I think it’s safe to say, now that we are on our third girl, that we have far fewer surprises when it comes to parenting small children. I know as they get older we will have to cross those big (sometimes scary) bridges like breasts, periods, and the reproductive process of humans (and other creatures), but I have also found that each child doesn’t want to be left out. They want to leave their own graffiti on the wall of our parenting story board, Lucy included.

**This is a GROSS ALERT! Don’t eat while you are reading this. You have been warned**

We thought that Emma had pretty much broken us in when it came to gross situations. There was the time she had eaten pureed carrots for dinner, thrown up in the middle of the night, and went back to sleep without a peep. When I went in the next morning to get my sweet little blonde baby, she was holding onto the rail while bouncing, beaming from ear to ear, and had bright orange carrot caked in her hair among other places. Did I mention I was pregnant with baby #2 at the time? Joel had already left for work so it was just me and the babe.

Then there was the time that her diaper came off when she was sleeping in the pack and play at my parents. My poor (childless, first time uncle on our side) brother, excited to wake up his niece, went up and was horrified to find her in her own poo. It was in her finger, it was everywhere. I don’t think he was ever the same after that.

Sammie has her own stories but they weren’t quite as gross so we were a little more prepared for them.

So as you can see, we had already dealt with the two big gross factors, poop and vomit, what could be worse, right?

Ya, boy were we wrong!

It was a great morning. Everything was going so smoothly and I was getting a lot done. The sun was shining the blinds were open to let it in, the girls were behaving and mommy was in a good mood. Joel came up for a minute to get something and happened to peak his head in the bedroom where Lucy was playing in the pack and play. I don’t know if he heard something or smelled something, but boy am I glad he came up when he did.

Lucy had been dealing with a diaper rash so before I laid her down for a nap I took her diaper off and put some towels down so she could have some air time on her bottom. She woke up after about 45 minutes and the towels were still dry. I had just been into check on her not two minutes before Joel went in and everything was fine, she was playing nicely.

Then I hear “honey come here now” in a very serious tone. Immediately I knew something was wrong and it probably had to do with poo. I went in and saw Joel holding Lucy. I looked in the pack and play and sure enough there was poo but it wasn’t that bad. So said “Oh, ok” and was about to start grabbing the towel and pulling it out when Joel say “No, Look at Lucy.” And then I saw it. It was all.over.her.mouth. It was all over her hands. It was under her nails. And worst of all… it was in her mouth, between her teeth even, not just a little, but a lot.

I will openly admit that I dry heaved many times. I have dealt with a LOT of gross things; smelly, icky, things in my day, but this one about did me in. I kept it together though. I ran and got a wet washcloth and went to work scooping, yes scooping, out the poop from her mouth. Then I got her some water to try and flush the rest out. Next was the bath to clean the rest of her and finally I nursed her to help flush what she did swallow out of her system.

And here I am today, a survivor, a little worse for the wear (my stomach still gets a little queasy just writing this), but stronger for it.

What did I learn through all this? Well, it’s not going to kill your kid if they eat their own poop. According to all the forums I read, if they are going to do it, theirs is the best, since it has already been through their own system and they aren’t introducing something someone else or something else may have. It’s best to keep them well hydrated so that their body can flush it out as soon as possible. It is perfectly normal for them to get diarrhea. If they get a fever you should take them to the doctor.

Here is a very funny story from another mom, with a similar experience. I found this while nursing Lucy after the incident and searching for answers. After reading this both Joel and I have decided to start using the term “Code Red” in these situations so we can give the other a heads up as to the severity of what they are heading into.

It’s share time! What’s your grossest parenting story?

I am linking this to Encourage One Another.

When Mommy Doesn’t Feel Well

When mommy doesn’t feel well

Nothing seems to ever go right

Some things that are normally “no, no’s”

Aren’t really worth the fight

You’ll most likely see her

In a shirt caked in baby snot

Generously smeared on her

By her beautiful tiny tot

Her hair is unbrushed

Her clothes unchanged

For at least the last two days

And every night before she sleeps

“Help us feel better tomorrow” She prays

Let’s talk deodorant. By a show of hands (or lack thereof) how many of you forget or just don’t bother with deodorant when you are at home? Anyone, anyone? Ok I’ll start. Hi my name is Libby and I forget to where deodorant more often then I remember to. There I said it.

The other day I was having this conversation with my husband. He said he needed to shower. I said why, you just showered yesterday (no I don’t shower everyday either. Deal with it). He said that he smelled, and though I said I didn’t notice he said he did and it bothered him. Then the real problem came out. He admitted to me that since he had started working from home he had become rather lacks in the deodorant department. I gently reminded him that he doesn’t put deodorant on for everyone else; he puts it on for me.

Yes, later it dawned on me that I was the pot calling the kettle black.

I wasn’t always this way. I used to work and applied deodorant religiously. But when you welcome a beautiful new baby into your life and say sayonara to sleep, you’re just happy if you make it out of your pjs and run a toothbrush over your teeth (and in those first few weeks the odds are not in your favor that either of those things are going to happen either.)

You know it’s bad when your four year old pushes away from you and say “momma you stink! You need to take a shower.” loud and clear for the entire world to hear. Aren’t kids just the greatest! In my defense that only happened during the hottest part of the summer, when even the I did put on deodorant it melted off like chocolate in the hands of a two year old.

I am pleased to say that I have managed to remember to put deodorant on every day this week (I think). And I hope that I can do better at this goal then must people do at their New Year resolution.

So do you have any basics that sometimes don’t even make it on a burner let alone on the front burner?

So I had this great idea a couple of days ago. All the laundry baskets were either in use with clothes waiting to be folder or put away or filled with toys, and somehow I still managed to have ever growing piles of dirty laundry on the floor. With boxes still waiting to be opened and emptied all over the house it was becoming difficult to think let alone DO anything. I needed a solution and I needed it now. Then I remembered that when you are getting ready to check out of a hotel they always ask you to throw all the dirty towels in the tub to make it easier on housekeeping. If it worked for them, why couldn’t it work for me?!?

So I started throwing all the dirty laundry in the tub and having my children and hubby follow suit. It worked wonderfully. Everyone had bathed recently so there was no imminent need of the tub which allowed me time and SPACE to get things put away. And the best thing is that the dirty laundry is all in ONE PLACE!

What are your creative short term ways of dealing with mess?