Caleb's basketball practices started last night. He played hard. I'm glad. He needed to get some energy out. Not that it makes much difference on a day when there's no school because of the weather. But I digress from my originally scheduled diatribe....
Have I mentioned how much I despise automatically flushing toilets?
While at basketball practice last night, while I was trying to make some numbers add up on a borrowed laptop, Sariah decided that she needed to go potty. (Incidentally, someday she will hate me for this public post. But that's not stopping me now, is it?) We adventured out of the high school gym to find a bathroom. We found one all right. But it was locked. I told her she'd just have to wait until we got home. I wasn't too sure about this plan of action, because even though she'd already been potty less than an hour before, I'd been giving her Gatorade all day long because she had a fever. (Yeah, I'm one of THOSE mothers. But really, between the 4 big kids, we had 5 scheduled activities at 4 different locations, and Bob's bigwig bosses came into town and forced him to go to Cattleman's for dinner last night {I know, aren't his bosses so terrible? we should sue or something}, so there wasn't a lot of choice but to take an infant and a sick toddler out into the potentially bad weather and grumpy masses...I'm digressing again, aren't I?)
Ok, so Sariah really had to go. While I was still frantically crunching numbers, I watched her shift her weight from leg to leg, and then finally whimper, "I can't wait, Mommy." Ok. Fine. We tracked down and a janitor and asked where an open bathroom was. We found it, and I was so happy.
Until we walked into the stall. And there it was. The Automatic Flusher. Sariah stared at her nemesis for awhile. Couldn't, wouldn't be coaxed into using it, even if Mommy held her hand over the sensor. Meanwhile, Sam was ready to get in and take a swim. But Sariah, she just didn't need to go that bad. Suddenly. Seriously. When we are on road trips, she'll pee beside the car before she will use an automatic flusher. Seriously?
I try to tell myself that she's easier than I was when I was little. I. Didn't. Use. Public. Restrooms. Period. That had to have been hard on my mother. But I sure was smart, then, eh? Do you know what nasty things you can get in public bathrooms? Take, for example, the flu. (Really, that's a random throw-out there.)
So, we'd been home 3 full minutes, and ... erm ... I had a mess to clean up. Dang it.
And my day just keeps getting better. Did I mention that I'm pretty sure Sariah has the flu?
Yeah, I'm THAT mom.
My 6 and 5 year olds still do this. I feel your pain. They have overcome the automatic-flush fear as long as I cover the sensor while they are going. But the industrial strength flush still scares them to death. They have to run out of the bathroom and then I have to flush it once they are out. And school? No way! They hold it ALL DAY. But in other public places, they can't hold it longer than half an hour.
ReplyDeleteAt eight Rachel will finally consent to going if the sensor is covered. Thankfully some sensors are situated so that she can just drape some toilet paper over it, but if it is flat on the wall she will still refuse unless I come in to cover it for her. Sometimes technological improvements are not improvements! What misery to hold it so long!
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