iPantyliner

After school yesterday, Son #2 marched into my bedroom and said, "Mom, what's this?" Of course he had a pantyliner in his hand. Thank God it was unused. (see previous post, iTampon, to understand my rush of relief).

"It's a pantyliner."

"That's what I thought," he said, holding it up to his crotch in various positions, trying to imagine how one might use this contraption of feminine mystery. "How do you use it?" I could hear three boys giggling from his room across the hall.

I pulled a pair of underwear out of my drawer and demonstrated the genius of adhesive protection. "You wear it on light days, either at the very beginning or the very end of your period. Then you pull it off, roll it up in some toilet paper like this, and throw it away." (I remembered the parenting instruction to only give the information they ask for, so I did not mention other times of the month when we might want that "clean, fresh feeling." I can be such a talker that I am pleased every time I manage restraint).

"Gross."

"Where did you get it? You didn't pick up garbage off the side of the road again did you?"

"No, I found it in my room, in a bag. What are these doing in my room?" A good question. He brought me the bag and sure enough, here was a sandwich bag full of individually wrapped pads and several pantyliners that he found on his bookshelf.

Then we realized from where they came. We had a house guest who stayed in his room a couple of months ago and she must have forgotten them. Unfortunately she was related to one of the three boys sitting on his bed, snickering at this unusual find. We thought a little harder. My sisters and mom had also visited in the fall for a girl's weekend, and they could have left them behind, which we decided was a more likely explanation in order to spare a friend embarrassment.

Son #2 walked into his room and like an expert in all things gynecological, explained how the pantyliner worked and that they were used for light days. I popped my head in and enlightened them about our "girl's weekend" and how someone must have left them behind. For now, all things are right in the pubescent boys world.