| A new mom will quickly learn when baby is telling her | | | | doing your bit to help the environment. |
| that he is tired or hungry. Baby will also tell you when | | | | Potty training at the 'traditional' age of around 2-3 can |
| he is about to soil his diaper - or 'eliminate' in the jargon. | | | | be a real battle and a scary time for a kid. My |
| The signs are usually a grunting and moving into a | | | | daughter stubbornly refused to use either a potty or |
| certain position. Our son used to get this far away look | | | | the toilet for weeks and finally succumbed only when |
| on his face and he would be very noisy so that | | | | we bribed her with the promise of a new dolly! Starting |
| everyone around him knew what was on the way! | | | | much earlier would spare you both but the technique |
| Many moms in America are now practicing 'elimination | | | | does require constant attention and, for this reason, |
| communication' whereby they watch baby for signs | | | | some experts 'pooh-pooh' the idea (sorry!) of starting |
| that he is ready to 'eliminate' and then dangle him over | | | | potty training so early. A sokesperson at the National |
| the toilet or a potty. The technique does require | | | | Childbirth Trust believes most parents will be too busy |
| virtually constant observation of the baby but | | | | to watch baby all day and says 'I think it will always be |
| apparently baby soon learns the procedure and knows | | | | something practiced by a minority of parents doing it |
| that if he grunts hard enough it saves him having to sit | | | | for ideological reasons such as being closer to the |
| around with a diaper full of you-know-what! | | | | baby or to help save the environment'. Two good |
| The savings achieved through having to buy far fewer | | | | reasons I would have thought. |
| diapers are considerable, and of course you would be | | | | |