The Trials and Tribulations of 3 Potty-Trained Preschoolers & a Baby aka A Crappy Day

The last 24 hours have been filled with some laughter, some dismay and some sheer frustration all revolving around pee and poop......

Last night fifteen minutes after the kids went to bed, Ethan & Kaitlyn pulled their usual "I need to go potty" routine although they had both just gone before getting into bed..... I was downstairs and said "Fine- just go....." figuring taht of course they would take turns as usual. Well, 2 minutes later Kaitlyn started screaming out in tears. I raced upstairs to find that Kaitlyn had been the first on the toilet but that didn't stop Ethan from doing his thing. Poor Kaitlyn's underwear, pajama bottoms, and legs were covered in Ethan's pee. Ethan's response- I couldn't wait. After a quick lecture on the importance of taking turns, assuring Kaitlyn that the baby wipes would clean her up sufficiently and that she wouldn't smell like pee- both headed back into bed.

A while later, I was doing some computer work in our bedroom and overheard some very funny conversations between Ethan & Kate. (Kylie was asleep as soon as she hit the pillow.....that's what a day of troublemaking will do to you!) Both kids had to go to the bathroom again- I don't know how it's possible- but anyway Kaitlyn learned her lesson before and let Ethan go first. While he was doing his thing, she commented that she wished she could have a penis to which EThan replied that she did have one. Kaitlyn explained that "no" she didn't" because she's a girl and girls don't have penises only boys- Ethan just said "oh" and went to bed.

Just before falling asleep, Kaitlyn proceeded to lecture Ethan on how he needs to be sure that someone isn't on the potty before he uses it because it's not nice to pee on people. She said that she had just had a tubby before dinner and that now she was stinky because he had peed on her and that she was very upset with him. To which Ethan just replied "oh" and went to sleep.

Then there was today.......
Yesterday I changed everyon's bed sheets. This morning while making Ethan's bed- it was soaking wet. He only ever seems to pee in his sleep when he has a freshly made bed. Maybe I tuck the sheets in too tight so he can't get out in time? Who knows?

This morning while Emma was at the table for breakfast, I was racing around (putting clean sheets on Ethan's bed, emptying dishwasher, filling dishwasher, doing laundry, folding laundry, putting it away, and picking up the house so that the housekeeper could actually find a floor to vacuum, and also getting ready for the playgroup we were hosting- I was busy....) Emma seemed happy and I was hoping she'd poop before I put her in her play area so that I could change her first so I just kept giving her Cheerios to munch on and a third cup of 1/2 water, 1/2 apple juice to keep her happy.
She never pooped and Lisa needed to clean the kitchen so I moved Emma to her play area. I started making pumpkin muffins with Ethan and heard the Kaitkyn and KYlie calling me from the family room. They said that Emma had thrown up.....no it wasn't throw up- it was from the other end and was all over the floor blanket, up her back and all through her clothes. Muffin making was postponed as I collected another load of laundry and headed upstairs to give Emma a bath.

Finally, the muffins were made and were baking, playgroup began and things were back in order. Then Kylie prances by me while I'm chatting with my friends in the kitchen and says that she has to go potty. I, as usual, say "well go ahead- you don't need to ask permission". Two minutes later, Kylie walks out of the bathroom..... with a smirk on her face- not good, I thought. I went in there to find that she had decided to pee in the wastebasket instead of the toilet. That gave her a ticket to her room for a 15 minute time out.

The next 4 hours were relatively uneventful :)

That is until Kaitlyn comes downstairs after waking up from her nap and walks into the kitchen with her undies and jeans down around her ankles and tears streaming down her face. I couldn't make it to the bathroom she says as I trace her steps back to a huge puddle on the dining room rug. I cleaned her again, changed her undies and pants and had a flashback to last night.....

On a comical note- because I need to find humor in this or else I will lose my mind eventually- while writing this post (and enjoying a big glass of wine while I do so), I have been called to the bathroom twice to wipe butts after Ethan & Kaitlyn pooped and I have been called into the family room to clean up 4 piles of poop that our dog Anna decided to contribute to my day's chaos. Fun, fun, fun.

And that isn't even a full 24 hour snippit yet. Fortunately, I'm getting chauffered to a friend's house tonight for an Italian potluck dinner.I just can't wait to get out of this crazy house! :)