What do you do when....

[MrsKitty]

you are in your place of work (so you need to conduct yourself in a professional manner) and you see people display just god awful examples of parenting?

I know that as an employee of the store they are shopping in, it is not my place to say anything. Sometimes I go in the back till they leave because it bothers me to watch. I would never actually confront anyone, it just grates on my nerves.

Mothers swearing at their children, mothers bottle propping in a bucket carseat for an infant that can't be older then a month and leaving their child in the carseat while they walk around the store, having a mother snap at me "ring my clothes through the till faster my kids are sleeping in the car" (these ones I would have called the police for if I had the license plate) a mother smacking a child in the face because he didn't follow her fast enough, parents yanking children up by the arms so fast you can almost hear their elbow click..

I did call the police once when 8 people got into a 5 person car with no carseats with the children on the laps of adults, one in the front seat.

I was tempted to print out this (http://209.85.173.104/search?q=cache:uHdAteDnSIgJ:intermountainhealthcar e.org/xp/public/documents/pcmc/bottlepropping.pdf+bottle+propping&hl=en&ct=clnk&cd=1&gl=ca&client=firefox-a) yesterday, highlight the part about choking, and slip it into someones stroller. But again, I would never do that.

[Flutterby]

:( Its hard to witness terrible parenting and not be able to say anything about it. We had some 'friends' who were like that. I never knew what or if I should say anything.

[MrsKitty]

If a friend was bottle propping (formula or breast milk it wouldn't make a difference) I might gently suggest some literature to them that explained about the dangers of bottle propping. But I see it maybe once a week at the store and I can't say anything. I often wonder if they just don't know that it is potentially dangerous, and that they would really appreciate it if someone gave them that information.. but you can't say stuff like that.

[CatSoup]

It sucks but anything you could say to those kind of people would be blown off anyway. In some cases it would make their resolve to parent badly stronger. When I was a teenager my boyfriend told a guy he should have his kid buckled up and the guy threatened him with an ass kicking and said, "It's muy kid and I'll do whut I want!" Imagine a hillbilly accent there.

[CatSoup]

If a friend was bottle propping (formula or breast milk it wouldn't make a difference) I might gently suggest some literature to them that explained about the dangers of bottle propping. But I see it maybe once a week at the store and I can't say anything. I often wonder if they just don't know that it is potentially dangerous, and that they would really appreciate it if someone gave them that information.. but you can't say stuff like that.

I don't do it but I thought that was only dangerous unsupervised.

[jessiehannan]

:hug: I know it has to be stressful, but there isn't much you can do.

[SarahFae]

I want to cry every time this woman comes through with her 10 month old daughter and gets her a ham with ranch and mayo (no veggies) and then chips and pop. They eat in the store, so I know it's for the lil one and not another kid at home.

[TuetonicWillow]

Bottle propping or even swearing/yelling at kids isn't something I'd ever try to 'correct' someone about. I wouldn't speak up for most spanking, either. I don't have to agree with everything everyone does. If it's legal, I have no right to say something about it. I'd take issue with an empoyee taking such liberties.

Knowing a child isn't in a car seat is different. I'd stand behind an employee that called the police on that.