Potty training

With Babalu and Rookie we didn't push potty training. We thought it would be easier on everyone to just follow the lead of the child in question and it worked great. Babalu was fully trained by 3.5 and Rookie by 2.5 (Rookie wanted to be like Big Bro and Daddy!).

Snuggle Puppy is throwing us for a bit of a loop. We have been reading potty books but without any expectations of potty use. Until his doctor said that he was going to keep getting rashes and spots in his diaper area until he was trained because his skin was reacting to his urine. His skin has always been sensitive. And his urine is extra stinky. He drinks plenty of water so we are guessing that the smell is from holding it for so long. Clearly he is ready for using the potty.

So with that in mind we are going to try to be proactive about the whole thing. So here are our planned steps.

• Only padded underwear at home (sold as "training pants" by Gerber and the house brand at Babies R Us. Not the least bit waterproof but don't make a huge mess when peed in. Also my favorite padded underwear that actually contain mess really well are available by a company called Cloth Indulgence. Plus their prints are SUPER adorable).
• Beginning to stock up on waterproof training pants. I am planning to try the Snap-ez stuffable trainers (we used them for the older boys but they have changed their products so I'm not sure if I will still like them), the GroVia My Choice Trainers and Flip Potty Trainers. We would clearly put these on him when we leave the house.
• Use the potty on a schedule to get him started. This morning after our "good morning" and hugs I took off his diaper and it was totally dry. Same thing with yesterday. I put him on the potty and after 10 or 20 minutes he went. He didn't let it all go but it was a start. And about half an hour later let the rest of it go in his high chair. 
• Reward potty use with M&Ms. I would love to use juice as his potty reward since it has the benefit of filling his bladder and in our house would be a huge treat. But Snuggle Puppy doesn't like juice. 
• I'm considering buying him a potty training doll like Potty Scotty.

Hopefully we can stick with this plan and help our little Snuggle Puppy be a big boy like his brothers.