How Peppa Pig Helped Us with Potty Training

My darling daughter E will be three in four weeks time. We only potty trained her brother C last March when he was 3.5 years old but because her language and understanding was fantastic when she turned 2 last September, I decided to introduce her to C's old potty.

She was having absolutely none of it and would scream and cry anytime I suggested using it. I didn't give up but I also didn't pressurise her. I would just suggest trying again every other week but it was always met with the same crying and squealing. With C finishing preschool at the end of June, I was determined to train over the summer. Everyone says that summer is the best time to potty train so I was willing to give it a go.

We received a fabulous bundle of Peppa Pig potty training goodies and because E is a big Peppa fan, I hoped it would sway her a little bit. Usually when she'd see C's old potty, she'd run away from me. I got her to open the box herself and seemed really pleased with the contents. We received a Peppa Pig Steady Potty (RRP £9.99), Peppa Pig Training Seat (RRP £8.99) and Peppa Pig Step Stool (RRP £8.99) - all of which have images of Peppa dressed as a princess on them (another of E's loves!) - as well as a copy of the Peppa and her Golden Boots book (RRP £5.49) and some Peppa Pig Hand and Body Wipes (RRP 75p per pack).

I left the potty sitting out for the first day and she surprised me by sitting on it with her clothes on to get used to it.  I felt like this was a breakthrough in itself so I was happy enough to go forward with proper training the following day. I cannot believe how well she is doing and I have Peppa to thank! Right now we have been using the potty for around a month and E is completely dry during the day with no accidents. We are yet to use the insert and stool because I think she's a little afraid of the big toilet but there is no doubt in my mind that they will make the transition from potty to toilet easier for her.

The Peppa Pig toilet wipes have been great for giving her independence and she's happy to wipe herself, help me flush the contents down the toilet then wash her hands afterwards. She seems comfortable when sitting on the potty and she has now sussed exactly what way to sit so that nothing spills out. The feet of the potty, feet of the stool and edges of the insert are non-slip too so that puts both of us at ease. The Peppa and her Golden Boots book helped in the early days because she was able to sit and flick through the pages whilst sitting down and trying to go - it now gets read a lot a bedtime!

If you're struggling with potty training your little one, I definitely recommend character themed training sets. They are even available in George Pig style.

(We received these items for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.) 

ASDA Little Angels Day & Night Pants - Review

We potty trained C quite late, last March, at 3.5 years old. We really struggled getting him used to the idea of using a potty or toilet but when he overcame his fears, he took to it well and he was fully dry during the day within around seven to ten days. Keeping him dry at night was another story.

C just wasn't waking at night to go for a wee and I was constantly having to wash his bedsheets daily and change his pyjamas in the middle of the night. I definitely did not want to revert back to using a nappy for bedtime as I felt that it may either confuse him or make him think that he wasn't a "big boy" as he proudly told me he was when he switched from nappies to boxer shorts.

ASDA's baby and toddler brand 'Little Angels' have got Day & Night Pants in their range and I felt that they were the perfect solution. Children do have accidents, no matter what age they are so you can purchase them in size M (4-7 years) and L (8-12 years). They are there to provide confidence for your child. I actually used to use the regular Little Angels nappies when he was a young baby so I was sure I'd get along with the pants.

We received a pack of the M size boys pants for C to try out. At first he did question why I was putting a nappy back on him but I told him they were his special football pants for bedtime in case he needs a wee but can't make it to the toilet. The fact that they are thinner than his sister's regular 6+ nappies helped me convince him that they weren't actually the same! C does love football so he wasn't too upset and happily went to bed wearing them. I felt happy too because he was able to move freely and they weren't restricting. The next morning, he had no redness or marks where they had dug into his skin. He had no complaints so I imagine that he felt comfortable wearing them.

The pack contains 10 pairs of pants so we used one each night and it was sort of hit and miss. Some nights he was dry and others, it was slightly wet the next morning. When putting them on, you do so like regular pants but you rip the sides to take them off. Quick and easy in the morning! The pants are super absorbent so we never had any leaks or irritation on C's skin. We had previously been using a bigger, more expensive brand of night time pants and honestly, these are just as good and a fraction of the price at just £3.87 per pack of 10. I would definitely recommend them to any parent who is either in the same boat as us or has a child who will occasionally have a day time accident. I can definitely see us using them when potty training 2 year old E - especially to pop one on for the school run!

(We received a pack of ASDA Little Angels Day & Night Pants for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

 

OXO Tot Sit Right Toilet Trainer - Review

I recently posted about how we had successfully potty trained C and touched on the fact that we had been using the OXO Tot Sit Right Toilet Trainer to progress from potty to big toilet and I wanted to do a full review of the seat as I just love it so much. I do a lot of reviews on this blog and I like the majority of the items that I accept. Some are good, some I continue to buy if it's a product that can be used up and a handful are ones that I think are genius and that all parents should own. The Sit Right Trainer is one of the latter. 

I was offered the chance to review one around a year ago but at that stage, C wasn't interested in potty training so I politely declined. Fast forward to March this year and potty training was beginning. It was a tough job getting him to use the potty at first and I thought I'd have my work cut out for me when it came to progressing to the big toilet. I popped an email over to OXO Tot and asked if the offer of a review was still on the table and thankfully it was.

When it first arrived, C was actually really excited to use "mummy and daddy's toilet." The seat is made from hard plastic, it fits into your toilet seat perfectly and it doesn't slide about once it is set on due to the green rubber on the base. C can stand up on his stool, have his back to the toilet, put his hands on the handles and hoist himself onto the seat all by himself. The seat is shaped so he will be comfortable sitting on it and there is a little lip at the front to prevent weeing over the floor. It's wipe clean too which is what you'd expect from a toilet training seat. From the first day of usage, C took to it right away and we haven't used the potty since.

The flat design means we can store it away easily and C just grabs it himself when he needs to use the toilet. If we are going out for the day or staying at my parents house, I can stick it in a plastic bag and bring it out with us for use on public toilets as it is very lightweight too.

The OXO Tot Sit Right Toilet Trainer has made my life so much easier and has made the transition from potty to toilet quick and painless. It retails at £15.00 and honestly, it will be the best £15.00 you'll ever spend. I cannot recommend it enough. If you have a child who you are potty training or will be potty training soon, buy one of these!

You can find out more about the range at the OXO Tot website and you can also keep up to date on Twitter and Facebook. 

(We received this item for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.) 

 

C has cracked Potty Training!

For a good few months, I didn't think that I would ever be writing this post. Potty training definitely felt like the hardest aspect of parenting for me. I first introduced a potty to C at 18 months old as we were sent one from TOMY to review. Of course at 18 months, he wasn't really interested so I left it for a few months. I kept trying and trying and trying but every time I took his nappy off and he saw the potty he would scream bloody murder, tears streaming down his face and I'd feel really guilty for being the one to make him feel that way.

In February this year, I took C to get his preschool jabs. The doctor asked me how he was getting on and one of her questions was if he was potty trained. I explained to her that he was finding the process really upsetting and she reassured me that he was still young and had plenty of time to learn before starting preschool. This made me feel so much better as it had been something that I was worried about. C is tall for his age and I kept thinking that people would think badly of us for him still being in nappies or think we were lazy parents when that really wasn't the case.

About a month after this, I decided enough was enough and we had to get out of nappies. If I'm honest I was sick of buying them and I knew at 3.5 years old, he had the vocal capacity to do it. At the very beginning, we did have a few tears but I explained that he was going to school soon and all of the other boys and girls would be using the potty and he came round to the idea, especially as he knew that mummy and daddy use the toilet too.

I think that waiting so long to do it definitely was a positive. I can count on one hand how many accidents he's had and I think it took us only two weeks to be completely dry in the day. We've since mastered pooing in the potty (probably the scariest thing for him!) and most nights he's dry but I put pyjama pants on him just in case. 8 out of 10 times it's still dry in the morning.

We started off using the Mickey Mouse potty from TOMY that we had been sent to use but the hole was quite small so he'd get wee all over the floor. I won a My Carry Potty a few months previously and honestly, it's such a great potty. The hole is big enough for him, there is a little lip so you don't have to worry about wee coming over the side and of course you can close it over to bring out with you. 

C got really excited by praise, especially when it came to pooing. His daddy promised him that he'd get a new toy if he did it in the potty so that really spurred him on. He's a pro now!

Chris and I don't drive so shopping can take us all day as we walk everywhere. I would tend to worry and stick a nappy on him for this but he really surprised me by staying dry and just asking to use the toilet. It was definitely my own anxiety that was holding us back when it came to leaving the house nappy free. Choosing his own pants was good for him too. He originally went for Gruffalo briefs but he has a preference for boxers (so we had to get Avengers ones!) over briefs - I think he wants to be like his daddy!


We have even progressed from the potty to the big toilet thanks to the OXO Tot Sit Right. I will get into the ins and outs of this product early next week as I will be writing a full review.

But for now, yay! I have a potty trained child and it was painless! I am so proud.

Potty Training: Personalised Book from Penwizard

Potty training is definitely the most challenging thing that I have ever had to deal with in my almost three years of being a mum. C screams bloody murder as soon as he is nappy free and always asks me to put another back on. He seems to be afraid of the potty and will push it away.

Penwizard offer potty training books that are personalised to your child which are from the Pirate Pete & Princess Polly range. You can choose from Pirate, Princess or Prince. We received the Pirate one which is perfect for C as he is a big fan of them. 

There is an online creator where you can fill in personal details about your child such as gender, name, hair colour, skin colour, glasses and a personal message. You can even choose who will help them. I opted for Mummy as I'll be the one potty training C. 

I was really excited for it to arrive as I hoped that it would get C more excited and less scared of using the toilet. 

This book is great for getting kids interested in potty training. The fact that they get to hear their own name is fab. C has recently become obsessed with saying his name so it was great timing. 

I love that the book starts with your child and mummy going to the shop to buy a potty and your child is even encouraged to interact with questions like, "Which potty is C's favourite?"

The book goes through all the steps of potty training from sitting down and going to wiping and washing hands. I especially loved that Pirate C did have an accident on the floor but Mummy didn't mind and still thought he was clever. This was a lovely addition and it will make C feel more reassured. 

The images are so bright and colourful and it really captures C's interest. He has yet been confident enough to use the potty but I think if we read this book every night we'll get there in no time. 

This hard backed book is 16 pages long and retails at £14.99. 

You can find out more at the Penwizard website or you can follow them on Facebook and Twitter. 

(Disclaimer: We received a copy of this book for the purpose of this post. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)

Dry Like Me - Review & Giveaway

We have been introducing the potty to C now that he is approaching 2 years old and is able to signal to us that he needs his nappy changed. 

My favourite way of getting C used to the potty is to give him nappy-free time and plonk him on it when he starts to go. Although I am a stay-at-home mum, I'm not at home 24/7. I do need to pop out and do errands so obviously I couldn't leave C nappy-less!

Dry Like Me very kindly sent us a "Smarter Way to Potty Train" pack (RRP £25/€30) which contains four boxes of the Dry Like Me potty training pads and a "How to Potty Train" book.

Dry Like Me training pads were invented by busy mums who realised that there was an opportunity to help mums and children potty train more quickly and effectively. They remind me a little bit of sanitary towels. They are inserted into your child's pants (front, back or both as they capture wee and poo) and although they bulk up, they don't absorb the full 'accident' so the child still has that realisation that they've wet themselves. The fact that they don't absorb everything really makes me prefer them to regular pull-up nappies as they seem more grown up and less like they're back in their nappies!

C loves to read and the 'How to Potty Train' book isn't like an instruction manual for parents. It is written in a way that teaches your child what the "getting rid of nappies and starting to use the potty" process is. I love that it comes with stickers too so your child feels included and rewarded. My favourite part of the book is the 'Assessment Chart' where you can jot down your child's bladder and bowel movements as a way to learn when they are most likely to go.

This set has been absolutely fantastic with introducing C to the potty and I can't wait to see it the whole way through.

These pads are available from all major supermarkets in the UK and Ireland at a price of £3.49/€3.99) per box.

If you are planning on potty training your toddler this summer, the authors of the 'How to Potty Train' book are offering a free online summer advice event - Potty Training Live.

The same event ran last year and Jenni Falconer took part to potty train her daughter Ella. She blogged about her experience and you can read it at www.pottytraininglive.com and you can also register for this year's free advice which went live on July 7th.

Dry Like Me have also offered my readers the chance to win their own Smarter Way to Potty Train Pack (four boxes of Dry Like Me pads & a potty training book). All you need to do it fill in the Rafflecopter widget below. Good luck!

This competition is open to residents of the UK & ROI only. One winner will win four boxes of Dry Like Me pads and a potty training book. Dry Like Me are responsible for delivery of the prize.

a Rafflecopter giveaway

TOMY Mickey Mouse 3 in 1 Potty System - Review

The idea of potty training is such a daunting and scary prospect. Since the day C was born, it is the only thing that I said I really wasn't looking forward to but it has to be done! 

I obviously don't want to get stressed out over it because I know that it will have a negative effect on C. Recently, he's been trying (sometimes successfully!) to pull his nappy off and when he's done a poo he'll pull it down a bit at the back to let me know that he needs changed. Ahhh, he's becoming a big boy!

C is a huge fan of Mickey Mouse Clubhouse and TOMY very kindly sent us one of their Mickey Mouse 3-in-1 potty systems. I hoped that as it was a character that he would recognise, it would make the whole process easier on him. 

For a few weeks, I just sat the potty in the living room so that he would get used to having it around and so it wouldn't scare him. We have now progressed to giving him nappy free time about 20 minutes after having his dinner (alongside lots of water) and popping him on it when we think he's about to go. So far, we haven't been 100% successful. At the beginning, did try to stand up straight away. He's so active so I think he just didn't understand why we were sitting him down when he just wanted to play! We are perservering and he seems to really love his Mickey Mouse potty!

I mentioned that it is a 3-in-1 potty. Firstly, it can obviously be used as a regular potty. The potty also has a yellow soft foam insert which you can take out and place into your own toilet then close the lid of the potty and use it as a step so that the transition from potty to 'big toilet' is easier. The potty also has a 'chain' which makes a cheering noise and although it doesn't actually flush, it gets your child used to flushing when they do eventually move onto the big toilet. C always throws his arms in the air when it cheers because he's so proud of himself!

It is quite deep so can hold quite a lot of wee and is very easy to clean.  

All in all, I think that this is a great item to begin potty training especially as it grows with your child too. It is suitable from 18 months and retails at £29.99. It requires 2 AA batteries which are included. 

(I didn't really fancy posted a nakey pic of him so here's a clothed one for size reference!)

You can find out more about the entire TOMY range at their website, Facebook and Twitter. 

(Disclaimer: I received this potty free of charge in exchange for an open and honest review. All thoughts and opinions are my own.)