To Pee or Not To Pee

When my daughter was just one, I was reading a book. I remember the author was staying in a primitive village in Africa and she was interviewing the women. She asked them how did they keep the babies from using the bathroom on them since they carried them in slings naked. The village women were confused by the question and finally stated "why would we let the baby do that, we know when they have to go and we hold them out away from us". At this point, I realized that I knew when my baby had to go and I would watch her go in her diaper sometimes even commenting, "oh, look, she is going potty". I also realized how ridiculous it was to basically train my baby to go in her pants, only to later "potty train" her to go on the toilet. I began putting my baby on the potty chair whenever I knew she had to go, like right after waking up from a nap or in the morning. I would also take her with me to go when I would go myself. Of course, there were times when I didn't know she had to go, like if we were out in public and I was distracted or busy doing something. I found though that for the most part, I intuitively knew when she had to go, and as time went on, I was able to pick up on her cues more frequently. She had ways of communicating that I had ignored in the past.

Within a few months, before the age of two years old, she was "potty trained". I think it was more like she trained me to notice her cues and to trust my instinct that was always there. I had another baby when she was 2 1/2 years old, and I began putting him on the potty when he was only 3 weeks old. I could have done it earlier, but I was tired and it seemed easier to change his diaper. Newborns go so often, so with him it was easy to catch them. Anyway, he was able to use the potty full time before 1 year old. He also walked by 9 months which made it a bit easier because he could walk himself to the bathroom.

I have another baby now and I have put him on the potty since birth and he uses it frequently. He is not yet two and still uses diapers and uses the potty. He is different than his big brother though and will still go in his diaper sometimes. He understands the potty and tells me through signs when he has to go, but sometimes I think his mind is daydreaming and he doesn't tell me until after he has already gone. He will go days and go to the potty every time and then he will have an "accident". It is great though and I use very few diapers.

I hear so many moms asking how to potty train their 2 or 3 year old boy or girl and how they are struggling. I know they can't go back in time, but maybe on the next round they could try understanding and communicating a bit earlier. Some people may feel that they can't do this because they have to work. I think every little bit helps. If you do it when you know and when you are with the baby or toddler, the message will still get across. You teach your baby so many important lessons when you are with them, but just because you are not always with them doesn't mean that you shouldn't teach them anything when you are with them. You just do it when you can.

I later found out that many cultures around the world teach their babies to use the bathroom where the adults use it. I also found out that there has been a name applied to this type of "potty training", it is called "Elimination Communication". Who knew that such a think existed?! Maybe those "primitive" cultures aren't so "primitive".