Thursday, January 08, 2004
Scarred For Life
(Just a quick evening post. It was a tough day. Ian's diarrhea came back at 11:00, and I spent the rest of the day making sure that he was constantly hydrated, doing three loads of soiled laundry, and changing diapers. I'm not sure if I'm exhausted from the stress or all the manual labor of the day.)
A few weeks ago, I took Jonah to the bathroom in Barnes and Nobles. When we're out, he has to go to ladies room with me. I wouldn't let him go into the men's room alone. Fear of pervs.
As we washed our hands, he looked up at the tampon dispenser and asked, "what is that, mommy?" I froze. I want to be much more open with my kids about their bodies and sexuality than my parents were with me. No need to pass on the Catholic guilt in this area. Let's break the cycle, I have always maintained. But there was that question, out there in the open, and me totally unprepared for how to answer it.
So, I told my innocent little four year old son that the tampon dispenser was a candy machine. It was the first thing that came to mind. Have I scarred him for life?
(Just a quick evening post. It was a tough day. Ian's diarrhea came back at 11:00, and I spent the rest of the day making sure that he was constantly hydrated, doing three loads of soiled laundry, and changing diapers. I'm not sure if I'm exhausted from the stress or all the manual labor of the day.)
A few weeks ago, I took Jonah to the bathroom in Barnes and Nobles. When we're out, he has to go to ladies room with me. I wouldn't let him go into the men's room alone. Fear of pervs.
As we washed our hands, he looked up at the tampon dispenser and asked, "what is that, mommy?" I froze. I want to be much more open with my kids about their bodies and sexuality than my parents were with me. No need to pass on the Catholic guilt in this area. Let's break the cycle, I have always maintained. But there was that question, out there in the open, and me totally unprepared for how to answer it.
So, I told my innocent little four year old son that the tampon dispenser was a candy machine. It was the first thing that came to mind. Have I scarred him for life?
