Blow-out in Blowing Rock

We had a nice weekend – went away to the mountains with our neighbors, but it of course generated the next chaotic saga in my life. Our neighbors, Mike and Sheley, moved in across the street from us last year and they have a little boy, Colin, who is just a couple of months younger than Joey. In true “Three Martini Play Date” fashion, we initially had a few play dates with our kids to see how well we all meshed – fortunately, they were our kind of parents and we have made a habit of mixing play dates and happy hours several times a week – it wears the kids out and we have someone to drink a beer with. A few weeks ago they asked us if we wanted to go to Mike’s brother’s cabin in the mountains with them over Memorial Day weekend – we accepted and so proceeded our first out of town “date” with our new couple/kiddie friends. So, as I’m sure most of you can relate to, you want to leave a good impression on these sorts of trips – it’s one thing to do hang out and drink beer a few nights a week and it’s another to spend three days together in a cabin in the woods with two 2 year olds and an infant. For married couples with children, these are the equivalent of your first out of town weekend with a new boyfriend. So, we pack up and head for the mountains on Friday – the cabin outside of the Asheville/Boone area so the scenery is really great. For the most part, our trip went very well – when we got there a large cooler of beer was unloaded (our kind of people!) and I think everyone had a good time, but of course there were a few minor incidents that I felt merited an email.

To provide some background, Colin is doing very well with his potty training – he only had to use two pull-ups all weekend. On the other hand, slacker parents that we are, we basically gave up on trying to potty train Joey when Abby was born –declaring that we needed to give him some “adjustment time” – 7 months later, we apparently haven’t adjusted yet. So, Joey is watching Colin use the potty all weekend and I think the pressure of it all must have gotten to him because he failed to use the potty for #2 for 3 days (last fun diaper change for that was Thursday night). On Sunday, we decided to drive to Blowing Rock and walk around the town, go to the park, have lunch, etc. After lunch we all wandered down the street to have some ice cream. First, Joey declares he wants peppermint ice cream and that all goes well until Colin gets “superman” ice cream – then we listen to Joey declare/whine incessantly that he wants that kind for 20 minutes. Finally, just as we think we are ready to head out, Joey squats down on the main street of Blowing Rock, full of tourists, and announces that he has to poo. So, Joe says he will stay with him and I walk back to van to get “set up” for what we know will be a project. Of course, the van we brought was Mike and Sheley’s – we had moved the car seats so we could all ride together. Now we’re back at the van and we see Joe and Joey walking towards us. Joey comes up and announces “I’m wet” and proceeds to turn around and show us all his pants which have a wet/brownish tinge to them all the way down his leg. To save our neighbors from the true horror of it all, Joe and I take Joey and the diaper bag (which fortunately had a change of clothes in it) and head to this grassy area off to the side of the little school we are parked next to and begin the operation. I won’t go into detail here, but it wasn’t pretty. Nothing like changing your child’s blowout diaper disaster in a public park area while your neighbors wait and laugh at you. We ended up packing up his clothes in a baggy and throwing them in the back for the drive home. Joey also ended up with a bunch of bug bites on his butt from being changed in the grass. J When we get back to the cabin, Mike and Joe take the boys to the park nearby to run around and I start a load of laundry – as I’m doing that I walk by Abby and wonder if I should check her before starting the washer. No, I think naively, she rarely ever has a blow out, and I start the washer. Silly me, I should have known… she’d had apples and plums for lunch and was in her favorite “business” spot – the exersaucer. No sooner do I start the wash and pick her up when I notice her pants are wet. A quick investigation leads to the discovery that she has decided to learn from big brother and also have a blowout. I try to discreetly take her to the changer, but when I get things opened up I realize I am looking at a major OSHA incident. Also, Abby has hit a little stage where as soon as you take her diaper off, her little hands go IMMEDIATLEY to the va jay jay and start pulling – very ladylike. This is NOT good when there has been a blowout – just then Sheley walks by and sees my predicament. Fortunately, she takes it all in stride and helps me hold Abby and her hands down while the clean-up takes place. I don’t think they were horribly offended by the sheer amount of excrement that my children produced in the span of about an hour, but it’s not exactly the scenario you want on your first trip with the neighbors. If it were the boyfriend out of town weekend, you know the phone would never ring again – but thank goodness most parents have experienced this at one point or another.

A few other “Joeyisms” from the weekend though…

* After Sheley served him a biscuit with homemade jelly for breakfast – “This isn’t working for me”.
* We constantly had to drag him from the bathroom every time Colin was in it – he felt he should watch at all times.
* To Colin during dinner when he was playing with some lights near the window “Colin, stop playing with the electricity” (We had to remind him that Colin already had a mother several times).
* Joey and Colin to the adults. “We need to go get some more beer”.

And finally, Joey did learn something from Colin this weekend – how to pee in the woods – a big thrill all around. Of course, when we get home, Joe and I are unloading the car and Joe walks around the front of the house to find Joey watering down the mulch in our front lawn for all the neighbors to see. I’m sure that will be a big hit with the homeowner’s association – I can’t wait for my notice asking me to please refrain from letting my children urinate in the lawn.