In thinking mother and baby places should not be used by those without children not pregnant etc and then laugh about it treating it as a joke!!

[2luvlyboys]

PILs park in the mother and baby space all the time as a matter of course using the fact they have a child seat in there as an excuse!! Never take my dcs shopping never why would they? That is very very unreasonable imo and makes me ! They have been challanged about it and they say they make a joke about they left the kids at home!
Observant ones will notice I put this on another thread but then thought it deserves an aibu in its own right iyswim!

The argument that "we coped for years without them" can be applied to pretty much everything. Marla, there are always ways around things - the point I am making is that these spaces make life a bit easier. And no, I don't leave DS alone in the car even for a minute - not in the car park or in petrol stations.

Choices of how to shop -

Battle at the very front of the shop with kids ad possibly buggy and more stuff we just don't need to take and struggle to reverese out of the space as it is so busy at the fron tof the store with people..

Park at the back of the store and have more room and easier and quieter to park, just a bit further to walk

Shop online and get shopping delivered

Shop by yourself without kids and do the shop in half the time

Starve to death

Shop locally every day and walk there

The choice is there whether you are disabled or able bodied. My comments about shopping online were not aimed at any type of person, just saying that it is 2008 and we have more choices in how we choose to shop.

I usually have to wait for a disbled space at my local sainsburys or tesco, I assure you they are certainly lots of them empty down here, as someone said earlier.

Ok I see 3andnomore, thanks for explaining.

I agree that parents with disabled dc could do their shopping online (and many do), however the logisitical frustrations of parking with a small babe are very temporary, whereas caring for a disabled person has no limited timeframe, it will always be more difficult to go shopping. I think many parents of disabled children (or disabled adults themselves), really do know the meaning of the word housebound, as they are experiencing it.

"We don't need them actually - we got by without them for years and years."

This could be used as an argument for the abolishment of anything recently invented that makes life easier including disabled parking spaces, washing machines, fridges, maternity leave etc.

Personally I just wish they made all parking spaces bigger.

So do you really hold your child while filling you car with petrol? I'm amazed, have never seen this.

3and - i certainly would never begrudge a person with a blue badge a P&T space if the blue badge spaces were full. I have, in fact, on several occasions offered the last P&T space to someone with a blue badge who's been circling around (not that they need my permission but YKWIM i hope).

I chose to have babies. They didn't choose to have a disability.

I can think of a number of things that could happen but would prefer not to. Yes, we can cope without all these things but they have been introduced over the years in response to a need - not about anyone being precious, just about making life easier for people if at all possible.

"So do you really hold your child while filling you car with petrol? I'm amazed, have never seen this."

Me neither

Gangle - You still haven't answered my question so I'll ask again.

What do you think is going to happen to your ds while you leave him in a locked car for less than a minute while you get a trolley/fill your car with petrol/pay for petrol?

theSuburbanDryad - I'm all for leaving the dc in the car for the whole shop, would make it much easier. However I think SS would have something to say about it

Ooh, apologies for x-post.

If you can think of what would happen, please enlighten me. Cause I can't think of anything!!

No I don't hold him whilst filling the car with petrol but if I step away from the car, e.g to go and pay, then I take him with me, even if just away just a minute. Lets not go down the route of, it's your choice to have kids - that can also be applied to everything!

Pmsl Libra. I think my ds would prefer to be left in the car than dragged round Tescos. Although then he wouldn't get his bribery raisins/cheese! (Yes - I bribe my child with cheese to go round the supermarket! Clap me in irons instantly!! )

But WHY? Can't you see that you're making life so much harder for yourself? (I used to do Pay @ Pump when ds was tiny and I couldn't bear to be separated from him for a second! )

Now I understand Gangle, you will have very strong arms by the time your ds is walking

I had never seen parent and child parking until I moved to the UK. It is a very recent thing here in Australia. Strangely a lot of the spaces are not larger - so no extra room in width but are a bit longer - guess for when you are collapsing the buggy ready to go in the boot or are loading shopping with child still sitting in the boot.

You can complain all you like about not having a p and t or P and C space BUT unlike disabled spaces they are not legally enforceable and are provided as a courtesy as the shops want you in there to spend your money.

If I have dd1 and I cannot get a disabled space - then I will use a parent and pram space as they are called over here. If I cannot use one of those, then we have to go home. It is not an inconvenience if I do not get a car space - like other parents who may have children with special needs it means the difference between getting a shopping trip sorted or not. I do tend to do the grocery shopping at night when dh is at home or during the day when dd1 is at school.

HedgeWitch - you forgot:

The car could roll backwards as Gangle forgot to put the handbrake on due to sleep deprivation (or was that just me?)

ok, if I have to spell it out. The main scenarios I'm thinking of are someone could hit/reserve into the car or someone nicking the car with the baby in it.

I ws just thinking that anonandlikeit

here where I live in Aus I do not have the luxury of shopping online - I wish i did but it is not available here.

actually, funny you say that but I have the most amazing pair of biceps since having DS, currently 16lbs 15oz.