Would you leave 15month old alone in room for 30 mins?

[LUCIA22]

My DP has just admitted to me that when he is looking after DD 15months old whilst working from home, he will sometimes shut her in the living room if he has to take an important phone call. This could be anything up to30 mins. This has really upset me. It is only for one day a week but he doesnt seem to see how risky this is, he thinks I worry too much. He has agreed to put her in the play pen in the future but I am so upset that he sees leaving her like this acceptable. he says he has no other option as he cant afford to risk losing a customer. What would you do?

Thanks for your feedback. I dont feel so bad about the playpen idea now. I know it is not ideal but hopefully it wont happen very often. He is a mortgage broker and as you can guess business is thin on the ground at the moment, if he gets an enquiry he cant risk it. People can often decide to go elsewhere if they think they are not getting your full attention, which is fair enough. I know that DD welfare comes first but when the rent needs paying its difficult. He is thinking of changing career now due to the market crashing & probably wont be working from home so it will all have to change. In the meantime I am trying not to worry about her but still feeling guilty that I am not there to give her 100% attention that I would like to.

i cant leave my 14 month old unattended in the living room while i go to the loo! never mind 30 minutes. i turn my back for a second and i have dd1 shouting "look mum dd2 is eating the cds/trying to get upstairs/chasing the dog/climbing up the fire/throwing toys at the tv..........."

oh god how i love my playpen!

No way.

She needs to be in sight as much as possible.

Can't he make his important calls when she sleeps?

No - no more than 5 minutes at most (and usually a lot less) whilst I nip upstairs/go to the loo etc etc. Crikey, mine would have destroyed a room in 30 minutes!

Bit random but do you have a conservatory? If so, could you baby proof it/put play pen in it so if he gets a call he can put her there (with loads of toys, dvd etc)? That way he could take the call in silence, see she is safe and most importantly, she can still see him. My dd (12m) is happy playing by herself as long as I am in her line of sight. Otherwise, could you put a glass door on the room she is left in if it's going to be a long term thing? He could maybe get her a toy phone and 'talk' to her through the glass to difuse things when he goes out of the room?

Absolutely no way! It's impossible to work from home without organising proper childcare. At best, your DH is neglecting his dd (and possibly his clients) and at worst, she could hurt herself badly while unattended.