Father/Son training

OK, I guess it is time I finally contribute something to the blog.

Not too long ago, we were getting ready to go out on some sort of family activity. I learned long ago that any time we go somewhere as a family, it is best to have all the kids use the bathroom before leaving - even if they claim they don't have to.

Cindy had recently mentioned just how tired she was of dealing with pee on the toilet seat, on the floor next to the toilet seat, or even on the walls surrounding the toilet seat. Of course, she blamed the males in the house for this.

Normally, when Cindy voices complaints about men in general, I do my best to debunk or even claim that women are just as bad. In this case, well, what could I do? I know how to choose my battles, and this was not one worth fighting - especially considering everything she said was 100% true, and there was no real flip side to the argument.

Now, this complaint being fresh in my mind, I decided to seize the moment and in a classic display of male bonding, had Brandon and Bryce join me in the bathroom, one on either side, to take care of business.

As we did our thing, I noticed they were both standing several inches back from the bowl. With a tone of confidentiality, as if I were privately sharing a well guarded secret, I explained and demonstrated that if you stand a little closer to the toilet, it is much easier to get everything, even the little dribbles at the end of the process, in the toilet. Both of the boys displayed interest and even a little amazement at this display of well-refined skill, and appropriately moved in closer to see if it would actually work for them.

Sure enough, not a drop anywhere but where it belonged! As we were re-zipping, I congratulated the boys on a job well done, and mentioned how much happier Mommy would be if we would just remember to do it like this every time. I closed the session with a comment that came to me in the moment, and felt like sheer genius. I said "Boys, I'm glad you could join me for this group thera-pee."

To my dismay, both of them only looked at me curiously, not even cracking a smile. How could such a witty remark go unappreciated??? I HATE being the only one to laugh at my own humor, so naturally I shared the story with Cindy while we were driving in the car. I felt much better after her reaction and the ensuing laughter.

Anyway, there it is. My first contribution to the blog. Come on now, you can't really say you're surprised it was potty related!