sick of lazy parents at soft play

[lazyeffers16]

took my 11 month old to soft play today and YET AGAIN an older child (about 4ish) came in the under 2 section and tried to literally pick her up while she was playing. everytime i come i seem to have a kid come over and try to drag her or throw a ball pit ball off her head etc and there never seems to be a parent in sight?! wtf?? i tell them no myself (as in ‘no, don’t pick her up please/throw things at her/get off her please’) but am waiting for the day they go crying to mummy. aibu here? don’t understand where their parents disappear to

Once your child is that age you too will enjoy a coffee and time to read your kindle/browse your phone too.

@busyeatingbiscuits

The whole point of soft play is that 4 year olds get to run off and play!

If they go in the wrong bit just send them nicely on their way.

I’d say an 11 month old is a bit too young for soft play anyway.

Nope an 11 month old is exactly the right age for the under 2 section at a soft play!! They should be able to crawl / walk around in peace.

I always ask older kid how old they are and when they say they are 4 etc I say they are too big for in here and to leave. Normally a firm adult voice does the trick and they leave. Some parents are utter dicks at soft play centres.

@MajorCarolDanvers

Once your child is that age you too will enjoy a coffee and time to read your kindle/browse your phone too.

So do that at home once you're children are asleep. Not at soft play where you should be supervising your kids

I remember when mine came out of the baby bit, I tried to follow my ds around, I ended up stuck in one section with the gaps too small for me to get through, by the time I'd worked it out ds had been down the slide and overtook me again, I gave up. I generally tried to keep an eye on them but sometimes it's impossible. Mine wouldn't go back in the baby but though. Mind you he's 20 now! Ha ha

Happened at Butlins soft play, some kid tried to pick up my 11 month old son and wouldn't let go. I tried being nice and in the end had to force him off as he wouldn't let go at all. Felt very uncomfortable about the whole thing xx

Normal not to follow dc that age around softplay imo. The issue here is that they are in the wrong age section - either send them out or speak to a staff member.

When mine was a baby, i used to get enraged with older kids in the baby section

They can be brutal! Have lost count the number of times older kids have climbed over the top of my little one on slides/ladders as they're so impatient.

Now my sweet little baby is a brute herself but i watch like a hawk if she strays into the baby section. Which for some reason, older kids seem drawn to. Its like being forbidden makes it more exciting or something . It does my head in

@danni92

So do that at home once you're children are asleep. Not at soft play where you should be supervising your kids hmm

Once they get past about age 4 they don't need the same kind of supervision that they do when below that age and certainly not when they are 6, 7 or older. As they get older you get to land the helicopter.

[quote MajorCarolDanvers]@danni92

So do that at home once you're children are asleep. Not at soft play where you should be supervising your kids hmm

Once they get past about age 4 they don't need the same kind of supervision that they do when below that age and certainly not when they are 6, 7 or older. As they get older you get to land the helicopter.[/quote]
You don't get to land the helicopter if your child is the one going around beating the others up. If you aren't watching your child how do you know that they aren't?

@lazyeffers16

and not to mention they follow me around soft play for ages i have to literally hide to shake them off 🥲🥲 wtf

I've had this at baby groups and in schools and nurseries I've worked in. Basically looks like kids who are starved of the attention they need at home/school/nursery and latch onto someone who obviously wants to engage with children.

if the kids are old enough t know they are breaking the rules then you are within your rights to ask staff to intervene or tell the child kindly to play elsewhere.

What YABU and judgemental about is branding other parents whose circumstances you know nothing of as "lazy". Plenty of disabled parents would love to be able to run round after their kids. And for some single parents it might be the only opportunity to socialise themselves / rest that they get.

I probably followed my first (now 13) around until he was 5ish (super sensitive), my middle (4) i try to go when it’s quiet as he gets super hyper so i follow him like a hawk and probably will do beyond 5, difficult to take my third (10 months) as can’t leave my middle one alone for a second.. He is that kid that wants to play with adults and every child in the place, super friendly but can get too much, he never means no harm but i know it can be either irritating or intimidating so theres only a select few we go at the moment and certain times when i know we won’t bother too many. I mean, i say bother i haven’t had anyone tell him off or look uncomfortable maybe i just do for them and they’re fine.. met some lovely people so far so
maybe it’s in my head ..

Parents in the soft play frame are so annoying, they block it up for kids who want to run around properly. I always told mine where I was sitting and not to go into the baby part. He came to see me if he was bored or thirsty.

but sorry also went off subject yes big kids in the little section is a big no and very annoying

[quote MajorCarolDanvers]@danni92

So do that at home once you're children are asleep. Not at soft play where you should be supervising your kids hmm

Once they get past about age 4 they don't need the same kind of supervision that they do when below that age and certainly not when they are 6, 7 or older. As they get older you get to land the helicopter.[/quote]
Children past the age of 4 are just as capable of being little jerks as kids younger. Just because your children are slightly older doesn't mean you get to ignore all parental responsibility so you can sit on your phone. Especially in busy places where there are other children.

Not just irresponsible parenting in soft play. Yesterday in outdoor part of DIY store small child about 3 literally running round and throwing stones whilst parents looked at slabs.. Mum occasionally said stop doing that in a totally ineffective way. Kid just carried on

[quote MajorCarolDanvers]@danni92

So do that at home once you're children are asleep. Not at soft play where you should be supervising your kids hmm

Once they get past about age 4 they don't need the same kind of supervision that they do when below that age and certainly not when they are 6, 7 or older. As they get older you get to land the helicopter.[/quote]
My daughter is 6 and she doesn't get left unsupervised unless it's at a class or in our home. I'm not flying a helicopter I'm making sure my child isn't a statistic in a freak accident.

Which of my 3 over 5s shall I follow while I breastfeed my youngest? Because they sure as hell want to do different things and play with their different friends. If you want to stay with your child that’s fab, and means you can intervene if another child does something you don’t like. You really don’t need another parent there to tell them not to get to close or whatever. You are a grown up you can do it.

I remember being very precious about this when my little one was small but, as time passed, I saw the benefits for my child of cross-age play. Soft play is always somewhat hellish but, if you aren’t enjoying g the interaction with children perhaps an alternative play space might be an option?

Just kick the kid out
Literally
Or pour water on them
Then they run to mummy
Serves them right
Brats

YANBU. My Reception aged son and his friends often go in the 'under 5 section' at our local soft play and they are very boistrous. It's a very small area and realistically more suitable for toddlers and babies, so I always usher them towards the main section. My 2 yo was fully kicked in the face last week when a 7/8yo girl did a forward roll down down the soft steps straight into my daughter.

That said, if I wasn't in there with my 2yo, I'd be less aware of what my 5yo was up to!

you can intervene if another child does something you don’t like. You really don’t need another parent there to tell them not to get to close or whatever. You are a grown up you can do it

How condescending! How about you parent your own kids? You're a grown up, you can do it.

Wow, that's terrible.

Seems inefficient not being able to tell other kids off when they're being little buggers. I couldn't physically keep up with mine, so I fully expected them to be told to jog on if they were being little shite heads. Fortunately it was only really one of them them was difficult (my god all the biting and meltdowns and inappropriate bossiness!), so somewhat easier to keep up with at most things, except soft play. And on the school run, that was a particular nightmare that had them back into a buggy aged five years old.

Much easier once you get to never go to soft play ever again and they can entertain themselves.