In December I kicked around the idea of taking Greenleigh out of dance. Honestly, it was hard to even consider because she absolutely loves dance class, but I had hit my breaking point.
The problem? The bathroom.
Greenleigh is pretty much 100% potty trained during the day. Occasionally, she’ll have an accident during a nap or something, but other than that, she’s good. She got the hang of potty training quickly and, thankfully, hasn’t regressed. But with the ease of potty training came an affections for bathrooms in general. And not just for their intended purpose. She just wants to visit them. And, you know, hang out. After checking out the toys in another child’s house, her next stop will no doubt be the restroom. Same thing with restaurants. And stores. And parks. And the doctor’s office. They have bathrooms and she wants to see them. Being with Greenleigh is a little like taking The Grand Bathroom Tour.
Which brings me back to dance class. Week after week, Greenleigh enters her dance class only to exit 15 minutes later to use the bathroom. The worst part? All the other girls follow her lead. She essentially breaks the seal for all the other little bladders in the room. And then they start to leave the room to use the bathroom as well.
After the first week or two, the teacher asked that I have Greenleigh use the bathroom before class started. So I did. But the problem continued. Which made me enforce multiple potty breaks throughout the morning before class, with no success. Then the teacher asked if Greenleigh had any conditions that would cause her to have to go so often. How was I supposed to explain that she just likes bathrooms? I tried my best to explain the situation and brought her to the bathroom (at the dance studio) immediately before her next class…only for her to turn around and want to go to the same bathroom again 5 minutes after the class started. That’s right, even faster than her normal turn around time. Something about that bathroom during class is so appealing to her. I just don’t get it.
Over the last couple months the teacher has stopped asking. I’m sure she’s just given up on my ability to fix the situation. I’m beyond frustrated. Actually, I’m angry. I hate that I’m angry, but I am.
I’ve reasoned, bribed, and even threatened. Other parents look at me startled when I get upset that week after week my child is the first out of the room, only minutes after she entered. But it’s so disruptive and inconsiderate that I just can’t handle it. I then rush Greenleigh through the potty process as she debates which of the two stalls to use, which sink she’ll use to wash her hands, and if I can have the honor of handing her the paper towels to dry her hands or if she must select them herself. It’s like she has all the time in the world.
I’ve even gone so far as to tell Greenleigh that if she wants to go to the bathroom during dance class we’ll just go home. I mean, if she’d rather spend her time in a bathroom, why pay the money each month? Dance class is an extra expense and we have a bathroom at home that’s free. But of course, I haven’t quite made good on that promise yet…
Nor have I pulled Greenleigh out of dance. On one hand, I think “This too shall pass.” and on the other, I’m like “It’s been 5 months, when’s it going to pass already?”. I’m so “over” this stage of toddlerhood.
Anyone elses’ toddlers like hanging out or visiting bathrooms? Please tell me I’m not the only one (but if I am, I totally understand, because I think it’s pretty weird).
Well….;.not really. It’s a little different. My daughter learned to use the bathroom quickly and basically by herself. I don’t really potty train – per se. I just put the potty chair out there and encourage.
Anyway…
What she would do is sit on the toilet forever and want to have a conversation. One time, we were at a restaurant with 1 bathroom, and there were a whole line of people outside waiting. No kidding – 20 minutes. She kept saying she wasn’t done…she wasn’t done. People were banging on the door. I was like – we are in here, stop banging on the door.
My kid is still a baby, so I don’t have any experience from the parental side, but I used to teach dance to little kids. It was inevitable, in EVERY class, one little kid would raise their hand and say they had to go to the bathroom . . . and then all of a sudden, every kid had to go to the bathroom. I ended up designating a bathroom break halfway through class, which seemed to (mostly) solve the problem.
Our eldest did not train until right after he tuernd 3. It was completely his decision, he wanted the fire truck (we bought a fire truck as a reward for when he was out of diapers), he knew what he had to do, so that was the end of diapers. He was day and night trained in 1 day. Now with #2 and #3, #3 was trained before #2, 3 is a girl and a year younger than #2. Again, it was both of their choices, and it took them a little longer, she was just over 2 when she started going, and even now, at 7, still wears UnderJams at night. She will get there eventually, so until then, we buy the UnderJams.[]