• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

By Root 807 0

you’d benefit from stepping back and seeing how EC fits into your life. You have to figure out what amount of EC is right for you. Each of the “tracks” in this book (full-time, part-time, and occasional EC) offer options that are right for your family if they fit with your lifestyle, and of course you can mix and match techniques and tips as necessary. You can start at a slow and gradual pace, see how it goes for you and your baby, and expand if it feels right. You can also take a step back if things get rough. I did this myself, scaling back to practicing EC maybe once (that is one catch, just one!) a week when we felt overwhelmed by my son’s health condition when he was two to four months old. Just remember, you can always keep your baby in a diaper at times when you know life will be particularly busy. You can also anticipate those times when you’ll be busy and plan accordingly. For instance, offer your baby a pottytunity right before you start to make dinner if things tend to get hectic then.

If you have older children to care for, keep in mind that EC is just another form of baby care, like changing or feeding a baby. Your older children will enjoy being involved by helping to bring the potty to you, helping support the baby on the potty, or helping to entertain the baby. I recall many times my older son would let me know that the baby had to go to the bathroom when I wasn’t being attentive. We even have the cutest scene captured on video: Benjamin, not much more than a baby himself at age two, letting me know that Daniel was touching the potty and that he needed to go to the bathroom. They can actually help your baby see how normal it is to use a toilet. Babies learn so much watching their siblings use the toilet, and your older child will probably feel proud of the skills he’s able to demonstrate for your baby.

Parents Speak About Siblings and EC:

The baby is always looking to her big sister, Grace, sometimes even more than she looks to my husband and me. When she sees Grace using the toilet, she wants to use it too. And Grace has also been aware of Eve’s elimination and will let us know if she has to go potty. EC doesn’t detract from our relationship with our older child but is instead something we all do together.

—ERIN, MOM TO GRACE, 4, AND EVE, 7 MONTHS

Jane really does help a lot with her sister when it comes to EC. Sometimes she made me feel silly for not recognizing her sister’s cue.

—KEILA, MOM TO JANE, 27 MONTHS AND HELEN, 8 MONTHS

To make EC a fun family thing, I taught my older son the ASL sign for “toilet” and asked him to make the sign for his baby sister when he thought she wanted to go. And when she got a bit older, she always wanted to pee when her brother did.

—LISA, MOM TO KAI, 3, AND NOE, 2

My preteen stepdaughters potty Ben when they visit in the summers and at Christmastime. The younger one is so in tune with him that she just knows when Ben has to go.

—GIGI, MOM TO BEN, 18 MONTHS

When people find out I have five kids they can’t imagine how I’ve been able to EC, but I’ve found it to fit easily into our lives. There are plenty of opportunities for the older kids to help out. The oldest, a teenager, is able to take Jack to the toilet or potty. My six-year-old has experienced intuitive “phantom” pees on occasion, my five-year-old loves to cue Jack, and my two-year-old, who was also EC’ed, has a particular sensitivity toward Jack’s needs and loves to sing him potty songs.

Many conventionally diapered and toilet-trained children will regress into wanting to wear diapers again when a new baby is born. With our EC’ed child, there was no need for her to regress because she saw the baby using the potty and toilet just like her.

—ELIZABETH, MOM OF FIVE, INCLUDING LILLIAN, 2, AND JACK, 8 MONTHS

Maxine definitely told me when Nathan had to go, and I always listened to her. Since she was usually playing with him when I might be doing dishes or something, she was very tuned in.

—CAREN, MOM TO MAXINE, 7, AND NATHAN, 3

If Jefferson’s playing with Jason in another room, he’ll call me if Jason