A great idea that truly went to "pot".
Written: Dec 23 '01
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Sturdily built, converts to a stool, the box it came in is useful.
Cons: Pot's too small while chair's too large; no splash guard; uncomfortable.
The Bottom Line: The "bottom" line? Don't trust your favourite bottom to this potty, especially if your baby is a boy, or wiggly, has short legs, or is 'of a certain size'.
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| saintdonagh's Full Review: 3 In 1 Toilet Training System |
It's been ten years since the last time I potty-trained a baby of mine, so when I took my son shopping for potties last month, it was with a touch of sadness that I went through yet another ritual of saying goodbye to his babyhood. I didn't know just how sad I was going to get, when I took home The First Years 3-in-1 Toilet Training System.
It seemed the best choice at the time: I trust The First Years products, and the design of their "Toilet Training System" seemed attractive, useful, and versatile. It was the versatility that drew me most: the more use I can get out of furniture and equipment in our small city house, the better. Plus, less upgrading means less shopping, and anyone with a toddler knows how much that means.
So, we took home the potty that promised us everything. When left intact, it sits on the floor with a removable "pot" that sits in the potty's seat. Remove the "pot" and unlatch the seat, and you've got a training seat that can snap onto the toilet, allowing your trainee a safe way of using the 'big' potty. By turning over what's left - the base - a toddler has a step stool with which to reach the toilet or sink. Another feature I liked was the pair of built-in handles, making it easy to pick up and move around, and giving a sitting baby a little assistance in getting up and down off the seat. Of the two colour choices, we chose the bright red/yellow/blue version. This potty - pardon me, "training system", cost us £19.99. That's about $30, which, while more expensive than Americans are paying, seemed a reasonable price next to the other offered items where we shopped.
Of course, choosing and purchasing the equipment is only the beginning of any toilet-training adventure. My son's curious enough in some cases, but as new experiences can sometimes be touch-and-go with him, I left the potty sitting in his room for a few days before we tried it out. He was soon adept at pitching his stuffed animals into it after lights-out, or picking the potty itself up by the handles and throwing it down the stairs. After a few days of playing, I decided to introduce him to its true purpose at bathtime, hoping running water would give him the idea.
With the bathwater running and his bottom bared, I guided him to the potty and sat him down on the seat. And sit on it he did - the "pot" disappeared entirely beneath him. Thinking he was only sitting forward too far, I lifted him to scoot him backwards, but even with his bottom firmly against the back of the chair, there wasn't room for him to "go" into the pot. Two more reasons for dismay: his feet were now sticking up in the air - certainly not comfortable - and I could see that the small splash guard of the pot would be sadly inadequate for any little boy. Worse, when my very active baby started wiggling to get free of the potty so that he could throw his toys into the bath, the pot moved underneath him and pinched his bottom - ow! So, our very first experiment in bathroom independence was a disaster.
But I'm not one for judging harshly, or too quickly. I was disappointed, but we tried again the next day, this time without the pinching pot. Without it, however, the seat has only plastic edges to sit on, and this seemed even more uncomfortable than before. And yet, this is how a child is supposed to sit on it, when using the big toilet.
This was my next attempt - I hoped that my son would be more encouraged by using the big potty, and thought we'd try the training seat method instead. Getting the seat unlatched from the potty, however, is a tricky business, as you have to hold onto the thing while simultaneously pushing two stiff buttons on either side, and lifting. It was clumsy work, but I suppose practice could make up for inexperience. Unfortunately, this method worked no better, and the edges of the training seat left a red ring around my son's legs and bottom, though he only sat a few seconds.
There's no use waiting a few weeks to try again, as he's already outgrown this potty (sizewise) at the age of 24 months. The stepstool could still come in handy of course, and I'm looking for new uses for the rest of the components. The "pot" insert has now become a bathtub toy, good for spilling water onto the unsuspecting tugboats and ducks, and I'm thinking of rigging up the seat as a sort of basketball-hoop for his room, so that he can continue to toss his stuffed animals through it at bedtime. If all these new uses have lost their novelty by spring, I may use the entire thing to plant geraniums, by the front steps - it certainly would be a colourful alternative to clay pots.
Meanwhile, it's back to the shops for us, not for another "training system", but for something inexpensive, roomy, and still appealing - and most of all, happy enough just being a simple potty.
Recommended:
No
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Epinions.com ID:
saintdonagh
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Location: Ireland
Reviews written: 20
Trusted by: 11 members
About Me:
Author of medieval Irish fiction; fortunate mother of two.
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