The years before kindergarten your preschooler will grow leaps and bounds, mentally, emotionally and physically.
Parents share resources and advice about raising 3 to 5 year olds, including potty training, early education, behavioral struggles and more.
My 3year old son knows how to use the toilet already. He can use our toilet seat but i still put his toilet seat so its way comfortable for him. Everytime he needs to have BM, he will runaway from me and refused to sit on the toilet seat. I can see on his face that he is afraid that his poop coming out of his buttoms. The feeling that something gonna come out makes him refuse to sir in the pott... More
He started preschool right after his third birthday(6wks ago). The first day he went right in and didn't even say bye to me. Then he started fighting me, not to go. I didn't think anything about it because he hates leaving the house to go anywhere and he always came home happy. He kept show a little more and more that he didn't want to go to school. This last week he started sobbing... More
same thing happened to me with my 3 year old daughter, she liked it the first couple of days and then it turned into a fight to go everyday, she would wake up crying at 3am begging me not to take her, it was very bad, i decided to change her to a different preschool and it was like night and day!! she now loves it and shes been slowly telling me little things that the other teachers had done to... More
I would talk to the director and see about switching rooms. It sounds like something is going on that he cannot explain to you. My daughter has been in school since she was 12 weeks old and the only time she acted like this was when she had a sub in her room long term due to one of her primary teachers being on leave. The sub was fine, but just didn’t jive with my daughter. I talked with the di... More
My soon to be 4yr old is super friendly and although I really like that she’s social I need to figure out how to curb it somewhat. The problem is that she is way too friendly and informative with complete strangers, adults in particular. She waves and says hello to anyone and instantly starts up conversation. This scares the crap out of me for obvious reasons. Any helpful tips on how to go abou... More
I wouldn’t do anything to embarrass her. I don’t think there is anything wrong with her being friendly. I would just explain two main rules to her: 1) you never go with anyone unless mom or dad gives you specific permission to, they can’t hear from anyone else not even grandma is grandpa. 2) go over a list of info that you don’t share with anyone that isn’t a friend (I usually define this as so... More
Friendly is not a problem in my mind. It’s more enforcing and ensuring she knows the boundaries. Never go with a stranger unless me or dad tell her it’s ok first. I like the suggestion about enforcing what is ok to share too. My daughter is too young to get this yet and she routinely tells strangers not only our address, but her schools name and the address of both her grandparents. 😳🤦♀️😩.
My daughter is almost three and we are looking into pre-school options. She is in a learning style environment in a home daycare now, and we are thinking of loving her to a Montessori pre-school next year. Parents with toddlers in pre-school: how did you decide on a school? If you chose Montessori, are you happy with your decision? Thanks in advance!
Our daughter is younger than yours, but she’s been in school since she was 12 weeks old. We looked at a LOT of centers, including Montessori and home centers and also nanny’s. We checked into everything but ended up sending her to the center that is located at my work. They’re kindercare based but only offer enrollment to children of employees at my company. I really like where she goes. It’s... More
We will be sending our son to preschool next year. He will be three in April. We toured several schools. We looked into into the schedule & cost to determine how it fit with our life and our son's needs. We landed on a little preschool at a Baptist church (even though we aren't Baptist. I think for me it was just watching how he was touring the schools and my gut reaction. I was s... More
We started training back in May and had a few successful toilet uses. When our daycare situation changed we stopped (he was 2 at the time). any and all tips are much appreciated.
Why do some preschools need you to fill out other schools you’re applying for? Does the answer affect admission?
My little boy will be 3 in May and he absolutely refuses to use a potty chair/toilet. He is not my biological son, I did not know his full background but I do know he's kinda had it rough. I have three girls of my own ages 6, 5 and 22 months, so I've been through the potty training and the difficulties but with girls. He wants to sit on the potty and he wants to wear his big boy underw... More
My second was similar. He was ready and had the understanding, but I realized that it was just an unnatural feeling for him. He’s peed in a diaper his whole life and not had himself exposed with watching eyes. I imagine I would have a difficult time peeing in a diaper as an adult, because that’s not what I’m used to anymore. Anyway, I stuck his toilet in a closet (I noticed he sometimes hid so... More
I need some ideas to help keep my 3 year old daughter’s hair in place and out of her face while she is at preschool. Ideally I’d love to French braid, but I’m terrible at it! Need to practice, not sure why it’s so difficult for me haha! So other than that, anyone have any ideas to keep hair in place? My daughter has long waivey thick hair and ponytails, pigtails, and standard braids fall apart ... More
Hey! Our 18 month old was showing the tell-tale signs (dry diapers in a row, fighting changes, exerting her independence, showing deep interest in the toilet and us going potty including pretending to wipe herself)...we started oh crap! method on Wednesday. She definitely recognizes when she is peeing (she’ll say “uhoh!” If she’s not on her potty and holds it if you tell her mid-stream when t... More
I’ve tried it multiple times. And My daughter has shown full interest over and over. Yet she sometimes goes back to not using it all. It’s not something to force. I believe that Whatever is best will happen in its own time. And you can’t decide what’s 100% comfortable for them. You can’t control life so roll with the punches.
My family is military, and we have moved twice in the past year alone. It’s me and my two little kids and we are staying at my in-laws’ place for a little while. My in-laws are really great, and even help me with nighttime stuff with the kiddos, which I love. The problem is with my 3 year old. She’s a sensitive kid, but also VERY smart and manipulative. For the longest time when it was me and ... More
And feel like it just wasnt the right fit? I found the book to be informative and useful on many levels but knowing my kid I just dont think that method will be the best for her. Just wondering what others thought of the book and experiences with it. TIA!
I bought it, all excited, until I started hearing everyone else’s rave reviews, explaining how their child only peed on the floor x number of times today... and I will fully admit that I selfishly did not want to clean up unnecessary bodily fluids. So I did exactly what everyone says you should never do and put my child in pull-ups. She was 90% there (even waking up dry) at 2.5, but then regr... More
We just went through this over Thanksgiving! I read the book in its entirety and my husband read key chapters and the checklist/FAQ while on a business trip. Some of it was great, but the rest seemed totally unrealistic unless you have at least one stay-at home parent (Block one is three days but can take up to a week? Sorry can’t burn up the few vacation/sick days I have on a week of potty ... More
We are wondering if our son is ready for potty training or not. He just turned 2, 2 months ago. His diaper is staying dry for a pretty long time and often does not need to be changed after a nap. But he does not talk much (he is getting a speech therapist soon) so I’m worried he won’t tell us when he needs to go. He also has never given any cues he is going to the bathroom and never let us know... More
Do you feel that he is aware of when he is wetting or soiling his diaper or do you think he is unaware of when it happens. If he is aware maybe you can try an object (pull up or a picture of a potty) he can retrieve to let you know he needs to go. Whenever you change his diaper or put him on the potty reinforce your action with the object of your choice to help him start associating the card or... More
My LO seems to be on the road to potty training. She tells me when she has poops and can seem to hold her pee (she almost never pees during nap). I was just looking to hear your stories regarding trying to potty train at this age. To me it seems a little young, but I am 3 months pregnant so the thought of only changing 1 set of diapers is appealing.
My daughter was the same age when she started to show genuine interest. She’s been fully trained since she was about 20 months, she only wears diapers at night and now she’s starting to wake herself up when she has to go at night too. She’s 2 years 3 months and started training at 18 months and it was pretty much all done by 20. Good luck!!
Our 18 mo just did a modified Oh Crap over Thanksgiving and is doing really well. She had similar signs—multiple dry diapers in a row, VERY interested in us going potty, and even mimicking wiping/fighting to wipe herself during diaper changes. I’m due with our second in Feb, so I’m glad she seemed to “get” it...I’m hoping she’ll be almost 100% by the time #2 comes so we only have regression r... More
I am going to start trying to potty training my 21 month old over the holiday break. I always thought I would wait until 2 1/2 or 3 but he is showing a lot of the signs of readiness (occasionally asking to go on the potty, telling me before he goes, asking for his diaper to be changed, etc). What strategies worked best for you? I’m currently reading “oh crap” but would like some insight as well.
I read ‘Oh Crap’ and I found it very useful. Capitalize on those signs of readiness you’ve seen in your son by starting the method when you have the most time to dedicate to it (holiday break is perfect). Read the whole book now and summarize it for your partner and/or other caregivers so you know it well when you start. Have your son practice pulling his pants down. My daughter was 22 months w... More
We used oh crap method as well, took 10 days for complete success! I also joined the oh crap page on fb and found the support and outreach to be really helpful if I had questions
We started potty training (24 month old) last weekend and it was going pretty well! He’d pee in the potty if we asked and even went a few times on his own. Today (day 7) he woke up and COMPLETELY refused to even sit on the potty. Held his pee for 4 hours before it all came pouring out. And did the same another 4 hours later..... we did the “oh crap” method and I am so disappointed with how toda... More
Also, there is the option of letting him stand. He’s gonna figure it out anyway on his own.
Keep going. We went through about 3-4 weeks with my daughter crying and sobbing about trying the potty after months of success. Then she went through at least 3 weeks where she was afraid of having accidents and wanted to just sit on the potty constantly. I just kept going...and for the last few months she’s been great. I think it’s just something that they have to work through. No matter what,... More
Finally getting the hang of potty training, many have said to bring little potty with us in the trunk just in case. I can do that. But.... where does he pee? Just out in the parking lot? Or prop it up on the back seat? I don’t see him being comfortable with that 😱
We did the folding potty seat with the bags for road trips and camping- super helpful- and just set it up anywhere. Privacy didn’t seem to be a thing for my kid. We actually have a picture of him sitting on it in some grass off the side of a freeway on-ramp when we had to pull off in an “emergency”- pretty funny! For pee, he now just stands and we go anywhere we have to if no bathroom is nearby... More
You can't see him being comfortable because you yourself aren't comfortable with it (if you had to do it), rightfully so. Kids don't usually have the same hang ups as adults though. For instance, my 2 y.o. daughter will proudly yell she did a pee or poop in a public restroom. She has no shame whatsoever, nor do I want her to at this age. She's used the portable potty in the trun... More
I'm having a hard time getting started on potty training with my 2 yo son. I've tried having him use the potty on a schedule but he always wait till after he puts his pull up back on to finally go. Or he'll sit for a few seconds then take off and pee on the floor. Not sure what I should do. Any tips for potty training?
My 2 yr daughter has been doing this for the past 6 months now ... she knows when she needs to go, just chooses not to go in the potty. The last week I have been watching a 4 yr old boy who uses the potty so she is learning to go after he goes. Even after he is gone she is now telling me she wants to go use the potty.
My daughter just turned two. We've been potty training for 4 days now and she just peed on the potty for the first time today. I've read the books on potty training and I honestly think most of them are impractical, just in case you want to save time. It's cold here, even in the house. My child cant just run around naked and pee everywhere. She likes to read the book "A Potty F... More
So we are starting potty training our 2 year old tomorrow. Just works out we have some time off work and figure now is a good time! However, my son has his 2 year old check up on on Wednesday morning..... we (plan) to do the oh crap method of naked life the first few days. It will be day 4 and I am going back and forth between just trusting the process or putting on a diaper for a few hours 😭
You should have a better idea of how often he had to go by Wednesday, so make sure he goes before leaving the house and when you get to the doctor and when you leave if you need to. And you can hold off on liquids to make sure he is less likely to have an accident. And if you are really nervous put down a pee pad on his carseat. But accidents happen, bring extra clothes. Oh and you can keep a p... More
Hey Kendall, how’s it go?? My daughter has had great success with potty training herself and gets very distressed when she has to pee in her pull-up. I think it’s fine to put them in one for public trips, though. That may just be my experience, but there’s nothing more stressful than a toddler urinating in their underwear While strapped in their car seat while you try to rush through traffic t... More
My 4 year old started waking up in the middle of the night going on 3 weeks ago. He runs to our bed and insists on sleeping with us. Sounds cute, but it’s not. He kicks, flings his arms, lays on top of us. My husband and I haven’t had a good sleep since. I thought I tackled the sleep when he was a baby, I don’t know what this regression is. How do I stop it? I’ve tried to bribe, Ive even tried ... More
We have two methods going. One is a rule that you can t come in our bed until the clock has a 6 on it. My almost five yr old is really good with this. He gets a penny if he does this, and when he gets 40 he gets a prize but what seemed to really motivate him is a few nights of quality sleep. I pointed it out how much better he behaved and seemed to feel, and it clicked for him. Having the cloc... More
I feel my four year old has back tracked and is going through her terrible twos. Her tantrums are out of control. Started Halloween after we spent time with cousins! It has never been this bad. 😫
It's pretty common to have a tantrum phase every now and then. It's usually during a development period where they just can't catch up to their brain... she has thoughts and opinions she can't identify or communicate and it's frustrating. Also I notice a huge behavior change when we stay up late or overindulge or spend time with people who overwhelm my kids (coughcough gran... More
Is it possible that he had something “scary” happen? Like some water splashing on his butt when he pooped in the past? I only ask because my daughter had two “scary” incidents. One was the water splashed on her butt, and then once I’d helped her get past that she had another thing happen where she pooped once and then stood up (this was when she was still almost religiously using her potty ch... More
Honestly when my son does that we go lock down mode. I just sit in the bathroom w him and explain (over and over) this is where we go poop, we will wait here together until you’re ready to try. It isn’t ok to poop in your pants all over the house. Usually it’s a fight, but he gives in eventually.