Friday, May 08, 2009

It Really Tied the Room Together

My daughter has a problem. Well, you might say I have a problem, and that my daughter has an issue. Do you remember back when she started peeing on the potty? She did pretty well for a few days and then gave up. It was like she thought to herself, 'Well, now that I know I can do this let's move on!' 


Since then there have been zero potty peeing incidents. 

There have been, however, numerous rug peeing incidents. 

Every time this child finds herself diaper-less, she runs to the nearest rug and cops a squat. Naturally, I have tried to keep her diapered unless I am rightnextto her and putting her on the potty. But Sam has figured out how to help her out of her diaper. What a nice big brother, right? And occasionally, post-bath finds her clad only in a towel. I try and get Sam out first so that I can get her out and directly to her room for a new diaper, but there are times when she simply! Must! Get! Out! First! For example, last night when she started wailing and screaming Out! over and over. The second I turned my back to get Sam out of the tub? Pee on my rug. Urine on my carpet. Piss on the floor. 

No matter how you spell it, it stinks. 

There is a reason we don't have a dog. 

(Random subliminal insight: I actually initially typed GOD instead of DOG.)

It's because we don't want to deal with rug pissers in this house. 

So what is a girl to do? I've tried explaining things to her, but, um, she's a baby. She's a wicked smart baby, but still. Twenty months does not a rational being make. I tried doing that whole pretending-I-don't-care-as-to-not-give-her-piss-poor-behavior-added-attention thing, but I'm no nihilist. I do care. Why? Well, I can't exactly get all new rugs. And I have no trust fund specifically for rugs, nor the 77 bottles of Resolve I've gone through in the past few months. And while it's tempting, I can't exactly throw a coffee mug at her head, either. 

So I guess I'll have to get hardcore about the potty training. Wish me luck, because I am seriously out of my element here, dude. 

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6 comments:

md said...

Every time a rug is micturated upon in this fair city, I have to compensate the owner?

susan said...

Ooooh, ouch. It's probably not as easy as solving the cat piss issue by locking her in the bathroom when you're not in the immediate vicinity and putting down a layer of aluminum foil to keep her jumping up on the couch, huh. Good luck with the potty training!!!

super des said...

She sounds like my dog. He'll hold it all day (or I mean the few hours that we're gone) then as soon as we walk in the door, he looks at us and pees on the rug.

I think Resolve has brainwashed our babies and dogs into this.

(I know how much people love when I compare their babies to dogs, but you did it first!)

Arizaphale said...

This one is way out of my experience. There is obviously a need being met by this behaviour and twenty months is not too young to ensure an unpleasant consequence for an inappropriate behaviour....hmmm
Do you think it's like a game for her? Try and think about a negative consequence which you would be comfortable with and which would make links in her quickly developing brain. Perhaps put in her a highchair or strap her into her stroller or something for the duration of the time it takes to clean up the mess. She will soon learn to associate the removed freedom with the rug weeing. This won't work if you find it much later of course. It has to be pretty immediate. Good luck.

mar said...

haha! i just got a puppy a week ago friday. luckily (or perhaps not), the only time he now pees inside is when he's acting out.
i wish you luck in your endeavors. does the dear old supernanny have any advice on rug peeing?

Anonymous said...

I know it's considered wrong, but there's nothing like the reward system (m&ms always worked for me). After all, no matter how perfect a mom you are, you're going to be blamed. With m&ms, you can get a two-for: manipulation and food issues! By the way, my sympathies on the pee. It brings back gross memories of peed-in wastebaskets and plants, courtesy of my son's third year.

Aunt Nee