Friday, August 22, 2008

Thoughts on Potty Training

I have a daughter. One day shortly after her second birthday, she took off her diaper, sat down on the little potty in her room, went potty, and never looked back. No need for stickers, candy, pull-ups, plastic sheets on the bed, nothing. She is turning 6 in a few weeks, and still (knock on wood) has never wet her bed. I can count on one hand the times she has even wet her pants during the day. A little bladder control genius I have!

I have a son. One day shortly after his second birthday, he informed us that he wanted to go pee-pee in the big potty. He took off his diaper, climbed onto the big potty, went potty, and has been as inconsistent as...well, as inconsistent as a 2-year-old boy learning to go in the potty. Some days he does great, going all day without any accidents. He has even had a dry diaper several times on waking up in the morning. Today has not been one of those days. So a few minutes ago I was sitting on the couch, Pepper standing right next to the couch. He was deeply engrossed in his Sesame Street Letter F book, and apparently didn't notice the tell-tale sensations of "TIME TO POOP!" I looked up just in time to see movement in the back of Pepper's shorts. Oh No! He looked up at me in complete shock, right as the poop hit the living room floor. In dismay he shouts, "I gotta go poop!" and runs for the potty. Too late, Buddy. When he pulled down his pants, I discovered he was not wearing any underwear. And he discovered a trail of poop down his leg. Panic ensues asPepper melts down at the sight of poop, and realizes the full scale of what had just happened.

I managed to get him calmed down and cleaned up. And I even managed to get all the poop out of my carpet. The next time you come over to our house, if you notice a startlingly white spot on the carpet next to the couch, think of Pepper, and know that is currently the very most sanitary place in our whole house.

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