restroom etiquette

Carrie Smith explores a situation that we all experience at some point. When the time is right, our children will use public restrooms by themselves. It's a right of passage, and perhaps a little scary. Maybe using the potty like a big girl is an exciting adventure, but it can definitely fill any parent with dread.

In her blog Way Out Parenting, Carrie Smith [mother of twins Cammie and Matthew] looks at a necessity that can strike anxiety in any caregiver.

Gay fathers with a daughter and lesbians with a son face these questions sooner than heterosexual co-parents. Because you don’t represent both sexes, at some point you must allow your child to venture into a world where you have no access. What is it like in there? Will your child be safe? How can you prepare him or her? Below are questions you may have and some answers to put you at ease.