TMI RE: BMs

When we were potty training my son we anxiously waited for that Big Moment (literally the BM!) when he first pooped on the potty.   We were in Michigan at my parent’s lake house when Tyler tugged on my shirt and told me he “had to go poops.”  We were outside standing in a circle talking with 5 other relatives so I scurried to get the potty seat that was in the trunk of the car (that damn seat went EVERYWHERE with us) and lead Tyler to a private location so he could concentrate on the task at hand.  “No, Mommy, I want to sit there,” he said pointing to the center of the circle of people.  I almost fell over in shock.  For a woman who fears pooping in public, who once left the stall 3 times to turn on the loud hand dryer to muffle the sounds emerging from my stall, who has considered switching shoes in case anyone peeked under the stall to attempt to identify me later….this was insanity.  But sure enough he was successful and was rewarded by applause and “oohs and ahhhs” from  the crowd that had gathered.  Perhaps I could learn something from my son and eliminate my own fear of using the bathroom in public.  I had another chance to be amazed this past winter.  Our DirectTV was on the fritz (insert panicked exclamations from the other parents like myself who depend on a few key TV shows to get through some of the hairy parts of the day).  As the repairman was changing wires and checking switches on the television, Tyler once again “had to go poops” (I am making a mental note at this moment to eliminate this cutesie phrase from his vocabulary as I just pictured a 20 year old version of my son telling me he “had to go poops”).  Keep in mind the toilet was about 10 feet from where the repairman was working.  Once Tyler was comfortable on his throne I started to shut the door to give him some privacy but, more importantly, to rescue the repairman from a front row seat to Tyler’s daily bowel movement.  “No, Mom,” Tyler panicked, “leave the door open so I can see what this guy is doin!”  I reluctantly obliged and watched in agony as the repairman tried to stifle his laughter when a symphony of grunts, farts, and plops began to emerge from the bathroom.   I admired Tyler’s lack of embarrassment at what was just a natural bodily function after all.  I could at least try leaving the door open at home (baby steps, people!)  As I experimented with my new, liberating lack of privacy the kids came barreling into the bathroom fighting about who called who a poopy face first.  At that moment I decided this little experiment was a BM (Big Mistake)!!!

Just to give you an idea of how close the poor TV repairman was to the toilet!