Our Successful Experience with The Three-Day Potty Training Method with a Two Year Old
Ah, potty training, teaching our little ones a seemingly intuitive life skill through exhaustion and a manual that works for everyone, right? Wrong. Exhaustion is right– but every child is unique (even if it would be easier to have a one size fits all), which means every battle is different.
My husband pulled the trigger on wanting to potty train earlier than I had anticipated. Probably because he does the heavy lifting (figuratively and literally) of changing Wilder’s packed diapers at an exponentially greater rate than I do. And that’s why, my friends, I married him.
But since I would be the one leading the pack on our potty training endeavor, I had many apprehensions and doubts. More so, I was lacking the confidence to really get this train going. I did what any modern mom would do; I scoured the web to find different takes on the whole potty training process. After a good day or two, I felt most comfortable with the three-day potty training method.
The Method
First, I felt like it is a good temperature reading on whether we all could make it through potty training. If Wilder was resistant and/or it was miserable for all of us, I could make the easy call to walk away.
Second, it’s short and sweet, in theory. The goal is to use three concentrated days to get your toddler familiar with the urge to go, making it in time to the toilet, and enjoying the freedom of underwear. The intensity of it all and solid track record is pretty convincing that it works.
However, all the warnings were written on the walls of an intense three days as in– you can’t even leave the house or prepare food– exhaustion. I didn’t agree with everything, so I decided to make some personal modifications to tailor it better for our family. It’s not for everyone and depends on well, your child.
If parenthood teaches you anything, it’s that we (parents) can’t force anything especially, on younger kiddos.
The Prep
Even before he turned two, Wilder has shown interest in the toilet for a few months now. I even considered training him earlier because he was vocal about his bowel movements, taking off his diaper, and barging into the bathroom to flush my toilet. Naturally, we began talking about saying adios to his diapers and having him use the toilet. He seemed excited about the process and it helped that Wilder loves new things and surprises!
We chose to start on a Saturday so by Monday, when Juwon went to work, Wilder would get the basic understanding. A big motivation to start was also because summer break was ending and wouldn’t have a free weekend for a while. *Writer’s Note: We started in August about a month after his 2nd birthday!
Materials (Modified)
- Potty or Seat Cover
- Reward Chart
- Favorite healthy snacks
- Dried prunes
- Frozen yogurt/Smoothie Ingredients
- Pull ups
- Toddler Underwear
The original method suggests juice or ice pops to help get the urge going. However, we prefer not to introduce juice to Wilder until he’s old enough to ask! We stocked up on his favorite snacks and made smoothies to keep him occupied and ready to go!
Day One
The night before, we told Wilder we would say good-bye to his diapers. He said his good-byes and blew some kisses before the husband discreetly put them into our hallway closet.
The morning of, we had our grand reveal, our Elmo-themed rewards chart hung up, steps leading up to his toilet, and a misfitting toilet seat cover.
Rookie Tip #1: Always prep by trying out the toilet seat cover and stairs. We waited until the night before and unfortunately, the seat didn’t fit well. Our stairs were too high. I contemplated using this as an excuse to delay, but we decided to just go for it!
We decided to use pull-ups for naps/nighttime because frankly, I didn’t want to clean the sheets and figured we will go over that hurdle when the time comes.
One of the core components of the Three Day Method is a pantless toddler to spot accidents and the need to pee quickly. Some parents choose to go with underwear instead, but we went cold-naked butt-turkey.
The first day is madness. You’ll need a coffee, make that three, and patience. By 7:40 AM, Wilder had two accidents while completely pantless. By 9:10 AM, he peed near the couch but my mad dash to the toilet made a few drops into the bowl. I yelped as I watched him (don’t recommend) and I think his shock kept his pee in a few extra minutes. Success!
He picked out his first Sesame Street sticker and attempted to negotiate his way to place it wherever he wanted. Sorry– I made him put it promptly under Saturday. We celebrated his few drops with cheering and clapping.
Over the next 10 hours, we had a timer on our phone for 15 minutes. We would either take him to go or he would politely decline. The goal was to avoid forcing our son onto the toilet, which wasn’t a problem because he was eager to go through the whole process– peeing, wiping with tissue paper, flushing, and washing his hands equals stickers!
He had a total of 10 accidents and made it onto the toilet 12 times. Of course, we had escorted him at least double that number.
Rookie Tip #2: Expect to be exhausted. Aim for a good 8-9 hours of sleep the night before. Eat snacks alongside your toddler and avoid other strenuous activities. We ordered takeout for dinner, but I wish we did for lunch as well. Prep food in advance to minimize energy expenditure. The first day is a MARATHON SPRINT.
Day Two
Same routine as day one. But now, Wilder could respond with a more convincing response when we asked him if he needed to pee or poop. The morning was great with NO accidents and several successful trips to the bathroom. Day one is definitely hell-week in one day and Day two is like the rest day that you never thought would come. By the late afternoon, Wilder would answer and lead us to the bathroom. He was taking more of the initiative of going to the bathroom. We still used stickers (at least a few that would fit on the chart) and celebrated each time he went!
Before bedtime, he had fifteen total successful trips and two minor accidents. A huge improvement from the first day. We all felt better and optimistic after day two.
Rookie Tip #3: Accidents will happen! Be mindful of your response. It took a conscious effort to not be discouraged or negative. We chose to focus on the wins, ie. if he finished peeing in the toilet, instead of the accidents. No matter how on board your toddler can seem, this process is a change and possibly stressful for them too!
Day Three
Our approach to Day three was much more relaxed than the previous days. No more worrying if he had somehow forgotten overnight. Now that he had become familiar with the routine, he had less frequent trips to the bathroom. He did have two small accidents, but we weren’t phased by them. By this day, he could clearly respond with a yes or no about heading to the bathroom.
Rookie Tip #4: Be flexible with the charting process. We started strong with adding stickers almost every trip, but then slowly weaned off them. Mainly because Wilder would forget and we had no room! Think: celebrating the actual win and emphasizing the reward less.
Day Four
We washed and prepared the newest reveal, sesame street underwear! I told him again, the night before, he would be wearing sesame street underwear. He was excited to have choices and the transition was smooth between pantless to underwear. We expected some accidents with this additional transition, but overall, he was happy to be in his underwear and more confident to initiate going to the bathroom.
Rookie Tip #5: Buy two different sizes of underwear and a decent amount. The first size was a bit tight so I decided to order more of the same print in a bigger size. Plus, during the transition process, your child might have a bad accident and it’s in-a-way easier just to throw out the pair.
Final Thoughts
I was pleasantly surprised! The whole process was quick and while things are not perfect, I am pretty confident in Wilder. We’ll continue to reinforce wearing underwear and communicating his bathroom needs. As he gets older, I’ll pay closer attention to his nighttime habits to switch to regular underwear overnight. But honestly, we are just thrilled to say good-bye to daytime diapers!
Again, readiness for yourself and your child can be completely different. While this method mostly worked for us, it’s not one-size-fits-all and that’s perfectly okay! Even with our sleep training experience, we adapted methods that fit our needs and preferences. With anything, be encouraged by your child’s successes and patient with the process.
Six Month Update:
We successfully potty trained our son using the steps I described above. He’s still using pull-ups for naps and diapers for the night, but I sense the transition out of them completely soon. During the day, he goes by himself and adamantly refuses to let us help him. The whole nine yards from putting the seat cover, moving his steps, to washing his hands with soap– he’s in control. Safe to say, it’s a Bootcamp for the whole family during the process but worthwhile. I mean, learning how to use the bathroom independently is just one of the skills I hope to impart in my child before he leaves the nest… so I’ll call this a win until the next milestone comes to intimidate us all.