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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Leaving baby in car to get car park ticket

302 replies

IstheCartooFar · 25/05/2016 09:10

Name changed as chatted to husband and friend about this already...

I've tried to include all relevant details to avoid drip feeding etc...

Woman in car park annoyed me yesterday. I'd left baby in car to walk to ticket machine (at the end of the aisle next to mine, no closer spaces available). When I came back woman had parked next to me and getting her own children out.

She said 'excuse me, have you just left your baby in the car all on its own?' in an accusing way.

I replied I was just at the ticket machine, which she humphed at and turned away.

I felt pretty cross at her implication I'd done some awful dangerous parenting so I said I found her tone very judgemental.

She just said well you hear horror stories (and then said some confusing story about how some people have brain injuries and do weird things so you have to check). I just said you have to make lots of risk assessments as a parent of leaving baby in car vs lugging them through busy car park, she turned away and didn't answer.

Anyway, do people leave baby in car to get a ticket or is that just me being lazy??

And was she unreasonable to check or would you do the same? (to me it was pretty obvious I'd just gone to get a ticket rather than done a full shop, considering I'd walked past her car with ticket, put it on windscreen then was getting baby out).

OP posts:
squizita · 25/05/2016 13:58

Is all this talk of never taking your eyes off a baby for even a second reminding anyone else of the weeping angels from Doctor Who?

...Mine would have your arm off up to the elbow the moment you let your guard slip. Grin H&S... yeah ... for you not her!! Grin

otherwise she would be unsupervised either on the driveway or in the hous whilst we did one of these tasks.

We don't have a driveway and I park immediately outside my house. On MN, I am an evil evil woman for doing the above but parked 2 meters across the pavement from my terrace house. However the way I see it, a naice big garden the parking space might actually be further away.
Another case of perception of risk 'driveway' sounds safer than 'road' - but the width of a pavement might well be smaller than the length of a garden.
I lock the car in between shopping loads BTW.
I case she gets loose... we've all seen Jurassic Park Lost World and we don't want that shiz going down in North West London.

00100001 · 25/05/2016 14:00

candy what you do is this...

  • Drive home from shop - making sure you watch baby at all times, and not the road. Because not watching them even for ONE SECOND is dangerous. So, look at baby whilst driving car home.
  • Park. Whilst looking at baby.
  • Get out of car, backwards, so as to not take eyes off baby
  • Pick up baby. put in sling or buggy.
  • Make sure you're still watching baby, go out and set up traffic cones around car.
-Take baby to boot of car, pick up shopping, whilst not looking,as you need to keep an eye on baby. -Ferry bags from car to house as many times as is needed, being sure to not to take eyes of baby at any point. -please remember to rummage around your bag blindly for house keys. -Take baby back to car, put cones away.
  • Lock car.
  • Keep baby in buggy (in view at all times) or sling and put shopping away whilst somehow not looking where you're putting things.
  • Continue your vigil over baby.

it's very simple...

candykane25 · 25/05/2016 14:09

But what if the car explodes on the driveway binary?

00100001 · 25/05/2016 14:13

err, how do you even know it's on fire? Because that would mean you took eyes off baby...

tsk tsk

StarlingMurmuration · 25/05/2016 14:15

I don't actually think my child is in danger if I leave him in the car for two minutes while I return a trolley or get a ticket. I also don't think he's in danger if I take him in his pram to get the ticket.

I DO prefer him to be with me if possible while we're out. Call it a hold over from my pnd, or anxiety, or mother's instinct or whatever you like, I just feel antsy if he's not by my side when we're out of the house.

DuckAndPancakes · 25/05/2016 14:15

What. About. The. Foxes.

sunnyoutside · 25/05/2016 14:20

The Foxes are too busy celebrating winning the League to worry about a child left in a car for 2 mins Wink Grin

amicissimma · 25/05/2016 14:36

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

LyndaNotLinda · 25/05/2016 14:45

If you get the baby out and you have to stick the ticket on the windscreen, what do you do with the baby/pushchair while you're doing that? Presumably leave them behind your car?

Surely that's much more dangerous Confused

FuckingFattyBitch · 25/05/2016 14:49

Ldnmum2015

And no 1000100 am not joking, am totally amazed that a poster on here has to even ask! Of course you don't leave a baby out of your sight for a second, let alone a minute in a car, am I missing something

Does you ever sleep?! I have a 2 year old and a nearly 10 month old. Sometimes I put the ten month old in the travel cot and go to the toilet...Shock sometimes I'm more than 2 seconds because sometimes I need a shit Shock or do you not shit?

FuckingFattyBitch · 25/05/2016 14:50

Do not does. Damn phine

FuckingFattyBitch · 25/05/2016 14:50

Phone. This thing hates me!

Niklepic · 25/05/2016 14:53

LDN, the case in Wigan was 3 years ago and the thief reported it himself when he realised the baby was in the back. Hardly recent!

hairyfreckle · 25/05/2016 14:54

The biggest car park in our local town has the parent and child spaces by a ticket machine: I see the sense now.

Id do it.

squizita · 25/05/2016 14:54

Drive home from shop - making sure you watch baby at all times, and not the road. Because not watching them even for ONE SECOND is dangerous. So, look at baby whilst driving car home.

There was once a sanctimum who suggested this to me Shock and suggested only to drive with someone in the back seat. Hmm

00100001 · 25/05/2016 15:03

squitz well, it's the only sensible option! Two adult at all times!

I wonder how Lndmum feels about blind people having babies.

Woodhill · 25/05/2016 15:21

I would leave baby in car to get ticket, trolley etc.

glueandstick · 25/05/2016 15:29

I wouldn't only because I'd lose time collecting all the crap you have to carry with you and putting together the pram that requires a degree.

You totally didn't do the wrong thing. Other people are so fussy. If you were that neglectful I'm sure you'd have paid no attention to the woman anyhow.

squizita · 25/05/2016 15:59

I wonder how Lndmum feels about blind people having babies.

People? Hmm I rarely see this expectation on dads. Dads who nap with th kid there are 'cute'. Dads who work outside the home are secure.
Mums must watch 24/7 and be perfect or whyyyyeeeyyyyyyy eeeevvvvaaaannnn hhhaaaavvvveee bbbbaaayyyybbbeeeeezzz!?!

Not people... women. Hmm Grin Gets off soap box.

FuckingFattyBitch · 25/05/2016 16:08

there there. You feel better now? For what it's worth, you're right. Grin

00100001 · 25/05/2016 16:09

I'm sorry.

Blind Mums.

IfTheCapFitsWearIt · 25/05/2016 16:12

binary it's not a joke, for you to make light of.

I would never ever ever, leave my baby in the car. I get heart palpations at just the thought.

I sit staring at my baby ever night, what decent mother wouldn't? It's only a year out of your life with no sleep. Small price to pay. Caffeine is my friend. once a week on a Saturday night I go to sleep. That's when dh babysits and stays awake all night to watch DC. I wouldn't trust him for more than one night.

If you choose to have children, then you have to make sacrifices.

These mums saying they leave their children to get a ticket, just because it's easier?Shock shame on you all. Lazy fuckers

I would gladly die a martyr. Then no lazy arse mother, with no idea of H&S and common sense. Would be able to judge me. Because unlike them I'd die knowing I did everything right.

judgemental bastards the lot of you.

FuckingFattyBitch · 25/05/2016 16:14

What happens once the child is over a year? Is it OK to leave them alone after that IfTheCap? Grin

IfTheCapFitsWearIt · 25/05/2016 16:17

Yes after a year, you can leave them to sleep, but they still have to be in the same room.

Even after a year though, you can't leave them in the car. That's still madness.

00100001 · 25/05/2016 16:18

What age should we stop our vigil capfits?