God and the Potty

How many times can I say "Thank you, God, that I'm not 25 or 30 years old and raising kids?" If it takes a million, I'll say it. I have to admit there are times when I get tired of the "getting old" stuff, but it's nothing compared to having to raise children. That's the hardest job of all.

When my girls got close to the age of two, I started the potty training bit. Time smooths out all memories, so all I remember about it was that it worked well. We got rid of the diapers, expect at night for a time, and put on training pants that allowed them to feel the wetness and poop. Learning to go to the bathroom in the potty was the way life worked.

I read my favorite columnist, John Rosemond, this morning. His column was about potty training and how many parents aren't doing it early--which is causing havoc when they get tired of changing their four year-old's diaper. Yuk! Evidently parents today--some parents--are into the "readiness signs." Come on now. How many two or three year-olds know when they're ready? Answer: Very few if any.

When my grandson was nearing two, he wanted to stop using a diaper. One morning when he was about 22 months old, he ran into his mother's room and asked her to take off his diaper so he could go poop. Still half asleep, she said, "Do it in your diaper."
He raised a stink (pardon the pun) and refused. That was the last time he wore a diaper, even at night. He was one of the few who knew he was ready.

God is like a parent. Sometimes we don't want to get out of our diapers, but God knows when the time is right. "Time to stop acting like a baby," He tells us. "Time to grow up." I can't tell you the ways you may have been wanting to stay a baby, but I remember the time when He made me grow up. (Nope. Not going to tell.)

I'm probably still in diapers in some ways, but when the time is right, I trust God will help me out of them. I'm not sure He looks for "readiness" as much as He looks AT us with love and leads us toward the potty to get rid of whatever it is we need to eliminate. Another pun. I'm full of them today. (: