves dinosaurs
Dinosaur Escape https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00S288BKI/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_wbZKAbRVN5AKM

We loved the bracelet leash! Link below. We only needed it for a few weeks when my toddler knew that he was mobile but didn't realize that we went fun places if he would follow us. It was the perfect in-between, sturdier than the backpack, and I felt like I got less judgement and stares because we were "equally" linked to each other. It's just like holding hands but with a little more freedom!

https://www.amazon.com/Zooawa-Outdoor-Wristband-Harness-Toddlers/dp/B07332BF8N/ref=sr_1_1?keywords=bracelet+child+leash&qid=1574737464&sr=8-1

I posted a whole response, but based on what else you've said it sounds as though any amount of crying is a no go for you. Lots of people feel this way and go with it, but there are no magic bullets. If you don't want a baby that fusses even a little at night then you'll have to wait until baby is ready to sleep through the night.

It's a perfectly legitimate way to do it, but from your post you sounded like you were looking for advice, not support. I think it may be a little bit confusing. The advice is either wait until baby sleeps through the night, or work on sleep training baby which will involve some amount of fussing. u/counterfitfake had a pretty gentle method for CIO (which was too gentle for us when we tried something similar as we couldn't be in the room at bedtime at all, but awesome that it worked for them!)


If you really do get to your wit's end with the wakeups I highly recommend Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child. Some crying required, but if you believe (as I do) that a baby that wakes up repeatedly through the night is not well rested then the trade off may become worth it.

Not that this helps - but my daughter used to drink 64oz+ of formula a day, about half at night until we switched to food when She cut down to 40ish ounces. The pediatrician always thought it should be less but we never got there. She's skinny for her age but we share meals and she usually eats a bigger breakfast, lunch and dinner than I do plus 3 or 4 healthy snacks (cheese, nuts, hummus, fruit, etc)

I give her a sippy full of water every night and she usually finishes it. I personally wouldn't be freaked about diabetes/whatever unless she's drinking that much water at night. Kids are different, and some eat way more than others.

I'd get rid of milk, cold turkey and just offer water. My daughter never accepted water in a bottle so we just put a non-leaky sippy in her crib with her at night. It seems to me like the milk is how she's soothing herself back to sleep and she's just going to have to learn to do that part on her own, minus the milk. It's tough and there's a lot of differing opinions, but I'm (now) a big believer in cry it out. I like this book and it's gotten us through everything so far.

As far as neighbors, I'd be really honest and really nice. Go down, tell them you are trying, the next 3-4 days will be rough. Maybe bring them cookies and ear plugs as well. We lived in an apartment when my daugher sleep trained and my neighbors were surprisingly nice about it when I gave them a head's up on what was happening and apologized both before and after.

Hands Are Not for Hitting (Board Book) (Best Behavior Series) https://www.amazon.com/dp/157542200X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_WBhYCbAEPA4ZB

I’ve got boy/girl twin toddlers too! You’re gonna want to get all these books... hitting, kicking, sharing...

It’s great because we read them and practice what they say and the kids totally get it. When my son hits we say “are hands for hitting?” And he says “no” then we say “what are hands for?” And he says “waving” or “clapping”

If he’s just excited and needs to let out energy I redirect him to clap or high five and I meet him at the energy level he wants. If he’s angry, we make sure he know hitting hurts sister and that we need to use gentle hands.

You basically do this on repeat and one day it’ll kinda click. He is almost 2 and still gets aggressive at times but we have a way to diffuse it quickly.

Good luck! Do they hug and kiss yet? That sorta makes it all worthwhile.

Casey at the Bat! It's a poem that a number of people have turned into children's books, I got one of them for my 2 year old and he loves it! I can read it as fast or as slow as I feel like and he loves the rhyming and cadence.

This is the copy I have, the art direction is really lovely and true to the times (that the poem was written) and is very engaging: https://www.amazon.com/Casey-Bat-Ballad-Republic-Caldecott/dp/1929766009/ref=sr_1_3?keywords=casey+at+the+bat&qid=1574693137&sr=8-3

We do watercolor paints. Cutting with safety scissors (new skill, just snips fringe in the edges of papers, but loves it). Gluing with a glue stick--I cut a bunch of shapes and she glues them on a paper however she wants. She loves sprinkling glitter on glue but I save glitter for playgroup we attend. We play this simple game she got for Christmas ThinkFun Roll and Play Game for Toddlers - Your Child's First Game! (literally just roll the cube, pull the matching color card, do an action).

I would try 3 things:

1. Can she use a straw? If she can they make spill proof straw cups that you can use. My daughter prefers to use straw cups to sippy cups. Not sure why but she learned to use a straw before a sippy cup.
   
   https://www.amazon.com/Contigo-Spill-Proof-Tumbler-Sprinkles-Persian/dp/B07DK3G4NC/ref=asc_df_B07DK3G4NC/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312126077698&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=12881538063190876022&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=&hvtargid=pla-574262712450&psc=1
   
   
   
2. We used the nuk bottles with the sippy lid for a while to help her transition. Not sure if you have tried these ones or not but they look like bottles visually but the nipple is shaped more like a sippy.
   
   https://www.amazon.com/NUK-Disney-Large-Learner-Mickey/dp/B079H8S5TK/ref=mp_s_a_1_3?keywords=nuk+sippy&qid=1570892149&sr=8-3
   
   
3. Try helping her drink out of regular cups. She might think it's cool to drink like the grownups. We started showing our daughter how to do this with help at about 18mo and once she seemed to understand the concept we bought her little plastic shot glass sized cups with cartoon characters on them. Now 6 months later she can do it on her own with supervision. She is still not trustworthy 100% because she thinks it's funny to dump them on purpose but she is probably 90% trustworthy not to spill it accidentally while drinking from it.

hi! We took my daughter the week before she turned 2.

• bring a stroller, you'll question if you need it but yes, you'll need it, bring it. With all the sun, activities, excitement they get tired and need to rest, they can have a quick nap in the stroller if need be plus a lot of the resorts are a lot of walking
  
• bring snacks. They won't have to food they are used to and my kiddo stopped eating anything but the snacks I brought with about halfway through our week
  
• If not potty trained bring more diapers than you think you need
  
• Spray sunscreen is far superior to lotion when at the beach
  
• rinse the sand out of their swim diaper/swimsuit after leaving the beach to avoid rashes
  
• say yes to screen time
  
• bring antibacterial wipes to wipe the high chair and table off at the restaurants
  
• I brought along a small bottle (travel size) of dish soap to wash sippy cup, etc in the room, use bottled water to do so.
  
• Bring favorite cup, its easy to get dehydrated
  
• Don't let him drink the bath water (this was a challenge for us as my girl thought bathwater was a gourmet meal)
  
• For your transfer, if not bringing a car seat make sure you request one. they are different from the US ones, I can expand on that if you need me to
  
• Don't have high expectations about maintaining a routine.
  
  Edit: she had a blast and still talks about it. We're taking her back to Mexico in a few months and I feel much more prepared this time around but will still keep my expectations around how much she'll actually eat and any routine as low as possible
  
  
  Edit 2: also, buy one of theses https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B007JCK5GG/ref=oh_aui_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

I was going to recommend "Montessori from the start, birth to age 3". That is AMAZING at sort of teaching you to sit back and observe what your infant/toddler is doing and noticing their behavior patterns. Everything kids do is for a reason. being able to pinpoint the 'root cause/reason' for an action helps IMMENSELY. it basically helps you become a proactive parent rather than a reactive one, which alleviates MANY tantrums. Also the montessori method (in summary) guides caregivers to allow kids to be self sufficient, which is what most toddlers want to do anyway!

​

That being said, the 'from the start' book largely focuses on infants with only the last couple chapters dedicated to toddlers. I haven't read this one, but i think it might be more accurate and useful for your immediate stage. From the preview it's pretty much everything we're doing at home at 22mo! - The Montessori Toddler

I recommend Oh, Crap! Potty Training. I used its methods for my almost 2 1/2 year old, and its been such a success! In fact, she just used her first public restroom yesterday. The process has taken a few weeks, and the first few days are very intensive, but it's overall been a positive experience for both of us. It was so much easier for me to go into it with a plan!
Good luck to you!

I ordered it from amazon.

Mirari OK to Wake! Alarm Clock & Night-Light https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EAHSBV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_qmkUDb7M6F9E2

My little girl started getting out of bed on her own. She kept getting up earlier and earlier, so I ordered this. I talked with her before about it and when we got it, she now loves it. We only need it to light up for when it’s okay to get up and leave her room. It’s not too bright so if she wants to sleep later, she can & it stays lit up. It doesn’t make any sound when it lights up either. It also has loads of other features, but we don’t need them quite yet. She loves it and comes downstairs in the mornings now saying how she can come down because her clock turned green. It’s a success in my house!

I bought one online about a year ago. It’s this little alien looking clock, very cute. Here’s the link. It had a nightlight, ok to wake light timer, nap timer. We have only used the okay to wake light when she was waking up wayyyyyy too early. She has since stopped that so we don’t used that anymore but she loves her clock. It’s funny. I’ll ask her what time it is and she’ll run upstairs and grab her clock and bring it down.

I bought AJ this book to read. We read it the day before we were going to more seriously attempt potty training. We read it when we sit on the potty. He giggles at the part when the baby finally goes potty. I think somehow that clicked in his mind. He still doesn't go potty unless we ask him, but when do he does. I know for us that means we have to be more observant and diligent about asking. Maybe try taking him every hour or so?

Also I noticed AJ seems excited by the last page of that book where they show all the undies. I'm thinking if we're still on track next week I might show him the undies that Santa bought him to be a big boy and see if that's the final push he needs.

Good luck!!

My only son turns 2 in a couple weeks and we haven't started potty training, so I don't speak from experience lol. But it still seems pretty early in the process if you've only gotten serious the past 3 days. Peeing in a potty is such a big change from everything they've previously experienced their entire life!

Whether you keep at it now or decide to put it off a couple more months, good luck! We plan to start after Halloween. I read the "Oh Crap" book and plan to use their method.

We remove the battery from most noise makers, but we’ve kept a few. He really does enjoy the sense of control he gets by making the noise himself, so as long as it’s short and not too annoying, I’m ok with it. He seeks out a noise making toy maybe a few time per week for 5-10 minutes at a time, which seems fair to me.

I’m also eyeing the Jooki music player for when he gets a little older. No screens, and you load the music (or Spotify playlist) yourself. The music is controlled with little figurines.

We determines that our LO was getting carsick (just like mom!) after the 3rd puking incident on 3 separate trips. We started using dramamine before the recommended age limits as well - started using half a dose and moved up as needed.

We also found that LO looking down at the tablet in the car was not helping AT ALL, but was totally necessary due to the length of the car trip. We purchased this which mount the device to the headrest and makes LO look up: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B076SZ62X2/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s01?ie=UTF8&psc=1

Between the dramamine, headrest mount, and limiting dairy intake before car rides, we haven't had any issues this year.

Good Luck and make sure to pack for accidents just in case (we had to pull over, clean out the car, and change LO on the side of the road in the middle of a midwest winter - was not prepared).

I recently got one of these at Sam’s Club. It folds neatly, and my 2 year old seems to love it when away from the house.

My two year old loves this for vacation https://www.amazon.com/Regalo-Portable-Toddler-Fitted-Travel/dp/B000H1MRJO

Also do you have aldi grocery stores near you? I saw they have a toddler travel bed (inflatable) on special this week

We love ours! We introduced it the same day we moved my daughter to her big girl bed so we never had the struggle of getting out of the bed.

We have this one.

Have they tried reward systems, buying her new panties she picks out, reading her books about kids using the potty? There’s a book called oh crap, https://www.amazon.com/Crap-Potty-Training-Everything-Parenting/dp/1501122983/ref=asc_df_1501122983/?tag=hyprod-20&linkCode=df0&hvadid=312154663427&hvpos=1o1&hvnetw=g&hvrand=11165367220882139930&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=m&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9011702&hvtargid=pla-426474776806&psc=1 I have several mom friends that swear by it.

I got the Ok to Wake clock on sale at Target. It has worked pretty well so far. My LO knows not to get up until the bug is green. The only downside is that it turns off after half an hr so if he sleeps longer then he will yell instead of poking the button to see the time. Amazon has a ton of different options depending on function and budget. I just wanted something to light up when it was ok to get up but not sound an alarm. This is the one we have.

Ok to Wake clock

Mine likes the contigo one with the straw and the sports bottle looking one. I drink out of them and then he wants to. I like the contigo with a straw one because he can drink smoothies I make out of it too. Contigo Spill-Proof Kids Tumbler with Straw, 3-Pack, Sprinkles, Wink And Persian Green https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07DK3G4NC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_v.jqDb8MA0NBX

My son (2.5) sleeps in this at my mom's and loves it

A nutrition/mom page I follow on Instagram recommended this ok to wake light but im curious what other alarm/lights people use

I wound up getting a hatch clock: Link Here

This made a HUGE difference in sleep routines, because it automatically turns on and off based upon bedtimes and wake times.

I have a Hatch Baby Rest that has several colors you can use as a nightlight. When the light is red, my son knows it's time to "sleep in bed," but if it's green, he's ok to come get me. You set the time for the lights to come on and off. It's also got white noise and lullaby sounds if that's your jam.

This thing has been life changing for us.

We got this.

Use Rechargeable batteries in it. It's been fine

Mirari OK to Wake! Alarm Clock & Night-Light https://smile.amazon.com/dp/B00EAHSBV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_lNgTDbFCS0KC1

YES! We got this one.

My kids will be 2 next month. Before we got the clock they would wake up and immediately start screaming and crying. Now they wake up and see that it isn't green yet and either go back to sleep or talk to themselves or each other until it turns green. As soon as it turns they excitedly start talking about the light.


This light has made my mornings so much better!

Hatch baby rest. You decide the color, brightness, sound (or none), and volume and can change it from your phone or on the clock.

Hatch Baby Rest Sound Machine, Night Light and Time-to-Rise

https://www.amazon.com/dp/B06XMRCC94/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_4DWODbGXV6Q9P

We got this one (Mirari Ok to Wake)
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EAHSBV4/ref=asc_df_B00EAHSBV45449986/?tag=hyprod-20&creative=394997&creativeASIN=B00EAHSBV4&linkCode=df0&hvadid=192246360916&hvpos=1o2&hvnetw=g&hvrand=3621069812604162598&hvpone=&hvptwo=&hvqmt=&hvdev=c&hvdvcmdl=&hvlocint=&hvlocphy=9016823&hvtargid=pla-304712359857

OK to Wake! Alarm Clock & Night-Light https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EAHSBV4/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_jLyTzb77NXC94

This has been working for us: Hands Are Not for Hitting (Board Book) (Best Behavior Series) https://www.amazon.com/dp/157542200X/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_2nkkDbFCW8TTX

We got this one for our daughter when she turned two, and we’ve been using it for about eight months. It took a while for her to grasp the concept of it (“green means go/wake up time” or “if you wake up and there’s no green light, it’s still sleep time”) but for the most part, it works for us. We still remind her every night when we say our goodnights (“good night/sweet dreams/see you when the clock turns green”), just to stay consistent.

I do get up earlier than her wake up time, and on days where she does wake up before the clock, I do see her just hanging out in her bed and waiting for the green light.

We own this one:
https://www.amazon.com/Mirari-Wake-Alarm-Clock-Night-Light/dp/B00EAHSBV4

Upside: 'green means go' is a mantra that our 2 year old gets.

Downside: it only stays green for 30 mins, so if your LO sleeps in, and misses the green window, you're all SOL.

Hi! I, too, am looking for some help, though we're not at potty training she just yet. Is this the book you're referring to? Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right (Oh Crap Parenting) https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/1501122983/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_1rMODb0Y15RMD

Have you tried one of those [toddler alarm clocks](OK to Wake! Alarm Clock & Night-Light https://www.amazon.com/dp/B00EAHSBV4/)? 20 months old should be old enough for them to understand the color change and when it's time to get up.


For black out curtains, In our case, we had to cover up the windows with dark paper in addition to curtains to get full black out.