The 3 P’s of Parenting
Today I was planning on writing about our wonderful camping trip but something else is on my mind (and sheets and blankets) this morning so that post will have to wait. What I want to talk about today are the 3 p’s of parenting. If you are already a parent, you already know where this post is going and what the p’s stand for but if you haven’t ventured into the world of parenting yet, this should be a good prep read.
So what are the 3 p’s? Easy - pee, poop, and puke! That’s right! Nothing cute or sweet about those things! Now, granted, these seem to really plague parents in the early years of childhood. But they can crop up at anytime as our children grow.
I remember when DD had a really bad stomach virus early last year. Bless her poor heart, she was puking and pooping everywhere and when she had a really bad stomach cramp, she couldn’t control her pee so it would just flow at anytime! Even though she had been sick before this was probably the most severe illness she has had.
But what made it a little strange was the fact that DD potty trained really early thanks to elimination communication and spending many of her early toddler days naked (a great recommendation from her then pediatrician). Anyway, proper potty etiquette went out the door during this time although DD did make an effort to get to the potty when she thought she needed to ‘go’. But there were some accidents especially in the puke and pee category. Ah, the memories. Thank goodness the virus only lasted a couple of days but when you are constantly cleaning up the p’s it can make you crazy!
On top of the virus, we were getting ready to leave for a trip to CA! A few days after DD seemed to be back to normal, I noticed some small spots on her stomach. I thought it might be heat but no, within a couple of hours she was completely covered with this rash! Now what? Turns out she reacted to the stomach virus by getting small pink dots all over her little body! I was paranoid that the airline would ground us thinking she had some sort of horrible communicable disease! Another trip to the pediatrician who told us it was nothing to worry about and that it happens sometimes - Benadryl should do the trick to fade the spots. Good - that would probably help her sleep on the plane anyway.
Anyway, I was hoping DD would sleep-in this morning giving me a chance to catch up on some things but that was not meant to be. I had just rolled over and then I heard her say she was wet, start crying, and profusely claim through her sobbing that she was sorry (now that will break every mother’s heart). Since we co-sleep I just had to roll back over to discover the source of her distress - PEE! Yes, my completely potty trained toddler had wet the bed profusely! She usually wakes me up in the middle of the night when she needs to pee but not this time. So, pee on the sheets, on our mattress, on our blankets, on her gown, etc. Pee, pee everywhere! This was really my fault - too much liquid before bed!
And so, that was the end of sleeping-in. I had to spend a few minutes calming my emotional little girl down from feeling so bad about the accident (and it was ok - it was just pee and I can clean it up - good grief, girls are so sensitive - more on that later)! And then I had to clean her up and try to get the bed back to normal. What a morning.
So there are the 3 p’s of parenting for those of you interested in having children one day. One of the baby shower gifts you should request - P cleaning supplies including a face mask and lots of rubber gloves!
