Water Boy

This is just a thought. Maybe he is going through a stage where he is needing some "sensory input", and right now he is motivated with water play. Since children learn from their environment, it is good to encourage this kind of play. However, flooding the bathroom is not a "mommy desired, let alone approved", way of conducting experiments with water! Have you tried to redirect him? For example, first thing in the morning, fill a kiddie pool or storage bin or basin full of water. Then take him out to the water and show him. Tell him, "This is YOUR pool, or tub(or whatever), of water to play in." If you should catch him (he seems to do well being "steathily undetected", but IF you do catch him) on his way to the bathroom, you can remind him, "This is where we go potty. Outside in your pool is where you may play with the water." If his desire and motivation to learn through water play is strong enough to constantly go back to it, giving him the opportunity to meet his sensory need in a more appropriate place just may keep the bathroom dry and give you a little more time to do something other than "mopping up"! Granted, this may mean a little more work for you in having to fill a pool or basin everyday and maybe changing wet clothes a couple times a day, but it takes much less time than mopping and cleaning the bathroom! (I can sympathize!) Also, if he really enjoyed the control of having the ability to turn the water on and off with the faucet, maybe give him the hose to "help" you water the grass or flowers. And so as to not crank up the water bill, set a timer where he can see it, and give him 10-15 (whatever you feel appropriate) minutes to play with the hose. When time is up, he still has the opportunity to play in his little water-hole! I hope this helps! I would be interested to hear if this works for you! Good luck!

Have you talked to your dr. about this. I use to work at a daycare and one child had Autism and he like to play with the faucet and toilets. Something with the water sounds attracted him. Being 3 years old with ADHD (which I have a 12 boy with ADHD, and a 5 year old girl with ADD)you need eyes on all sides of you head. My daughter has a thing for scissors and hair. Sometimes both together if you know what I mean. I will pray for you and your family.

Having someone with a mental Illness and then a love one who adores them have to leave for a while is tough. He might need to see a councelor to cope. I wish you well.

I know this is against all advice and will have people irritated, but ya know....you first need to make sure

1. he is not acting out due to the changes experienced.
2. he has an outlet for acting out if he is frustrated or upset about something.
3. show him how to express his anger, frustration, or sadness. Little kids don't know how to do that and sometimes they don't even know why they are upset.

Then you need to set guidelines and stick to them. When my 3 yr old was at that stage, he stayed with me at all times. If I was cooking supper, then he had to play in the kitchen area or den where I could clearly see and hear him. No exceptions. When he woke up, I was up. I don't hear well, but dh could hear anything so he heard the minute those little feet hit the floor. I trained my son that I would get up with him instantly if he would just come to my room and wake me. So he did. When he got up we could watch some cartoons, eat a yummy bfast of eggs/pancakes/oatmeal, or just hang out. But waking me was a wanted thing cuz I jumped up and was eager to see him again. (I am not a morning person so you know this was a huge thing for me! LOL)

Otherwise a swat on the bottom does wonders to motivate a 3 yr old to do what he is told. At 3 they are not quite to the stage of reasoning. They are beginning to understand it, but can not always grasp and hang onto a clear concept. So a motivation is needed to get them to do what you are desiring. If he can't come wake you, then maybe he needs to do without something he likes for that day--make it a daily thing. If he can't stay out of the bathroom and stay with you, then put a lock up high and be going to the bathroom with him when he needs to go potty. He needs to stay with you and get the routine of what is acceptable. ;-)

Good luck,

I think most sinks have a control lever of sorts that controls the stopper.I figured this out because my son was doing the same thing.I was able to set the setting to hold the stopper up so the water always drains.Check under your sink,you'll be able to easily tell .

I dont know if you consider this locking the door but you can go to walmart and get these little plaastic thing to go over the knob and you can open the door but oyur children cant.they might have something for the facet to i dont know.Look in the baby section there is a ton of child proffing things hope this helps.

This is definately a toddler thing and not really a bad thing. He's having fun and he's learning; if I do this then this will happen. What I did on my bathroom sinks was turn the water flow down. I didn't turn it all the way off but I turned them down so that I wouldn't have the "flood". I also did this with the bathtub so my son and his dog wouldn't drown. By the time he turned the water on I had time to get in there before any disaster could strike.

Sounds like he's just being a toddler and exploring his world. I wouldn't make a big deal out of it. I've gotten where I'll fill the kitchen sink up with water and let him go to town washing dishes. Keeps him entertained and busy!

I agree though, train him to come wake you up in the morning. If my son wakes up before I do he comes in and the game is to try and get mama up. He tries to open my eyes, take the sheets off the bed or tries to push me out of bed.

Hi E.!
I think this may be a three yr old boy "thing". :o)
My son is 3 and a half, too and heads straight for the sink, if I'm not watching. He loves playing in/with water, whether it be the sink, the shower, water guns, water hose; you name it. I caught him trying to fill a balloon with water two days ago and there was more water on the the counter top than in the balloon. Very messy. I am able to control it a little by turning out the lights so the room(s) is/are dark. He can't quite reach the light switch and hasn't tried moving his step stool. I also told him that playing with water and spilling it all over is very dangerous and he could get really hurt and if I'm not around when he gets hurt, I won't be able to help him or kiss his "owie". Surprisingly, instead of a "no" he actually stopped and thought about it. He said, "you won't be able to kiss my owie"? I said "no" and he said "ok, I won't play with the water". His water play hasn't stopped, completely but it did curtail. I just make sure that it's dark in the bathroom so he can't see well enough.
Good Luck!
Take Care!
D.

I have a friend who has a toddler that is still in a crib, but I bet you could adapt this to your situation somehow. She has a string with a bell on it, attached to the child's doorknob in his bedroom. When he wakes up, he pulls the string to open the door, which in turn rings the bell. This lets everybody know that he is up. This one is too little to get out of the crib by himself, yet, but maybe it will give you enough of a heads up to know that your son is up. It is important that you figure this out, because he could injure himself. Other than that, you may have to move him into your room so that you can watch him better at night. I know that's not always comfortable, but my kids had to stay in my room when they were little for health reasons and otherwise, and it really wasn't all that bad.