What's the most barking thing you've witnessed at a mum's group?

But that just explains how the woman spoke. People do that all the time on here. My favourite are the Scottish accent ones.

eminemmerdale I think it was your paraphrasing the women there and imitating them..."laydee" and all that. It comes over as unkind. Ecpecially from someone who is meant to go into places and not judge.

eminemmerdale - I didn't think you were taking the piss or being nasty either. x

Thank you - I hate feeling like I've been offensive in any way :(

emerdale. I thought what you said was fine. The issue clearly wasn't that she was poor or whatever but that she spoke to her child in a shocking way. I didn't really understand that other posters reaction.

I thought the mums around here were weird, but it appears not.

I used to go to one where the lady running the group was mostly interested in selling things to the new mums. She wasn't much interested in me as she knew i wasn't as well off as the others and she made it pretty obvious. Even said "who are you?" when i walked in, even though she knew exactly who i was and had been the one who had invited me to the group (before she found out i wasn't rich).

There was also the older kid of one of the mums who would turn up at the end of each session and play the drums as loud as she could, making all the babies cry and her mum wouldn't say a word.

And the one where the kid hit another one right round the head with a book and the mum, who was busy on the phone, went over and just patted her child on the head!

The one where the mum ranted about not wanting sn kids in her child's classes at school because they would take precious attention away from her child apparently. I told her what i thought of that!

The mum who pushed my child in anger. I was so shocked i didn't even say anything. I couldn't believe my eyes! Later found out she's a childminder

The playgroup leader who stood up in front of everyone and used me as a example of what NOT to do. She completely humiliated me

The one where my dc poked another child and the child's mum preceded to list all the naughty things she felt my child had done in the two minutes since she had arrived. These were mostly imaginary slights against her pfb. I wanted to tell her where to go but she looked well rough!

The mum who tried to sell herself as a fun party entertainer whilst sitting scowling at all the kids.

put out rather...

Vivienne - I have experienced the same. Me and my mate thought we were being helpful putting the toys away but we did it wrong. And boy did we know it! She came stamping over all red faced and abrupt and pretty much told us off before making a big show of heaving them all out again looking very out out.

Ok fair enough they go in in a certain way...but her manner was

Slightly off topic, but this happened 10 years ago and haunts me still...
Toddler is pushchair at a city farm, goat goes over sniffs at babe, who is holding a rusk and chews hard
His hand was like a fucking hamburger.
Mum pushed him over to a member of staff and asked to see a manager and was ranting and raving and asking to see risk assessments and H&S policies.
His hand was like something out of a horror movie.

A mum having hysterics about which toys went back in which cupboard and if they all didn't go on the right shelf in the right cupboard then they wouldn't all fit in. She proceeded to take them all again. That we'd just put away. I beat a hasty retreat and thank goodness don't have to suffer that any more!

Well, not a group per se, but the more bizarre parenting behaviour I've seen was at a friends birthday dinner held at a restaurant. This couple, lets call them Bob and Karen, had been practicing elimination communication with their 4 month old from birth (their version of it anyway).

They spent the entire party asking the poor kid - do you have to go pee?, how about poop? Bob I think he has to go, he has a look about him! Take him to the bathroom again Bob I'm sure he has to go....Jr are you ready to pee yet? Bob spent the whole dinner in the bathroom holding the child over the toilet.

Jr didn't have to go until they left - we saw them hovering him over the pavement outside of their car while he pooped in the parking lot .

2 people have never made parenting look less fun.

Was I actually taking the piss? Please tell me if everyone thinks that.

I apologise. there have been other people on this thread discussing 'dodgy areas' and 'funny things' that 'dperived' people have said. I didnt see any nasty remarks directed at them.

I used to take DD to a fun but poncy toddler music group. One of the other little boys was handing around some home made (and clearly pre-schooler decorated) biscuits because it was his birthday. I said something along the lines of "thank you. Have you been making biscuits with your mummy? ". And his mum snapped back at me "He made them all by himself" .

Silly me for underestimating little Hestons culinary skills.

There was a toddler group I went to once in a less than desirable area.

A woman was taking orders for stolen 'premium' pushchairs...and by that I think she meant stolen to order from other people, not from shops (not that that's better or worse morally, just more...brazen?).

I did only go the once.

fuckadoodlepoopoo
hell no we didnt, i pointed out that it was a toddlers, not a mother and baby group and that he was just as allowed to be there as she was.

I haven't seen anything totally crazy, but I do remember one group I tried where the organiser would stop in the middle of the session and make the kids hug this big, ugly, manky stuffed Humpty she called FOG (Friend of God) and then sing some songs about Jesus and how lovely he was.

I only went once.

bear!

Supposedly it works. I don't think they claim that the DC will go to the toilet independently any earlier than babies in nappies so unless you really can't afford nappies and live in a wipe clean house I don't really see the point who wants to make potty training last three whole years?!

That sounds like a hell of a lot of work. Does it actually work or is it done purely for Smug Points?

I'm having flashbacks to the time I was changing DD on my mum's sofa and in the five seconds between removing the old nappy and sliding in the new one she began to shit and kept on shitting. It was like a Mr Whippy machine designed by Satan himself and I had to clean her, the sofa, the floor, mum's dog who got too close ....

I wouldn't be able to cope with it happening in the middle of Tesco or on the bus.

Oh that!

Elimination communication involves watching your baby very very carefully, pretty much from birth for signs they are about to wee or poo (you try and associate noises with weeing/pooing to make it easier) and then quickly putting a potty under them.

I suspect wipe clean floors are a good idea if you want to try it...

When ds was small, I took him to a baby and toddler group where these 2 mums would ask people to get out of the comfy chairs as they needed to bf, they would then lift their tops completely, so both breasts completely exposed, I would often need to bf ds, but would always attempt some discretion, never knew where to look!

I was wondering that too. What is elimination communication? It's been mentioned on a few threads.

Whatatwat. So what did you and your dh do? Did you actually get up and leave?

Wearingpurple. What the hell is elimination communication!?