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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

To put my 2 year old on his potty in a restaurant?

235 replies

Volodya · 05/08/2008 20:00

I took 2yo ds and 7mo dd up to town yesterday. We're on week 2 of potty training ds. It's going fine but I still carry a potty everywhere I go.

I was planning to get us sandwiches for lunch and sit outside but it was raining so we ended up in a museum cafe at lunchtime. Of course I tried to put ds on the potty before we went in and of course he declined to do anything.

When we were about 15 minutes into the meal, both children in high chairs, everything liberally smeared with pasta bolognese and spinach puree, dd's buggy piled high with all her lunch detritus (cool bag, bits of rice cake, muslin, blah blah), ds announced that he needed his potty. That tends to mean that he needs it NOW.

So rather than clearing everything out of the buggy, strapping in spinach-covered dd, packing everything up, picking up bolognese-covered ds, and heading off to find out where the loos were, I simply whisked the potty under the table between ds's high chair and the buggy and popped him on, crouching down in front of him so that (I hoped) he was virtually hidden from view. (It was not a busy cafe and we weren't very close to any other tables).

Within about a minute and a half I was approached by the waiter asking if we could "transfer your son to the toilets", citing health and safety and saying that he'd already had a couple of complaints from other customers! I said that I didn't see how this could be done, with dd, buggy etc and ds already on the potty...! The waiter was v sympathetic and said he completely understood but that he was in a difficult position because of other customers' complaining. Fortunately the situation was resolved at that point by ds standing up to reveal a clean potty...

So WIBU to put him in the potty in the restaurant in that situation? (WIBU to leave my house on week 2 of potty training?!) How would you have handled this differently?

OP posts:
Swedes · 15/08/2008 10:13

This thread is not for real.

AuntyJ · 15/08/2008 10:23

yak! yak! yak!

Pennant · 12/09/2008 23:54

I am shocked by the over the top responses to this. These comments are far too harsh and totally unsupportive. You obviously did what you felt was the best thing at the time in a difficult situation. I am so impressed that you were in a museum cafe with 2 little ones. Well done you and well done for even remembering to take and carry the potty with you. Shame on those who felt it necessary or appropriate to write some (indeed most) of the comments above. We (mums) should be there for each other rather than critical.

izyboy · 13/09/2008 00:13

Yep Pennant I agree. I probably wouldn't have been organised enough with the potty so probably would have done it in his pants if I was his Mummy.

izyboy · 13/09/2008 00:14

No not me soiling the pants - oh you know its late...

MsPontipine · 13/09/2008 00:49

Oh honestly!! Has nobody ever eaten a hurried tea while on the loo at the same time???!!

solidgoldbrass · 13/09/2008 00:54

I give you a quote from DS dad some years ago - 'the trouble with having no boiler is you have to take the washing up out of the sink before you have a crap in it. Well most of the time'.

As I very often say to and about DS dad 'There are reasons why I wouldn't marry you...'

Janni · 13/09/2008 05:40

Can't imagine why you'd contemplate a restaurant, on your own, with a baby and a potty training toddler - very dangerous sport.

SuperBunny · 13/09/2008 05:58

roffle

Fllllight · 13/09/2008 06:10

Oh no, who dragged this one out again?!!

enough already

loobeylou · 13/09/2008 11:20

have in the dim and distant past been asked not to bf in a cafe as other customers didn't like it (not that you could see owt). was told i could do it in the ladies/baby change room. Now, I refuse point blank to do this, those places are hot and smelly and its gross, and would never ever put dc on potty in food area, that is equally off

can't even understand friends who get their dc to sit on potty by bribing them with food in their hand at same time

yuk

TooTicky · 13/09/2008 11:35

Oh, poor Volodya.
Hasn't everybody made a slightly iffy decision at some point?
And haven't we all had emergency toilet-related situations?

Grow up all you pottyphobes!!

falcon · 13/09/2008 12:05

I don't think there is such a thing as an OTT response to someone allowing their child to have a crap in a public place, not only that a public place where people are eating.

It's the height of vulgarity and an utter lack of consideration.

Ok burn the witch! might be a slight overreaction but anything less goes imho.

CostaRicanCod · 13/09/2008 12:06

yuk to op
oyu are vile and mad

DrNortherner · 13/09/2008 12:07

Yuk.

I never unsdersatnd these people who carry a potty with them. Why oh Why?

I never did.

edam · 13/09/2008 12:09

Agree with Cod, yuck yuck yuckety yuck.

Blu · 13/09/2008 12:12

Pennant - well done , you have found your way straight to AIBU to revive an ancient thread for your very first post!

You will fit in very well with MN - welcome!

Blu · 13/09/2008 12:13

old thread!

hatrick · 13/09/2008 12:17

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn

Blu · 13/09/2008 12:20

But then Volodya, the OP, doesn't appear to have been back since she started this thread in August, either.

Which is perhaps hardly surprising.

Janni · 13/09/2008 19:37

Blu - excellent detective work there. Are you with The Met?

macdoodle · 13/09/2008 20:07

I was walking through town the other day (busy town centre major city)....when almost bumped into another mum pushing a buggy (whilst smoking a fag and holding hand of a small toddler - the other mum not me - I was pushing my baby in a buggy).....
Balanced precariously on her buggy seat was "a full to the brim with piss" potty.....yuuuuuuukkkkk nearly barfed no idea where she was going as closest toilet was in the other direction .....if she had tipped it all over me would have not been a happy mummy !!!

QuintessentialShadow · 13/09/2008 20:11

pennant - what is your purpose in namechanging just to resurrect THIS old thread???

Twelvelegs · 13/09/2008 20:15

I would have made it to the toilets with the potty or not have ventured into a cafe with very small children in the throws of potty training.
2 year old poo is still poo.

neverforget · 13/09/2008 20:18

my friend once did this and I was soo mortified lol

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