My boy has been unwell this past year in particular. He was diagnosed with asthma and he has been quite lethargic. I encouraged him from about 2 1/2 years of age to go to the toilet but he didn't seem keen. Then one day, about a fortnight ago, I said to him "No more Pull Ups" I felt that he used them as a convenience rather than going to the toilet. So from then on I put him in normal underwear. At first he was wetting each time. But he showed discomfort and said he didn't like wet legs. The next day he went a few times. Yay! This was cause for celebration. I clapped and showed genuine excitement. I drew a star on the calender. Every time he went in the toilet I drew another star on the calender. This was agreat encouragement to him. I said to him when he stopped wetting his pants he could wear Thomas underwear. That was a wonderful incentive for him as he adores trains and Thomas the Tank Engine. We went shopping and eventually found some underwear with Thomas and His Friends on them. Our next problem was avoiding mess on the floor as he was sitting on the toilet. I encouraged him to watch his father and soon he was doing as Dad does. Now 2 weeks later he goes by himself and wees standing up, then washes his hands. In the past week my concern was him doing #2s in the toilet rather than in his undies. I was feeling discouraged but I read a great article on minti (which I will link below) about older children soiling themselves. I think this helped me to react in a better way to the soiling. Today he told me he wanted to go. He went and when i went to check on him he was finished (no wonder Icould never catch him - he is so quick!). He had done a #2 in the toilet. I was so shocked yet happy that he felt comfortable to go.
I hope he continues. I think he has learnt so quickly. I can see he is so happy with himself. He now says he is a big boy and he is so proud of himself. I feel he is no longer my baby. This is a great milestone in our lives and I hope our experience will help others.