Oh Crap Potty Training Method Pt.2

Our Oh Crap Potty Training Method Experience: Some Triumphs, Some Trauma

We are pleased to report that the past few days have given us some triumphs as we go on with The Oh Crap Potty Training method from the book written by Jamie Glowacki. We have had a little trauma (and drama) too. But that’s par for the course! In this blog post, I’ll go over our experience with this method so far. You can use it as a sort of Oh Crap Potty Training Cliff Notes or a cheat sheet, if you will, to help you out.

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Glowacki breaks down the Oh Crap Potty Training method into major blocks or phases, in this order:

1. “Peeing and pooping while naked, either with prompting or without.
2. With clothes on, commando, with prompting or without.
3. In different situations, with prompting or without.
4. With underwear, with prompting or without.
5. Constant self-initiation.
6. Nighttime potty training and naptime (unless you are choosing to do it all together)”.

I did want to mention also, that the author is very no-nonsense and straightforward in her writing. If you are easily offended by a little toilet humor or the occasional F-Bomb, this book may not be for you. I find the writing to be really funny, personally.

Our Day 1 (Block 1)

The Oh Crap Potty Training Book recommends letting go of the “DAY” thing and thinking of the process in terms of blocks instead. Block 1 can be just for Day 1 for example.

For us it was, but if you are seeing absolutely NO signs of hope or encouragement on the first day, consider holding off for Block 2.

However, a caveat…OCPT suggests not leaving them in Block 1 for too long, as they are naked or pantless and you don’t want this association to build.

Otherwise, you may end up with a kid that will only use the toilet naked. Not cool.

So far we would call it a success. We did Day 1 “naked/commando day” and all in all I’d say Bug did quite well. 5 accidents on the floor. 5 pees on the potty and even a #2 on the potty! These were all with prompting, however, so we are hoping that as we embark on Day 3, he will actually tell us when he has to go, or wants to go.

The Daniel Tiger potty song is now running around my head non-stop. “If you have to go potty, stop and go right away!”

Potty Chair Or Potty Seat?

There are many different types of potty chairs out there to choose from. We went with the Fisher Price musical duck potty, it is pretty adorable, and hearing the song when the liquid hits the bottom of the bowl is encouraging for potty training. We also got a portable padded potty seat with handles that sits atop the regular toilet seat. It is great for taking with you anywhere and we found it nice to have both options.

Make Hand-Washing Fun For Your Toddler

Make hand-washing fun for your toddler! Get yourself some fun pump soap dispensers with your child’s favorite characters to make hand washing a fun, healthy habit. We would fill the bathroom sink with dinky cars and he would wash those right along with his hands.

At the end of day 1, we were confident that we were ready to move on to Block 2, aka commando (AKA “naked” potty training”.

The premise behind this is that underwear gives that snug secure feeling of a diaper or pull-up. Your little one’s muscle memory has not developed sufficiently to know that underwear is not a diaper.

According to the Oh Crap potty training method, the feeling of it running down the leg instills a little bit more of a “UH OH!” sensation and will develop the mind-body connection of getting to the potty with the sensation of urgency.

Related: Pt.1: Preparing For Potty Training: The Day Before The Big Day. AND Pt.3: Oh Crap Potty Training Experience Summary

In this short clip, Jamie Glowacki addresses the question: What IS a realistic time frame for potty training?

Day 2 or Block 2

Day 2 of the Oh Crap method went well, I think this potty training method is going to work for us! We had one accident in the morning, but after that, it got a lot better. We even took him out to run a couple of errands sans diaper and he didn’t pee! Picture 2 nervous parents strolling around Canadian Tire, with a towel and a pack of wipes in hand. Not very subtle. We were gone for about an hour, and when we got home immediately sat him on the potty and he went.

Poop was a different story though, he held off until bedtime when we put his pull-up ( AKA Big Boy Sleeptime Undies) on.

Naptime also seems to be disrupted, which means bedtime is earlier. Hopefully, this will get back on track. Seriously, I am going to cry when he gives up naptime but with any luck at all, his transition to quiet time will be a smooth one.

Day 3

While still in Block 2, we moved on to Day 3. It was Monday and my husband headed back to work, which meant one less set of eyes on the prize. Mama was flying solo.

The day started out great, with a morning trip to the potty, followed by 2 subsequent trips. Mind you, these were all with prompting but I was watching for his signals.

Next came the outing challenge!

We went to the grocery store for a few things and hit Dollarama for a few fun summer toys. He stayed completely dry the whole time and as soon as we got home we had another success (#1).

Here’s where our issues with #2 began and hopefully our experience can give you a heads-up so you don’t have the same problem!

Beware The Poo-Poo Picasso (Poop Happens)

If your kid is anything like mine, he has a routine or a set time when #2 happens. And let’s face it, poop happens.

The thing this book suggests is that it can be scary for your little one, as the ONLY thing they have ever known is it going into a diaper. Glowacki has a whole chapter dedicated solely to poop in the book, it’s that big of a deal!

One of the biggest signs your kid is ready is showing the need for privacy when it’s time to go.

Retreating to a corner and turning away, or going into a closet perhaps, covering their ears or closing their eyes when it’s going down are all common signs that your toddler is ready to take on potty training! Don’t miss your window!!

Be especially vigilant during naptime. If your toddler hasn’t gone number 2 before naptime and you know they’re due, watch carefully! Keep a close eye on your baby monitor until they are fast asleep or you may end up with a big poopy mess in the crib or the whole room depending on your setup. I won’t get into all the gory details but we had a Poo-Poo Picasso happen one time and this Poopageddon was not fun to clean up!

But,I take the blame for this one. This crappy situation was completely avoidable and entirely my fault. I wasn’t watching that monitor with the eagle eye like I should have been.

But what can you do? Just say, “Oh Crap”, and carry on I guess.

Day 4

So all in all, day 4 is going great (relatively that is, it’s all relative right?) Honestly ladies and gents, I highly recommend the Oh Crap potty training method. I actually wonder if we should have done it sooner.

Glowacki states OCPT can be done as young as 20 months! 20 -30 months is what she actually says is the optimal time frame (she potty trained her own son at 22 months as a single mom). At first, when reading this part of the book, I wondered if we had missed our window (we started at 34 months) but I can confidently say that we are on the right track. Honestly, I don’t think it would have worked for us if we tried earlier but who knows?

UPDATE: about 4 weeks in, we got really brave and took a road trip to go camping! Check out Road Trip With A Toddler: Adventures Of The Travelling Potty

Boys Might Want To Pee Standing Up

A side note here, if you are potty training a boy he might want to do it just like Daddy.

The Oh Crap method suggests boys begin peeing sitting down because their aim is going to be pretty wild. Also most likely your toddler isn’t tall enough to clear the bowl so he will need his step stool. There will be a lot of pee clean-up duty for Mama!

I was more than happy to follow that advice but today, on Day 4 (Still Block 2) our little one decided he liked it much better standing up at the big throne. I didn’t want a power struggle here to try to force him to sit so I said ok that’s great. Let’s do it! Sometimes he wants to sit and sometimes he’d rather stand. Simply allowing him to have a say in the matter makes things go a lot smoother for us.

THANKFULLY, our little guy is really tall, I am talking over 40″ tall so I guess I’ll have to go with the flow. Pun intended. Here’s where having a husband or male partner can help with potty training in a big way. Someone who has the same male equipment and is a verified expert on peeing standing can help teach boys this skill.

This is a great time to teach your toddler about the importance of lifting the seat first, wiping off any pee that sprinkles anywhere, and putting the seat back down afterward!

The Terrible Twos & Other Stages Of Kidhood

Look For Progress, Not Perfection

This potty training method teaches you to look for progress, not perfection.

My son guy gave me a run for my money today at nap time with some stalling techniques (yours might too), and we will definitely need to revisit the chapter on Poop. He’s a smart cookie and got me to take him to the potty 3 times before I finally said calmly, “No more. It’s quiet time now. Tell me when you poop. I love you”, and closed his door. He is napping as we speak…is it too early for wine?

Only one small accident today and countless successes. I’ll take that as a win.

The “Clean And Dry” Question

Another bit of advice I stumbled upon suggested the “clean and dry” question. When getting into the wearing of underwear).

Take two pairs and wet one of them with water or smudge a little something on them to teach your child the difference between “clean and dry” and “dirty”. Then from time to time throughout the day ask the question…” are your underwear clean and dry?” Rewards may be given when they are clean and dry for a period of time!

I think that this will work great and am anxious to try it out. We have these cute “Cars” characters toddler underwear all ready to rock, but I am going with Glowacki’s suggestion to wait around 3 weeks to introduce underwear to the equation.

What We Like Most About The Oh Crap Potty Training Method

• The “All-In” Approach. Going back and forth wearing a diaper or Pull-Up sometimes during the day, and not other times will only create inconsistency and delay progress

• That being said, we like that daytime and nighttime training can be done separately, and we can still keep him clean at nap and bedtime by simply calling his Pull-Ups “Big Boy Sleeptime Underwear”

• There is no squeamishness or shyness with learning and talking about your body and bodily functions.

• It’s a matter-of-fact approach (WE ALL DO IT!) and it’s a fun read!

• It doesn’t rely heavily on sugary bribes (Yes, we used SOME), but not nearly as much as I thought we would. I also did a sticker chart and a prize box for funsies.

• There is a section in the back for quick reference, FAQ’s from real parents, and even a Cheat Sheet For Dads!

• Potty training is broken down into Blocks or chunks of time, so it is less overwhelming! It is not literally a “3 Day” potty training method. But it is going to take you a heck of a lot less time than doing a casual on-and-off type approach!

• The method focuses on PROGRESS NOT PERFECTION

• It goes beyond the initial phases to talk about nighttime training, regressions and various other issues you may encounter down the road. The book will be a great resource even as time goes on.

Related: When To Use Pull-Ups For Potty Training

A Final Word On The Oh Crap Potty Training Method

So overall, we are finding the Oh Crap Potty Training method to be extremely effective, and highly recommend it!

Granted, we are in the very early stages but OH SO HOPEFUL and totally seeing progress!

Now I know some people will claim that potty training can be done in three days, but what is “done”? Sorry, but in my honest opinion, a kid COMPLETELY TRAINED in 3 days is a RARITY!

The good news is, with using this method more than likely your kid will be over the hump in 3 days. There will be potty accidents along the way for most everyone and that’s OK! It’s just a part of life and this too shall pass!

Check out Jamie Glowacki’s podcast for more parenting tips for toddlers laced with humor and straight-up reality!

If you have been dreading it or putting it off, just go for it. Your kid will surprise you as they pick up this new life skill, the messiest of the milestones. It has to be done at some point and once it’s working out… Hallelujah!! No more diapers!!

What technique or tips worked for you during potty training?

If you try the Oh Crap potty training method or have tried a different approach, leave us a comment below on how it is working or worked for you. We’d love to hear your thoughts and experiences!

Until next time, K.

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