How to Potty Train by Age 2 (And Save Money)

If you’re looking for ways to save money while raising a kid, look no further than to potty train by age 2.

Of all things I’m proud of being a mom, helping my daughter potty train early has got to be on the top 10.

It’s credible to witness the process of potty training a toddler who can barely put sentences together. But, she understood perfectly on how to go to the potty on her own.

And when she’s done, she would jump up and down as she claps and rejoices on her triumphant moment. I made sure to join her on the celebration every time!

In addition to saving money, potty training early has numerous benefits.

This includes enhanced cognitive development for the child, less waste, and less work for the mom.

Needless to say, I’m incredibly happy that the days of changing diapers on the clock is over. And now I’m ready to share with you my methods on how to potty train my child by age 2.

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How to Potty Train by Age 2

Before we start, I must preface by saying that every child develops at a different pace. Even though I believe that potty training by age 2 is ideal, it’s also not necessary if neither you nor your child is ready.

Similarly, even though you can save money through potty training early, it’s also not helpful to potty train for the sake of increasing savings.

My philosophy about saving money is that it’s much easier done when it’s not forced. And coincidentally, this goes hand-in-hand with potty training!

So without further ado, here’s my method to potty train my child by age 2:

Use Cloth Diapers

I first learned about the benefits of using cloth diapers during my pregnancy where I indulged myself in learning about all things parenthood.

When I first came across to cloth diapers, I was like, no way am I going to use those! Besides the icky smell, I was not a fan of throwing them in my washing machine.

But that’s until I started reading about the various benefits – here are six of them!

One of those benefits is that it could help potty train a child earlier.

Since cloth diapers have no chemical added for absorbency, the baby will feel more of the wetness comparing to when using disposable ones.

And because of that, the baby would feel more inclined to potty train early when s/he is ready.

So I gave cloth diapers a try.

And lo-and-behold, I could see a significant difference between using cloth diapers vs. disposable ones.

The most prominent sign is when she would take it off more often once it’s soiled. This was a clear signal that she’s ready to start potty training.

Start Gradually

I started to potty train my daughter at 18 months. This was a time when she could walk properly and understand what I say.

However, she did not like sitting on the potty at all!

It must have taken us several attempts before she could properly sit on the potty without running away.

At first, I would explain to her what a potty is to garner some interest. But it didn’t work.

So the next thing I did was to show her cartoon videos of how a baby potty trains. She was much more interested this time and wanted to try. It was a gradual process, but little by little, she became more willing to sit on the potty.

Then one day, she actually said “Mama pee pee poo poo” when I go to the bathroom. And that’s when it hit me, what if we go together?

So I responded, “Yes, mommy is going to the bathroom and you can come too!”

I then explained to her how the toilet works and pointed to her that her potty works the same way. She seemed to have understood it, and was so happy that we sat on our individual stool together.

Then all of a sudden, she pee’d on it for the first time! She was so shocked and I immediately congratulated her.

That’s the beginning of when we started celebrating each pee pee and poo poo session together.

At this time, she was about 21 month – exactly three months after she first sat on the potty.

Have Confidence

Once you started the process, you have to have confidence in your child.

This means that it’s time to let go of the idea of using a diaper.

At first, this could seem strange for both you and your child. After all, habits are hard to break.

You should also expect that your child will soil his or her pants in the beginning and that’s completely normal.

In fact, these accidents are great teaching moments to instruct your child to use the potty.

Certainly, this is easier to achieve if you’re both home most of the time. It’s not easy if you’re out and about or when you don’t have a potty ready, for instance.

After a few accidents, my daughter developed the habit of going to the potty on her own.

Stay Consistent

It’s important to note that once you’ve established a routine, you should stay consistent.

This means that once your child starts to use the potty, you should have it available all the time. Once again, this is easier to achieve if you can be home while you potty train.

And if you’ve stopped using the diaper, it’s important to keep it that way or it’ll cause confusion.

By using cloth diapers, starting gradually and having confidence in my daughter, she was able to successfully potty train by age 2 and had fun doing it!

I hope that you find my method helpful. Happy potty training!