Twins Pottytraining

It sounds as if they aren't quite ready. And your son sounds like mine did. He's turned it into a power struggle. Let it go for a while. He may get interested with out you pushing it. If it's only been a little while, you may be worrying too soon. It takes time and consistancy. Give them lots of fluids and make them sit every hour or so. That's what I did with my first one. The fights to stay on the potty and then he'd go as soon as he got up. I just stopped pushing and let it go for almost six months.

Good luck and try not to push too hard. They know how to push back and that causes too much frustration for all of you.

This is so normal for the both of them. It is good that they like sitting on the toilet because that is half the battle. Boys usually take a lot longer than girls. Sometimes it is age 3 for them. Not saying it will take that long for him, but they usually take longer to potty train.

Sometips I've used or heard work good. Oh by the way I think your doing the right thing using pottytrainer underwear. When they feel wet, they will learn faster to go in toilet.
another thing I've done is give one m&M or gummy bear each time they go ( just for a while). Then think of an activity that they can do once they learn to go potty like a big boy and girl. At my daughter's daycare once they were potty trained they went skating. this was a big thing. And you've probably heard cheerios in the toilet for boys. Aiming at the cheerios they seem to like that. When my son got to pee outside for the first time (didn't encourage unless camping) he was so excited to go and potty training was easy. Let us know how it goes.

Hi K.,

You didn't mention how old your twins are. I know you said in your profile that they are almost two, but I don't know how old that profile is. Knowing the age of your twins would be helpful as age is a key factor in potty training most children. Also, your daughter may be ready sooner than your son, although this doesn't always hold true.

How old are the twins?

C.

Perhaps your son isn't quite ready to be potty trained. All kids are ready in their own time... it sounds like your daughter is probably there but I've heard it usually takes longer for boys. I understand the drive to get this done before the new baby arrives, but some kids just have to really want to do it. My oldest daughter used the potty for the first time on her own when she was 18 months old, was excited about it for a few days, then pretty much forgot about it until she was almost three. I tried everything from bribing with candy/videos to letting her walk around the house naked. And then magically she decided, just before her 3rd birthday, that she was going to be potty trained. It took maybe 3 days to get her timing down and she was done. I would just let your son figure out when he is ready. Once he sees his twin sister using the potty, I'm sure sibling rivalry will kick in and he will learn as well.

I have two that are 9 1/2 months apart and just started the 3 year old on operation potty training(he has had plenty of getting used to his potty since he was 18months old). and thought i'd do my 2 1/2 year old daughter as well..lol after starting on saturday i realized to do two at the same time is crazy!..i asked that McCallough lady from des moines that had those 7 kids or so at the same time(can't recall her name exactly). how to potty train. she said you don't do them at once..lol anyway
this is what i had sent out after a class we took. maybe some of it might help in a small way or you could call the institue for ideas. or visit the sites they gave us

**even though this class was basically about potty training,,, the Institute-that put on the class- also deals with many different children issues-listed below- so they may be a place anyone could keep in their memory banks incase it's needed.. but some good information on potty training.. Or you can pass this along to others you may know who could use the information as well.

we went to this toilet training and sleep issue class a few weeks ago..and I emailed this to a friend after her and I got talking about it for her son who just turned 3..so I sent this to her and realized that others may benefit from the information as well.
so here ya go..

this class was thru the Munroe-Meyer Institute pediatric psychology thru children's. Brett Kuhn phd did the class.
contact numbers ###-###-#### 800-696-3937
munroe-meyer deals with academic/school problems,,, adjustment(death/divorce), anxiety/fears, attention & behavior problems, feeding/eating problems,, habits(thumb sucking example),,, sleep problems, toileting.

Toilet training readiness skills:
at least 20 months old or preferably 24 mo
pick up objects, lower and raise paints, and walk from room to room
staying dry for several hours at a time.
urinating only 4-6 times a day
completely emptying the bladder each time.

toilet training:
bladder and bowel awareness-making a face or assuming a special posture like squatting, or going to a certain location
language readiness-understands toileting words like 'wet' 'dry' 'pants' 'bathroom'
instructional readiness-understands simple instructions, such as come hear please, and sit down
-complies with 6-10 instructions
-likes to imitate
toilet training:
procedures-
make sure both you and your child are ready
get rid of diapers during day- don't go back to them even if you go on errands. prepare for accidents, bring along a change of clothes.
increase fluids(eating salty food will make them thirsty and a little caffeine will make them go,, both good things for this)
scheduled/prompted toilet sits(set goals low to ensure success)
(atleast 5 sits a day no less than 3 a day, 15-20 mins after major meals, schedule during high frequency likely times)
dry pants check every 15 mins with high praises when dry(this is done with out diapers on. with underpants - kind of hard if naked..lol)
expect accidents
use positive practice procedure after every accident(this is after each accident , have them go sit on the potty at least 10 times as a 'practice run' from where the accident happened to the potty)
praises/reinforce every time any part completed correctly. (4 positive reinforcements to 1 negative)

the class also went over sleep issues.. but that's too long to type up..lol
but here are a few links to the sleep t hings if you want to take a look at them in the event you have any problems with that..
resources they listed to us:
http://www.aasmnet.org/
http://www.sleepfoundation.org/site/c.huIXKjM0IxF/b.24171...
http://www.sleepeducation.com/
http://www.babycenter.com/

Munroe-meyer assessed Bella when she was about 6 months to see if she needed any therapy for being premature but she didn't.

they also referenced this book Toddler owners manual by Brett Kuhn and Joe Borgenicht
book

a few other potty things they talked about was starting the boys sitting to urinate instead of sitting because that can lead to issues with not wanting to or being able to sit to have a bowel movement. the dad should also sit to urinate in front of the child.
if there has been past issues with constipation and the child is afraid to sit on the potty to go,, you may have to take very small baby steps with getting them back comfortable with the potty. like just having them sit on the potty with a diaper on with a timer for only 5 seconds at a time at first.. then increase it a few seconds etc. very small baby steps. lol

it was a very informative and good class

T.

It could be that maybe your boy isn't ready to be potty trained. They'll probably not be trained at the same pace as each other. After the baby comes, they also may relapse, so I would just be very patient with them. I know cleaning up the mess and all the laundry is a hassle, but once they are fully potty trained it's wonderful! :) One thing I did with my oldest daughter was to give her a sticker when she went in the potty. She also really liked to flush the toilet, so the only time I let her do that was when she went in the potty, otherwise she didn't get to just for the fun of it. A friend of mine set an timer to go off like every hour and then made a big deal about it being potty time...hopefully these ideas will help!

I feel for you! I have twin girls and potty training them was much harder than potty training their older sister. One was ready right around 2 but the other one wasn't ready until 2 1/2. So I got the first one on her way and then she wanted to wear diapers like her sister. This went on for quite a while until the 2nd one decided she was ready. Twins are hard to predict. I have also heard that boys are hard to potty train. My little boy just turned 2 and he is showing no signs of being ready. I think the best thing I did with the twins was just let them do it on their terms not mine or everyone else in my family who felt they should be potty trained. I was much more relaxed with them that I was with their older sister. I am not sure it helped them get it done faster but it helped me not be so stressed about it. Plus what is six months in the scheme of things.

Anyways, TONS of luck with your twins and your new little one on the way. It sounds like they will be the same ages of my twins and my son. It will be great. My girls loved their new little brother and it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be.