Parents who are potty training want to know all the tricks of the trade so to speak before beginning. That is because parents want potty training to be a good experience for their child as well as for themselves. So, parents are on the quest to find all the possible information about what works best in potty training. One common question is whether or not potty training is easier with disposable or cloth diapered toddlers. The answer really depends on your child.

Disposable Diapers and Potty Training Toddlers

The benefits of using disposable diapers when potty training is that you avoid lots of accidents. That means you save time in the long run because you arent doing laundry every single day, you arent scrubbing floors, washing your toddlers legs and bottom, and simply cleaning up accidents. Disposable diapers keep toddlers clean and dry while potty training.

Unfortunately, that clean and dry feeling is also the drawback of using disposable diapers. Your toddler cant associate the urge to go potty with the wetness in his disposable diaper. As a result potty training might take longer and avoiding accidents might take longer as well.

Also, disposable diapers are expensive and can really make a dent in your disposable income.

Cloth Diapered Toddlers and Potty Training
Cloth diapered toddlers work well for potty training even if they are more susceptible to leaking and causing a mess. The reason why is that your toddler feels the urge to urinate and then immediately feels he is wet. This is uncomfortable for your toddler and he immediately wants to be changed. During this wet diaper time you can explain to your toddler that simply going to the potty to urinate will keep him dry and the next time he has the urge he should go to the potty.

The drawback to cloth diapered toddlers is that once your child soils the diaper a leak can occur. This means the couch or carpet may also get soiled, the floors, beds, and plenty of other places. This requires more laundry and more patience.

Cloth diapers cost less than their disposable counterparts and can be laundered and reused. But, this increases the laundry bill and the effort to keep them clean.

Which Will it Be?
If you are trying to decide between cloth or disposable diapers you need to evaluate the benefits and drawbacks of both and make a decision that will work well for you and your child. Sometimes one works better than another for certain families while others enjoy a combination. It really is up to you and your child. Good luck potty training!

Some parents have children really close together in age and this results in having to potty train two children at once! There are some difficulties in potty training siblings of similar age, but it is about like potty training twins. The following tips and suggestions might help you if you are in the double potty training situation.

Buy Double Potties
First and foremost if you are going to be potty training then you need two potties. You might think it sounds like a waste of money to buy two potties and you really dont have enough space for two. However, if you dont buy two potties you will find that potty training siblings of similar age will become a nightmare. Children at this age need to go to the potty when they need to go, not wait in line or even share their potty with a sibling. Keep in mind, too, that if you have two potties both children can go potty at the same time and be a good influence on one another at the same time.

Have Potty Parties
Your children are close in age so they probably love playing together. Because of this it may be difficult to get them interested in going to the potty. So, just move the party into the potty room or take the potty to the party room. Whatever works is fine. You just need to make sure that your children are at the potty at the same time so you can keep them on the same schedule more or less. Plus, you want to keep them excited and into using the potty so doing two at once is a better alternative than having two single potty parties.

Be Supportive of Both
While your children are potty training there will be competition and accidents. Make sure you are always very supportive of all of your childrens successes at using the potty. Dont allow the sibling to make fun of accidents, and be very nonchalant about the whole situation. It is difficult to potty train siblings at the same time and will certainly try your patience, but try and be calm and get through the next six to eight months!

Eventually potty training will be over and you will be glad you exerted the effort to potty train two at once rather than potty train one only to begin potty training another. Have two potty trained children will certainly make your life more peaceful even if the year of potty training is a challenging one. Remember, this too shall pass!

Potty training can be a challenge no matter what sex your child is, however there are frequently some differences between the genders when it comes to potty training. You may be able to think of some obvious differences, but there may be others you were not aware of.

Girls Potty Train Sooner

Girls generally potty train before boys and learn different skills in order to use the potty faster than boys do as well. This is not a hard and fast rule, but it is generally the case. Girls frequently have control over their bodies sooner than boys do as well as increased communication skills to inform parents of the need to potty. Of course, the word sooner does not really reflect how much quicker girls are at potty training than boys. In general terms, most studies show that girls are a couple of months ahead of boys when it comes to potty training. This is really not that much time, but it does help to know that if your daughter potty trained at two years and now you have a son you should expect him to take a little bit longer.

Sitting or Standing?
Another difference between potty training girls and boys is whether to sit or stand for little boys. Little girls sit in order to pee as well as a BM while little boys learn to stand up to pee and sit for a BM. As a parent potty training your little boy you may be a little confused as to which one you should start first. Should you train your little boy to sit down for both peeing and BMs first and then once he has the hang of it move to standing up for peeing? Or, should you teach him to stand up first to pee and then to sit for BMs? It really is a complicated process and parents have a hard time determining which should come first.

Sometimes you wont even have to teach your little boy whether to stand or sit because he will decide on his own. If he sees dad standing up to pee he might not want to do it any other way. If this is the case then let him learn that way. Put some bright colored toilet paper or cereal in the toilet and then teach him to aim at it. Keep in mind this will take some time and there will be some pee droplets on the seat, but even adult men do that so dont worry too much.

A Commonality

One thing little boys and little girls have in common when potty training is that they both potty train on their own schedule. They both need love, support, and praise from their parents in order to achieve this goal and it is one that takes several months to master. And while girls may train before boys it takes both sexes about the same amount of time to potty train overall.

Depending on your child you may find that you need certain supplies when potty training and others simply dont work. This comes from trial and error with your child. However, the following supplies are really essential ones and almost all potty training children will need these basic items.

Potty
A potty is one of the most important tools when potty training. This is where your child will use the potty and it should be picked out by your child. Make a big shopping event out of buying a potty and allow your child to pick out his favorite. Dont influence him in any way and let him buy his favorite. The potty will become is friend and where he does all of his business so this is important. It also serves as the transition to the big potty as well.

Underwear
Its a close competition between the potty and big boy or girl underwear as to which of these your child will love most. If you really want potty training to be successful then ensure that you allow your toddler to pick out his favorite big boy underwear. Then, let him know this underwear likes to be clean and dry and should only be worn when he is using the potty.

Training Pants
Training pants are also very useful in the beginning stages of potty training. Make a deal with your child that when he can keep his training pants dry for an entire day then eh can begin wearing big boy underwear. This will provide motivation. The training pants are generally thick cotton and your child can immediately feel when they are wet. This allows your child to make the connection between peeing and being wet.

Incentives
Incentives or rewards are also essential supplies when potty training. Your child will enjoy receiving a small prize after every visit to the toilet. Stickers, a small piece of candy, or a bigger prize for multiple successful trips to the potty will work well for your child.

Final Thoughts
There are a lot of things you can buy when potty training but you probably dont need a lot of them. In addition, you will find the above list very helpful especially if you have never potty trained before and are not quite sure how to get started. Just keep in mind that while the above supplies are essential your positive attitude and support is just as important to your child.

Your child has been learning to potty train the last few months and doing very well. In fact, you were just to the point where you believed your child was in fact fully potty trained. And then the accidents started occurring. Your child had relapsed just when you thought the potty training process was over. What can you do to handle this situation? Fortunately, there are some suggestions to help you get through relapses in potty training.

Be Patient
Potty training is tough for a toddler. It requires a lot of effort that includes realizing he has the urge to go potty, making it to the potty in time, pulling down his clothes, positioning himself on the potty, peeing in the potty, wiping, flushing, dressing himself, and washing his hands. Sometimes this whole process seems like too much time for a child who is only a few years old and would much rather continue playing their favorite game and just pee in their pants.

Many children who are potty trained have relapses. This is completely normal. Sometimes the whole idea of going to the potty is too much or just does not seem like that much fun anymore. If this is happening with your child be very patient, explain to your child how he needs to pee and poo in the potty since he is a big boy, and just let it go. Reprimanding your child or punishing him will only make the problem worse.

When Did the Relapse Occur?
If a relapse does occur then you need to take note of what is occurring in your childs life during the relapse. Are you on vacation? Did you recently go back to work? Did you have another baby? Are there problems at home or school? Have you moved to a new neighborhood? Has there been a death in the family? All of these events and more are enough to cause a relapse in your child. Even being picked on at daycare could prompt a relapse in potty training.

So, what can you do in this situation? The answer is to talk to your child, give them lots of love and support, and dont be critical about the accidents. Your child is going through enough right now and does not need any added stress. Let your child sleep in Pull Ups and say that accidents happen but he will do better. Your love, support, and praise is often enough to give your child the confidence to return to the potty.

Doctors Visit
You may choose to visit your pediatrician after a potty training relapse to ensure there are no other physical problems present. Your doctor can assure you that all is well and instruct you how to continue. Or, if there is a problem, your doctor will be able to help fix it.