Good-Bye Diapers, Hello Savings!

If you were to interview 100 moms randomly on the street and ask them all, "what's the biggest expense you have when it comes to your children?", I would bet the majority would say, "Diapers". It's no secret, even if you're using cloth diapers there's an upfront cost of getting what you need in order to "cloth". Ashley and I briefly touched on diapers a few weeks ago. This week however, we're talking ditching the diaper!

This is probably one of the happiest and most stressful time in a mom's life. Potty training. It's no secret. No child is the same which of course means no child will catch on to potty training the same. All you can do is "go with the flow". Ha. See what I did there? Too Much? OK... moving on.

We're actually in this stage of life with Ainsley, the youngest of my two. And let me tell y'all something. This is tough. It had been three years since we went through this with Zander. I had forgotten about accidents and messes, and barely making it to the toilet. We're kind of using the same methods we did with Zander though and from what I can tell they seem to be working.

Here's what we do:

Set a "Potty Timer".
For us, this is just the timer on the stove. Huggies and Pull Ups sells a stop watch branded as a potty timer, but your timer on the stove or microwave works just as well.
It starts from the time we wake up. Mostly Ainsley wakes up before me. As soon as I know she's awake, I have to get up. I immediately take her to the bathroom first thing in the morning. If she goes, I set the timer for 30 minutes. If she doesn't, she gets 15 minutes. This pattern continues throughout the day. If she has more water than normal, the timer is set for shorter amounts of time.
The timer is mostly for me. Ainsley is at the age where she won't tell me if she has to go or not. She still hasn't grasped that sensation. She knows if she has peed (or pooped) after the fact. Telling me she needs to go will probably come within 6 months to a year. I'm ok with that. We're on the right track.

Don't use diapers or pull ups.
Y'all, these are just a crutch. Buy your kids underwear! YES, you will have to do more laundry because, yes, accidents will happen. However, using big kid underwear that fits your kids properly will help them realize when they are wet. I'm not gonna lie, cleaning up "number two" accidents are no fun and require some soaking to prevent stains, but I don't throw out the underwear just because she's pooped in them.
The only time we use pull ups is at nap time and bed time. Ainsley doesn't always wake up "dry", so using the pull ups when she sleeps prevents having to change her sheets in the middle of the night.

We DON'T use stickers or treats. 
That's just us though. When teaching Zander and now while teaching Ainsley we don't reward successful potty visits with treats or sticker charts. We do make sure the kids know how proud we are of them. We sing songs, do fun dances, and give high fives all around. This isn't to say that treats and prizes won't be right for you and your kids. Remember? Every kid is different. Your kid might be happier knowing they get a sticker if they use the potty. For us though, it just didn't make sense. Everyone pees anyway right? I don't get a sticker every time I go.

I gave up on the training toilet. 
Y'all, with Zander we bought one of those mini training toilets that sits on the floor, you know? The ones with the bucket they pee and poop in and you still have to dispose of it? Yeah. Gross. Ours comes in three stages. It's the gross bucket thing. Then the seat comes off and attaches to your toilet. It's also a step stool. I gave up on the bucket thing before even using it. I took the seat off, attached it to the toilet and let both kids use the grown up toilet with the seat so they don't fall in. That way, the step stool is used to wash hands after. Boom! It works and you just flush the mess away without cleaning anything else. No need to add extra work, moms. Right? Right!

Ainsley gets really excited when she successfully uses the potty. She knows it makes mommy and daddy happy, and I swear this kid lives for high fives. Any chance to get and give them she's all about that life! She also feels the need to visit me while I'm in the bathroom, so when I go I always get a, "Good job, Mommy! Way to go! High fives!" She cracks me up. So basically, just do what works for your family. Hopefully the tips and tricks from Mamas Tell All will help you! Even if you don't have kids yet!

What did you do to survive the potty training experience?
Link up with us and share! 

That Southern Mama//Everyday Thoughts//The So-Called Homemaker//The Rambling Llama

Next week on Mamas Tell All: brag on your man!
April 29: The Man Behind the Mama – talking about husbands, boyfriends, etc. 

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