Real Moms Share Hilarious Potty Training Stories

Bathroom Humor

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Potty training is a challenging time in most parents' lives. Thankfully, like most parenting challenges, it also comes with a healthy dose of hilarious stories. Some may not feel all that funny at the time, but once you can look back and think "I survived," they become quite hilarious. Click through to read real moms' laugh-out-loud stories from the potty-training trenches.

Boot Camp Dropout

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"We did potty training boot camp too, and at the end of day one after 13 accidents my son looked at me and said, 'I don't think this is working.'" — Deborah H., mom of three

The Bag of Shame

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"One of mine, who shall remain nameless, had a really hard time potty training. Especially pooping. Ugh. He was a hider and there was a rule in pre-K where he went that kids had to be potty-trained. He would constantly hide behind the train table in the play room to poop, and his teacher knew what he was up to every time he went back there. I always felt terrible when I would go to pick him up in the afternoon and saw a plastic bag out in the hallway. Whenever I saw that bag I KNEW he had pooped in his pants in the playroom. His teacher just adored him though, so she put up with it. I was mortified." — Jenny Y., mom of three

MORE: Potty Training Practices From Around the World

Worried About the Wrong Thing

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"We potty trained V the old three-day method. Lock yourselves in the house for three days ( sort of) with no pants. And then slowly make your way out into the world with underpants on for short periods of time. Our first outing was an early dinner at an Italian restaurant nearby. We were so worried she might have an accident and asked her every two seconds if she had to pee. Nope, nope. She did totally fine! No accidents! Except, that while eating a piece of calamari, her gag reflex got the better of her and she threw up all over the table! Sadly, she has done this many times in her life! It was just funny because that hadn't even occurred to us, we were so worried about the potty accident possibility!" — Jane K., mom of two

The Naturalist

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"Believe it or not, potty training was really easy and uneventful. He was only about 18 months old, and I got him Ninja Turtle underwear and he would do anything to avoid messing them up. The only catch is that he would strip down and pop a squat outside if he was busy playing." — Marilyn M., mom of one

Personality Prophecy

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"My sons are now 18 and 16, and recently my 16-year-old passed his driver's license exam before his older brother. This reminded me of the potty training situation years before. My oldest was three and still wore pull-ups at night when my youngest decided at 18 months he was ready to 'go on da toilet.' He ripped off his own diaper and did just that. Boom. Potty training was over for my youngest. He never had an accident or wet himself at night. It was weird and wonderful." — Bryanne S., mom of two

The Party Pooper

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"We were hosting an outdoor party when my daughter suddenly yelled loud enough for everyone to hear, 'I have to go!' and proceed the pull her dress over her head and pee in the middle of the lawn. Thankfully, the concept of privacy eventually caught on." — Jill K., mom of two

The Sandy Secret

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"When we trained our youngest, she developed an aversion to pooping. One time, on vacation to the beach we were particularly desperate for her to go. My husband dug a hole in the sand and we convinced her to use it. I've never been so happy to clean up poop!" — Lisa H., mom of three

MORE: Potty Training Tips from Expert Moms

Trick Pants

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"My son had gotten pretty good about using the potty, but he was still in pull-ups, just in case. My husband asked him if he needed to use the potty and replied with a causal 'no' but as he walked out of the room, he left a trail of little turds. The pull-up had shifted and the evidence was falling out of his pant leg!" — Carla W., mom of two

The Stance

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"My son did well with potty training, but he hated missing out on the fun of playing. I would see him outside standing as still as a statue with his legs crossed and know it could only mean one thing. God love him, at least he managed to hold it!" — Sandy H., mom of two

Stealth Mode

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"When I was training my youngest, she had a rather impressive skill of depositing a poop on the carpet when no one was looking. One particularly crazy day, my neighbor was over and she said, 'Um, I think your daughter pooped in your playroom.' I was so embarrassed, if only we had a dog I could blame it on!" — Sarah T., mom of four