Who was in the wrong here - softplay incident.

[OohMavis]

I took my DD (2), DS (5) and nephew who is coming up two, to softplay today. We were playing in the 5-and-under area, DS was taking DD up the stairs to slide down the slide whilst I stayed on the mats with their cousin, who's a bit cautious.

They'd made their way round the course and down the slide successfully about fifteen or so times, when a lady and her 18mo came into the area. They played in the ball pit for a bit, and then her little boy became interested in what DS and DD were doing. He sat at the bottom of the slide and watched as they came down, fascinated.

Nephew wanted to go into the ball pit, so in we went. I could still see DD and DS running around the upstairs bit, and see them sitting down ready to slide down, but the slide itself was obscured from my view. All of a sudden I heard a THUD and hysterical crying. I ran to them to find the 18mo had somehow toppled off the slide onto the floor.

His mother runs over (she was standing at the netting which borders the play area), picks up her son and tells me, quite angrily, what had happened.

Her son was climbing up the slide and my DS and DD had come down the slide at speed (it's a spiral slide and they wouldn't have seen him at the bottom) and knocked into him, causing him to fall.

And then an exchange of words.

"You need to watch your kids rather than letting them trample all over babies"
"They obviously didn't see him"
"Well they need to be more careful then!"
"Why were you letting your son climb the slide knowing there were other kids using it?"
"It's a baby area love, sort your fucking kids out"

And she stomped out, went to talk to the staff at the cafe, then sat down glaring at me.

I realise I probably could have just apologised and little would have been said, but she was being really aggressive. In situations like these I usually just mumble and say nothing, but I really didn't feel I was in the wrong, and her attitude really put my back up. Even so I feel shit, this sort of thing tends to play on my mind for a while. I hate confrontation.

Who was BU here?

Anyone says fuck in softplay is BU, obviously.

This has weirdly made me feel a lot better! Thank you, internet strangers.

I did think we'd be asked to move from the area as DS is right on the age threshold, but they didn't say anything. That would have been awful.

She was. Sometimes it is difficult to prevent every accident in soft play, but even so, she shouldn't have had a go at you. It brings out the worst in people, both adults and children so for that reason I prefer to avoid it unless absolutely necessary (most friends seem to like going all the time).

"It's a baby area love"

^Is not the answer to the question that you asked. She didn't have the answer because she knew she was in the wrong.

Yanbu. Its crap the slide was spiral in a baby area, all the more reason to stop your child from climbing up it. She may have just took her eyes off the ball for a sec as we all have but then don't blame a couple of under 5s for your mistake. She should take it on the chin not whinge at you

my ds played at the bottom of the slide at soft play as soon as i saw it i grabbed him up and had to move fast to avoid the children rocketing down one still hit my leg my only concern was for the child that hit me i really should not have been in the area!

She was BU. You don't let your kids climb up a slide.

Well it certainly wasn't your ds's fault put it this way. It was an accident. That granted wouldn't have happened had she moved her little one away from the bottom of the slide. I agree with a previous poster that. She knew it was her fault that's why she freaked out and flounced. Some people really will not take responsibility for their own actions.

She let her 18 month old - and watched her 18 month old climb up a slide the wrong way and did nothing?

She was totally in the wrong. Your children were using the equipment as designed and sensibly by the sounds of it.

Lunatic woman letting her little toddler climb up a slide when children are continuously coming down it. Forget about her. I encountered a similar woman today. Hard to forget though, isn't it!

She was BU, unquestionably.

And if she keeps letting her child climb up slides he'll keep getting hurt.

The first rule of soft play: don't let your kid climb up the slide.

She flounced because she felt guilty about not watching her kid.

Errrmmmmm hello!!!!!?????

Yes I'm using the excessive exclamation and question marks as she was being VVVVVVVVVU!

Common sense tells you NOT to let your child play near the bottom of a slide and definitely NOT to let a child climb UP a slide!

Slides are for coming down not climbing up!

She sounds like I knob and I would have told her she is a great big one!!!

One wonders why there's always a lunerfreeeekintic at these soft play centres looking for a fight. .

It's called a slide, not a climb, and therefore her child shouldn't have been climbing up it. Even more so, she should have been supervising her child a bit closer before shooting her mouth off at you. Accidents happen, but there's no need for that language in a childrens' play area.

You're not allowed to climb up the slide part in any soft play. Something she would have been told when she went whinging.

Don't worry about it.

Everybody knows that if your baby/child is playing at the bottom of a slide you move them or they might get their heads kicked in. Nuff said.

She was and her guilt showed in a strop. She knew it was her fault. Same thing happened to ds sledding. Little kids got in his way as he was going down the hill, he yelled get out of the way, they didn't and ds collided with them. I wasn't there and felt bad but thought where were the parents?

She sounds pfb and like she has a lot to learn. I'd have reported her for her disgusting mouth in a soft play.

What a silly bint.

It would probably not have happened if you had been able to watch all three of them at the same time.

BUT given that we live in real life you couldn't and anyone who lets their kid climb up the slide is asking for trouble.

Soft plays always have 'no hanging around the bottom of the slide' type signs up for a reason.

My response " Honey a slide is made for people to come DOWN, if your child was trying to go UP then it was YOUR responsibility to make sure no one was using the slide, It's a baby area love , sort your fucking child out"

But hey I LOVE a confrontation :)

When I ask my kids the number one rule of soft play, they shout "Don't climb up slides". My eldest had an A&E trip when he was tiny because he was climbing up the slide, fell and smashed his face in. My fault, lesson learned. If I see them trying to climb up the slide I go apeshit.

Not your fault OP.

You were not at fault. My DDs (Now 5 and 7) are regulars at soft play - weekly before swimming lessons, and if I see them climbing up then I insist they stop. They've both been bruised from ignoring me though

Last week DD1 had her feet kicked out from under her as she rather slowly left the bottom of the slide area. It was a proper fall, where the first thing to land was the side of her face on the hard plastic of the slide. Did I blame the child who had just come down? No, of course not. I gave DD1 a hug while suggesting she should not tarry in future the staff got her an ice pack and ten mins later she was fit to carry on playing.

The child who punched DD2 a few days later? Well that was another story... I still let the staff deal with it rather than get involved parent to parent

SWBU. And she knew it. That's why she swore at you and flounced.

YY to this^^. Embarrassed / guilty parent lashing out defensively. Yanbu at all and I hope this stroppy moo has learnt her lesson and doesn't leave her baby in places where he is quite likely to get injured. Idiot.