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My son is stubborn. Anyone who has met me has probably figured out where he gets it from, I’m sure, but it seemed like potty training took us a little longer than it did for many of his peers. It wasn’t like he didn’t know he needed to go– it’s that he just… didn’t want to take the time away from what he was doing. We tried timers. We tried bribery. We tried just about everything. When he finally started to get the hang of it, it was a serious celebration. We even had a potty party to celebrate NO MORE DIAPERS!

But then he continued to need one at night. We had made it during the day, finally broken the cycle of constant accidents, but night was a totally different story. And this time? It wasn’t stubbornness. He either didn’t wake fully to make it to the potty, or when he did, he struggled to get there in the dark without nervousness.

His confidence was waning. The strides we had made during the day seemed to disappear when I put his diaper on at night– it didn’t feel like an accomplishment to him if he was still needing to wear diapers at night.

My first trick was to try to break the cycle of overnight wetting by being careful about the amount of water he drank before bed, and then to make sure to find a night light that would work. He needed something that could sit by his bedside, one that could go with him to the bathroom. A flashlight seemed to be too much light, waking him up fully, so we needed something that was not too bright, but bright enough to quell the fear. I also wanted to be sure that it looked fun– who wouldn’t want to take a cool, funky lamp to the bathroom with them? When I couldn’t find what I was looking for, I decided to make it.

A DIY Glitter Lamp should be light, bright but not too bright, and has no cord. To achieve this, you’ll want to start with some small canning jars.

Choose a battery operated light that will fit inside of the jar. I chose a small battery-operated candle that I purchased a few years ago, but you can find similar lights at a craft store. Trace a template so you can drill out any holes for the switch, a hole if you’d like battery access (optional, depending on how long your light lasts), and any other little “feet” that your light might have that will prevent it from sitting flush against the lid. Make sure you are putting the holes in the right place. (Not that I’d know from experience or anything… I totally didn’t accidentally flip my template over so the switch hole was on the wrong side or anything. :cough: )

Using a power drill, go ahead and make your holes for your light to sit in.

Next, take waterproof silicone rubber sealant (the type you’d use to seal in a shower or some tile) and squeeze it on to attach your light to the lid. If you aren’t leaving space for battery changes, silicone sealant can usually be peeled off pretty easily, so don’t worry. You will want to be sure it’s waterproof! Use a clamp to hold it in place until it’s dry.

Also pipe a small amount around any seams on the lamp– you don’t want your jar filler to seep into the lamp through the top or bottom at all!

Choose glitter (or encourage your child to pick some of their own!) and pour it into the jar, with just enough to cover the bottom and then a little extra.

We chose a couple of different colours and textures of glitter for our jar– some very fine, some chunky like confetti.

Pour a clear or almost clear oil (like canola or vegetable, but baby oil would work, also) oil into the jar, almost to the top but leaving a little space for the light to go into the top.

Screw on the lid, and then the switch can be flipped on! The glitter will slowly float in the jar as you turn it upside down and as you go potty, acting as a very calming, fun jar that kids will really love to use.

 

A video posted by Jenni at MamaPlusOne.com (@mamaplus1) on Jul 20, 2015 at 3:31am PDT

In addition to creating a DIY Glitter Lamp, we also decided to head to CVS and get GoodNites TruFit.

I knew that switching from undies to a diaper at night, or even undies to a “nighttime undie” that felt like a diaper, was not helping with his confidence level– he still felt babied as soon as we made the switch from undies to that every night.

So, we picked up the GoodNites TruFit. Honestly, I was skeptical at the absorbency level of “real underwear” overnight, until we tried it without any issues (skepticism destroyed, because these are SO absorbent!)– they feel like real underwear, look like real underwear, but come with a removable insert that allows for nighttime leaks, without requiring a bed to be re-made.

The starter pack comes in a boys pack or a girls pack, and has 2 pairs of underwear with 5 disposable inserts, with additional refill packages available for more of the inserts for nighttime protection.

You simply open the disposable insert, and stick it into the designated place on the underwear– it’s actually really similar to using a fitted sheet on a bed, so it’s incredibly easy to use. In the morning, you just remove the insert and toss it. Because these look and feel like real underwear– because they are real underwear, there’s no switching to a diaper-like product at night, which helps kids stay more confident in staying on-track as they work to make it through the night without leaks. The product is available in a small size and a large size that means kids of a variety of ages can get discrete, comfortable help at night.

If you want to try GoodNites TruFit in your own home, there’s actually a great deal at CVS right now using this Jebbit coupon link. A Jebbit link is one where you can answer a few simple questions in order to get a coupon for $4 off the GoodNites TruFit starter pack! Or, you can visit the GoodNites website for more information on GoodNites TruFit. 

Between the DIY glitter lamps and GoodNites TruFit, we’re actually starting to have some big strides in overnight success with my son, and he’s a lot more confident as a result.

How do you encourage confidence in your kids? Let me know in the comments below!