Mum drinking at pick up

[Cybertron]

After school pick up at 3.15pm a lot of us take our kids to the local park. The kids play on the playground and we sit under benches by the trees. I chat to the mums that are there and have done for a couple of years but I am not close to any of them. Today one mum was chatting to me and she reeked of booze. She told me that she had filled her water bottle with white wine and laughed saying it was the only way to get through the day. She then continued to drink the wine. Her kids are under 10. Should I say or do something or is this ok?
AIBU: leave it she deserves to unwind
YABU: drinking like that with kids is not ok

She’s not disguising it?! She told op it was wine.

Don't approach her direcy. Report to the school as a safeguarding issue.

Agree with everyone else. Please report it to school.

Our safeguarding training is always to think

"What if my concerns are right" as opposed to "what if I'm wrong".

Not sure here. Was she acting drunk? Lots of people in my workplace drink at lunchtime in bars and go home to look after their children. Is that more acceptable than drinking in the park maybe? I am on the fence here.

All my friends who have kids drink wine, and on a pretty much daily basis. Whereas the ones who don't, might have a few drinks at the weekend but that's it.

One of my friends with kids always orders alcohol when we're out for lunch with her kids on a random Saturday (I don't), and when I booked a Disney musical in the West End, all the mums in the row behind (with their kids) had several glasses.

I just thought it was a common thing parents did to cope tbh. I think all the comments in this thread saying "it would be okay if it was [made up excuse]" says it all really. Wine is wine whether it's in a glass or a water bottle. You're either drinking when responsible for your kids or you're not.

A glass of something at a pub/picnic with your kids - no problem. Filling your water bottle with wine cuz you can’t wait til later and then commenting it’s the only was for get through is a huge red safeguarding flag. Please speak to the school. What people with a tiny bit of info don’t realise is that it paints a picture when added together. If everyone sits on it the kids could be in danger. This may be the final bit of info the school needs, they may already be concerned

That's not called unwinding. That's called having an alcohol problem. Please let the school know so they can help her children (and her).

Yabu I don't see the big deal aslong as she's not driving or passing out drunk and the kids seem well looked after. Adults are allowed to drink wine their is no law to say at what time of day. Iv had many drinks in parks with the kids present

So ordering one glass of wine with a meal is the same as concealing it in a water bottle at the park?

She's not concealing it she told op about it, it's in a water bottle because you can't take a glass to the park as that is unsafe

Yeah, this is not ok.
I would be asking lots of questions about how often she is drinking, what the impact is on her kids and whether she is able to sufficiently parent and protect her kids after smashing a water bottle full of wine before 6pm...

I used to have a drink around 4 pm when my children were young to get me through to bedtime. Just a small glass. It was my little pleasure and my children are today. Adults

She was not driving. She seemed merry but not sloshed.

That's a bit different to fulling up a bottle to take to the park with you thought isn't it?

If she’d brought a bottle or can of beer I wouldn’t do it myself but one in the park on a Friday/after an hard day isn’t a big deal. Concealing wine at 3pm is really problematic. I assume she wasn’t driving home? At least if she’s telling you then she’s not in denial but it’s not something most people would tell others and laugh about. Does she have young DCs who aren’t at school during the day?

And I'd be telling you to fuck right off if you spoke to me like that for having some wine in a park in an afternoon. Why are people acting like she's pouring vodka on her cornflakes

Words fail me.
She stank of alcohol (which takes quite a few drinks to achieve) and was chugging back wine from a water bottle, saying it was the only way she could cope with the day. And you think this is good parenting? Blimey your bar is set low.

It’s not time to “unwind” yet thought surely? At the park with kids, just at school pick up (so mid afternoon) with dinner, bedtime etc all still to go.

It’s not that uncommon to have a glass of wine to unwind at the end of the week, but it is unusual to think that in the park mid afternoon is a time to be unwound (bearing in mind age of the kids).

Hiding it in a water bottle also sounds very bad.

She knows she will be judged swigging booze in the day, so hides it.

If she's ''reeking of booze'', that shows she must have a lot in her system.

Definitely has a drinking problem by the sounds of it.

My mum also use to drink wine out of water bottles at playgrounds. She’s since died as a result of her alcoholism. Please report it.

She's not hiding it she spoke about it, it's just something practical to carry it in on the move

This.
In fact alcohol makes you more anxious.
Yes, I loathe it.

It’s very odd to fill a water bottle with wine at the park. Having said that, we had plenty of family parties and bbqs and Christmas days with all adults drinking with children around. Are you all saying that’s not ok?

@Differentstarts do you seriously think this is OK, or are you just playing devils advocate? Do you know that smelling of alcohol (outdoors and a normal distance from someone) doesn’t happen after one glass with lunch? This is not normal drinking behaviour.
Turning up a bit merry after a celebratory lunch out might be acceptable as a one off, but necking wine from a bottle to survive the day suggests a problem.

Context is key here.

Can we all just stop clutching our pearls for one second.

It could very well be that the other mum wanted to enjoy the last sunny Friday were likely to have until 2025 with a bit of wine in the park, in a water bottle because you can't take glass into a park.

If she had a problem she'd do more to hide it, I'd say she doesn't have a problem, but what she did say was a bit tasteless

You'd be surprised how many of my friends are partial to a walk round the shops on a sunny day with rosé in their stanley cups, some -shock horror- with prams.

Fwiw all of their children are beautifully turned out, well looked after and impeccably mannered, and they don't have a problem.