Mum's baffling toilet act in playground

"This mum’s bizarre actions left me, and many other parents, very uncomfortable."

It seems of late, I have been exposed to more peeing in public than I care to admit.

Everywhere I turn, there are small children standing against bathroom block walls, or men whipping it out on the side of the road, relieving themselves.

But one recent incident really left me baffled.

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The Wild West that is a kids’ playground

Every day, after a quick coffee stop with my toddler, I walk to my local park. As I approach the playground, I often wonder what chaos will ensue that day.

We’ve had kids throwing up and then continuing to ride their scooters over the vomit.

I’ve seen dads plonk their kids in the playground and walk away, I guess expecting the other parents to keep an eye on them?

However, I hadn’t expected a mother to pull out a potty in the playground and encourage her four-year-old daughter to use it.

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“Do you need to go potty?

Let me set the scene…

So I’m climbing up the stairs to the slide (for the 87th time) with my daughter, and I hear a mum ask her four-year-old if she needs to go potty.

She yelled “NO” in her direction, but the mum walked over and grabbed her and said, “Well, let’s just try in case.”

She then proceeded to grab a full-sized potty out of her pram, and her daughter lifted her dress, pulled down her underwear, and sat on the potty.

In the playground…

Next to all of us.

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My daughter playing on the slide while the little girl was using the potty.

Don’t come at me

Now, before you all hop in the comments and tell me, “If a kid needs to go, they need to go”, or “Don’t shame the parent”, or whatever other shade you want to throw my way, let me finish.

The playground is in a square surrounded by a public toilet, which is 10 metres from the entrance of the playground fence.

There is a public library (which was open) 100m away and several cafes, all so close you can hear the diners’ conversations from the playground bench.

RELATED: Aussie mum's 'revolting' toilet training act shocks parents

In the circle is the public toilet and the arrow is the entrance to the playground. Source: Foursquare and edited on Canva

“We’ll try again soon”

The little girl also kept turning to look at her mum and said, “Mummy, everyone is watching me.”

Everyone, being my toddler and several other small children, bewildered by what was before them. 

After several minutes, the little girl then informed her mum, “I don’t have to poop,” and stood up and walked away.

The mum told her daughter they could try again later and picked up the potty and put it back under the pram.

I have so many questions… 

What would the mum have done if her daughter did, in fact, have to use the potty?

Would she have thrown the waste in the garden surrounding the playground?

Her daughter was also clearly bothered by the fact the other kids in the playground were looking at her.

If her daughter wasn’t telling her mum she was busting and was going to wet her pants, why didn’t she walk her to one of the eight available toilets within a 100-metre radius? It’s not like she didn’t have time.

Other parents weigh in

I decided to ask other parents in the Kidspot community if they agreed that pulling out a potty in a playground was totally crazy in this situation.

Mum of three, Sara said, “You've got to give it to her for thinking outside the box, but a potty in a playground? Seems a bit much.”

Dad of two, Jack added, “That's a bit out there, even for me, especially given there are bathrooms like 10 steps away.”

Mum-to-be Michelle joked, “I really don’t get why some people think it’s normal to pee and poop in front of people- kids or adults? Am I missing something here?!”

However, the mum of two, Kendal, was a little more sympathetic for the mum: “Kids can be notoriously bad about telling you they need to go until it's practically an emergency, so I can get she was trying to avoid the mad dash.”

Bathroom etiquette

Since this incident, and I guess as a result of reading about the many strange people in the community, I can’t help but think this mum could have made her daughter’s potty time a little more discreet.

I also personally think (again, don’t come at me) that it’s important to instill a sense of ‘time and place’ in your kids, and when it’s time to use a toilet, you do so in the right place.

This article was initially published in April 2024 and was updated in September 2024. 

Originally published as Mum's baffling toilet act in playground