M&M's are the secret to potty training!

Potting training Noah has not been the easiest thing in the world. We have tried everything from bribing him, to forcing him to stay on the toilet and it has not been a very pleasant experience to say the least. A couple days ago I decided to "google" potty training to see if I could find any good tips. I found an article that said to use candy as a reward every time your child goes to the potty. I was a little skeptical about it but decided to give it a try. It said to go to the store and buy some colorful candy like M&M's or skittles. Noah decided on M&M's. Then you put the candy in a jar and tell your child that the candy is just for them and that every time they go pee pee they get to choose one M&M out of the jar and every time they go poo they get to choose three M&M's. Letting them pick the color of candy is an important part of the technique, because it makes them feel more in control of the reward.

I put the jar up on a shelf in the bathroom where Noah could see it for motivation. In the past Noah would get upset when I would tell him it was time to go potty. It only took a couple of times of going pee and then getting to choose an M&M out of the jar, to excite Noah. His attitude about using the toilet completely changed. Every time I ask him if he needs to go to the potty he gets excited because he knows it's a chance to get to pick a treat out of his very own candy jar. Yesterday he went pee probably 15 times, just so he could get another M&M. I cannot believe that in one day we have been able to turn potty training into a positive experience.

Noah had never really gone poo on the toilet before we started this new technique. But this morning he yelled out "the poo poo is coming" so I ran him to the toilet and sure enough he went. He was so excited that he was going to get to choose five M&M's (I decided to give 5 instead of the suggested 3 for poo, to really motivate him.) He was so proud of himself and kept giving me hugs. So far everyithing is going great. He has been in underwear for two days and has not had an accident yet. I can't even explain how happy I am. Potty training went from an unpleasant and frustrating experience for both of us, to a happy pleasant experience.

I decided to post this for any of you having a frustrating potty training experience right now and also for those of you who will when your kids are ready to potty train. Give this a try and hopefully it will work for you too!