Quick advice needed

[Worriedkat]

My DH is travelling north to south in the uk today with the 3 DSs in the car. DS3 is terrified of hand dryers and screams blue murder to get away, fighting wrestling screaming lying on the floor etc. Would DH be unreasonable to leave him age 3 in the restaurant with our 8.5 yo while he himself goes to the bathroom? Or should he pull over on a verge instead? Or is it unreasonable for grown men to wee in verges under these circumstances?

No way can DH manhandle DS3 and wee at the same time!

I wonder what ops DH did?

I would have happily left the 3 year old with the 8 year old standing outside the loo's for a few minutes. If there was a nice looking person about I would have asked them to keep an eye on them and. I would have given the kids a quick lecture before dashing to the loo.

Or use the disabled loo and bare the brunt of all the evil glares from any MN'ers who are standing around.

I wouldn't have.worried about it at all.

kinky, just get on with it, like we all have to I guess.

Fantastic, I'm sure the OP will be really grateful for your empathetic advice.

Wouldn't he just not dry his hands? Or on his trousers? Or take a load of paper towels in? Supose it doesn't help if other people are using them.
In a large supermarket I wouldn't leave 6yo DS in the shop while I nip to the loobut I would leave him in the toilet area but outside the actual toilet iykwim (there's usually a little corridor with a door to each toilet). Obviously he's odler, not sure I'd want to do it with even my very sensible 4yo.

Oo, I had another idea. DH goes into cubicle and sits down, so can wee and contain screaming three year old at the same time.
Surely most toddlers don't like hand driers though, or are my two just scaredy cats too? How would you normally do it if it was you?

I'm assuming the drier problem is the other people using it, rather than your DH?

in that case get him to laminate a couple of 'out of order' signs and stick them on as soon as he goes in :o

Kotinka - why not? When my mum was 8 she used to take her 2 year old brother to the park by herself. Obviously less issues with traffic then but children are children, and if she could be in charge of a 2 year old then, in my opinion an 8 year old these days should be able to be in charge of a 3 year old for a very short period of time while they are sitting still. Like I said, the issue for me would be if the 3 year old wouldn't sit still, but if he would then I would be happy leaving the 2 kids together for the 1 min it would take to use the loo.

Talk to 3 year old and explain about hand dryers - and not using it? Teach him to stick his fingers in his ears if someone else uses the hand dryer in the bathroom?

Love the out of order sign suggestion!

I used 36 months as he is only just 3. So less mature than if he was nearly 4.

In the event, DH didn't drink any liquid after 7am and held on for 5 hours!!

Glad it worked out but slightly dissapointed as it was a bit of a boring outcome

lemonade bottle in the car and a funnel

Why not ask the 3yo to tell his dad on a scale of 1 to 10 how bad/loud the hand drier is, and to see how loud they go or how quiet. Get the lad to press the button only, and then you can all leave.

Worked with my friend's lad. They like the 'collecting/top trumps' aspect of it!