Starting a new family (private with gta85)

[abdlomo7]

“Sounds great.”  Sarah poured a glass of wine and took the kids outside.  The days were getting shorter, and it would start to get dark soon.  

A little while later, Sarah could smell dinner from inside, so she called the kids to the porch.  She left Katie in the kitchen with John and took Tommy to the bathroom.  “Let’s try to go potty before dinner.”  She’d been reading a little bit about potty-training, and scheduled potty trips had been one of the suggestions she’d read.  She’d skipped the after-nap one earlier that day since Tommy had woken up wet, but resolved not to do that again.  Tommy obediently pulled his pants down while Sarah placed his potty seat on the toilet, but he didn’t need the stool.  He got himself on the potty and pushed himself down like he’d been taught at the orphanage to pee.  “Good job, sweetheart!” Sarah praised.  She checked his underwear and pull-up in an exaggerated motion.  “And your undies and pull-up are still dry! You’re such a big boy!”

Tommy smiled at the praise, feeling encouraged to make it to the potty more often. 

[gta85]

John was getting dinner out of the oven when Sarah and Tommy returned.  "Katie, do you need to go potty before dinner?" He asked.  Katie shook her head.  "All right."  He pointed out the half-bath Sarah and Tommy had just returned from.  "The bathroom is right there.  If you need to go while we're eating, you can get up and go, and one of us will come with you if you want us to."  Katie nodded.  She wasn't as nervous about going potty here anymore, so she wasn't worried about having another accident.

John turned to Sarah and Tommy.  "What about this one?  Did he use the potty?"

[abdlomo7]

Tommy nodded excitedly. “I stay dry and went pee-pee in the potty!” He informed him.

[gta85]

"That's great, big boy!"  

After dinner, John found Paw Patrol on the TV for the kids to watch while he and Sarah cleaned the kitchen.  Both kids seemed interested in it, so they left them alone long enough to clean up.  "We'll be in the kitchen if anyone needs to potty," John said.

[abdlomo7]

Halfway into the episode, Tommy’s tummy got that uncomfortable feeling that told him it was time to go poopy.  Part of him wanted to keep watching TV, but he hated pooping in his pants. He was much better at knowing when he had to poop than when he needed to pee, even though his poop sometimes sneaked up on him and caused an accident, too. While he had wetting accidents daily, his disdain for pooping in his pants usually outweighed his hesitance to tell a grownup he needed the potty, and he hadn’t had a poop accident in a couple of weeks.  He found Sarah in the kitchen and tugged on the hem of her shirt.  

Sarah dried her hands on a dish towel and patted the top of his head.  “What is it, honey?”

”I hafta go poopy,” Tommy shyly admitted.

Sarah picked him up and walked quickly to the bathroom.  “Okay.  Good job for telling Mommy.”  She pulled his pants down and helped him get situated with the potty seat on the toilet.  He let out a little bit of pee before he heard plops in the toilet.  “I done,” he announced a few minutes later.

Sarah got a wet wipe from the back of the toilet and wiped him.  “You did so good, sweetie.”  She took him back to the living room and finished helping John clean the kitchen.

[gta85]

A little while later, with both toddlers bathed and in pajamas, John took Katie to the bathroom between her and Tommy's rooms.  "Let's try to potty one more time before bed, and then you can pick out a book to read, okay?"  Katie agreed and ran to her room once she'd pee-peed and washed her hands.  John left the bathroom light open and cracked the door.  Once he'd read to her, he turned the lamp off, tucked her in, and lay down beside her.  "Look, sweetie, your bathroom light is on, and you also have a nightlight.  If you wake up and have to pee-pee, you can see to get to the potty.  If you wet the bed, you can come wake us up, or just call out. There's a monitor in here, so we'll hear you.  You won't be in trouble if you have an accident."  Katie nodded drowsily.  It had been a big day, and it didn't take long for her to fall asleep.

[abdlomo7]

Once Tommy had used the potty and was in his nighttime diaper and footie pjs, Sarah sat in the recliner in the living room with him.  “Remember that Mommy’s and Daddy’s room is right across the hall from yours,” she reminded him.  “Come get us if you need something during the night.”

Tommy nodded and snuggled into her shoulder, thumb in mouth and ready to go to sleep.  Sarah rubbed his back and hummed softly until he was asleep, then tucked him into his toddler bed.

Sarah was tired after the long day, herself, and she got a glass of wine and flipped through the TV channels.

[gta85]

Once he was sure Katie was sleep, John kissed her forehead and went to the living room.  He nudged Sarah over and sat in the recliner with her.  "When I made Katie's bed back up earlier, I put an extra mattress protector and set of sheets on top.  If she has an accident tonight and wakes you up, you can just pull the top ones off, and her bed will be ready to go."

 

[abdlomo7]

Sarah sipped her wine and looked up at him.  “Wow, you really thought that one through.”

[gta85]

"Not really," John admitted.  "My brother wet the bed almost every night until he was nine.  My parents picked up some tricks along the way.  I'd forgotten they did that until I realized Katie had wet herself during her nap."

[abdlomo7]

Sarah nodded.  “My sister and I both wet the bed every now and then, but we both mostly stopped when we were five, so it was never a big deal.  Same with daytime accidents.  By the time I was three, I usually only had accidents if we were stuck in a traffic jam or something or if for some other reason my parents couldn’t get me to a toilet in time, but that didn’t happen that much.  Same with my sister.  See if you can remember anything else your parents did with your brother, or call your mom or something.  I think Katie will be okay for the most part, but we’re pretty much starting at the beginning with Tommy.  For pee, anyway, he seems to know when he has to poop.”

[gta85]

"I may do that once we're more familiar with his potty habits," John agreed.  A little while later, they got ready for bed and slipped between the sheets in their own room.

Katie woke up a couple of hours before dawn and immediately knew she'd pee-peed in her bed.  Her pjs were cold and sticking to her, and her sheets were drenched.  Her mind was still foggy, and she thought she was still at the orphanage, so she stayed where she was for a few minutes.  At the orphanage, she would've gone back to sleep and let one of the grownups discover her accident the next morning, but when she remembered she was in a new place now where she wouldn't get in trouble, she got out of bed and padded down the hall, tears still streaming down her cheeks.  She walked to one side of the bed, not knowing who was on what side, and saw that Sarah was in front of her.  She tapped her arm.  "Mommy," she whimpered.

[abdlomo7]

Sarah was also confused at first in her drowsy state, but she remembered that there were toddlers in their house now when she smelled urine.  She opened her eyes and was met with a tearful Katie in soaked pajamas.  “Oh, sweetheart, did you wet the bed?  It’s okay.  We’ll take a bath and get you in some dry pjs.”  She took Katie’s hand and led her to the bathroom.  While the bath was filling up, she got some dry panties and a clean nightgown from Katie’s room.  

[gta85]

Katie sniffled and rubbed her eyes.  "I sorry, Mommy.  I didn't know.  I woke up all wet."  

[abdlomo7]

Sarah gently rubbed a washcloth over Katie.  “It’s okay, baby.  I know you didn’t mean to.  I still wet my bed when I was your age, and so did Daddy.  It happens to everyone.”  She quickly cleaned her up and dried her off.  “Why don’t you try to pee-pee and make sure you’re all done, and then I’ll come lie down with you.”

[gta85]

Not wanting to have another accident, Katie agreed and sat on the toilet.  She was able to let a little pee-pee out.  Once Sarah helped her into her clean panties and gown, she held her arms up for Sarah to hold her.

[abdlomo7]

Sarah picked her up and carried her to her room after putting her wet panties and pjs in the hamper.  With Katie still on her hip, Sarah pulled the sheets and mattress protector off of her bed, revealing the dry sheets underneath.  “See how easy that was?  It’s not a big deal when you have an accident. We know it will happen sometimes, and maybe even more than usual at first since you’re in a new place.”  Sarah placed Katie on her bed.  “I’ll be right back.”  She took the wet sheets to the laundry room and went back to Katie.  She lay down with her, intending to go back to her own room once Katie was asleep, but she fell asleep along with her.

[gta85]

The next morning, John was surprised when Sarah wasn't in bed when he woke up.  He always got up before her.  A quick check of the house revealed that she was in bed with Katie, so he went to the kitchen to start the coffee.

A few minutes later, Katie toddled in.  John didn't comment on the fact that she was wearing different pajamas than the night before, he just lifted her into his arms and kissed her forehead. "Morning, sweetheart."  He put her back down so he could make her some breakfast.  

"I hafta potty," Katie announced.

"All right.  Do you want me to come with you?" 

Katie shook her head and went to the bathroom off of the kitchen.

[abdlomo7]

Tommy woke up a few minutes later to the familiar feeling of warm, damp padding between his legs.  It took a few moments to remember where he was, and he started calling out for Mommy as soon as he remembered.  

Sarah woke up when she heard Tommy and went through the bathroom to his room.  “Hey, sweetie, did you sleep good?” She pulled him into her lap and checked his diaper.  “You’ve got a wet bottom, buddy.”  She laid him on the floor and wiped him down before helping him into undies and a pull-up.  She pulled a t-shirt over his head and just left him like that for the time being so it would be easier for him to go potty when the need arose.  “Let’s go try to potty, and then we’ll go get some breakfast.”  

Once Tommy had used the potty, Sarah took him to the kitchen, where she could hear John and Katie.

[gta85]

"Hi, you guys."  John kissed Sarah and then kissed Tommy on the forehead.  "Who wants pancakes?"

"I do!" Katie immediately answered.

[abdlomo7]

Tommy was still sleepy and lay on Sarah’s shoulder.  Sarah patted his back.  “What about you, buddy? You want some pancakes?” Tommy nodded slowly. 

Sarah got sippy cups of milk for both kids and kissed Katie’s cheek before sitting down with Tommy in her lap.  

 

[gta85]

"What do you want to do today?" John asked as he got breakfast ready and poured a cup of coffee for Sarah.

[abdlomo7]

Sarah shrugged.  “I figured we could let them stay in their pjs for a while this morning and watch TV or play in the living room, and then we can get them dressed and take them outside before lunch.  I think we should hang around the house this week, and we can take them to the zoo and stuff next week.”  It was October, and Sarah had taken a temporary leave of absence from work and wasn’t starting again until after Christmas.  John had taken three weeks off to be with the kids. 

[gta85]

"That sounds good."  Once everyone had eaten, John cleared the table.  "You can take them to the living room, and I'll clean up and join you guys."  He rinsed out both sippy cups and filled them with watered-down juice in case the kids got thirsty later.

[abdlomo7]

Sarah settled Tommy on her hip, took Katie’s hand, and led them to the living room.  Tommy wanted to stay in her lap, so she sat in the chair with him and found Mickey Mouse Clubhouse on the TV.  “Katie? Do you want to sit with us or play with your toys?”