Mom Puzzled After Smelling Poop in Her Home. Then She Finds Her Son Asleep — with Something in His Hands (Exclusive)

Mar. 15, 2025

Gio Scarfino holding poop in his hand.Photo:Jordan Scarfino

Gio Scarfino

Jordan Scarfino

Jordan Scarfinowas in her living room when she smelled something foul in her house. At first, she thought her 2-year-old son, Gio, had gone to the bathroom in his diaper. But after going upstairs and discovering her son sleeping on the floor without a diaper on, she started to panic.

The mom continued to search for the source of the smell, spending 10 minutes roaming the halls and staircase for any signs, but couldn’t find anything. Just as she was about to give up, she noticed poop in her son’s hands.

“What was going through my mind when I saw him holding the poop? ‘Do I laugh or cry? Why does he love his poop so much? What am I doing wrong?’ ” the mom, 28, tells PEOPLE exclusively.

“I FaceTimed my mom and said, ‘UM MOM?! LOOK WHAT DO I DO??’ ” Scarfino adds. “She was laughing so hard and said, ‘Oh my gosh, you have to take a video immediately.’ So I hung up, recorded the video … my mom said it was too funny not to document!”

“He’s been potty training since he was 1,” Scarfino says. “He wears diapers overnight, and we try undies during the day. He still sometimes throws fits when it’s time to go on the potty. I think it’s an attachment thing, but I’m not sure!”

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After cleaning up the mess, the mom laid her son back in bed and went to get a diaper. When she returned, she noticed Gio sitting up in his bed, picking something up. While there turned out to be nothing in his hands, after thinking he still had the poop, Gio fell back asleep.

“Not the emotional support turd,” one user wrote.

“He took matters into his own hands,” someone else commented.

Another person said, “As a mom of 5 boys, I thought I’ve seen it all. Apparently not 🤣.”

From her video, Scarfino hopes people can find the humor in this and that other moms can relate to the story.

“When I was 2, my mom had to deal with me painting with poopy diapers every day,” she says. “She eventually had to put my crib in the middle of the room so I’d stop painting the walls. I can’t even imagine what she went through! She says it’s karma.”

“I learned from this experience that no matter what precautions you take, toddlers will do what they want to do,” she adds. “Gio has been able to take his onesies off and climb out of his crib since before he turned 1 year old. There’s no stopping him!”

source: people.com