Normally blog posts are a place where I share my opinion about a subject. But in this case, I am not sure what my opinion is. Three times in about ten days, I have witnessed this strange phenomenon that I honestly do not understand. In my ignorance, I think it's weird, but I seek enlightenment.
As I have mentioned in various contexts before, I am a frequent patron of public restrooms. Here is what I have seen:
1. Grandma and grandson (maybe age 8?) in the same stall in the Ladies' Room at a restaurant. Based on the way Grandma's espadrilles are sticking out from under the stall door, I can tell she is on her knees facing the toilet.
2. Mom and son (again...age 8? 9?) emerge from the same stall. This was in the women's restroom of my church-owned-and-operated exercise facility.
3. I was waiting outside the women's room (a one-holer, as my dad would call it) at Camille's Sidewalk Cafe. A man and his son (age 7?) emerge from the bathroom. The Dad apologized to me and the rest of the ladies-in-waiting in the hallway as he walked away.
Okay. I get that a) little bitty boys need help going potty, and it's easier for Mom to help Junior in the ladies' room than the men's; b) Mom can't abandon her kids outside while she answers nature's call; and c) there is some concern about sending even independently potty-ing young boys into men's restrooms alone due to the risk of pervs and predators.
But it also seems to me that at some age it's weird for boys to be in the girls' room, and especially weird for boys to be in the same stall with Mom (or Grandma, ugh!), no matter which one needs the relief.
Sorry if the potty talk is awkward, but I'm really curious. I hope this can be less a conversation about bathroom habits and more about child safety and parent/child boundaries. So, for those of you who have opinions about either of those issues, what are your thoughts?
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6 comments:
yeah i think that kind of crosses the line. and would be super awkward for the kid or parent/grandparent...
Yeah, I really have no expertise on this subject either, but it seems to me that if a boy that age had to go with a parent or grandparent into the ladies' room, they at least wouldn't need to accompany him in the stall... unless he were prone to playing with his poo, but then that's just poor parenting.
Yeah I agree with that. It is one thing to bring them into the bathroom, it is another to go into a stall with an 8 year old. And it seems that by 8, they should be old enough to go into the boy's room. But I have no experience either. We need some mothers to comment!
I guess you need some more friends who know about kid care.
I guess I do. I am still unenlightened.
Don't send an 8 or 9 year old boy into the men's restroom alone.
Do take him with you into the ladies' restroom.
Don't accompany him into the stall.
Age at which you can't take him into the ladies' restroom any more: when he balks you'll know.
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