“Hey, Mom! Do you need a new pompom?” my three year-old asks as I sit perched on the toilet.
“I do, actually. How about you pass me one of the big ones in the purple wrapper,” I reply.
She fishes in the box of Tampax and proudly brings me a new tampon (Super Plus, thankyouverymuch) and asks a few questions as I tend to business.
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I don’t know about you, but the last time I went to the bathroom alone was before I had kids. They are always crawling in my personal space and that includes my time on the can. Whatever. I am not too bothered by it. They have grown up seeing me deal with and talk openly about menstruation and while this may be considered too much information for some, I think it’s normal and healthy for my girls to have an early understanding of how a woman’s body works so they when their time comes they won’t be terrified or freaked out about their periods.
My mom was a public health nurse when I was growing up, so she taught me young about puberty and menstruation. I guess I’m just not too fazed by it.
Do you let your kids in the bathroom with you? Or do you think it’s gross? Have they seen you deal with your period, or do you draw the line there?
Ok, well, I have to say reading the article was awesome, so i know I’ve done the right thing–well, that I’m not alone in doing is …BUT I WASN’T expecting to learn sooo much about my 2.9yr old..I have a 12 yr old who I don’t remember much about her toddler years (idk I’ve got toddler brain I call it, spend every minute with the toddler LOL) !!! I want to thank all of u sincerely for leaving your comments BCUZ at this point I thought I deserved a little privacy to go pee pee on the potty but, sounds like everyone else is joined by their ‘crew’ wen they go too, LOL soo thank u for helping me u derstand it’s normal for my toddler to always want to b with me (I we that) but EVEN IN THE BATHROOM!!!!mLol thank u
I have boys, so I haven’t been too open about period stuff. I’ve gotten really good at quick, discreet tampon changes. But the box is always there, and they know it’s “woman stuff.”
I dream of the day I can go to the bathroom, or get a shower or a bath, alone again in my own home.
I love the “It’s perfectly normal” book. Reading it together with my kids jump started all kinds of conversations, plus they could review it on their own. For some, its easier to have the various conversations if you’re not looking directly at your kids 🙂
I don’t recall my kids ever being in the room while I was changing, but they are both fully aware of what the supplies are for. My son just calls everything feminine products.
After using distraction for a couple of years (hey look isn’t that Spiderman crawling up the side of the house? What? Free candy!), I finally answered my nine year old boy’s questions about the yellow box I occasionally pick up during a grocery run. I was pretty blunt, still tactful and he was curiously horrified, but thanked me for being honest.
J.
LOL I don’t think I have been able to go to the bathroom alone in about 14 years! I thought finally I might be able to but now that the twins have started to walk and crawl around so the gig is up – I have ALWAYS been totally open and my 4 boys and 2 girls have seen it all – the twins are to follow in the same thing!
Just the other day my 5 year old boy informed my 9 year old son who was holding a bag from the drugstore which was holding a box of tampons exactly what tampons are for:
“Oh those are the rainbow colored sticks that girls shove up their ingina!”
My 12 year old son then screamed out – “WAY TOO MUCH INFO!” LMAO!
can i just say that this conversation is giving me a whole bunch of good ideas on how to talk about this to my daughters? “making a home for a baby just in case”…some good words there. better than what i was thinking of telling them 🙂
thanks all!
There’s not going alone in this house, either, and so I’ve explained about how my body makes a home for a baby to grow every month just in case, and then has to get rid of it and start over again. I want my kids to see that all as a normal part of life and that it has a lovely reason behind it, too. Even if it is kind of a pain in the backside…
I tried the Diva Cup and just couldn’t get used to it. I gave it a good few months…but no.
I don’t hide “period stuff” from them but I do require privacy now from my 10yr old son when tending to business.
I have 2 older sisters and a mother. There was never a discussion with me about puberty. I only knew what I heard from the neighbourhood/school kids and what Judy Blume taught me.
I actually looked for A BELT in the box of pads…I won’t let that happen to my kids.
A few years back Cam asked why I put a giant bandaid in my underwear. I gave him a brief, simple answer about periods.
Eva has asked what pads are. What the stick-things (tampons) are for. I gave her the brief, simple explanation I gave Cam and told her that she’ll need them when she’s older. I don’t hide anything from her and she can watch what needs to be done.
She’s pretty excited – I use Kotex and she loves the colours! haha!
She also wants boobs so she can wear my polka dot bra.
Hmm, my girls know all about it but they’re not generally in the room. Never thought much about it! Hah, I had no idea there were so many Diva users, I’m in good company…
Diva cup user here too! Both my kids have walked in while I’ve been inserting it and they’re not phased by it at all. My daughter knows her period will probably be coming soon and I think she’s ready for it. We’re quite open discussing things whenever she has questions.
I think it’s great, Amanda. My dad was a doctor… likewise in our house, about ALL the stuff. It’s good, I think. I don’t remember a time ever NOT knowing about things. You’re doing your girls a service, methinks. Though, it will be nice to go to the bathroom alone one day… le sigh. I think I have dreams about that. 😉
Diva cup for me too! No pompoms for us (but what a funny name! ha!)
I have a Diva cup also and my girls watch me change it because, like Amanda, I’ve rarely gone to the bathroom alone. I figure it’s just a part of life and if they can be there when I pee then…. They aren’t freaked out by it at all. I keep my explanation simple, I get this once a month so I can have a baby if I want to. They call it blooding.
I’ve got two boys..I don’t think they know what they are for but I’m pretty sure my 12 yr old is learning about these things in the school yard. A side note..I was in the grocers yesterday and noticed that there are now disposable liners for your bra? they look like liners but I had to read the box several times to make sure I wasn’t mistaken!
i need to do this! the girls have no clue (my oldest is 9) and i gotta start saying something. now i gotta go buy a box of ‘pompoms’ to leave out cuz i use a diva cup and adults don’t even know what the heck that is 🙂
I remember when I first got my “mensies” I was totally freaked out. I was eleven and have always been glad that it started over summer vacation because my Mom never spoke to me at all about puberty and all that it entailed and I was completely caught off guard. I made a promise to myself ages ago that when I had a daughter I wouldn’t let her feel so ill prepared and freaked out by the natural courses that a young girls body takes. I think it’s such a good thing that you’re raising your girls in a way that lets them know that it’s all just a natural part of being a girl!
Absolutely. My 12 y/o son knows the different colours and what they mean (although the door now remains closed he can help grab the box for me in a pinch!). It has opened up many discussions about why/what/when, etc. No shame in what our bodies do. I think this will make both my son and daughter more comfortable with theirs.