The Wiping of the Booty...

At 4, my daughter wiped herself but I supervised.

And according to my plumber, "flushable" wipes account for a large percentage of the clogged sewer lines he gets called out to clear.

There is toilet paper specifically for children...it shows when you have the right amount. There are also wet wipes, so she may have to do a double wipe, but she will get it.....Soon enough she will just need one or the other, and you will be able to tell in short time by the conditions of her little undies.

Blessings....

:)

I told my 5-1/2 yr old that "5" was the magic age when he needed to really start wiping himself. I have him use 2 squares of paper per wipe. Also, if he needs to he can use flushable kid wet wipes. But I will warn you against becoming dependent on the wet wipes. A friend's daughter ONLY used these and couldn't wipe herself with toilet paper even at age 8! Make sure your son starts with tp just to get used to it, and then uses wipes to finish completely. Also, to get my son completely trained I told him he had to wipe himself for 3 weeks and then he'd get a new lego set. Worked like a charm and I was more than happy to get it for him!

HAHA I have that exact issue and my daughter will be 6 in Sept. I had to force her to start wiping herself, and I told her I'd check her if she felt she didn't do a great job. So far, 9 out of 10 times she does really well.

It's so good to know I"m not the only Mom who wanted to make sure all the poop was gone after potty training was implemented!

My child has pooped in the potty a few times. Honestly I went and bought the flushable wipes, which are wet wipes that are flushable. They are by the wet wipes in the baby section for like $2. They work great. I started using them sometimes too lol. They clean more, probably takes a lot to clog (based on how much my daughter puts in the toilet when she was playing with them, gir), and just leaves a clean feeling behind (no pun intended).

Yeah, I'm still trying to get my 5 year old to be independent. He has to be reminded to try himself first before calling a parent.

Yes, she should be doing it on her own. Kindergarten is in a year and no one wipes them, they should be independent. My kids were independent in the bathroom at 3 years old. Give her flushable wet wipes, give her a covered pail if you don't want her clogging the toilet.

I remember my son completely taking over at around 5. I think they DO need someone to "bat clean-up" so to speak!

Ok, first things first: I near spit water out my nose when I read your title. It sounds like some major event like "The Running of the Bulls", "The Event of the Century" and now "The Wiping of the Booty"!

Now that that's out of the way...*hehe*

I say let her wipe herself. Get her some of those Charmin wet whatever they're called. (They wet ones that are flushable.) Just make sure she's taking a bath every night until you're sure she's doing a good job.

i'd have her start wiping herself, with you there at first to make sure she gets it all.

I must be crazy, because I still wipe my daughter. Shes 7yr. I make sure things get clean because she could get it in her girl parts and really be in trouble. I did this with my other daughter too. But with my son, he was 5yr. We have had our share of plumbers to our house because of it. So maybe im too controlling.

5 was the age when our son was on his own. But, just like potty training, these developmental skills and learned skills can vary from child to child and this does not mean there is anything wrong with a child that develops certain skills later than others. My son was 4 1/2 before he ever drew a picture of anything. He never wanted to color or play with markers or even finger paint. I thought he would never have an interest in art. I later learned that he has remarkable artistic intuitions. He was just waiting to be given something as fine as a pencil so he could work with a tool he could express himself with.

No child will ever win a prize for exceptional skills of personal hygiene. I am just using this example to show that we often misunderstand our children's potential if they do not develop a skill by a certain age.

What I found helpful was to teach children the concept of re-wiping until the double or triple check wipe proves the job is done. I also learned that it was important to monitor portions and to teach them to flush if there is already a good amount of paper in the toilet and then flush again when finished if the stool was soft and the job required more paper than usual. We used to have toilets that clogged easily. We learned to buy the super flusher toilets with a larger opening.

Hope you got all the helpful into you need!

My son just turned 4 and he still needs me to check. He wipes first with regular paper, then uses a flushable wet paper, then I check. He usually does okay, but there are enough misses that I still need to check him. I'm happy to hear from the other posts that by 5 he should be able to get himself really clean.

My son will be 4 next week. He has been potty trained for well over a year now. He is ABLE to wipe his own booty. He has to at preschool. But he comes home with skid marks in his underwear. So I've told him to tell me when he's finished and I use the big boy wipes to get it all. Lately, after I use those, I'll get regular toilet paper and put it in his hand and guide his hand back there to show him he actually has to get between his cheeks and not just a light little swipe like he must be doing at school. I hope he gets it by kindergarden. That's my goal. LOL!

.

my son was completely solo at 5 birthday. We did the "finishing touch" before then and encouraged him to do it.
he clogs the toilet almost daily.
i gave up in having him use less cuz he has the door shut now (5 1/2) but have taught him to flush mid poop wiping if necessary.
that seems to work.
sounds like you are right age appropriate : )

Listen, your child will wipe their own booty when they feel they are ready and secure with it. You will not have to wipe their booty in high school. You should feel lucky that you don't have to change endless dipers in a day now, and your child has progressed to the potty. Stop rushing your child !! They will know when they are ready. There is SO much pressure put on a child to do things on Our timetable. Stop, and realize soon enough you will miss the days that your kids relied on you for everything - and soon enough they won't need you for anything but your wallet. Appreciate the fact that your child still needs you and your help. Do not belittle or make your child feel bad at any age for their learning curve. I think it is barbaric to assign how many sheets of t.p. - are you kidding ? That sounds as bad as the husband who won't buy feminine protection for their wife and makes her use a washcloth. Give me a break. You can explain the following - which I have told my kids. Its important to be clean after using the restroom, but also we don't want the toilet to clog - better to flush the toilet 2 times - once when there seems like enough paper already in there, and if needed to clean more and flush again. We also always buy those Cottonelle wet wipes and teach them to use those when they go # 2 which helps as well.

Do not make your child use a certain number of sheets though - if someone told you to do that would you ? I think its nuts. Just have her flush more if clogging is the issue. Stop worrying that 4 is too old as well, many kids are a lot older 5-7 even before they do it completely independently. Let your child dictate these things, soon enough they will throw you out of the bathroom.

Denise P and Monkey2mom.. Batting clean-up, and leaving a clean feeling behind... you made my day, lol