I jumped through many hoops to get my son to finally use the potty: candy rewards, sticker charts, pleading. But I never did try a potty-training doll since I found most of them to be kind of unappealing as a doll that you’d want to snuggle at night after squeezing some liquid out of its belly.
But now that one of our favorite doll companies has come out with one of these drink-and-wet dolls for both boys and girls, I’d add this to my arsenal of tricks to use when trying to transition little ones out of diapers.
Corolle’s Paul and Emma Drink and Wet Bath Baby Dolls would have been a great, sturdy first doll for my kids who had a tendency to “love” their dolls to pieces. Just the right size for a toddler to carry, or drag, around with them, their moveable limbs will make jamming them into a toy stroller easier. Plus there is no hair to pull out, or cut, on either Paul or Emma. And their water-friendly construction is just perfect for yet another bath.
And as a potty-training tool, there is no need to find batteries or mix up goopy “food.” Just fill the little bottle with water and fit it snugly into the mouth. I found that I really had to jam that bottle in there to get a watertight seal, so either help your kids out or do the feeding when you don’t mind them getting a little wet.
Once finished, the dolls may leak a little bit at the bottom, especially if you unbend their legs. Definitely tell your kids to place their dolls on the little enclosed plastic potty chair while feeding, or just let them deal with the surprise of a little “accident.” Just like real babies!
One other thing I love–instead of trying to explain to your son that the hole on the bottom of the plastic doll is not “just like him,” Corolle’s Paul is anatomically correct. And if we know one thing that is important in using the potty, it’s accuracy. –Christina
You can find Corolle’s Paul and Emma Drink-and-Wet Bath Baby dolls at our affiliate Amazon.
