Parents: the other day I caught my 3 year old exploring himself. I told him if he was going to do that he needed to go to the bathroom. My husband got really upset with me. What should I have done?

Just what you did. Children will do that, it's your job to teach them where it isn't acceptable. In the living room is certainly not acceptable.

I think that was an excellent thing to do. He will realize that there are things that are ok to do, in private.

You did the right thing, I did the same, except I said their room and shut the door. It is natural.

thats natural for kids to start doing that at that age. your husband probably just got upset because he might have felt you were being to hard on your son after all he is only 3 and that was only his first time doing that he doesnt know any better.

My 3 and 5 year old boys both think their genitals are funny. I have never caught them causing arousal, just goofing around-like squishing themselves up inside or pulling way harder than looks comfortable. lol It's just a part of their body that is odd to them at this point. They want to check it out and are completely innocent in their investigation at this point. I usually just remind them that that's their private area and they shouldn't let everyone see it.

Let him explore. Its perfectly natural. Both your points of view are valid, but in time your son will work out whats acceptable. Don't worry, I've got three boys and they've all grown out public exploration.

My nephew is 3, and he started playing with himself a few months before his birthday. My sister would tell him that it is ok, but needed to be done in prive. (she was also trying to teach him that she needs privacy in the bathroom) Then he thought it was a game, and would pull it out and play with it, and would catch her attention, to be sure that she saw him doing it. But she just stressed that it was something to be done in private. Now he will grab himself over his clothes, and she just asks him if he needs to go pee. Ask him enough times, and he stops. My sister in law is rude about it and practically yells at him to stop grabbing himself, which I think could be harmful to him, but we try to sooth it over with him when she does that. She has a little boy, and will some day do the same, so I hope she is ready for it... My son is 2, and has started to discover his boy parts, but it is only natural, but I'm not saying anything to him yet... let kids be kids....

I think you did just fine. You let him know it was ok, but a private matter. I don't think your husband has any reason to be upset.

You did exactly what you should have done. While 'exploring' is natural, it is also personal. It's really never to early to teach him modesty. No one wants to see that. I tell my son to take it to his room.

He is 3. He is going to explore him body. I mean, it is no different than when he was a baby and discovered his toes. You did not over react and you let him know that that is a private part of his body, and that the bathroom is the appropriate place to check it out. I think you did exactly the right thing. If you had told him that it was bad or innappropriate he would become more fascinated with it and end up exploring more to try and figure out why it was bad. I doubt at this point that it was anything sexual. Your method teaches him that it is okay, but private. Your husband need to lighten up and understand that this is just a natural part of childhood, and not make the child paranoid about his body. You want your little boy to be able to talk to you about any problems he has, not be afraid because it might upset you if it involves that area of his body. I think you did exactly the right thing.

I would probably try not to make a deal of it but let infarct prob just tell them that its rude. the less fuss the better. if they know that its not appropriate behaviour when you or any one else is about then they will be more carefully next time. Although nesesarily speaking its not wrong and we don't want them to think that either really!!

I think very possibly your husband became alarmed because he thought that you may have been scolding the little one. Little boys usually discover themselves relatively early. This is a type of discovery, like the many forms of discovery he is going through. When my boys were young, if I were to walk in their room and see them playing with themselves, I rarely said anything. When I saw them playing with themselves in front of the TV, on the front porch etc. I would typically say something like this. We always have called anything in their pants "Privates" "Please don't scratch your privates in ------------, "That's why we call them private, if you need to scratch them or adjust them, please go in your room so you can do it in private" I refrained from saying Playing with your privates, even if that was the case. I wouldn't recommend directing him to the bathroom, that may cause issues later. You don't need your teenager monopolizing the bathroom because he feels the need to masturbate. I feel like it is important not to make them feel like they are doing something dirty, or that their privates are dirty. What he is doing is completely normal and the less of a big deal you make out of it the better. Best of Luck to you & God Bless You and Yours

It's a natural thing. If it was the first time he did it, I wouldn't have said anything. If it happened again, I would let the father talk to him about it.

Males are somewhat naturally uncomfortable with the subject of masturbation because it's kind of taboo. It's why we make fun of people for masturbating, even though we all are guilty of it ourselves.

I tell my son the same thing only I tell him to do it in his bedroom as we only have one bathroom. My husband was confused at this at first but now he understands that everyone does it at some point and right now its not for sexual pleasure but seeing whats going on. And yes he typically just squishes it, pulls it, pushes it in. One day he was sitting on his floor with his undies off I asked him what he was doing and he said "oh just playing with my balls, but I'm in my room". I said ok and went on with what i was doing.

I have a 3yr old too and he touches himself. he doesn't know what he is doing yet and i believe that he just wants to know what his "bird" is among his other body parts. like trying to know yourself before others. you just have to let him be. he is very very very young. it's gonna be odd enough to see your 24 yr old playing with himself oblivious to his parents and friends. so this is natural. maybe even kids out of modern civilizations does this too...

i think this is normal.........i have been jerking off since i was 5......your husband got upset with your son jerking off????? i am thinking that he has never jerked off in his life???? hahah....you did the right thing......masturbation should always be done in private...i would not worry about all of this.....take care....Brian......

Has anyone ever stopped to think that maybe the kid simply got an itch? -- Yeah, guys can get a simple, innocuous itch there, just like people sometimes do on their noses! You feel like you just must scratch or it'll drive you crazy. Now, if it were a little girl's breast or a little kid's butt, a woman might feel like it is nothing much, right? The man might feel it was hostile, & the wife might feel it was very inappropriate. The kid, meanwhile, learns that his weenie is a nasty, sex-thing -- exactly what you didn't really want to teach him, huh? Yeah, discretion is good, but understanding & being kind is cool, too. Maybe all can go naked together, within wise boundaries, privately at times, to help the boy to not get the idea that naked = nasty/sex.

i think that you should of just ignored it. any child is going to be amazed at something new theyve found. doing that may of made him think that he was doing wrong, which it isnt. he was doing something which is natural. unless of course he was doing it all the time! the last thing you would want to do is make him think that it is wrong!