To say to DH that our 2 year old shouldn’t be doing this activity?

[Yeqpll]

DH has booked a lovely trip for us. He does minimal parenting day to day due to work and i can tell he’s booked nice lunches and activities to make an effort

Last night he informed me he’d booked a boat trip for 1.5 hours, for today. We are in the UK so this will be a windy and choppy event and it is open to the elements. I think DS is going to be extremely bored after 15 mins.

My main concern however is that DS is not yet potty trained and obviously there’s nowhere to change him on board.

I feel strongly this is a bad idea but maybe I’m being dramatic… thoughts very welcome!!

This sounds like it will be stressful and unenjoyable for you and of limited enjoyment for your toddler.

I would not go on this trip by choice and, if I was forced to go on this trip, I would ensure that my DC was wearing a harness with a handle that I could grab easily, as well as a life jacket. For fun, I would much prefer to take DC to a nice farm park or indoor splash park.

I would approach the trip with realistic expectations that I'd spend the whole time grabbing toddler by the arm/leg/harness to prevent them going overboard. I'd probably end up tying the toddler to me. Anything else, I'd view as a bonus.

Personally I'd rather stay home and do laundry then spend 90 minutes physically restraining my toddler to stop them ending up overboard in choppy water, but each to their own.

Just take something you can put down for him to lie on if he needs a nappy change. Out of curiosity, have you managed to get through 2 years without having to improvise on how a nappy is changed?

I get seasick and at 2 my ds just wanted to run around. Trying to keep him sat down for 90mins while feeling ill myself sounds like a nightmare.
If your DH is really keen then maybe he should go with DS and you can find somewhere on dry land to get a coffee!

Wouldnt have booked it myself as it's hard to keep an active 2 year old in one place for 90 minutes. Still as long as they have a suitable lifejacket and DH is onboard with at least the last 45 minutes child minding then I'd go.

I would have questions about the safety - do you have a life vest? The company might not actually allow a wee one anyway, given his age.

Such a lot of drama over a small trip. Sometimes I think I worry too much, but an hour on MN soon reminds me that I'm fine!!

It's a boat for an hour and a half not wing walking for a fortnight

Between that and the "why on earth would you need to change him anyway??" and comments about when kids typically poo. OK maybe your kid usually goes after a meal or once a day. Mine don't. I have 4 and they just poo whenever 😂 They would absolutely be the kids who poos immediately after the boat sets off. And I would never attempt to change a dirty nappy on my lap or standing up. Wet yes, not poo because there's no chance you can wipe them properly like that. But I assume everyone on mumsnet has kids who do lovely neat poos that barely need wiping 😂

90 mins does sound too long tbh, I’ve taken my son on a similar boat at a similar age but it was half and hour at most. Another activity instead would be much better, try and get it changed.

Yes, this, couldn’t have put it better.

I wouldn’t cancel a nice thing someone had arranged just in case my kid has a poo. If he does, hand him to his dad.

That^ would be my concern. We went on a hour boat trip when it’s quite windy. It’s very cold, wet and we had to sit all the time for safety reasons. We all were over 16 so fine but imo 2 y.o would struggle.

If it's windy and they're not particularly skilled at lap changes, someone else may well get the used nappy in their face. Or worse, it blows into the sea. Or child's clothes blow into the sea while they're trying to sort things 😂.

Another who thinks he’ll love it! It’s easy to go on things that are perfectly set out for kids, but then kids don’t get the out of the ordinary, cool experiences that you can all speak about in the future

The only thing I find strange is that dh has booked 2 adult tickets and has assumed it will be ok for a toddler to board especially for a smaller fishing boat. They may not let small kids on.

All boat trips I've done have asked for all passenger details and age as some deals, kids go free but they still want to know who is boarding the boat.

You've booked 2 adults not 2 adults and 1 child so this may all be for nothing anyway as they may not let you board.

Absolutely, but the father should then be responsible for dealing with changing poo nappies and sick covered clothes mid-sea without toilet facilities.

😂

That's exactly the type of thing that would happen to me. Kids trousers away over the side.

Also what happens with the stinky nappy after it's changed? It just sits there reeking in the nappy bag? I know it's out in the open air but other people would definitely get whiffs of it the whole time. Next people will be claiming their kids poo doesn't stink.

What kind of boat is this? Wooden row boat that seats 6-8(ish), speedboat for 10-20 all exposed to the elements, or a two deck large tourist boat with a bar and toilets??? I would only go on the last option with a 2yo in March. Actually forget the 2yo bit, just the fact it’s March I’d need to be on the bottom deck with the windows closed!!!

I've changed my DC in a playground, on a board room table, on the pavement - needs must! Take all the kit and avoid eating prunes and lentils the meal before, you'll be fine

Crikey, some people are really not adventurous at all.

It's a short tourist trip on a boat. It's not sailing out into huge breakers on Tom Hanks' raft in Castaway. 😂😂

I have never been able to understand how you do lap changes when posters mention them. I assume their laps are larger than mine! But mine were in pull ups from 1 and I changed them standing.

This seems like a lot of worry for nothing. You're 2 fully competent parents and it's just one 2 year old for 90 minutes!

He'll love it.

Presume it is a seal watching trip or similar. 90 mins will fly by and you should hand him over to your husband/partner to hang onto when you get on board. Whether it's poo or this morning's weetabix, time for him to do some active parenting by the sound of it.

Personally, I'd be considering a trip to a coffee shop with a book and leaving him to it unless the weather is reasonably calm and sunny. Bleddy Baltic.

Your toddler will be fine.

No some people aren’t - and that’s ok. It is my idea of hell being on a boat and the OP partner hasn’t thought it through about how it will work with a 2 year old

that said I do think the reality of the boat is going to be different to what the OP thinks

The changing situation wouldn’t bother me, it’s easily done even in a challenging situation. I would be more concerned about sea sickness though. It’s horrible being stuck on a boat with a small sick-drenched child (ask me how I know). I’d be thinking about meds, not nappies. Also, it will be way colder than you imagine.

You could call the company and see if they have a shorter trip you could swap it for.

And I’m saying this as an adventurous mum and granny, with a lot of sailing, mountain hiking, skiing etc experience.

I have two dc's. I never changed a nappy on my lap.

Having to remain seated sounds like a nightmare waiting to happen. He won't sit down and you'll be wrestling a ratty toddler on the boat. Is it even family friendly?