Tell me off dear parents!!

[naru]

Dear parents and carers....facing a real awkward behaviour from a father of two I saw in the park today I am trying to make me even more upset from here if you guys tell me off. Whilst I was strolling around Clissold park today with my one and half year old daughter I saw a little girl sitting on a stroller and there was no one else around. About in 100 meter distance there was a man with a little boy. He probably went to bring the little boy who was left behind. I saw the girl was a bit scared to be left alone like that so I thought I would stay around a bit to guard her. The dad came within minutes and I said to him smiling "it was a bit risky to leave her like that". He replied in a very rude manner "why? do you think someone will steal her??". It was around 5pm in the afternoon and park was a bit quiet that time. It wasn't about only stealing, there are dogs and other animals in the park. Newspapers are full of scary accidents with little kids. I hope every child have a good and full life. Tell me off please for being a bit caring fir a child I didn't know. :-(

You were not wrong to stop. Good for you, next time do the same.

But...

The way you spoke to him was rude, you explicitly criticised his parenting! You could have worded it better to sound less blamey.

What animals are the in this park? Vicious squirrels? Wild boar? TB riddled badgers?

Agree with Juniper.

The words you used were patronising and rude. I often keep half an eye open on children to check they're safe. A few times I've actively waited with them, or very close by. There's nothing wrong with that. If I speak to the parent I play it down and say that I was just checking and mine often used to bolt, get lost etc. empathy and humour is often easiest to digest.

Keeping a discreet eye out is not wrong, but criticising his methods of dealing with his kids is.

When you have more than one toddler to deal with then you end up doing things you wouldn't otherwise have considered. Practicalities take over. He was probably stressed with running around after two littlies, and he also had to dash quickly after his older child. You then added to his stress by criticising him, and if I am honest (and I am not trying to insult you) it probably came across as a bit smug.

You had good intentions, so well done. Just don't be so overt with your criticism next time. Parenting small children is challenging, especially when there are two or more of them at once.

I bet when that bloke got home and explained it to his partner she gave him a bollocking for wandering off and leaving the baby. I'd have bollocked dh if he did that. Children get snatched from outside their own homes. I know it's not likely but it's not impossible.

There's been one or two threads on here lately from women cross that their dh has buggered off from the house for all of five minutes and left two perfectly capable children perfectly safe in their own house. People have come on the thread and tutted and criticised. Yet it's ok for someone to leave a baby strapped in a pushchair in a public area? It could roll away, fall over, have a dog land in it - apparently we're surrounded by marauding dogs too - quite apart from any human intervention. Op I think you were perfectly justified in querying it. Takes a village to raise a child, as they frequently say.

I have stayed with babies before but unobtrusively and I never say anything just leave when the parent comes back. I think saying something could get ugly very quickly. Just do the good deed and go.

I'm wondering if maybe English is not your first language? I think you meant well but often it's difficult when using certain expressions in a different language.

Life is full of taking small calculated risks. When you have more than one you have to decide which one you love more and save them first No, you have to weigh up the risk of each scenario. So likely hood of baby getting stolen/savaged when a short distance away and in eye line is unlikely. Likely hood of toddler tripping and falling in some dog shit, making a bee line for the road, picking up some broken glass is more likely to happen so you get them back first.

When you have 3 it gets even more complicated!