Without Interference...

There are several things kids do not do well until they are older.  Wipe their own bums and wash their hands.


Nowadays, every parent is so paranoid about washing hands! Seriously, I think hand washing is great, but teaching a 2 or 3 year old to do it well and without help is about as much fun as potty training.  As in it's NOT.  They get it when they get it, and thats been my philosophy with RJ.


I guess if he had been a sick kid and constantly catching every little bug, I may have been a little more on top of this issue. But he wasn't and I wasn't.  Despite my type A personality I have never been overly conscious about everything germs and dirty.  I do wipe the handle of the shopping cart, I even sanitize every single time I pump gas.  Still, I figure we all got this far without sanitizing and washing everything a thousand times. And frankly, RJ and I are just about never sick.


So, I have never specifically taught RJ to wash his hands.  On top of that, I have never made him wash his hands before and after everything!  I do regularly sanitize his hands, but not every second of the day.  There have been times (GASP) that I have forgotten to wash/ sanitize his hands between touching things and eating things. Or vice versa.  I know - I'm terrible.  I will try and work up a little remorse for the neglect...


Imagine my surprise (the same surprise I experienced when he started potty training himself :) when he just up and began wiping his own bum and washing his hands afterwards this week.
Seriously, he's been closing the door, going potty, washing his hands, and then exiting without me even realizing he has gone potty!  Since he decided to start doing this, I stopped in and gave him a few pointers on bum wiping and hand washing this week.  He seemed very receptive to my suggestions and has been quite successful considering his lack of training in this area.


One thing I love about my hands off approach (other than I get to be a lazy parent) is that when he decides he is ready, he is so receptive to instruction and so excited to do whatever it is.  He is so easy to teach at that point!  LOVE it!


I guess he's decided it's time to be a big boy and take care of his own business.  I guess I am ready to let him :)


P.S. Of course Ill be monitoring the bum wiping!  He's okay with me double checking his work...