Cleaning Up the Potty Mouth

I’ve been diligent in trying to be the best mom I can be, even before my baby arrives. I’ve kept active by trying new prenatal workout DVDs, walking, gardening, and helping the hubby with a billion-and-one home improvement projects. I’ve been meditating regularly, giving myself a much-needed mental break from the stress of our messy house, which is always in a state of flux with one of said billion-and-one home improvement projects. I’ve been making sleep a priority, getting a solid night of sleep every night—or as “solid” as five pee breaks and jolting heartburn will allow. I’ve cleaned up my diet, eliminating all of those pregnancy no-nos, such as lunch meat, soft cheeses (slow tear, fast tear) and obscene amounts of caffeine.

One little project I’ve yet to work on, however, is eliminating the potty mouth.

Now, I don’t curse a ton. But I do find it quite satisfying to let an F-bomb fly when I find out the car has broken down. And I do let an Sh-grenade explode when I ram my shin into an incredibly hard, solid object in the dark. And while my husband and I keep talking about the fact that we need to clean up our language, we’ve yet to instill the no-cussing rule in our home.

The video below is what got me thinking about this topic. It cracks me up because the mom goes from cutesy “teachable moments” to ” road-raging potty mouth” in less than 60 seconds.

I know that we’ve still got time. After all, the baby won’t be here until September, and even then it’ll be awhile before the baby repeats what we’re saying. BUT…old habits are hard to break. And little ones start the “repeating things and embarrassing the parents in public” routine surprisingly quickly. So we definitely need to increase our awareness at the very least. I’ll already be dealing with potty training; the last thing I need to deal with is eliminating potty mouths!

How did you kick cussing to the curb? Any embarrassing toddler-repeat moments to report? —Erin

Can’t see the video? See this “teachable moment” here.