Pros and Cons

Speaking of EC, our good friend Heather (same first and middle names (Lynn), same color hair, same interests...spooky.) asked me the other day if I'd do EC with our next child.
It took me longer than I wanted to answer.
I mean, when you do the super-crunchy alternative to something, you'd hope it would be such a resounding success that you'd say, "Absolutely! I've clearly proven that our way is superior to the prevailing wisdom! Other people are idiots! Suck on that!"
And sometimes, I do think that.
But the problem with delusions of grandeur is that they come with a hefty kick in the pants on days things are not going so well. That's when I admire that nice green lawn there on the other side of the fence.
Like when I've had to take Lucy to the bathroom for the third time (I'm SURE she's got to pee) and she cries, arches her back, and generally hates life. And doesn't pee.
Or when I realized that by teaching our daughter to not like crapping her pants, it means that sometimes when she has to crap her pants (in her car seat, say, or when I can't get to a bathroom) she fusses (more?) than if we'd just taught her not to care.
Or when I realize that holding a twelve pound baby over a sink for the thirtieth time gets awfully tiring.
Or when I realize that she's developed a clear preference for sinks with nice mirrors over them. Only it's not really feasible for her pee in sinks when we're outside of the house. (Mostly. Confession: Today at the chiropractor, I used some Lysol wipes. I might buy some and put them in my diaper bag).
Or when we're watching the Super-sized episode of The Office and she has to pee right when Jim and Pam are having their conversation in the parking lot. (remember, she gets upset when she wets herself. Lucy. Not Pam.).
Or I ask Dyami to take her to the bathroom for the fifth time because I can't stand doing it anymore, and he's tired from work and can't stand doing it anymore either.

The problem with EC is it's yet another way we're letting Lucy call the shots. We take her to the bathroom when it's convenient for her, not when it's necessarily convenient for us. In the middle of dinner. Or a good conversation. Or when we'd rather be sleeping (luckily, she sleeps really well at night, so this hasn't been as big of a problem).
When I'm holding her over the sink, she is in kind of a sitting position, my hands under her thighs. She raises her fists, and looks like a very cute Roman Emporor, sans laurel leaves (or was that the Greek athletes? I forget).
Point being: she is a tiny omnipotent (benevolent?) dictator. We are her subjects.
Now don't get me wrong--I don't think she's trying to be a dictator. It's more that her tiny bladder is a dictator, not her. She is sweet and very good natured, and does her best under the circumstances.
But it is frustrating to be on a baby's timetable. Especially when eating and sleeping are also on her timetable. Sleeping (thank you sweet Jesus) has not been too much of a struggle. But
eating is constant. She wants to eat when I want to eat. When I want to go out. When I want to vaccuum or take a bath. When I want...
Boy, nobody told us how inconvenient babies were.
That is a lie.
But getting back to EC, sometimes I look longingly at conventionally-diapered babies (or even cloth diapered ones) that look blissfully unaware of how their digestive tracts work. And parents who have no idea when their children pee. No idea! How freeing!

All that said, I think we made the right choice for us. First off, you have no idea how cute Lucy looks as Caesar. Or when she's tap-dancing over the sink before she pees (her little black Trumpette socks really help here). Secondly, we hardly ever have to sponge anything off of her bum. Also: no diaper rash. Much less laundry. We can be smug about being good to the environment (major green points!).
And really, the awareness I was just complaining about is also a plus. I can help my child feel better in a very concrete, simple way. I mean, who really likes wetting themself? Or needing to go and not being able to? We're avoiding the middleman, diapers, in favor for the more natural, healthy route.
Now that I've convinced you all, would anyone like to hold Lucy over the sink?