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AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

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Original poster

Have you ever forgotten to pick up your child from school?

139 replies

Ellerehj · 04/03/2022 16:14

DSD has now forgotten to pick up our son 3 times.

I live closer to his school than he does and luckily I've been on hand each time to go get him otherwise he would have been sat there for another 20 minutes or so.

He said he just lost track of time because he's working at home. I don't think that's a good enough excuse?! AIBU to be totally pissed off.

OP posts:

lanthanum · 04/03/2022 23:03

I used to have an alarm set on my phone for the afternoon school run. Which was embarassing on the occasion when I was in school for the end-of-school day assembly!

And at one point I had a job which meant there was one school pickup a week I couldn't do. Some weeks DD had a playdate, and on others a friend brought her to my work - I'd confirm in the morning if I needed her to do that - except the week I forgot. Oops.

DomesticatedZombie · 04/03/2022 23:20

No, never. I've been late once in 11 years.

2020nymph · 04/03/2022 23:23

My friends ex used to regularly forget. I was there the first time when they were trying to get hold of my friend and took him home after she gave the ok. She was working 45 mins away. DS was always the last to leave and it happened a few times so they enjoyed a few unplanned play dates.

steff13 · 04/03/2022 23:27

I work from home, and a lot of my job is writing and researching, so I can get very engrossed. I've never forgotten to pick my daughter up from school because I have an alarm on my phone that goes off at the time that I need to leave.

Foolsrule · 04/03/2022 23:38

Never. Never been late for drop off or pick up either. He just can’t be arsed!

LowlandLucky · 04/03/2022 23:43

Not once in the in the 17 or so years that i had children at school did i ever forget or was late to drop off/pick up. I would say he didn't forget, he just knows you will save the day.

georgarina · 05/03/2022 07:54

YANBU. When I was sleep deprived with a newborn I set two alarms on my phone - one for the time to start getting ready, another for the time to leave the house. Forgetting is unacceptable, let alone three times?

FourTeaFallOut · 05/03/2022 07:58

No, never. Have been doing the school run for 10 consecutive years now. Never been late for school either.

gogohm · 05/03/2022 08:02

Never, wasn't late either - they are at university now. But I was the only one who collected them because I finished at 2.30 which gave me 2 buses to get to them in case the first was cancelled. They had keys from 10 once they switched to high school (different ages here) in case they beat me

Wannakisstheteacher · 05/03/2022 08:07

Yes once. DS was 5, I had DD who was 2 and very newborn DS2. I feel asleep on the sofa and woke up with a call from the school asking where I was. Absolutely mortifying. They were incredibly understanding though and it’s never happened again.

fairylightsandwaxmelts · 05/03/2022 08:08

My dad forgot me once.

My mum always used to do pick ups (he did drop offs) but she had a late meeting and he forgot.

My head teacher rang to ask if he was stuck at work and he was at home watching the football

He was mortified lol.

Flatandhappy · 05/03/2022 08:13

No. I would never judge anyone like some of the posters above - newborn, fell asleep etc. - we can all screw up but one time my primary aged DS was supposed to go for a play date after school with the mum picking up. I got a call from the school at 4.30 as the mum hadn’t arrived and they couldn’t get hold of her. I couldn’t believe they had held out so long tbh but I rushed to the school, got both kids and went to DS’ friend’s house a bit concerned only to find the mum dancing around her yurt - yes it was a sodding yurt - and her explanation was “ I lost track of time”. I realised we were in the wrong school.

Enko · 05/03/2022 08:47

Dd3 was 3 days old. Dd2 and ds had been collected.by dh ds had come up to the bed w me for a cuddle and we had fallen asleep. Dd2 was happily and quietly playing with her stickers/drawing dh had fallen asleep on the sofa. The phone rang i looked at the time as I woke up and just knew. Screamed down the stairs to dh "DD1" he woke up in a shock had his shoes on and keys in hand before I was done with the phone call from her school. They were very understanding knowing we had just had dd3. Also we lived 5 mins walk from school so dh was there in a few minutes.

Dd1 was quite anxious about it until we explained and she thought it was funny the grow ups had fallen asleep.

LollyLol · 05/03/2022 08:54

No. I’ve never forgotten.

Tdcp · 05/03/2022 08:56

I was late once for nursery but my car broke down, I rang to let them know obviously and I wasn't too late in the end but no, I've never forgotten DD (7) I often have to rush to finish work on time just so I'm absolutely sure I won't be late. He shouldn't be forgetting him at all.

Amicompletelyinsane · 05/03/2022 09:01

I had a new baby And fell asleep. Was only 5 minutes late but did feel bad. Am alarm was set after that

SockQueen · 05/03/2022 09:02

DH fell asleep and missed pickup a few weeks ago. I got a call but was an hour away at work, but thankfully he woke when I rang him.

KitKattaktik · 05/03/2022 09:06

Only once and that was the school's fault. They were running an after school French class and had to cancel it but didn't tell the parents, just sent a note out to be given out at home time the same day to say that the class was cancelled and to collect at the normal time.

We turned up and my daughter wasn't there and the school didn't know where she was. It transpired that the usual class teacher wasn't in that day, stand in teacher just let the class "go" and some random parent (who I didn't even know) saw DD in the playground looking lost and took her home with her son and didn't even say a word to the office. She then contacted the police to say she'd collected an abandoned child at the school.

Yep. Fucking nutter!

Police turned up, spoke with DD who had the sense to give them our emergency contact card from her book bag, and then they phoned me. I hit the roof with shock, fear and anger!

DD had been telling the random parent to phone me but she kept saying "I don't know your mum" - it didn't occur to her that if she didn't know me she shouldn't have abducted my daughter!! Police did tell her this but she kept saying "I couldn't leave an abandoned child in the playground" and refused to accept she was wrong.

Twenty years ago and I'm still angry about it!

Sunshinedreaming2022 · 05/03/2022 09:10

Not forgotten as such but got the time wrong so would’ve just been very very late. Dd had just started a new school and they finish early on a Friday and I just forgot and thought I had an extra half hour when the school phoned. Fortunately dd wasn’t worried

edenhills · 05/03/2022 09:12

Never. I am the sort of person to be focused on something and forget so I have 2 alarms set on my phone for school pick-ups.

TrendingNowt · 05/03/2022 09:15

No.
Your poor child is going to end up with a complex. Not even important or loved enough to remember being picked up.

SartresSoul · 05/03/2022 09:16

Nope but my MIL turned up like 30 minutes late once to collect them. I was completely mortified and never asked her to collect them again. She has form for it, we once asked her to babysit our younger DC while we went to parents evening for older ones and she didn’t turn up so I had to go alone.

Dontfuckingsaycheese · 05/03/2022 09:17

Not school but just once I fell asleep and forgot to pick up ds from the local leisure centre after a scouting outing bus trip. In my very weak defence it was planting-out-the-bedding-day. My favourite day of the year!! I had spent the whole day in the garden in the sun having a ball. I fell on the settee sated and exhausted!! And forgot my son 😳

Dontfuckingsaycheese · 05/03/2022 09:18

He still brings it up occasionally - he’s 19!!

OmgIThinkILikeYou · 05/03/2022 09:20

I haven't forgotten to pick him up but I have driven to the wrong place on autopilot a few times.

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