summer camp guide - Orlando Family Magazine

The ParentBlogHow to Handle a Little Flusher’s CuriosityThe Do’s and Don’ts in a Potty PredicamentThe sound of a sudden flush gurglesoverhead. “Did you hear that?” Ilook at my husband. He looks at me.Another flush follows a few seconds later.Water begins dripping down the wall. Markand I race each other up the stairs. I get therefirst and throw open the bathroom door.Our son Ben squeals in delight. He flushesthe toilet again. Water gushes over the rimand down the bowl, dripping through theseam between the toilet and the floor—downinto my kitchen cupboard.I grab my wayward child and scoot himand his wet fingers over to the sink. Markgrabs the plunger and pushes and pulls at theclog. The water sinks below rim-level, butit seems the clog is too far down to plungeloose. That’s okay; I’ll just flush the clog away.I flush, and then wait while the tinkling waterfills up the tank. I flush, again, and wait.Ben sticks his nose close to the toilet rim,squealing again, as he watches the water swirlslowly down the drain.I pour a bottle of drain cleaner into thetoilet. Each glug-glug fills the air with a sharp,chemical stench. It seems to work; I get onegood flush. I flush again for good measureand the water swirls down the drain in slowmotion. OK, now it’s time for the “just-incase”heavy-duty drain cleaner. The bottlesays to wait a few hours and then flush withwarm water. So, I wait, keeping a watchfuleye to ensure my bathroom-restriction orderis obeyed. Two hours later, there’s a ratherbig popping sound, followed by more waterdown my kitchen cupboards, this time asmelly dribble.Wait! That’s not what I expected! I don’trace up to the bathroom. For some reason, Itip-toe, not sure what I’m going to find, butsure that I don’t want to find it. I slowly openthe bathroom door and take a peek: Well,the room is still there. That’s good. Hey, thetoilet’s still there! That’s good, too. But, thenI see it—a hairline fracture along two sides ofthe bowl. Wow! That drain chemical must bemore powerful than I thought.The cracks are above the water line. So,maybe it’s okay, right? I flush. I hold mybreath. The water slowly drains from thebowl. Oh, come on! How can that not beenough to clear a simple clog? It broke thetoilet!My husband and I finally admit theproblem is beyond our plumbing expertise.Some friends come over to do the manlything. A quick look reveals we need a newtoilet. Getting the new toilet in place, as itturns out, is easier than figuring out whatplugged up the old one. Whatever is in therewon’t go down, even with a snake pushing itfrom the top. The guys flip the old toilet overand push the clog out the top. And there itis…a simple plastic milk cap from a certainfast food joint my son loves. Too big to fitinto the pipe and too awkward to withdrawwith the plunger, it’s absolutely perfect fortrapping two caustic drain cleaners, makingthe toilet erupt!So, for all you do-it-yourselfers who, likeus, don’t really know what you’re doing, hereare a few tips:• Do NOT put drain cleaner into a toilet.The bottle says “not for toilets” for areason.• Do try plunging up anything that’s stuck.Better to pull it up rather than push itfurther down.• In case you ignore the bottle that saysdon’t put drain cleaner in a toilet, doNOT mix multiple kinds of drain cleanerin the same clogged toilet!• Do get a spare donut...that’s a wax ringthat fits the toilet to the pipe to preventleaks. Very important!• Do turn off the water to the toilet anddrain the toilet.• Do unhook the toilet properly, hopefullybefore it cracks.• Do turn the toilet over to push out theoffending clog.• Do use the new wax donut to seal thepipes and then replace the toilet.• Be happy you didn’t have to buy a newtoilet because you learned from ourmistakes!The Contest Winners’Package Includes:Classic ManicureNail soak, cuticle touch up, nailreshape and buff, hydration,and polish applicationBlow Dry or Updo /Boy’s hair cutSkin RefresherRelaxing Swedish Massagefull body massage uses Europeantechniques to help soothe and relaxtired muscles to promote a sense ofdeep relaxation and well-being.Contest Rules: Open to kids ages 6 to 17 years of ageBoys and girls welcome to enter, spa services areunisex Entry must be 100 words or less Contest entriesmust be received by April 15. Include name, address,phone number and email address Email entry tocontest@orlandofamilymagazine.com Winner to beselected and notified by May 2 Winning entry and photo ofMom and child will appear in the Orlando Family May issueand on Orlando Family website. Entries judged by OrlandoFamily and Serenity Spa staff.Sponsored by: Serenity Spa by Westgatewww.OrlandoFamilyMagazine.com 29