An Intelligent Discussion with a 2.5-year-old (warning poo-poo involved)

My day was interrupted by a pile of poo.

I was feeling the call of nature, which is something that I dread at the moment because of the shape of my bathroom. My bathroom is really long and skinny, and my wheelchair doesn't fit. I have to walk. My walker is awkward in there, too, so I tend to just grab on to whatever is handy (counter top, shower handles). Anyway, I made it to the toilet only to slip and fall on a pile of poo.

There was poo on the floor next to the toilet.

Ew!

I get up, only slightly bruised, and finish my business in the bathroom and then begin to inquire about the source of the poo.

Ali claims it without hesitation. This surprises me, because at this point I am irritated, and they obviously pick up on these things.

Apparently she went to the bathroom without letting me know where she was going, but couldn't get on the toilet by herself, so she decided that the next best thing was beside the toilet.

This is where my discussion took an interesting turn.

Me: Why did you poo-poo on the floor?

Ali: I not in trouble Mommy, I went to the bathroom, I wiped front to back!

(Yep, toilet paper was in the toilet!)

Me: Why didn't you poo-poo on the toilet?

Ali: No step!

(My daughters are a bit vertically challenged, so they require a step to get on the toilet.)

Me: Why didn't you call me?

Ali: I had to go now!

(I know, I'm slow right now. It's just that my house was obviously not made for the wheelchair, so it's difficult to get around.)

Zoe: Mommy, you have owies?

Me: Yep, Mommy slipped on the poo-poo.

Ali: Want me kiss it?

Me: No, baby, Mommy just needs a shower.

Ali: Ok, I clean my poo-poo first.

Ali then grabs the baby wipes and begins to wipe the floor with them. I would stop her and get a mop, but she was taking responsibility for the poo without any prompting. She successfully argued her way out of being in any trouble because she had a logical (in two-year-old land, where she can do everything by herself) explanation for her actions, and then took it upon herself to clean up the mess that she had created. My only problem was that she had left the poo on the ground in the first place instead of cleaning it up right away, thus saving me from my fall.

So there you have it. My daughters are growing up. What a weird conversation.