Potty Training and Other Mishaps

Thankfully, I am not currently potty training anyone or anything.

I well remember the days of carrying a set of spare clothing "just in case". That isn't a bad thing, it's just part of the merry-go-round of reality when someone you love is learning that they can take themselves to the potty.

The real reason for writing this is some of the hilarious potty mishaps I have heard over the years from friends and family who have endured and and now smile over the accomplishments of children who have now learned where the bathroom is, both at home and as they travel.

With that in mind, here are a few stories I hope you will find as amusing as I have:

#1

A woman who's son was recently starting to potty train had taken her kids to the pool for a sanity break. The other children happily swam, splashed and dove into the water to give her a much needed respite from the daily grind. Soon, however, her pleasant little reverie was shattered in spectacular fashion. Her newly potty trained son whispered to her that he 'had to go potty' for the hundredth time. She was feeling somewhat uncomfortable to be seen in her old bathing suit out of the water, so she quietly and nonchalantly told him to "just go in the pool".

Figuring that the chlorine, which was nearly burning a hole in her old suit and which was also burning her eyes was sufficient to the task, she assumed that it wouldn't do much damage since her son would only pee about a few tablespoons anyway.

Unfortunately, what she thought and what he thought were two wildly different things. To her horror, this intrepid and exhausted Mom turned around to find her son standing at the edge of the pool with his swimming trunks pulled down around his ankles peeing into the pool like a Greek fountain in front of the world.

Yelling at him in a panic, she told him to stop and he pouted back, “But you told me to just go in the pool, Mommy!” 

Yet another living example of how we should choose our words very carefully... kids take things so dang literally!

#2

Bearing in mind that hastily tossed out words have unintended consequences, this tale comes from another frazzled Mom who was just trying to make it through the day: After a very long day running errands, this Mom was over-tired and truly eager to get home.

Her newly potty trained daughter started whining from her car seat that she needed to 'go potty'. Exhausted and close to home, this intrepid Mother just urged her to "try and hold it" mustering up all the patience she had left.

Finding herself to actually be surprised that her little girl had ceased complaining until they got home, this Mom was in for the surprise of her life. When she went to unbuckle the car seat to get her little girl out of the car, her daughter held out her urine-filled hands that were cupped together like she was preparing to take water from a pond singing, “Look, Mommy, look! I hold it, Mommy, I hold it!”

#3

Some kids are just a pain to train. They almost seem to enjoy wearing diapers eventually Pull-Ups®. One mother tried everything she knew and then some to get her son to use the toilet.

About 5 months into her son's potty training journey, they were invited to go camping with another family. Their reserved spot was quite a ways from the campsite bathrooms.

The friends who had invited them to camp had a child that was just a bit older than their potty training son. When he asked to go to the restroom, his parents told him to "go find a tree".

The Mom who's child who was 5 months into potty training watched with great curiosity as his friend found a tree a few yards away from our site, unzipped his jeans and 'let it fly'. A few minutes later her son, observing this male camping ritual, walked over to a tree and did the same thing.

Yeah! His Mom was SO excited! Maybe this was what he needed: another kiddo about his age as an example! He stayed dry the entire weekend and his Mom was certain that they were on the right path.

We they returned home on Sunday evening, Mom dutifully led him up the stairs to our bathroom so that he could go and he looked at her like she was just plain nuts.

Needless to say, Mom was confused and asked him what the problem was. He simply refused to go.

Mom and Dad just chalked it up to him being over-tired, and bathed him and put him to bed. The next morning he got up and came downstairs for breakfast. Mom kissed him on the head and asked if he "needed to go potty".

Saying "Yes", he walked to the kitchen's sliding door, opened it and went outside.

Curious, Mom watched from the window as he calmly walked into the grass and then pee'd on the tree in the middle of the back yard. Mom said, "People will never know how many days it took to convince that child to pee inside the house IN the toilet!"

Apparently he enjoyed, "Watering the trees."


Parents, grandparents and caregivers have employed all kinds of gimmicks and gadgets to get kids to potty in the toilet.

Cheerios for target practice, M&M's and fancy undies, sticker charts and prizes, outright bribery in cash... all in the name of getting rid of the diaper before your child turns 16...

It's all part of the fun of loving a child.