Could NOT Disagree More
I'm a little behind on this but apparently Babble and Parents magazine have articles about parents who use a leash for a child. Why is EVERYTHING a judgment?? Why do we have to hold parenting choices out there as if our opinions matter at all? One of the quotes is:
“Here’s what I think of people who leash their children: I’m not going to go so far as to call them bad parents, but I will call them lazy parents.” Erinbehan, Babble.com author
Really? That bad? Wow. How about the parent whose child has autism or an autism spectrum disorder that needs some freedom but will tender to wander off regularly? Or how about the toddlers that shriek in the presence of a stroller but are perfectly happy to have a cute backpack on? Toddlers have no idea that they should be ashamed. It's adults who place that shame and label on them.
Or how about me, a paranoid parent that has read one too many articles and seen one too many TV news reports of children going missing? I haven't used a leash on either of my children but we are thinking about going to a large amusement park this summer. There is an excellent chance I will be buying leashes just in case we need them and I won't feel even the slightest bit bad about it. The safety of my two kids is worth way more than a little bit of embarrassment in the scheme of things. And that most definitely is not lazy parenting.
posted by Brandy at 10:20:00 AM
3 Comments:
When we went to Disneyland when Aiden was 4, we put a harness and leash on him. He didn't care a bit, and I didn't have to worry about him running off, and I really didn't have to worry about becoming the screaming, angry mom at Disneyland. He would see something that drew his attention, and he would dash off. because I was holding his leash, I had no problem with him running, and I would just hold on and run with him. This way I never had to worry about losing him, and he had the freedom to run to things he wanted to see. One of my favorite memories is actually when he saw pluto for the first time and ran full tilt for him to say hi, get his autograph, and get his picture taken with him. We just ran along with him. Had he not been leashed, we would have gotten less enjoyment out of the trip, with all the worry about him taking off, or getting lost in the crowds, or anything else that can happen.
We are getting ready to go to Disneyland again, and I bought brand new harnesses, mostly because I don't know where the original one is. I bought one for Ciera(2) and Aiden, who will be 6 during our trip, we are going for his 6th birthday. We had him try on his harness the other day when it showed up, and it's a jeep harness. he is actually excited about it. Yeah, he's six and it's probably overkill, but it's one way to make sure that I don't have to stress out, and as before, I will run behind whomever is running, and know that they are getting an awesome experience without us yelling at them for being excited.
These have evolved over the years to a different style, which I honestly think is why there is so much uproar.
When my two oldest were little (17 mos. apart) they were always shooting off in different directions. I found these wonderful bracelet type things that were connected by a long strap. One went on the boys wrist, and one went on mine. They were brilliant. I didn't use them often, but the times I did, when we were in crowds and chaotic places, they kept me sane, and I was able to enjoy myself.
I did get a few looks, but I also knew my kids were safe, and that outweighed any negative vibes I got from total strangers that didn't mind their own business :-)
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