Over the past few weeks, you've determined that your child is ready for potty training, prepared, and planned. And now the big day is here! Welcome to Stage 4 of Potty Training: It's Go Time!

STAGE 4 OF POTTY TRAINING: It's Go Time

STOCK YOUR BATHROOM WITH FUN ACTIVITIES 

You’re going to be spending a lot of time in the bathroom, and your child is likely to quickly get bored of all that sitting. Make sure you have a bunch of games, books, and fun activities available to her during sit time, since you'll want to pair toilet time with positive reinforcement. Hopefully, if you’ve prepared enough to ensure a full bladder, you shouldn’t be there too long.

Keep the Liquids and Salty Snacks Coming

No kid likes to spend a ton of time on the toilet when she doesn’t have to “go.” Make sure she has a full bladder before sitting to increase the opportunities for success. Offering dry, salty snacks can be helpful in getting your child to drink more.

STICK TO THE SCHEDULE

Decide how frequently your child is going to sit on the potty. Every 15 minutes? Every 30 minutes? Consider your child's age, liquid intake, and bladder control when deciding. You don't want to start out going too infrequently and risk an accident. Set her up for success by having her try every 15 or 30 minutes, and gradually have her try less frequently (every 45 minutes, 1 hour, etc.) as she becomes more successful.

Handle accidents like a pro

If your child has an accident, don't make a big deal about it. Use a neutral tone, minimal language (a quick "Oops, you had an accident" should do the trick), and have her clean up her mess (again, a quick "Time to clean up" is enough). You may have to help her clean up a bit, but the goal here is to teach her that the natural consequence of an accident is cleaning it up, not having someone clean it up for you.

REINFORCE Success WITHOUT DELAY

She went on the toilet! Deliver that positive reinforcement immediately each time (at least in the beginning). Have her favorite toy/snack/song within arms reach at all times.

STAY CLOSE TO THE BATHROOM

You and your child may need a change of scenery. Make sure that after you have reinforced her for a success, give her a little break, but set her up for success by staying close to the bathroom. After drinking all that liquid, she's going to have to go again. Plan out what you will do between potty sits.

Clean pants checks

This is a great way to reinforce staying dry. Between sits, schedule Clean Pants Checks, and have her check her pants herself. Cheer for her when she's dry!

The Elusive Number 2

Typically, it takes a little longer for children to be fully potty trained when it comes to bowel movements. This is of course due to the fact that there are fewer opportunities to practice this. If your child is regular and goes around the same time every day, make sure she is on or near the toilet at that time, and try your best to extend these toilet sits. She’ll get the hang of it with practice.

Keep it up

Remember, practice makes perfect! Provide your child with plenty of opportunities to be successful by keeping the liquids flowing, reinforcing success, and being on top of your game when it comes to the toileting schedule. Remind her to go when you know she's been drinking a lot, and make sure to always have her try to use the potty before you leave the house. If she doesn't go, that's ok, but remember that you may then need to take her once you get to where you're going. And always remember, if you want your child to try to go to the bathroom, don't ask her if she has to go. She will almost always say no. Tell her it's time to try, and praise her for being a good listener for trying, even if she doesn't have to go.