To go swimming in the sea whilst the kids are in bed?

[Maezzle]

We live by the sea. It is fifteen metres through the garden from the door to the edge of the water. It is a safe place to swim and we are good swimmers.

Are we unreasonable to go for a fifteen minute swim once the kids (preschool) are asleep? They never wake. We would have a friend lined up who would come and babysit if they don't hear from us after half an hour (in case of shark attack or other unforeseen event)!

Basically the only risk is a house fire. We would not have any appliances running and the house would never be more than 30 metres away and in full view. Window open so we'd hear smoke alarm.

I feel like this should be acceptable as it's basically like having a swimming pool in your garden. But for some reason I feel it isn't okay, but I don't know why!

What would you do?

YABU you should be locked up for even thinking of it.
YANBU it's just like a swimming pool, it's fine.

It wasn't just a movie, it was the news - everyone forgotten Maddie?

The McCann left their three very young children on their own whilst being very nearby having dinner, and because of that Madeline disappeared. Also, you had the mother of the very young two set of twins left on their own whilst she popped to the shop, in the meantime a fire started and all four boys died.

You MUST know YABU @Maezzle FGS. 🙄

'The sea is like a swimming pool.......' said no-one ...... ever

Won’t be electrics in the house? Like you’re unplugging fridge, washing machine, tv, microwave, night lights…
Children are unpredictable, they get so scared and agitated if they wake up.
Im not one to judge as I most of the times, I got the motherly instict of a quokka…but I think this is gotta be a joke.

I actually know someone who drowned in the sea, she was an excellent swimmer and had done it hundreds of times before but this one day she got caught in an unexpected rip tide! Anything can happen and 30minutes is a long time for small children to be alone! Why risk it?

You are being totally unreasonable. These are very small children. You say they never wake up ,but that doesn't mean they never will.
Take it in turns and stop being so thoughtless.

Can't they have a sleepover at grandma's for you to have your romantic lagoon/sea swim?

I mean, you must have had doubts, otherwise why ask.
And because the resounding answer is yes you are being unreasonable, you really don’t need to get so defensive.
you should have just done it, it’s clearly what you wanted to do.

Is there two of you? Sorry I can’t see where you’ve answered this?
if so then clearly don’t be selfish. You have children. Their safety comes first and if you want a romantic time in the sea then a babysitter SITS IN THE HOUSE.

Of course it's not. If you are not posting this as a joke then my thoughts and fears are with your children and their future parenting.

Yeah of course its fine, why not stop for tapas too after your swim? 🙄

They could start being sick and choke on it. Very unlikely anything bad would occur, but say it did, would you comfortably tell an emergency worker or social worker that you left them alone just to suit yourself?

Gerry and Kate McCann joke? 😅

Nutter

It’s absolutely nothing like having a swimming pool in your back garden. What on earth would make you even think that’s a reasonable thing to say. Even when asleep, young children need an adult in the house.

Top comment 🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣

I’m concerned about your house being so close to the sea.

Imagine the outrage if 2 preschoolers died because their parents left them alone in the house to go fuck in a lagoon.

why ask if you already know what’s safe/acceptable ?

& OP I have a preschooler who I would say “never wakes during the night”….unless he has chicken pox…or covid…or a vomiting big…or any other illness that makes him feel terrible then of course he wakes up needing meds and comfort. Your kids can’t possibly actually “never” wake up during the night.

So you’re going off for 15 minutes whether that is in the sea, to a neighbours or the shop. 15 minutes! it takes 1 minute for someone to break into your house, 5 minutes for house to engulfed in a fire. And you’re leaving your kids willingly for 15 minutes. This is wrong on all levels. You are not there, within sight and sound of the house, and your children, and a neighbour raising the alarm 30 mins after your non return is quite scary.

Don’t do this. You wouldn’t see or hear someone creep in a door or a window on the opposite side of the house, or if they were ill or had an accident - you couldn’t take a baby monitor in the sea.

FGS don’t do that !
take turns

Rule of thumb I used with my kids. I can go as far as A, they can see me, B I can see them or C, I can hear them. They are now 30 with their own child and never have I ever left them, even abroad, I walked the edge of the pools when they went swimming, I put them to bed and had drinks on the balcony when it was their bedtime. All because I chose to have children which means putting your wants aside for the safety of those children.

I work for the emergency services. I hear every shift how lives change in a moment.

one situation I heard was when a mum ran herself a bath, stepped out into the garden for a cigarette and came back to find her young child had fallen in and was drowning. Luckily she got there in time.

another mum left their children to go to the end of the street to the corner shop and came home to a house fire - the kids weren’t as lucky as the first example I gave.

your child could wake up ill and be scared when they can’t find you

your child could fall out of bed and be injured

thore are so many risks and a reason why it’s not ok to leave children that age unattended.

you’ve take precautions if something happens to you, but you have not mentioned any precautions you’ve taken to protect them.

Do better. ask yourself if that swim in the sea is worth your child’s life. Then take it in turns.