Potty Training and Elimination Communication

When my young one was almost 4 months I had an interesting conversation with my mom. She noticed that I was aware of when my baby would soil the diaper from facial expressions and other signals. It reminded her of a recollection from her childhood about my great-grandmother in essence potty training a young baby.
On the day my little one turned 4 months, I purchased a potty. When I got home and at the first signs that my little one was about to go, I placed my child on the potty. Surprise surprise, it worked!
It didn't just work. The benefits for starting my child's training at the early age of 4 months were endless.
One of the most noticeable benefits is financial as I began to use on average 40% less diapers!
Another great benefit was gas relief. Placing a child on the potty causes them to be in a position like a stomach crunch which resulted in the elimination of the gas that causes colic in most babies.
The gas used to wake up my little one, obviously in pain. So another wonderful benefit was that I slept better because my baby slept better!
I mentioned some of this on my facebook account where later someone asked me how EC was going. After googling and researching, I realized that EC that the individual was talking about is Elimination Communication. That's the term for essentially what I did with my child by starting early potty training.
My little one now is a year and a half and on average I change one poopy diaper per month. It'll be a bit longer till bladder control is mastered. But it's already begun. Around 17 months, I invested in the toilet seat and my little one was so excited to use it like a grown up. Occasionally, I'm told "kaka" with finger pointing to the washroom and most of the time successfully for urination.
While most kids, that are my little one's age, are maybe beginning potty training, mine has practically mastered it.
Now from my experience and research, the best 2 potties that I'd recommend for early potty training are:
The BabyBjörn potty

It has a high back to help in supporting the young baby who hasn't mastered sitting on their own.
It comes in various colours.
It has a rubber anti-slip grip on the bottom to prevent from sliding.
Easy to clean.
Spill guard for assistance with boys' aim.
The FisherPrice potty

Like the BabyBjörn, it also has a high back.
It's shaped like a froggy with inviting eyes and a smile.
Easy to clean.
Most popular for spill guard for boys.
Wishing you a happy potty training experience.

The Best Disposable Diaper

The quest for the best diaper for my little one was a challenge. The first diaper used on my child (other than hospital provided one) was Huggies Pure and Natural. However, I couldn't find a size past Newborn anywhere I could search. I switched to the Kirkland brand diapers for cost effectiveness and then purchased the regular Huggies diapers when on sale. I then created an experiment of pouring water on both and seeing which one absorbs better and found that Huggies seemed better. So I made the switch to Huggies.
Then came my next revelation. I purchased a box of diapers that for some absurd reason had blue lining on the the INSIDE of the diaper. So I began researching about the dyes that are used on the diapers and discovered that some babies develop allergies. I did not want to be placing such chemicals near my baby's bottom. Amongst the research I also discovered that there's a bleaching process as well to get them the whitest. More chemicals.
My search led me to 3 diapers that use less chemicals.
My Number 1 favourite diaper is: Naty Diapers

• no perfume
• chlorine-free pulp
• the outer cover is chlorine free, no plastic and is GM free based corn film
• they also make pull-ups
• Very breathable due to lack of plastic
• price per diaper is better than Earth's Best
• the only one I found to be biodegradable
• the only downside is there is a very very small amount of print

My 2nd favourite diaper is: Earth's Best Diapers

• non-chlorine bleached materials
• contains natural absorbent materials such as corn and wheat
• latex-free, dye-free and perfume-free
• the only downsides to this diaper are accessibility as very few stores carry it (at least where I am), the price per diaper, is not as breathable as Naty and it is not biodegradable

My 3rd favourite is: Seventh Generation Diapers

• no fragrances
• no latex
• no petroleum-based lotions
• no chlorine
• it was the most readily accessible
• good price per diaper
• This was almost my favourite until I discovered that they use "pigment" to achieve the brownish colour of the diaper to make it look natural on both the inside and outside
• not biodegradable

There is another major point I'd like to make. As mentioned I stopped using Huggies and switched to these 3 at various times. However, I discovered that Huggies was the worst for leaks. I thought it was normal that I had to hurry as soon as my little one went to change the diaper asap to avoid leaks. My 3 favourites proved that you can have leak protection and have less chemicals and even be good to the environment. I did try on 2 occasions Pampers. It does also use a lot of dyes and chemicals but definitely had some positives over Huggies such as softer tabs and better absorption resulting in less likely hood of leaks.

Though the mentioned favourite diapers are definitely more expensive than Huggies and Pampers, you'll find the value worth it.