AIBU to wait on steps with my injured child outside flats?

[Mammababa4]

So this morning I was meeting a friend in central London with my 4 children for breakfast then to go to a museum. My children are 7, 5, 3 and newborn.
While walking from the station to the breakfast spot my 5 year old little girl fell over, she had a bloody knee and twisted her ankle, I called my friend to ask if she could come meet us with some plasters and help me carry DD back to the station as she wasn’t going to be able to walk around a museum, my friend said sure and she would be there in 10 minutes.
DD was really struggling to put weight on her ankle so I sat her down on the steps of an apartment building. It had double doors and DD is only small so she wasn’t taking up the whole steps.

First 2 people came out, I apologised they were fine and went off to stand at the side. Then another man came out, and I told DD to bring her hand in so he didn’t step on it, but before DD got a chance he stood on her hand, she’s fine but obviously it really hurt. The man immediately swore in French (maybe thinking I don’t speak any French), then told me to move her from the steps. One of the people who had come out before came over and apologised for his swearing and told him to leave it, he was clearly angry though.
I explained to them DD is injured im waiting for a friend and we won’t be long.
A few minutes later another 3 came down clearly part of the same group I was trying to make sure all the kids stayed away from the road while comforting DD. As they open the door I said oh watch we are here. Again they told me she shouldn’t be sat there, so I explained again. None the less the man from early came back over to tell me I was being selfish and inconsiderate but the rest of his group seemed to shuffle him along. Two of them came back and asked if they could help/apologised for the man’s behaviour but said they could help me move DD around the corner where there is a small park/garden with benches. I declined as I didn’t feel comfortable with a stranger carrying DD. The man who had a very strong accent then muttered something about it being inconsiderate for me to keep blocking the door when I’d be offered helped but they walked away.

WIBU?

He was being rude. That said, I probably would have tried to move to a bench at some point, but more for my/ my DD’s own comfort than his convenience.

Blocking a doorway is intrusive and rude.

I understand your DD was injured but she was obstructing people from moving freely.

He was a twat. Not making any excuses at all, maybe he's fed up of his front door being blocked by tourists every time he goes in and out of the building, who knows.

I would have moved to the park if someone had offered help however.

‘Oh watch we are here’ on the steps of someone else’s apartment block is quite rude. She should have been sitting to the side where she was not in the way at any point

I wasn’t initially aware there were benches around the corner, and even when I knew I didn’t want a stranger to carry DD, I’d have struggled to carry her myself while pushing the pram and keeping my other children safe/away from doors etc.
I don’t know if it was over protective of me to not accept their help though.

He was very rude but it was his home and it would have been sensible to move your DD somewhere else after the first incident with the angry man.

You shouldn't be blocking the exit of an apartment building; people want/need to get out.
You were in the wrong.

bit harsh

to have a snack or make a phone call, yes it's very rude
A little kid with a bloody knee, it's annoying but it's not such a big deal.

Ridiculous fuss for adults to make over avoiding an injured child for a few minutes. YANBU

He was being rude but I can see where he is coming from. I have an issue with steps and stairs so trying to go down while avoid your daughter would be a struggle for me and quite likely fall.

I would have moved her to the bench when you became aware of them. I would have asked one of the people who offered help to push the pram while you carried if you did not want them to do the carrying.

I’m sure you could have managed to sit anywhere rather than on someone’s doorstep. It’s inconsiderate, and clearly, as your child got stepped on, unsafe.

Were you planning to squat there long term? Were you targeting that building for some sort of protest? Were you spraying fascist statements onto the wall of the building? What the fuck is wrong with people? A little girl hurts her leg and sits with her mummy for a few minutes. The only reason to stop would be to offer help, sympathy or sweets (in a non weird way) I hope she is ok. Sorry people are so mean.

If you didn't say london I would've wondered if this was my block. Yes she was blocking the stairs etc etc but she was a young child that was injured. Where is the compassion in this world ? Hope dd is ok ?

It's irrelevant now, but have you got a buggy board?

newborn in the pram, one child on the board, 7 yo is more than old enough to hang onto you, and one hand for the 3 year old.

Or carrying newborn and asking someone to push the pram.

You are a mum of 4, you must be used to juggle them. Just the station is a pain in the neck with young kids.

Like where? On the pavement would surely be worse.

If adults have difficulty negotiating the stairs they could use their words and ask the mum to move the child so they could get past.

This doesn't sound like what was happening. They sound like rude arseholes.

OP some people are just twats. Don't give them any more headspace. Hope you manage to enjoy your day.

I used to have a buggy board but it was broken, my 3 year old is a good walker so I haven’t replaced it yet and I wasn’t expecting to need to carry any of my children while I was alone.
Upon reflection I should have done better contingency planning but it was the first outing with all 4 children so I’m working on seeing what I need to do differently now.

This is where a buggy board on the pram
even if you don’t use it much is very useful especially with children of those ages. She could have sat on it or stood on it so you could get to where you needed to go.

What would you have done if you didn’t have a friend coming? I assume you’d if had to
get to a shop or a cafe or something? Got a taxi?

I think waiting where you did for a few minutes is fine. But I probably would have moved after the angry man.

The man deliberately stood on your child's hand?! What did you do about that? I would have lost my shit. No you shouldn't have been there but if it was my apartment I would have tried to help not stand on a childs hand. He's a bully.

I'd quickly have got the message that the steps weren't a good idea and moved to a wall or bench etc. I feel like it's not allowed to be said, but it doesn't sound like you can manage 4 little ones on your own in central London as demonstrated by how screwed you are as soon as something like this happens.

And that's not me throwing shade, I live in London and wouldn't go into town when mine were that little and I only had two. You're obviously braver, but I see parents having all kinds of stresses with prams and tots and think 4 including a newborn on your own is asking for trouble. Random folk - like this guy - are rude and unhelpful, that's part of London whatever their accent. I'm away at a city up north currently and people are way nicer and more helpful, and it's massively less busy and stressful. People would be more understanding here, but there, YABU. Don't sit on steps and not expect to get stepped on/piss people off. You have to look out for your own kids, everyone else is looking out for themselves.

Wow you're getting some right dickhead responses here OP
The whole world could do with showing a little more compassion to each other and that's what was clearly lacking in this situation.
If I came across a woman on her own with four children, one of then injured, and they were 'in my way' I'd be checking to see if she needed any assistance and doing my best to squeeze past without causing any more harm - who the fuck stands on a child's hand!!!

no need to go overboard either, who on earth is going to stop to "express sympathy" or offer sweets in central London? It's not the Little House on the Prairie, respect people's space 😂

I don’t think it was deliberate, I don’t think he has seen her and she had her hand up by the threshold which I hadn’t noticed as I was trying to keep my other children away from the road, by the time I noticed the door opening and told DD to move her hand it was too late. That was on me, I was overwhelmed and struggling to keep an eye on everyone at once.
The swearing and his behaviour afterward though I have a problem with but didn’t want to get into a fight in front of my children.

If you found a whole family sitting on your front doorstep getting in the way of you getting in and out of your home just because their child had grazed their knee you’d probably be put out too. Just because it’s on a road in central London doesn’t make it less of private property.

No one should have been aggressively rude to you but unless it’s “waiting for an ambulance” level injured I’d have expected you to move once it was obvious you were in the way.

Then the helper could have pushed the buggy. It really wasn't sensible to keep DD on the steps when it was obvious that she was in the way and in danger of being injured further.

I think because there were quite a few of you, you were unfortunately seen as a hindrance and people weren't able to see why you were 'loitering' outside their block. They probably thought you were just stopping to let the kids rest or just generally wandering aimlessly and in no hurry, not noticing that a child was hurt.
I think I would have tried to move everyone along, as unless you thought the ankle was broken then I would have tried to get the child to hobble along.