Monday, May 09, 2011

Post Placement and Poop




Wednesday, for me, began as any other day...up at 4:30am and out the door around 5 for work. While quietly tiptoeing in the darkness past the girls’ room, my nose took notice of a sharp scent, and I made a mental note that we should empty and freshen the diaper genie before our social worker arrived that afternoon for post placement visit #2.


Normally around 8:30am or so I receive a daily phone call or email from Pat describing how his morning went with the girls - were there any meltdowns, did he get them dressed and out the door okay, and we discuss any special things or appointments that may be scheduled for that day. More than an hour early, my in box “dinged” indicating that my morning “D & T update” had arrived. My eyes widened as I glanced at the subject line which read, “Treya and poop”.


The short two or three lines indicated that a small disaster had occurred in the night, and daddy was a little frazzled this morning. When it comes to poop, daddy tends to be a bit dramatic, so I picked up the phone to give a bit of moral support. Much to his disapproval, his report had me belly laughing with nothing but breathy bursts and squeaks coming through the receiver on his end, albeit at his and Treya’s expense. Some help I was!


Apparently, at some point during the night, most likely soon after the lights went out, Treya pooped in her diaper. Feeling a little uncomfortable and in a semi conscience state, she decided to remedy the situation. This child is a SOUND and ACTIVE sleeper, so it is of no surprise that she did not wake herself as she somehow managed to take off her jammies and her full diaper and snuggle back down into a deep slumber.


Nearly 12 hours of ACTIVE and SOUND sleep later, Devi went to wake her little sister. Poor Pat was startled awake by the sound of padded running feet and a near hysterical Devi screaming, “Daddy, daddy, I went to wake Treya and...come, come!”


Donning his CSI cap, daddy puzzled together the crime scene. Most likely the full diaper was trapped for a time under Treya’s belly, but she must have freed herself pushing it south, only to have it catch on her legs and feet, one of which is still in a cast. Not to be contained, she wriggled her legs back and forth, possibly turning over several times before settling into the crease where the mattress and bumper meet. Here she went pee pee, poor child, which managed to be wicked onto the carpet via the crib skirt. Through it all, her hands and hair managed to stay clean.


In full on “Big Sister” mode, Dev grabbed the wipes and together, she and daddy tackled the crusty mess that encased Treya’s body, described as plaster, by daddy. Daddy said in mommy’s absence, Devi was instrumental in this project. After scrubbing Treya, starting a load of laundry, and doing a bit of carpet cleaning, what was left to contend with was a pink and brown stinky cast. How does one clean a cast? Blazing a trail like a pioneer, daddy tried soap, water, toilet brush- somehow appropriate, resolve carpet cleaner, febreeze, and hydrogen peroxide to no avail. With time running out, he put a sock over the cast to muffle the stench and off to daycare and work they went.


At 3:30, our social worker pulled into the driveway, just as we all arrived home from work for our post placement visit. All was going along well, Treya was engaging (not hiding under the table), and we happily answered all of her questions about all of our family’s progress. Then she asked to see Treya’s cast. Without a second thought, I whipped the sock off instantly releasing the most foul odor causing us all to gasp, our lungs clinging to the last molecules of fresh air left in the room. Even Treya turned up her nose. I couldn’t have been more embarrassed, thankful, however, that we have a good relationship with our social worker, who never wavered once with thoughts that perhaps our parenting plan does not include bathing! In the end, she gave a glowing report and got a chuckle or two out of the story. Phew!


Treya is back into straight jacket jammies (they snap in the back) and we are not looking forward to the next two weeks of a cow spotted cast that smells, but at least we’ve improved on the scent. If ever in this predicament....bleach water does the trick! A suggestion taken from my chiropractor’s office.

11 comments:

Jennifer said...

Oh, this is hilarious! And gross! I think Pat handled it way better than my husband would have. Kudos to him!

Peter and Nancy said...

Ha ha ha ha!!!!!! I'm not sure Peter would've kept his breakfast down in the same situation, so Patrick did a great job! And now you have a social worker story that definitely tops our naked boy story!
Happy Mother's Day!
Nancy

The Harmons said...

Bleach water. Noted. OMG!

Potty training has stopped since wearing a cast as apparently the risk of accidents down the cast is not worth it according to our Ortho! Your experience (or Pat's proves that)!

Emily said...

Once again, an excellent story Julie, and a little gross too :) I took notes, just in case Asha pulls the same kind of feat. Give Pat a giant kudos from us, dealing with poop is no fun! Emily

Anonymous said...

I know Treya has had a few Indian names - should we add "dances w/ poop" or "Sleepy stink walker" to her aliases? I know that is not PC - but hey - neither was Julie walking past the bedroom - knowing there was a foul disturbance in the force.

M

Anonymous said...

I wonder if Pat's issue w/ number two stems from a night long ago.
When working at a restaraunt, some young men walked in w/ a bag, went directly to the restroom and left. A nice customer let us know we "had a mess on our hands" - and since it was the Men"s room - Pat got the job of removing the pile of number two out of the urinal.
Julie and I were there - I guess we are used to walking past such things.

Good times!

M

Anonymous said...

I love that picture of Treya, with her hands on her hips - it seems like her personality is really coming out. She is fierce and on fire! How nice to have such confident girls!

Fenwick 5 said...

Oh good gracious me!!LOL:) Shane would have collapsed,LOL.Thank goodness sister Devi was on the case!! Way to go big sister and brave daddy!! This is so funny. Don't forget to record this story for sure!! We are off to get the cake for Maiya's 2nd birthday and first GOTCHA DAY! Gidget
Pictures coming soon!

The Pfeiffer Family said...

There is never a dull moment at your house :-) Your husband is a very brave man to have handled such a mess. To start your day with something so gross doesn't sound like much fun :-( My husband would have not done so well..LOL..our boys would have been called for immediate assistance! Good job, Devi for helping your daddy and sister. This is a story for the books for sure!

April :-)

Jstar said...

Too funny! My daughter just had hand surgery to correct some ABS effects and I was bemoaning her stinky cast when Jennifer recommended this post to me - I will complain about our stinky cast no longer!

Cindy said...

Oh my goodness.....so funny. You just have to know that I belly laughed through this entire post!!! LOL!! I love it because this is something that could actually happen to me HAHA....love to you all.