Jill M. Lekovic

Why can't more parenting books be this short and skimmable? I mean, the authors MUST know their intended audience has young children?

Anyway: this is blissfully short, and the first almost-half of the book is spent convincing parents that babies CAN be potty-trained before they turn 3, or 2 even. Which means if you're on-board before the book even comes into the library for you, you can skip ahead to Chapter 3.

The book lays out a plan starting around 6 months, but then has a chapter on starting with older kids, in her world around 3. There's no middle ground, but the quick & dirty How-To chart in the middle basically says "these are recommended ages; start whenever and progress through on stages when the kid has mastered each one." So there's that.

Other bonus: basically, the system laid out in this book is what I was planning on doing: make the potty available, sit the kid on it regularly to get used to it, then at set intervals to see if he needs it, then drop diapers in favor of training pants. Score another win for my lazy-but-instinctive parenting, I guess, and we're off to Babies R Us to buy a potty next weekend.… (más)

This is a more practical, less attachment-parenting based guide to potty training younger children than the standard American way. It does not, for instance, suggest that you should hold a floppy newborn over a potty bowl or that your kids should wear uncovered cloth diapers and baby leg warmers like The Diaper-Free Baby does. The tone can be a bit preachy when she suggests that you just find a way around difficulties and maybe cut down on activities outside the home, but it’s a great source of ideas for parents who want their kids potty-trained closer to two than to three and a half.… (más)