With two small kids in the house, it was only ever a matter of time until they started being amused by potty talk and taking every chance to talk about poo or pee and other bodily functions.
While I try my best not to be TOO strict with my kids, there are certain things that I just don’t want them doing. Offending everyone around us by shouting about poop in public is definitely near the top of that list.
At first I had some trouble with it though. The fact of the matter is, the jokes they were making WERE funny… and it’s hard to really seem serious about telling your kid to stop while you’re red in the face from laughing at their potty jokes.
When it got to the point that they’d skip around the house chanting “Poopy-Poopy”, I knew I had to do something.
A new rule was born in the Rollo house. We only talk about poop and pee if we need to use the restroom.
Maybe that rule seems obvious, but it’s all in the enforcing of the rule.
Since the only time we talk about that is when we have to go potty… whenever any one started talking about pee or singing the poopy song they were required to go sit on the potty and try to go.
It wasn’t framed as a punishment, no one ever got angry, it’s just clear that if THAT is what you are choosing to talk about, you must have to go potty!
Lots of eye rolls as they trotted off to the bathroom and quite a few “But I don’t HAVE to go mama!”s, but when I reminded them of our family rule “we only talk about poop and pee if we need to use the restroom” they’d look a little guilty. Not wanting to be caught breaking a rule they’d run off to the bathroom to try, usually only to discover they didn’t have to go after all.
I found this was a way we could stay positive, and I wouldn’t have to get frustrated with the CONSTANT potty talk that was coming from both my daughter and my son. They thought it was funny, but more than that, they thought it was ANNOYING, so the potty talk has pretty much stopped. No one has time to be rushing off to the bathroom every five seconds.
Another beautiful thing about this method? You can implement it anywhere. Kiddos start talking potty in the middle of Target? No problem, drop everything and take them to the bathroom and make them try. It works at friend’s houses and even in the car, since you can make them try as soon as you reach your destination.
Quiet. Discreet. And it annoys the kiddo as much as they are annoying you.
I’d call that a mom win for sure.
How do you put an end to the potty talk in your house?
Michele says
Interesting approach. I’ll try it when the poopy potty mouths happen more frequently. Thanks for the tip!