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Do you have any relatives or do the boys have any friends who can "model big boy behavior", in this case using the toilet properly?

I would recommend leaning away from bribery, as to me this seems like it sets up bad habits from an early age. Rather than trying to force them, if they're not ready, let them discover it on their own when they feel ready (although I do agree that starting to try to pottytrain them at their age is a good idea). Get a child's potty they can use, maybe that will be less intimidating than an adult toilet.

You can also check online for tips (lots of parenting forums and websites on the internet), or try talking to your family doctor perhaps. smile

There are a lot of different ways to potty train. Since your kids run, cry, and scream when potty time comes, something's not quite right. A lot of the time it's a little thing that we don't even realize, but the kids pick up on it.

For example, maybe you get stressed out, and they pick up on that. If they know you're stressed, they're more likely to find potty time scary. Or maybe you're offering too many rewards or begging too much. That can give kids the impression that potty time is a chore.

So make sure you take a deep breath and stay calm. There is no need to rush it. Don't beg or plead. Try to make potty time as fun and relaxed as possible.

As Nikolita said, there are lots of articles on the internet, so feel free to search around for tips that you think will work well for you and your kids.

You can also talk to the doctor for tips and to make sure nothing's medically wrong. For example, many kids are afraid of potty time because they have a urinary tract infection, diaper rash, or something else that makes it physically painful for them.

Here are some articles that might help:

This one is about making sure your child is ready: http://www.nickjr.com/parenting/parenting_features/potty_training/advice/potty_training_readiness.jhtml

This one is about how to make potty time fun: http://www.nickjr.com/parenting/parenting_features/potty_training/advice/blues_potty_training.jhtml

My mom said she trained my brother by putting a cheerio in the toilet and making a game out of it. You know, make your pee hit the cheerio. One, its kinda fun and two, they don't spray everywhere except into the toilet.

Wouldn't it be weird if we could get sucked down the toilet? o_O;;