Name: B. Reynolds email: [email protected] Ages: 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17 GRANDMA'S WAY It was 1964 and I was four and a half years old. I was a persistent nightly bedwetter and wet during the day at least a couple of times a week. I don't know at what age I was potty trained or if I ever was, mom may have just decided ,"enough with the diapers." My mom's way of dealing with my wetting was to put a plastic cover on the mattress and wash the bedding every morning. I had been to the doctors and got checked out but they found nothing physically wrong and told my parents to just wait it out. My mom came down with yellow jaundice and had to go to the hospital for a couple of weeks. My dad had to work during the day and visit mom in the evenings. I had no brothers or sisters and my parents decided to have me go to my grandparents' house till mom got back home. That was fine with me as I always liked going over there to visit. When my dad took me over there grandma said she had a room all for me and her and gramps helped my dad bring in some of my toys and clothing from the car. After dinner I laid on the carpet and watched TV. Grandma got up after a while and left the room. When she returned she had something in her hands but I didn't pay any attention to what it was. A couple of minutes later grandma said, "come over here and get up on the couch so I can put your diaper on you." I looked around at her, not believing what I heard and she had a diaper laid out on the cushions in front of her. "I don't wear diapers," I told her. "I know," she said, "but grandma wants you to wear one tonight so come over here and let's get it on you, then you can watch TV a little while longer." I was shocked that she wanted to diaper me, but at the same time I was kind of intrigued and excited at the idea of wearing one. I got up and went over to the couch to get a better look. The diaper was folded and all ready to go and looked very thick and she had a pair of white baby pants with some powder and pins on the coffee table. Seeing it there and knowing it was for me got me feeling all tingly but I turned chicken about then and told her I didn't want to wear it. "I'll make you a bet," she said, "when you see how soft and warm and fluffy it is and then you get the baby pants on and see how good they make you feel, you're going to love it. And tomorrow morning when you wake up with your bed all nice and dry you'll be glad you had it on." "Bet I don't," I said. "Well, there's one sure way to find out." She unfastened my pants and pulled them down to my ankles with my underwear. I stepped out of them and she pulled my shirt off. She lifted me under my arms and laid me on the diaper. She powdered me very well and then picked up the diaper pins and put them in her mouth. Pulling the diaper up over the front of me she pinned both sides closed. I know I must have been beet red by then and glanced over at gramps and he was ignoring the whole thing and kept watching TV. The diaper was very thick and forced my legs apart. She was more than right, it felt absolutely wonderful. She put the baby pants on me next and checked to make sure they covered all of the diaper. I was in heaven. I just lay there for a moment with a slight grin on my face. "OK, all done," she said and reached down and picked up my clothes and said, "go put these in your room and then you can watch TV for a little while longer." I got up off the couch and took hold of the clothes and started walking to my room. The thickness of the diaper made me waddle and it took some getting used to. In the hall was a full length mirror and I stopped and looked at myself for a few seconds and couldn't believe how neat the diaper looked with the baby pants all puffed out over it. I came back in and lay down on the carpet again but, I was so blown away by the diaper I couldn't pay any attention to the TV. Finally, grandma said, "give gramps a kiss and let's get you to bed." I went over to gramps and told him goodnight and he gave me a kiss on the cheek and said sleep tight. He seemed as though he could care less about my diaper and grandma acted as if it was perfectly normal for me to be wearing it so I really didn't feel embarrassed like I thought I would. Instead, I felt strangely calm and peaceful as if suddenly nothing could bother me. I also felt like I was getting away with something sneaky. We went to my bedroom as I sneaked another quick look in the mirror and grandma put me in the bed and said, "I don't want you taking that diaper off tonight, you hear me?" "I won't, I promise," I replied. That was the most truthful thing I had ever said. She gave me a kiss on the forehead and turned out the light as she left. I laid there trying to get a grasp on all of it and suddenly it was morning. Grandma came in and sat on the edge of the bed and said, "hey sleepy head, you awake?" "Ya," I said. "Well, did you sleep OK?" I hadn't slept that good in my life I don't think. I shook my head yes. "See, didn't I tell you?" "Ya," I said. "Why don't you turn over and I'll get you changed then fix all of us a good breakfast." I turned onto my back and she pulled the covers down and went to the dresser. I took a quick look at the diaper to make sure it wasn't just a dream and it looked as good as last night. She came back with a pair of pants to put on me. They were like a thick pair of training pants with a plastic outer cover on them. I immediately didn't like them and was disappointed that I had to get the diaper off. "We'll let you wear these during the day." "Grandma, I don't want to wear those," I told her. "Why, what's wrong with these?" she asked. "I don't know, I just don't like them," I said. "How do you know? You haven't even tried them on yet." "I don't care, I don't want to try them." "Well, it's either these or diapers." "I don't care, I don't want those." "OK we'll go with diapers, but if you change your mind later you can try the trainers." She took the pants back and came back with the diaper, powder and baby pants. She unfolded the diaper and there was three of them put together. She took one diaper out then refolded it and put it on me with the baby pants. It was thinner than the one I had been wearing and it was easier to walk in it, but it still felt great. We went down the hall with me sneaking a peak again and I watched TV laying on the couch until breakfast was ready. Gramps was in the kitchen talking on the phone the whole time. "Come eat," came the call and I went into the kitchen and gramps was seated at the table and said, "good morning, tiger." I said, "good morning" back and got into the chair. Same as last night, gramps could care less that I was diapered. After breakfast grandma put a pair of shorts and a T shirt on me and I spent the day in them. It was about midday when I felt the need to go pee. I didn't feel right about deliberately wetting the diaper, but I didn't want to ask to have it taken off to go, figuring I might not get it back on. About that time we had lunch and grandma told me to take a nap. I lay in bed and let go, knowing grandma would think I did it when I was asleep. When I woke up she asked if I was wet and if I wanted to wear the trainers. I admitted to being wet but said no to the pants. "Well, we're going to the hospital to see your mom in a little bit, you want to wear a diaper there?" Man, was I in a fix. If I said no that would probably be the end of the daytime diapers and if I said yes I would have to go out in public with it on, and when mom saw it she was probably going to be mad at me. I said no to the pants. We got to the hospital and I knew the shorts wouldn't hide the fact that I was wearing a diaper. Nobody seemed to pay much attention to me except for an occasional grin from another kid now and then. I didn't have to worry about mom getting mad. She was so sick I don't think she even knew we were there. We only stayed in the room for a few minutes and went back out in the hall. There was a waiting area with some chairs across from the nurses' station and gramps told me to sit there while he and grandma talked to the doctors. The diaper bulge under my shorts couldn't be missed and I knew the baby pants would be visible out the bottom of the leg openings when I sat down. Several kids and their parents sitting across from me took notice and a girl about my age kept looking at me and was smiling me the whole time. Gramps came back and got me and as we were leaving I glanced back at her and she was still smiling and she waved goodbye, I waved back. Grandma tried several times over the next few days to get me to try the trainers but I kept saying no, so she finally gave up. The first evening dad came over I was laying on the carpet with just the diaper and baby pants on watching TV and dad gave me a funny look but didn't say anything about it. I heard him ask grandma in the kitchen why I was diapered and she told him it was better than getting everything wet, and he was to small to remember that she put diapers on him until he was almost four. I don't think dad wanted to argue with his mom, so he dropped it. Mom came home after about two weeks and I went home, too. Grandma came over early every morning to help out as mom was in bed most of the time and still very weak. I was still diapered every night by grandma, but went to regular underwear during the day. A few nights after mom came home she was up and feeling better and when it was bed time she put a diaper on with out saying a word about it. I guess grandma convinced her it would be better for both of us. If mom was tired and needed a rest she would put me down for a nap in a diaper. The doctors told my folks to wait it out and were still waiting. I still wear cloth diapers every night.