A naked toddler, a bag of flour, and a jar of peanut butter?

by Tina
(Minnesota)

The week before my cute boy turned three years old, we had a minor problem.




It was a beautiful June day and I was watching my cousins little ones who where about the same age as my two...two, three, and four years of age. We also had a new puppy. We lived right in the middle of town, a block from the local police station, and right next door to a police officer. Our neighborhood was a nice, quiet type. Predominantly older senior citizen type.

My son, felt the need to streak through our yard, and adjoining neighbor yards whenever he got the chance. It was embarrassing. My husband had even stooped to putting duct tape around his diaper so that my son wouldn't be able to so quickly unfasten the tabs and strip himself before we could get across the yard to him.

So on this wonderful June day, my son, lets just call him Axel, stripped naked, opened the gate of our chain link fence, let the puppy out, and proceeded to run around the next door neighbors house...in the buff. I retrieved my son, put him inside the back door, calmly stated "you know you can't run around with out any clothing on, stay here while I get the puppy!" and turned to retrieve the other three children and my dog. The other three children stayed right behind me the entire time ( I think they seemed more in shock at this behavior than I did) and luckily an older neighbor child had caught my puppy and brought him back to us. However, during this short time span of maybe 5 minutes, but I am sure it was more like 120 seconds, my son managed to lock the door. I knocked, no answer. I knocked again, and heard in the sweetest little sing-song voice a human ever uttered, "who is it?" to which I replied, "Its mommy let me in". The answer I received was (in that same sweet sing song voice) "No-oh". I tried everything over the next 5-10 minutes...daddy's home, I have to go potty, do you need me to get you a snack, open up this door right now or your in big trouble. To my avail, nothing worked.

I finally had to knock on the next door neighbors house, ask to borrow some tools as I


needed to break in my house. He very willingly offered to do it for me. He climbed in my narrow, high, bathroom window, went straight to the back door and said "I found Axel" I said, well is he alright? And he just looked and pointed around the corner of the kitchen. I, a little afraid, walked forward and also peered around the corner into the kitchen. To which I saw my son, stark naked, standing on the kitchen counter top, he had proceeded to finger paint himself, the cupboard doors, and even the soffits and ceiling, with peanut butter and flour. HAVE YOU EVER BEEN SO MAD THAT YOU COULD NOT YELL?

Almost nothing could come out. I must have been in shock. I lifted his little gooey body off the counter and walked him to the bathroom and gave him a shower. He said "oh mama, I don't like showers" to which I overly calmly replied, "well then, you shouldn't put P.B. & flour in your hair should you?" In case you have never mixed these two ingredients, you should know, the combination makes a wonderful paste that does not come out of hair very easily.

He had been a calm, happy, exceptional baby. Sure he moved a lot, snuggled a lot,and stripped every chance he could, but he was happy and well behaved. The week before he turned three everything changed. With the start of this one incident...our whole lives change. We didn't know it for four more years, our son is SPD - sensory seeking. He was always getting into things at a time when other children where learning what to stay out of. Now at 7, he is angry, very angry all the time. I brought him in to be evaluated, and the medical dr. thinks it is ADHD & ODD, the counselor recommended a sensory eval. She was right. He maybe has the other issues, but, as I learn and read more and more about SPD, I think he does not. I think he has sensory issues...that may be all of it. I am so thankful for finding this site, I knew nothing. I also found out that my overly sensitive daughter has SPD. They are completely opposite of course. But it all started with a naked toddler, a bag of flour, and a jar of peanut butter!

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Feb 15, 2011
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I think we have the same kid ?!?
by: Belleyes

I love this story. (because it wasn't me of course). Thank you for sharing. I feel so relieved that someone else goes through the strange mishaps I do. I had a similar incident except mine was lipstick and baby powder (the economy size) and I was locked out of my bedroom (much easier to break into). The only thing my son said was a very proud "wook mom I all keen". I too was speechless (and it takes a lot to make me silent).
This made my day ----THANKS

Oct 09, 2010
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lol
by: Anonymous

i love this story for the hilarity of it but more so because of your approach to your son's behavior than anything else. just from this post i can tell you are an extraordinary woman and your son and daughter will be just fine! i often feel guilty for the way i reacted to my daughter's intolerance to clothing before i knew what was going on inside of my little one....time-outs and yelling do nothing but make it worse....but you seem to already know that!!!!

amazing job and good luck with therapies and future adventures with food and nakedness!!!!!!

i will remember this story everytime i deal with one of my own hilarities with my daughter and not wearing clothing!!!!

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