I just wasn’t prepared for all the pee.
When I became a boy mum, I had already been a girl mum for three and a half years.
I had also, at that stage, become an aunt to two baby nieces – and had grown up myself with just the one sister – in other words; I was well used to girls and had little to zero knowledge about all the parenting issues you face when raising boys.
And when I say ‘all the parenting issues’ I am mainly talking about pee. Everywhere. So much pee.
If you already are a boy mum (or have a husband with a bad aim) you will know what I am talking about. Like; how flipping hard is it to get that urine into the actual toilet bowl, guys…?
Ever since my little boy started peeing like ‘a big boy’ – AKA using the toilet instead of the potty, I quickly became accustomed to walking into my bathroom an hour after scrubbing it down and smelling that unmistakable stench of pee on the floor. And down the side of the toilet. Or occasionally on the wall beside the toilet as well. Yuck.
However, having cleaned the bloody bathroom more times weekly than I care to disclose, I recently came across this Australian mum’s very simple trick – and have not looked back.
The foolproof anti-floor-wee hack
Having grown tired of constantly cleaning the bathroom after her two boys, Pilar Mitchell decided to let her boys clean up their own spills whenever they had an aim faux pas.
After a whole lot of wiping and ranting (turns out, 8- and 5-year-olds are not all that keen on cleaning up pee stains either), the mum-of-two had an idea.
“One day, while my eldest was wailing about how disgusting cleaning pee is, I suggested he sit down when he peed. Then he’d never have to clean the pee again.”
So beautifully simple, no?
“My five-year-old must have heard (he’s always eavesdropping) because the next time I saw him trot off to the bathroom, he sat down on the toilet to pee. Every time after that, he sat down. It took his brother a few more floor scrubs to catch on. Because Mr 5 was already sitting, Mr 8 was left cleaning all the wees. Because as all ladies know, a sitting person doesn’t wee on the ground. Then the other day I spotted him sitting down on the toilet, too. It was a bloody miracle.”
What do YOU think, mums? Are your boys standing up or sitting down to pee? Has it made a difference? Let us know in the comments or tweet us at @herfamilydotie
