A YouTuber is gaining praise online after introducing a guide to potty training a toddler that really nails the experience.
La Guardia Cross, a father-of-two from South Florida, has gained more than 78,000 subscribers for his funny videos about fatherhood, which he started recording back in 2014 when his oldest daughter Amalah was born.
Now, with Amalah almost turning three years old, La Guardia decided it was time his little girl started using the potty by herself. Of course, like many things in parenthood, it turned out to be tougher than he thought.
Happy dad: YouTuber and artist from South Florida, La Guardia Cross has released a video documenting the 22 steps of potty training
Getting psyched: La Guardia is seen in the video trying to teach his daughter Amalah how to use the toilet
Having completed the task, La Guardia decided to share his tactics on how to tackle the issue in a hilarious new video blog, which claims there are 22 steps to the process.
For La Guardia, step one of the potty training ordeal involved buying a children’s potty and letting it sit around the house for a year or two waiting for something to happen.
The next step was realizing that his daughter was almost three and not potty trained, but that she must be ready because ‘she tells you when her diaper is dirty, hands you a clean one and then disposes of the dirty one.’
Internet research comes with step three and step four involves buying ‘a big bag of bribe candy.’
Step-by-step: His guide includes buying a kid’s toilet and letting it sit there for a year and cleaning up multiple accidents on the couch
Feeling defeated: In the middle of cleaning up pee, make sure to wipe away your own tears
Getting excited: His guide also shows him throwing a celebration when his daughter manages to accidentally use the toilet
Spreading the word: He then proceeds to call everyone he knows with the news
‘Step five: lock yourself in your home, throw away the keys, hide all the diapers, put your child in underwear and commit to taking them to the bathroom every 20 minutes for one full day,’ he says. ‘Remind them that peeing in their underwear makes you question their love for you.’
Steps six through eight involve cleaning up accidents on the couch and floor before wiping away your own exasperated tears.
Next up is a big celebration when the child manages to use the toilet, albeit accidentally because ‘they just happen to be sitting there.’
Relatives are called, reward candy is given, and then more cleaning up of accidents ensues before day two arrives and you up the routine to every 30 minutes.
La Guardia shows off his hilarious further struggles over the next few steps including false alarms, paranoia and yet another accidental success.
On her way: He then sends her on to pre-school with piles of outfit changes and some encouraging words
Into space: La Guardia is then seen looking despondent after learning that his daughter was sent home in a diaper because she ‘needs more time’
Sad times: He reacts by hiding in the closet and eating the bag of bribe candy
Big moment: The end of the clip sees Amalah finally use the potty on her own, and send her shocked father toppling to the ground
But then he sends his daughter off to preschool on day three with hundreds of changes of outfits only to have the teacher send her home in a diaper.
‘Step 20: Close yourself in a closet. Question your parenting abilities and eat the bag of reward candy,’ he says.
Then, from the closet, La Guardia hears the tiny voice of his daughter coming from the bathroom. When he gets there she is sitting on the toilet, having used it all on her own. La Guardia’s reaction to this is to promptly pass out on the floor.
The clip quickly attracted the attention of fellow parents, with one YouTube viewer writing: ‘I’m currently potty training my 2.5 year old girl and this video had me laughing so hard! But yet still very relatable to my situation right now!’
Another added: ‘I have a six year old and because of this video, I am honestly having war flashbacks.’