Armpits: Our Newest Potty Training Motivator

Forget M&M's or any food as a "reward" for using the toilet. That never worked for Matthew anyway.

Unless his bladder has reached or exceeded maximum capacity, Matthew will sit on the toilet and hold... hold...hold... and nonchalantly act like he doesn't need to go. BUT show him your armpit and say you'll let him tickle your armpit after he pees. And just like turning on a faucet, he wills himself to pee. Several times while he's going, as crazy as it seems, he'll stop peeing midstream and want to tickle your armpit. Saying he can AFTER he's done, he restarts the flow instantly.

As soon as he's done, he gets his "armpit reward" and many chuckles out of him and us. I'm not sure which he finds more hilarious - the fact that he gets to tickle our armpits or that he's secretly got us under his "potty control".

Does He Initiate?
Usually not. But there are a few times he has. He'll either come find me and say "I need to go potty" and lead me to the bathroom with him hand-in-hand. Sometimes, his pants and underwear are still dry. Other times, he had already leaked into them. He knows very well when his pants are wet or dry. And there were a few times in the past 3 days when he went to the bathroom himself and just needed my help getting dry pants and underwear from the closet.

Bigger bladder? Better Control?
I'm not sure. He may have a bigger bladder. After all, he has grown some.

Seeing how he can stop the flow midstream, I would think he had better control. But why the leaks/ accidents? Some days he can hold it for an hour. Some days he has held it and stayed totally dry for 2 hours.

Other Motivators
We have had some success using include clapping, lots of praise and cheers, bringing a small toy to the bathroom, allowing him to read a book while on the toilet, and playing on my iPhone while on the toilet. Some worked better than others, depending on his mood. And some were effective only for a couple weeks.

The most effective strategy we've tried is using a kitchen timer as an audible cue that it was time to go. It worked like a charm for a whole month and a half. No resistance whatsoever from him. Then it got to be less effective. I must have jinxed it by blogging about it. He actually still responds to the timer going off and knows it's "potty time!" but he needs more convincing these days. So we still use the timer despite the muted effectiveness.

Another effective strategy that we still use is giving him a short sequence of activities he can expect after going potty. For example, "go potty, get dressed, wash hands, listen to music." Or "go potty, wash hands, blow bubbles." The key is to know what HE wants to do in order to truly motivate him to get through the pottying process without spacing out, without a tantrum, and with as little help as possible.

By the way, this is our 10th month into potty training.

A Step Stool for School

The kiddie toilets at Matthew's preschool are about 2 inches shorter than the ones we have at home. But Matthew is still too short to back up and sit on the toilet. He is one of the smaller kids at school.

At home, we use a product called The Potty Stool, which is also available on amazon.com for $129. It is serving its purpose very well at home, allowing Matthew to get on and off the toilet independently with ease and stability.

In order to replicate his toileting experience at home, and in collaboration with his occupational therapist at school, we decided he would need a step stool for the kiddie toilet at school.

A store-bought plastic step stool like the Baby Bjorn Safe Step was not wide enough for him to get on and turn around on safely as it measured only 13.5" wide x 9.25" deep x 6" high. The Little Looster Booster Step Stool was too high for the shorter kiddie toilet, measuring approximately 26" wide x 19" deep x 8" high.

We needed a step stool similar in width and depth to The Potty Stool at home. It needed to be 18" wide x 11" deep x 6" high. So we (I) decided to make one.

Why not just have the school order one to be made or buy one themselves? Why wait when I can make one easily? Who knows how long it will take to get one made or bought? It will be exactly what I would want Matthew to use until he grows tall enough that he won't need it anymore.

We used:
- (2) 1" x 6" x 10.5" wooden boards
- (1) 1" x 6" x 15.5" wooden board
- (1) 1" x 12" x 18" wooden board
- (6) 1-1/2" long wood screws

The hardware store cut the wooden boards to size. I sanded the splinters and rough edges then penciled in locations for the wood screws. Bill drilled. Elizabeth, our foreman, handed us each piece making sure we had them all. And together we assembled the pieces. It was actually quite simple. And the materials and cutting charge only cost around $25, with enough extra material to make a second step stool.

Matthew, our quality manager, gave us his seal of approval after a test run where he was able to step up on it and slowly turn around without assistance.

I hope it works out at school.

Finding His Words

After a little over a week of no potty accidents at school, Matthew wet his shorts twice yesterday. The hourly potty timer they had for him was not set, which happens to me at home too. And when I forget to set it, he is more likely to wet his shorts unless I remember to take him to the bathroom. He is still learning. And so am I.

He has demonstrated on several occasions that he can hold it in and knows when he needs to pee. He grunts and does the little potty dance. He knows the difference between wet and dry although he doesn't mind being wet.

He just needs the words to express this need. Since I am encouraging spoken language with him, I am not reminding him how to sign "potty." Instead, I prefer to show him the written sentence "I need to go potty" since he can sight read those words. And I know it will be a matter of time before he will spontaneously and independently say "I need to go potty" when he needs to go.

The first time he wet his shorts, his preschool teacher, Erin, noticed that he ran to a corner of the room and had a funny look on his face - the kind of look that says, "I need to go potty." He just couldn't find the words. She was going to take him but he preferred the paraprofessional (Dena) in the class to take him, as she usually does. He refused to go with Erin (he fondly refers to her as "E-in". So they went over to Dena (he fondly refers to her as Dee-ya) together.

Erin said, "What do you want to tell Ms. Dena?"

Matthew slowly but firmly said, "I want to tell E-in BYE!"

Erin said, trying to hide a chuckle, "Why do you want to tell me bye?"

Matthew slowly and clearly said, "I need to go potty, Dee-ya."

The second time he needed to go, Erin says he marched right to the front door and pushed the Go Talk button we have up there with a toilet on it. It says "I need to go potty." Unfortunately, it was just too long of a walk to the restroom. He ended up wetting his shorts but HOORAY for initiating to go BEFORE it happened.

He is learning. And he is finding his words.

Potty Time! (Struggles and a Solution)

Potty training has been a wild roller coaster ride for us since after Christmas 2010 (when we started potty training Matthew in earnest). Up until today, some days are good, some exceptionally good. And then there are bumpy days when I have a washing machine full of Matthew's pee-soaked underwear and shorts. Bumpy days seem to be fewer and farther between.

Soaked clothes are easily washed. It was the resistant behavior that compounded those "bumpy" days and elevated frustration levels. Matthew's tactics include:
- the "flop and drop" - where he flops and drops to the floor making it hard for me to pick him up to take him to the bathroom.
- swatting at me or hitting me or Elizabeth if she is nearby. This earns him a time-out.
- saying "NOOO!!" and running away from me.
- not cooperating with the toileting process. Sometimes we would be in the bathroom for 20 to 30 minutes just trying to get his shorts back on and getting him to wash his hands. Then it would be time for another potty visit in 30 minutes so it felt like we were in the bathroom all day.

It's a process, right? But was this fighting part of the process too?

I tried to deal with the behavior as best as I could - some days better than others. The solutions I came up with only worked for a few days and then I had to think of the next best motivator for Matthew.

Sometimes taking small toys to the bathroom worked. But then they would distract him from doing what he was supposed to do.

Sometimes making it a game to get to the bathroom worked - like crawling to the bathroom or hopping to the bathroom or taking giant steps to the bathroom. But if there was something else more interesting, then my "game" concept failed.

Sometimes telling him what he could do after using the toilet worked. For example, "Let's go potty and then you can blow bubbles outside."

In the 2nd week of August, I began setting a cheap kitchen timer for every 50 to 60 minutes. I used to set a timer but just for myself to hear. However, this time he would hear it too. It took him about a week to accept this new form of "potty alert". And so far it's been very effective with him. Everytime he hears it, he shouts, "Potty time!" and Elizabeth says it too. It's quite amusing! And that has taken away the Matthew's resistance to me telling him to go to the bathroom. This time it was the alarm telling him to go - loud and clear.

Here is a short video of the timer going off while I'm showing Elizabeth some flashcards.



Of course, there are still times when he will still say no but it hasn't been as bad as it was before. He goes willingly this time. Wow! This timer isn't cheap. It's priceless!! Sometimes he gets to the bathroom before I do and already sits himself on the toilet.

At school, they take him every 50-60 minutes as well and I told them about the success I've had with the kitchen timer. So I think his teacher is using a timer for him at school too. For the past week, he has come home from school in the same shorts and underwear. It's something I always notice when I pick him up from school and I know he has had a successful potty day.

He is learning to hold it in when needed, as he knows that potty time is just 50 to 60 minutes away. He does the potty dance and grunts when he needs to go too. Our next step is to have him initiate, ie. telling someone verbally that he needs to use the toilet.

In the meantime, I'm hoping that the magical kitchen timer's effects doesn't wear off too quickly.

And I'm hoping I haven't jinxed myself by writing about it.

Ok, POTTY TIME!!

Post-Orchiopexy and Inguinal Hernia Repair

Bill and I cringe everytime we look at the incisions and stitches but so far, it hasn't been enough to bring on a fainting spell. It just looks like it would hurt to be even moving around. But just a day after his most recent surgical procedure, our little trooper seemed like his usual self. The pediatric urologist was right about how it would be hard to keep Matthew from unallowed activities post-surgery such as climbing, running, and other vigorous activities. From his experience, he observed kids with Down syndrome to bounce back almost instantly. Matthew does have a relatively high tolerance for pain.

It was in October 2010 (last year) at his pediatrician's office when we first learned he might need to have surgery. A visit to a highly recommended pediatric urologist in December confirmed it. We were able to push it off until this summer. We were told that it was important to get it done but not urgent.

July 27, 2011 was the day of surgery - an orchiopexy and inguinal hernia repair (also closing the inguinal canal to prevent a potentially bigger problem down the road). On the same day last year, Matthew had a sedated ABR (hearing test). In October 2010, he had a tonsillectomy, adenoidectomy, and his second set of ear tubes. We hope he won't need more surgical procedures or other procedures that require anesthesia for a l-o-n-g time.

We hid all the riding toys in the unfinished side of our basement. We encouraged him to sit and listen to music, play on his vReader, mobigo, and on my iPhone. We encouraged drawing, play-doh, and other fine motor activities. But as hard as we tried, it seemed that he couldn't bear to miss a day of rough-housing with his little sister and annoying the cat - climbing up and down the living room chairs, in and out of the ball pool, running after the cat, and tickling Elizabeth.

The Day of Surgery
Matthew and I were at the hospital by 6:30am. Bill and Elizabeth stayed home. Surgery was at 8:30am. He was out of surgery by 9:45am. While recovering in the hospital, a few hours after surgery, he was in good spirits as long as I offered him a bottomless supply of apple juice and graham crackers. We were discharged at 1:45pm on the same day.

The caudal block, which is a regional anesthesia injected into the end of the spinal canal and administered in addition to general anesthesia, proved to be a very effective pain reliever for Matthew. He didn't need the tylenol with codeine until 8pm that evening.

Step Back in Potty Training
Potty training has taken a back seat and we have him in pull-ups all day instead of big boy underwear. We also figured that the pull-up would help keep the lower incision site dry. The discomfort in *that* area is making him go in the toilet more challenging than it was as he fusses more about using the toilet than he used to. Despite the resistance, he still has many successes at holding and keeping his pull-up dry. However, he finds it more comfortable to poop in the pull-up. We'll get back into it when the incisions have healed and the bruising is gone.

Potty Trained in 4 Days

Not Matthew. We took the scenic route.

But Bridget Murphy's son, now 19 years old and in college, was completely potty trained in 4 days when he was 5-1/2 years old. Bridget Murphy is currently the Board President of the Down Syndrome Guild of Greater Kansas City. She created a 4-day potty training plan. It requires consistency, a lot of toilet training-devoted time, patience, and firm resolve.

I attended Bridget Murphy's potty training seminar last week. Her 4-day method was night-and-day different from the ABA (Applied Behavioral Anaylysis) toilet training method that I had just read a few days before her seminar.

Except during the first day when toileting is being introduced, the 4-day method was all about making the child solely responsible for toileting, no reward system, and absolutely no prompting (visual or verbal) to use the toilet. Her method is based on the assumption that a child can and will learn to self-regulate when the child has to deal with the natural consequences of not using the toilet when needed.

The ABA-based method involved adult assistance and prompting but eventually fading the prompts over a period of time.

Where We Are
We are currently somewhere in between or maybe on a super extended version of Day 1 of Bridget Murphy's method. We prompt. We ask Matthew if he is wet or dry and ask him to check his pants. If he says he is dry, we say, "Good, your pants are dry." If he says he is wet, we say, "You're wet. Let's go potty."

Sometimes he complies. More often though, he is resistant especially if he is doing a preferred activity and does not want to be interrupted. He'll flop and drop to the floor saying, "Nooooo!"

We don't have a set reward system in place for when he uses the toilet. We go with whatever he is interested in at that time. It usually helps us to avoid the flop and drop if we say, "Go potty and then blow bubbles (or whatever preferred activity he wants at that time)." So we don't necessarily "reward" as much as we just tell him what he will be doing next after he uses the toilet. We praised him for using the toilet but we've been fading that. The only "reward", if we call it that, is he gets to flush the toilet. He's happy with that.

Not For Everybody
Bridget Murphy's 4-day method worked with her son and several people that had tried it. And I've heard that ABA was very effective for several people as well. Different strategies work for different people depending on the many variables involved such as family circumstances.

And as much as I'd like to cut our potty training period short, the 4-day method won't work for Matthew unfortunately. Not right now anyway.

Her method requires the child to be able to dress and undress without assistance. Matthew still needs help and some prompting to take his pants on and he has trouble putting his pants back on. There was one time yesterday when he put on his underwear by himself without prompting from us. But he hasn't done it yet again since. Maybe if we waited a few more months until his fine motor is stronger and he can dress and undress unassisted, we can launch into the 4-day method. But until then, we'll do what we've been doing.

I will, however, tweak our strategy and adapt a few good ideas from the seminar.

1. Instead of wearing a pull-up over his underwear for car rides, we will eliminate the pull-up and put a puppy pad on his carseat.
2. Give him more opportunities to practice dressing and undressing.
3. Lessen prompting during the toileting process.

If Bridget Murphy has a seminar near your area, I would recommend going. Or perhaps your local DS Association would invite her as a speaker.

The Potty Stool

Sitting on the toilet without a stool supporting Matthew's feet makes him feel unsteady and scared.

Some step stools were about 7-3/4 inches high - high enough for him to plant his feet flat on while sitting on the toilet but too high for him to step up on without holding on to something.

Some were about 6 inches high - too low for his feet to rest flatly on while sitting on the toilet and he would still need support to step up on it.

Enter the Potty Stool.
It is made of molded plastic and has removable handles. It was expensive but I see it as money well spent. It's very stable. Matthew can get on and off of it without a problem. When Matthew sat on the toilet, his feet were flat on the stool.

Toilet Seat Insert
I vividly remember getting my bottom stuck in the toilet because I had fallen in when I was little. I laugh now but it was traumatic back then. I did not have a toilet seat insert when I was a kid. I do not want that to happen to Matthew or Elizabeth.

I had first bought the First Years brand toilet insert at Target. That didn't work. It seemed quite small for Matthew and the front guard was not high enough, which is very important with a boy. Elizabeth can use this toilet seat insert when she's ready.

Then I got the Baby Bjorn Toilet Trainer. It was perfect! Matthew currently uses the Baby Bjorn Potty Chair, which probably had the same "feel."

Familiarity + comfort = less transition anxiety.

Current Toilet Set-up


Matthew tried it this evening, got comfortable, and peed in the toilet for the first time. We're slowly going to work on transitioning him from using the potty chair to using the toilet.



This will be good for when Elizabeth is ready to toilet train too. The only other drawback (besides the cost)? The Baby Bjorn toilet insert is portable but the potty stool is most definitely not.

Poop In The Potty

Matthew's been saying he's "wet" 75% of the time for a week now when he either needs to go or has already wet his pants. That's potty progress!

On the plus side, he's been learning to hold it in until we get to the potty. On the flip side, he's also been confusing it with a bowel movement and has learned to hold that in too.

For 5 days, he didn't go and refused to go until he just got so miserable and wasn't acting himself. He was even quiet and withdrawn at school one day. During that time, I'd been putting him in a pull-up more often than just underwear thinking that maybe that would encourage him to go since it would be something familiar. But it didn't work. He kept saying "wet" but I knew he really meant he needed to have a BM.

Finally, I used a glycerin suppository to help things along and put him in a pull-up. It was a big struggle for him to go and he was so unhappy in the process. But as soon as he was done, he was a happier little boy.

Today, I debated with myself about having him try to go on the potty versus going in the pull-up again. By chance, he was on the potty when he felt the urge. I hugged him while he was on the potty to reassure him it was ok and keep him calm since he was wanting to stand.

It was over in a few minutes. Matthew looked relieved. I was relieved that he didn't freak out. I was so proud of him. I said, "Look! You did it! Yay!! You pooped in the potty. You did great!!" He looked at his potty and said, "Poop!"

The Mommy Gig With Two Sick Kids

The sky is falling. And I'm not referring to snow.

Having two kids, who are fairly close in age, when they are both sick is not easy. I have snot on my shirt from both kids laying or crying over my shoulders. At least the Tylenol took care of Elizabeth's 102 degree fever.

Yesterday, Elizabeth coated me with vomit. It is not the best alternative to hair gel.
They seem to have an unspoken agreement to want to be held at the same exact time. The good news is that I don't need to pay for gym membership to work my arm muscles. When held, Matthew is ok with me sitting on the couch but Elizabeth wants me to be walking. Sigh.

On top of having cough and runny nose, Matthew is constipated. He had been regular up until he made pee potty progress and saying "wet." He was learning to hold it in. Unfortunately, he had also learned to hold in bowel movements. A glycerin suppository fixed that today but not without a lot of tears and struggling. I let him go in a pull-up since he was extremely opposed to sitting on the potty for it.

Naptime officially started 30 minutes early today. Even with both kids asleep, I still hear their cries in my head. So I turn on the iPod to help replace the crying echoes with some soothing jazz while blogging, planning my next set of flashcards for Matthew, and learning to bake sweet potato fries to keep my mind preoccupied. The house chores can wait another day as they usually do.

The mommy gig with two sick kids has certainly pushed me to tears. But I'm learning to deal, slowly but surely. It's a steep learning curve for me having had no siblings and babysitting experience.

The sky is falling. I may stress. I may have burnt my experimental baked sweet potatoes. I may sometimes think I'm not wired to be a mom. But at the end of the day, everything will be ok. Looking at both sick kids, I know that I still would rather be doing the mommy gig than anything else.

Potty Tracking System and Rewards

In addition to using the ListMaster iPhone app, I now also use the I Go Potty app by Huggies. It's a simple app that I use for potty reminders. I can set the time til the next potty and set regular potty interval reminders, like every 30 minutes for example. And I can also set reminders to be sent between specific hours during the day so I don't get a potty wake-up call in the middle of the night. Best of all, the app is FREE!

To address the timing issue we've been having, I'm using a Toilet Training Data collection sheet for the next 2 weeks to try to get a better idea of when we should take him to the potty depending on patterns he might have. The data collection sheet has 5 columns:
- Time
- Pants Check (W/D/BM)
- In Potty (N/P/BM)
- Self-Initiated (Y/N)
- Notes.

Another mom shared it with me (Thanks Jennifer!). I wish I had done this when we first started but better late than never, right?

Contact me if you would like a copy of this document. I can email it to you.

It probably seems like overkill to have 3 things to track his potty progress but it's what I feel needs to be done right now.

Rewards
The I Go Potty app has a star reward system that unlocks games after 9 stars (9 successful potty visits). But Matthew isn't interested in a cumulative reward system. An immediate reward makes more sense to him. So I really just use that app's 30 minute alarm and I'll show him the game once it is unlocked.

So what do I reward him with after using the potty? More drinks! I got the idea from one of the comments on my previous post "Potty Training." He likes juice so I give him a small cup of watered down apple juice if he's in the mood for it.

Food rarely works as a motivator or reward for Matthew unless it's juice, pears or oranges. But he has to be in the mood for food even with accepted, ultra-limited selection of favorite food. So we use toys or games as a reward too. His current favorite toys are Alphie the Robot, vReader, and preschool apps on our iPhones. We go with whatever works.

And most importantly, he loves the praise we give him for sitting on the potty for 2 to 5 minutes and for successfully peeing in the potty. We haven't tackled #2 in the potty just yet.


Related Posts:
Toy Review: Alphie the Learning Robot
Go Potty
Potty Progress: Saying "Wet"
Potty Training

Potty Progress: Saying "Wet"

By 2pm on a Saturday, Matthew had already sat on his potty chair 15 times. He'll be going more times after his 2-ish to 4-ish pm nap. I think we're making progress! I may be celebrating too soon and end up eating my words but a baby step is still progress and reason to celebrate in our home.

Of the 15 times that he was on the potty, he peed in it 4 times.

Of the 4 times that he peed in the potty, he had been dry and only went in the potty, not in his pants.

Here's the big deal: Of the 4 successful potty visits, at least 2 (if not 3) of the visits were self-initiated. He comes running to me and says "wet!" At times, he's already gone and saying "wet" have just been his reaction to being wet. Other times, he's dry or is only slightly wet and goes more as soon as we get him to the potty.

Tweaking Our Strategy
First of all, thank you for all the suggestions via facebook and comments on my previous post Potty Training. They made me think about how we could tweak our current strategy and gave me other ideas to try. A blogger friend, Ellen, also shares some important tips in her blog post When You Begin Potty Training Your Child with Down Syndrome.

So as far as potty time intervals, we were taking him to the potty every hour during Christmas break, which is when we shifted to high gear with potty training. Then in January, we tried taking him every 30 minutes with an alarm helping us keep track of the time.

First we had him in pull-ups only during the day and a diaper at naptime and bedtime. Then we tried underwear under his pull-ups to give him the sensation of being wet. That was 50% effective with him. Whenever we went to the potty with wet underwear, I'd let him touch the wet underwear and dry underwear to reinforce his understanding of wet and dry. In the 2 weeks that we tried the underwear under pull-ups, I think he knew he was wet when he went but didn't care and continued to play. He only communicated that he was wet two times in that 2 week period.

Then we got braver. Yesterday, I put him in underwear and shorts ONLY. No pull-ups. He soon found himself standing in the kitchen with wet shorts and pee running down his legs. He had an "uh-oh" look on his face when he looked me. We went to the potty, cleaned up, and put on dry underwear and pants. After that incident, he seemed to understand "being wet" better.

Today, he is in underwear and pants only. And in addition to taking him to the potty at our scheduled intervals, we also rush him to the potty as soon as he says "wet!"

At this point, it seems "wet" either means he already went and his pants are wet or he is on the verge of going. We don't think he necessarily understands the urge to go just yet. He'll get there eventually.


UPDATE:
# of times Matthew sat on the potty today = 22
# of times Matthew peed in the potty = 9
# of times Matthew said "wet" and came to get me and then went in the potty = 7

Related post:
Go Potty
Potty Training

Potty Training

Sitting on his potty chair for the 10th time today, Matthew was successful with a pee potty. Unfortunately, he wasn't sitting quite right so pee shot out over the front guard of the potty chair and soaked my pants since I was sitting in front of him. But I praised him for going. I applauded his effort. That was more important than my wet pants.

He understands that going in the potty is expected and loves the praise he gets for successfully using the potty. He even clapped for himself as he was peeing. Yes, it's a proud moment for us all.

Readiness signs
We started introducing Matthew to the potty in August last year. He was showing an interest in the toilet, imitating Bill or I in the bathroom. He was willing to sit on his potty chair at bathtime and bedtime.

He knows the sign for potty. He can also verbalize "potty." However, without recognizing the urge to go yet, he doesn't communicate that he wants to or needs to use the potty.

Generally, sensory awareness is low in individuals with Down syndrome. This seems to be true for Matthew as he doesn't seem to sense the urge. He is also indifferent to being wet or having a poopy diaper. So in this regard, perhaps he isn't completely ready but we wanted to start the process anyway because of his interest.

Potty Strategies & Ideas
During the Christmas break, we ramped up our potty training efforts, taking him to the potty (roughly) every hour. He now wears pull-ups during the day, even to school. So he uses the potty at school too even if it wasn't originally in our IEP (Individualized Education Plan). He wears a diaper at naptime and bedtime.

However, with the hourly schedule, we seemed to be missing the window 90% of the time. We were either 3 minutes too late or 3 minutes too early. So last week, we decided to take him to the potty every 30 minutes when he's home and offering water or juice as often as possible. Yes, it's a tedious process but we've learned to incorporate it into our day by keeping an eye on the clock or setting a "potty alarm." It certainly isn't easy when I have 8-month old Elizabeth to tend to as well. But the more practice he gets, the more chances for more successes. Each success is a little baby step to being potty trained.

An idea from another mom is to put Matthew in underwear under the pull-up so he'll feel that he's wet since pull-ups tend to wick moisture away from the skin. I'll try it for the sake of trying it but I don't have high hopes that it will work for someone who doesn't seem to mind playing in wet pants.

I also thought of purchasing the "Peter Potty" which is a standing toddler urinal made just for boys. My sister-in-law recommended it as it worked for slowly transitioning her son out of diapers. The Peter Potty purchase has not been made. Amazon.com is out of stock and we haven't decided if we wanted to try this. We'll continue to use the Baby Bjorn Potty Chair for now.

Another thing I tried was putting Matthew on the toilet. But he was not comfortable on it and seemed very unsteady even with me holding him since his feet couldn't reach the floor.

Standing to pee in the toilet isn't an option for him yet either since he is short. Standing on a stool and using toilet targets is another idea I've quietly entertained but haven't tried. He'll need more stability getting up on a stool and standing on it without holding on to anything and I'm afraid it might turn into a messy game, which would involve me mopping the bathroom floor multiple times a day.

A Learning Process
Matthew is learning the routine: use the potty, wash hands and dry hands. He is learning to pull his pants down and pants up, which requires finger and hand strength and coordination. He still needs help with this. He usually falls forward when pulling his pants up. He is learning that he needs to keep his balance when pulling his pants up.

It's the baby steps that matter to us. Some days we take a few steps forward. Some days we take a few steps back.

Potty Tracking
I've been tracking the number of successes and number of times he sits on the potty using my newest iPhone app "ListMaster." More searching led me to more iPhone apps specifically for potty training utilizing reward systems. However, Matthew doesn't yet understand cumulative reward systems so accumulating several stars to earn a treat or a toy will not work for us right now. So I'll stick to the chart I created on ListMaster for now. As you can see, our batting average for success is currently pretty low.

No Deadline
We're taking it a day at a time. Having him potty trained by the time he goes to Kindergarten would be ideal. Age 5 is the earliest that kids start Kindergarten here. Because his birthday is in October, which is past the beginning of the schoolyear (August), he will be going to Kindergarten a few months before he turns 6. So we have time. But if that does not happen, then we'll just have to rethink things.

Asking other moms in the DS community, it seems kids with Down syndrome potty trained at age 5 - 7 on average, with a few trained as early as 3 and a few as late as 8 to 11. Some did it in a week. Some took a few years.

Every child is different though. Maybe Matthew will be potty trained by his 4th birthday. Or maybe Matthew won't be completely potty trained until he's 5 or older. But right now, with his interest, cooperation and willingness (very important!), we feel it is certainly worth the effort to try. It's another little step toward independence.

Stopping and trying again later is also certainly an option.

Your Experiences, Ideas and Strategies
Please share potty training ideas and what worked for you by leaving a comment. I would love to hear them and many parents who read this blog would find it helpful too. Thanks!



Related posts:
Go Potty
Potty Training

Go Potty

Yes he did - a #1 - for the first time today! We just bought him his own potty seat yesterday with the idea that we would start the process of potty training now.

Matthew has been mimicking a lot of our actions to a tee in the past couple of weeks, even more so than in the past. If I yawned, he'd pretend to yawn. If Bill coughed, he'd let out a fake cough. When I tickle Elizabeth's tummy, he does the same without any prompting from me.

We decided to take advantage of this. With no big brother or big sister to imitate, we're it.

We did it with tooth brushing to get him to brush a little better and it worked like a charm. We brushed our teeth with him to show him how we brushed and he imitated us and even let us help him with brushing his back teeth, which he never used to let us do.

When I showed him his potty seat yesterday, he was immediately interested in sitting in it especially when out of imitation. I didn't take his shorts or diaper off though. I just wanted him to get used to sitting on it first.

Bill gave him a bath tonight and in an attempt to add potty time to his night time routine, he put Matthew on his potty seat right after the bath and said, "You're on the potty. Go potty in the potty." And Matthew went, much to Bill's surprise. I had to look right after Bill told me about it because I didn't believe it myself. We celebrated his first potty experience with high 5's and lots of praise and big smiles.

We don't know if tonight was a matter of good timing or luck or if he's actually beginning to understand this concept with all the imitating he's been doing. Whatever it is, we're very happy about this newest 1st. Maybe he's ready to learn. It'll be a process. We don't know how long it will take and we have no timeframe expectations.

According to "An overview of the development of infants with Down syndrome (0-5 years)", 4 to 5 years is the average age that a child with Down syndrome will use the potty without help. Matthew will be ready when he's ready, with us helping him along.

We'll continue to sit him on the potty and make it a night-time routine and eventually add potty time into the morning routine too. Making it part of the daily routine is an idea I got from Rochelle at The Life & Times of Aidan & Alayna. Before parenthood, we would have never thought we'd be happy about potty time.