to want to kidnap these kids from the park?

[Amykins35]

We went to the park after school today and there was a mum with her friend and their children. She had a child of around 3 strapped into a Pushchair facing away from her and into a bush. He was screaming and crying and absolutely distraught and she was chatting and laughing with her friend like they couldn't even hear him. After we'd been there 10 mins or so he gave up and went to sleep. One of the other mums commented that he'd been crying like that for an hour beforehand. He woke again after a short while and was crying and thrashing about so much he tipped his pushchair over. His mum smacked him, shouted at him for knocking her shopping over and then Parked him further away before resuming her chat.
DD was trying to go on the slide but a baby of 14 months or so was crawling on it. His mum was sitting w

[Maggie111]

YANBU OP. The worst journey of my life was to sit near a "family" with a beautiful girl aged about 3. She chattered and babbled and asked lovely child questions about what she saw out of the window. Her Mum repeatedly told her to "Shut the fuck up."

I didn't know what I could do, if anything? I just planned to pick the girl up and run off the train with her. I still think about her now and wish I'd have done something different.

[freddiemisagreatshag]

How adequately were you supervising 3 kids a baby and 2 dogs if you were earywigging so well on every other word the parents were saying?

[Geezer]

Amykins, get your head out from up your own arse for a moment and tell me how a mother is going to make it her "job" to ensure a child doesn't get overtired if, for example, that child screams half the night and won't settle come what may?

And don't tell me the answer is to stay at home, just don't even try going there.

[OhLori]

I sometimes have thoughts/experiences like yours OP, and Maggie, sometimes I say something (usually non-confrontational e.g. I address/comfort the child) but sometimes its not possible for a variety of reasons.

(Ignore Geezer's vile words, you always get some nasty folk on these threads).

[toffeelolly]

Some people are alway's quick to judge other's.

[Geezer]

Get over yourself, OhLori, I have a perfectly valid question despite that you don't like how I put it. I don't like the nasty way the OP is taking such a superior attitude and think that's pretty vile, tbh.

A mother making it her "job" to see that her child doesn't get overtired is, in the case of some children at the very least, a laughable suggestion. Try it with a child who screams all night, every night.

[freddiemisagreatshag]

ohlori - Would you really go over to a complete stranger whose life you have no fucking clue over and attempt to "comfort" the child?

[ChairmanWow]

Look, if you don't like it then say something to the parent or, if it's serious enough, report it. It's the coming on here and tutting that gets on my nerves. Does starting a thread on MN ensure that child is well parented? No, it doesn't.

There are huge assumptions being made about this woman and her friend. Yes, she could be selfish and neglectful. She could also be exhausted and stressed and her friend might be the only adult she's seen that day. Who knows? Not us.