Active discussions

Meet the Other Phone. A phone that grows with your child.

Meet the Other Phone.
A phone that grows with your child.

Buy now

Please or to access all these features

Talk
AIBU?

Share your dilemmas and get honest opinions from other Mumsnetters.

Original poster

to leave the children home alone for 5 mins

117 replies

nancydrewrocks · 27/01/2010 15:16

DD is 5, DS is 3.10.

I am staying with my sister at the moment. The only arrangement for parking is using two hour visitor spaces at the bottom of her road (there is no access to the road either for pedestrians or cars at the other end - may or may by relevant depending on paranoia level)

So if we are in the house I have to move the car every two hours (so maybe twice in an afternoon).

AIBU to leave them unattended in the house for 5 mins whilst I move the car?

OP posts:
JodieO · 27/01/2010 15:19

YABU

Sazisi · 27/01/2010 15:19

At those ages I wouldn't leave them.

Hassled · 27/01/2010 15:19

Probably fine re the DCs (tho' certainly pushing it at 3.10), but the parking set up is the most unreasonable thing I've ever heard of. What do people living there do? There has to be a better parking space somewhere nearby.

WhoIsAsking · 27/01/2010 15:20

I wouldn't.

theagedparent · 27/01/2010 15:21

Yabu, I wouldn't leave children that young on their own.

FabIsGoingToBeFabIn2010 · 27/01/2010 15:22

Why not take them with you to move the car?

An unnecessary risk imo.

Original poster
nancydrewrocks · 27/01/2010 15:25

hassled it is the biggest pain in the arse you can imagine. Sis and her bf each have a car rule is two permits per house. They are non transferable so I couldn't use theirs on my car as the reg wouldn't match IYSWIM. they are entitled to 20 day permits a year but are out due to having had building work that overan. Issue is non negotiable as far as parking office are concerned.

I went to the parking office today and was told I can rent a space about 1/3 mile away for £450 per annum - I'm only here for three weeks!

OP posts:
IBlameThePMT · 27/01/2010 15:26

Probably would leave them if it was peeing down and they were engrossed in telly and it really was a simple in and out job.

waitingforbedtime · 27/01/2010 15:29

yabu

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:35

because you are asking you have doubts. listen to your instinct.

Original poster
nancydrewrocks · 27/01/2010 15:37

fab I have been taking them over the last couple of days. Trouble is what is a 5 min (max) outing for me is a full scale mission with my two:

Coat on, hat on, can't find a glove, DD needs to find umbrella, DS: "I need to take my soldier" ad infinitum slow dawdle down road with me repeatedly shouting through gritted teeth "will you just hurry up", cross road, get to car, coat off to get 5 point harness done up, strap in, move two spaces, out of car, coat back on, "i'm cold", "can I have chocolate" (did I mention passing the dreaded crner shop) back to house, pouring with rain, left umbrella in car - "lets leave it" DD cries, back to car, slow dawdle up road into house soaking wet "I'm cold" - ARGHHHHHHHHHHHHH.

Me coat on, jog, move car, jog 3 back before they've had chance to think.

OP posts:
humptynumpty · 27/01/2010 15:39

nancy can't sister or bf either watch the kids or move the car for you to help out a bit?

rasputin · 27/01/2010 15:42

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:43

poster - lust because it is difficult to take them does not make it ok to leave them.

ToccataAndFudge · 27/01/2010 15:43

well I would go for a sh*t and leave a 5 and nearly 4yr old together, and that probably takes me longer than 5 minutes......so yes I probably would

Parking thing sounds horrendous though!

rasputin · 27/01/2010 15:44

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:44

you should only leave them if you really feel it is OK and safe.

rasputin · 27/01/2010 15:45

This reply has been deleted

Message withdrawn at poster's request.

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:45

rasputin - toccata said WOULD -

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:46

It would have been amusing if she had have written wouldnt and meant it - can you imagine?!

StealthPolarBear · 27/01/2010 15:48

how would you all feel if this was a baby?

nappyaddict · 27/01/2010 15:48

YANBU. I don't really think that is leaving them home alone TBH. I spend longer than that putting the rubbish out, hanging out the washing, cleaning the windows, gardening, loading up or unloading the car etc.

eggontoast · 27/01/2010 15:51

Stealth - I would think that most would say unreasonable to leave a baby for more than nipping to the loo??

Original poster
nancydrewrocks · 27/01/2010 15:52

Ironically the chances of leaving them alone so I could use the bathroom in peace are non existant - the pair of them can happily play for hours without so much as a word to me but if I head to the bathroom suddenly I am in demand. This increases tenfold if I am on period!

eggontoast I don't have doubts but I am not so naive as to not realise this is considered very bad form - esp on MN so just curious as to how bad really!

They're not 100% safe in the house but I would guess that the chances of us being run over on way to car ar less remote than house spontaneously combusting or similar.

humpty sis and BF work full time - by the time they return parking restrictions no longer in force so no problem.

OP posts:
StealthPolarBear · 27/01/2010 15:52

the reason I ask is because there was a thread like this just before Christmas where the OP was saying she couldn't unload her shopping from the car parked a little way down the street because she had a baby, and the general consensus was she was being stupid