…this is not written in any ‘how to’ book that I know of…. No one has ever told me not to do it. And so, last night, when I was giving Livvy, our (almost) 20-month-old, a bath, the thought hit me that she might like it if I dunked my head in the bathtub. So I did. She giggled. I did it again. I blew bubbles under water. She howled. It was fun. Dad was cool. She dumped water over my head. I dunked some more. It was wonderful. Mom came in to check on the noise and smiled heartily. I was a good dad.

Fast forward 10 minutes when I was surveying the emptying bathtub and removing the toys. The duck went back into its corner. The little boat went into a basket with a couple of waterproof books. All that was left were…some floating brown things that looked a lot like…poop.

I yelled to Kim who was now getting Livvy ready for sleep, “Kim! She pooped!!! In the tub!! My head was in the tub! I got lots of water up my nose! Ahhh!” Behind her Livvy laughed heartily.

Moral: don’t stick your head into a toddler’s bathtub.