Wet hands...

I've learned not to touch Hyrum with wet hands, or at least warn him and ask if it is okay.

I didn't think anything of using mid-task wet hands to help him tie his cape or give him a hug, or tickle him, or zip his jacket. (Turns out I have wet hands about half the day amidst my routine diaper changing/cleaning/cooking.)

He notices immediately, arches his body away and cringes, "Mom, your hands are wet!"
Sometimes he sees what I am doing and will point and question, "Are your hands wet?"

High Fives are always preceded by a wet-hand check.
"Gimme Five!"
He holds his hand up while asking in an assuming manner, "Is your hand wet?"
"No, it isn't, I just dried it"
"Are you sure?"
"Yep."
"OK, followed by a cautious High Five."

He doesn't mind bathing. It's only after the drying off and dressing that the water phobia kicks in. If he spills water on himself, we need to take some deep breaths, and remember that water will dry. Usually this is followed by an immediate change of clothing.

I have to take a deep breath when after washing his hands he insists on drying them for literally a full minute. He can't reach the towel hanger so I wait for him to finish so I can hang it back up, or let him put it on the counter, or quite often, the floor.

That 's not the only thing.
Recently Hyrum has been covering his nose when he gets close to me. I was afraid he was going to tell me I had stinky breath, but no, "I don't like the smell of your hands." It's the soap.
He can smell it a mile away.
He is polite about it, saying things like, "I need to leave; I don't like the smell of your hands." "Could you please move away from me; I can't eat with that smell by me."

This week Hyrum had an accident in the bathroom, followed by a full bath. I knew it was time to do something about the "soap-smell issue" when he said, "Mom, I like having accidents, because then I don't have to wash my hands." The child would rather wet his pants and bathe then use the bathroom soap! He's also been using his feet for tasks that may get his hands dirty. Goodbye Costco soap re-fill, looks like we're going to have to find something with a more appealing smell.

Where did he learn this? Not from me...I don't have a problem with soap smell.

.....I do have a problem with smelly glass. Sometimes glass stinks, wet glass. I haven't figured it out, but I think it has to do with the rag that wiped the glass table, or maybe the substance that was wiped off (milk, seems to leave a stink behind). Sometimes a good Windex-ing doesn't even clear up the wet-dog-like smell. I check all glass cups for "the smell" before I use them, and sometimes the table stinks so bad I can't sit at it, let alone eat at it. Does anyone else know what I am talking about?

Oh and I don't like being breathed on. I try not to bother Ammon with this one, and try to adjust my sleeping positions according to his, but I'm 8 months pregnant and I just have to lay how I can to get some sleep. He knows that if I need to roll over, so does he. What a kind husband.

Perhaps I could be more accommodating for my son.




8 comments:

The Hardy's said...

I know exactly what you are talking about with the glass smell. It is even more intensified with pregnancy. I also have a thing about being breathed on. That is so funny. Hopefully you can find a soap that is appealing to Hyrum that doesn't cost too much.

Carrie said...

I totally relate to every single thing you talked about!

1. Benson is PSYCHO about being wet. He hated pirates of the caribbean. Scary? Heck no, it's because he got a drop of water on him! He wanted to leave Disneyland a million times just to go change his clothes. And if I touch him with wet hands at home he just quietly goes and changes his clothes. At the end of the day there's like 5 sets of clothes on the floor. haha

2. There is one particular kind of hand soap that I absolutely cannot stand. I'd rather not wash my hands than have to smell it. Boggles my mind that people actually buy it. Hyrum buddy, I get ya.

3. THE GLASS SMELL! What IS that? My parents glasses always always smell like that. I switched to acrylic and problem solved.

4. I can't breathe the same air as other people. If someone wants to get close to say something I'll just hold my breath until I can move away to breath clean air. And yes, we don't face each other when sleeping because I'm crazy.

This was a doozy of a long comment but seriously, I'm passionate about these same things. So funny.

Abby said...

I'm glad to see someone can relate!
Thanks for the comments, they made my day!

colleen said...

I found out about Hyrum's aversion to soap scents when he told me he didn't want to wash his hands because he didn't like the smell of my soap. It was a Dial bar, but at that point he was okay with the soft soap. Funny kid!

julis said...

None of my kids had wet hand aversions, but I'm totally with you on the stinky glass smell. And sharing breath. The sad part is that Dave "loves" my breath. We've been married for 28.5 years, and . . . I still have to work through that one. But it's worth it, because he's so nice to me.

Launi said...

I know where he gets it from: Grandma Bezzant! When I lived with her I found out that she didn't like the smell of my shampoo when I just got out of the shower and she is really sensitive to perfume also. So yeah, the chemical sensitivity comes from Grandma! Ha, ha. :)

The Nelson's said...

TOOOOO funny. If the soap you use is the yellow dial soap, I completely understand where he is coming from. I know Costco also sells a dial soap that is in a bag that smells pretty good. Or at least they did. My mother-in-law has bought it (along with the yellow, makes me cringe just thinking about that smell). And Hyrum, I totally understand with the wet hands. I can't stand it when someone touches me with wet hands. Abby, you're not alone with the stinky glass and breathing either. I don't notice the glass so much though, since I don't have glass on my table. But I hate when a rag smells and you don't notice until you've wiped the table down and you smell it the rest of the day. I can't believe you're already 8 months. Best of luck for the rest of your pregnancy.

melissa said...

i love the things you post about here. i have recently realized that while i don't mind my hands being wet, or other people touching me with wet hands, i really avoid getting them wet in the first place. oh, and i change my towels and dishrags as soon as they smell like anything besides laundry soap. aren't we all funny weirdos? awesome.

i can't believe your little boy will be here so soon! i just scrolled down to remember his name, and i really like it. and i'm impressed that you had a name for him way back then. we're still discussing names like "upjohn" and "rollo" and "toaster." (obviously we're not to the serious name picking part yet...) except we did fill out pedigree charts on sunday to get some ideas.

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