Oh Crap! Potty Training Quotes

“The learning phase of anything sucks. No one wants to “be learning”; we like to “have learned.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Oh, she’s just doing that for attention.” Well then, pay attention.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“To have no boundaries is like a free fall through life.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“out”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“If she sat and peed/pooped on the potty more than one time, then we know she can do it. Period. It’s that simple. If she subsequently chooses not to, it’s behavior.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“you don’t hand your child self-esteem. She develops it by mastering tasks.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“other things,” or “What’s the rush? She’ll do it. I”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“I used to suggest holding off on the nap if you hadn’t gotten a poop in the morning hours. This is ultimately your call,”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Can’t I just try underwear? I’m afraid of . . . My final answer: yes. You can always try underwear. If you have some notion in your head that commando is weird or creepy, go inward and investigate that. I have heard some people are afraid of infection. I have never, ever seen this happen. I don’t recommend panties in at least the first two weeks. If you want to try them, that’s up to you. You have been warned. If the panties get soaked, don’t be attached to them; ditch them.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“You may have noticed that poop has its very own chapter. Yeah. It’s that big a freaking deal.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“A brilliant mom on our forum found that talking about using the potty as something “helpful” worked wonders. Her daughter loves being helpful so she would phrase it as, “Put your fork on the table. Put your cup on the table. Go sit and pee. Thank you. You are such a big help.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Clueless to I Peed to I’m Peeing to I Have to Go Pee? Look for progress, not perfection. Nothing is really a problem on these first few days.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Here are the major blocks or phases, in order: 1. Peeing and pooping while naked, either with prompting or without. 2. Peeing and pooping with clothes on, commando, with prompting or without. 3. Peeing and pooping in different situations, with prompting or without. 4. Peeing and pooping with underpants, with prompting or without. 5. Consistent self-initiation. 6. Night and nap (unless you are choosing to do it all together; more on that later). 7. College. Probably still needing to prompt occasionally.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“just one generation ago, kids were potty trained at seventeen to twenty-two months. I truly believe it’s because our moms, for the most part, were stay-at-home moms. I mean stay at home. They didn’t work at home, they had no computer for email and Facebook, no cell phones, no identities to preserve, no mommy groups, no playdates, no baby gymnastics, no music classes, and no swimming lessons. Now, I’m forty-three, so maybe I’m talking to a younger audience here, and I’m certainly not saying our moms exhibited the best parenting. But I do believe it was that stay-at-home factor that made potty training so easy.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“many parents want a cookie-cutter version of potty training. There’s no such thing. It doesn’t exist. Also, it infuriates me that your neighbor with two children thinks she knows everything about this potty training gig.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Have confidence in yourself and have faith in your kid. You both can do this, quickly, gently, and effectively. Do or do not. There is no trying.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Panic, fear, and dread will only put more difficulties in your path. Relaxed is key.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“The need to pee and poop is a primal one; learning to put it somewhere specific is social, and social behavior must be taught.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“• Your kid is untrustworthy at this point. You cannot just ask him if he has to go. He’ll say “no,” ’cause it’s his favorite word, and then you are screwed. • Don’t ask, period. Never ask if he has to go. Tell and bring. If you see or know he’s got to go—he’s dancing around, looking uncomfortable—you say, “Come. Time to pee.” • Use your own leverage as Dad. Your kid loves you in a really special way that is different than how he loves Mom. Use that power for good. Enjoy whatever special time you two have together, but make him pee first. • Video games, wrestling, TV watching . . . pee first. Say that. “You pee first, and then we’ll . . .” • Don’t act helpless. You know your kid just as well as your partner, but in a different way. • Keep your eyes open looking for your kid’s pee-pee dance. • Don’t hover, and don’t prompt him every two seconds. Can you imagine anything worse than someone on you like white on rice, asking you to pee when you don’t have to? • Be casual and cool. You probably already have that role anyway. You can be casual and nonchalant and good cop and still watch out for pee.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Go. Pants. Sit. Pee.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“At this point, you should feel pretty comfortable that your child, while bare bummed, can sit and pee on the potty. Remember: it’s okay if you are still prompting. Prompting counts as success, and your child needs it. Remember, though: don’t overprompt (she says to the mom holding a knife). By now, you may have started with pants, or your child may still be butt nekkid, or you may be doing a mix of the two.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“I’ve searched and searched for the Magic Nighttime Trick; it doesn’t exist. There’s no way around it. To train for nighttime, you have to: 1. carefully monitor fluid intake before bedtime and/or 2. wake your child to pee.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Underpants, self-initiation, and night/nap dryness all sort of blend into the recipe at around three weeks after your start date.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Here’s the trick: toss the prompts out there with as little energy as possible. Something like, “I can see you have to pee. There’s your potty.” Then drop the matter. Walk away and let it go, mentally and/or physically. Now she can make her own choice, which means there’s nothing to resist. If you don’t care, there’s nothing for her to fight. I mean, of course you care, but you have to give your child the room to learn how to use the potty, choose to do so, and do it herself. The lofty reason for this: it makes the accomplishment her own. The reality: it’s easier this way.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“You need to pee before we leave the house, because I will not like it if you pee in the car.” If you’re pretty sure you have an 11:00 a.m. pooper, don’t leave in that time frame (remember this isn’t forever—you are still starting out). Bring an extra outfit. I suggest using a cloth diaper or towel to line the car seat. Bring wipes. Hell, bring the potty chair!”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“You will still be using diapers for naps and bedtime during Block Two. Again, clearly state why the diaper is going on, and when it will come off. You should still be praising or at least acknowledging what your child is learning.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“So Block Two brings clothes. It also combines with Block Three and brings small outings. These should be planned and will give you a sense of how leaving the house potty trained differs from leaving the house with diapers. Early on, though, these should be small—I repeat, small—outings! Do not attempt a week’s grocery shopping. Do not attempt an hour drive to Grandma’s. Don’t go to story time at the library thinking you’ll show off your child’s new skill. Do not try to complete a necessary chore. Instead, consider a walk around the block or a run to a store for just one item. These small outings are practice runs.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“Your child should go commando (aka, no underpants but with pants) for about a month, give or take a week.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“End result: A successful completion of Block One should look something along the lines of your child, while naked, can sit to pee and poop on the potty. This can be because you prompted, you led him, or he went on his own.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right

“I’m going to put a diaper on you for nap because you’re still learning. You’ve done such a good job today, and your nap is a long time. You may not remember to pee when you’re sleeping. When you wake up, we’re going to take it right off.”
― Jamie Glowacki, Oh Crap! Potty Training: Everything Modern Parents Need to Know to Do It Once and Do It Right