Dear old ladies at the Crate and Barrel outlet store,
you probably don't remember me, but you do remember my friend and her daughter. You know, the lady who looked sort of stressed out and the two-year-old who was sitting in her stroller crying unconsolably? Remember, they were standing by the register waiting for the clerk to check if the bowl they wanted to purchase was in stock? I was wandering through the store, browsing when I ran into you and overheard you complaining about California, and about how there was no discipline with these parents nowadays.
Do you realize how asinine that complaint was? Would you mind getting back to me with how exactly you expected my friend to discipline her two-year-old to get her to stop crying?
Let me tell you what you were witnessing: A child's reaction to discipline. Thaaaaaat's right. You see, my friend's daughter wanted to get out of her stroller and walk around. The rule is that as long as she listens and comes when her mother calls her, she may walk. If she runs off and doesn't listen, she has to sit back in the stroller. Just before we came in, the girl very nearly ran out into the parking lot, so she was DISCIPLINED for that by having to sit in the stroller.
Next time you don't know what's going on, I recommend you put a sock in it.
Thanks!
Monday, July 31, 2006
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5 comments:
I'm hoping you take this as a compliment:
You are gonna rock as a mama.
And a mommyblogger.
When/if that all happens.
That's a huge compliment. I might actually be blushing just now.
I've been in this situation, it sucks, the looks of disapproval from other women, where's the support when you really need it? Yeah, put a sock in it Crate and Barrel clerks!
Okay, good that she was discipling the kid, because that's what mothers are supposed to do. I believe the two women's complaints were misdirected.
That said, if your child is screaming and making a scene in public, for God's sake, LEAVE. Take the screaming child away. Crate and Barrel isn't your living room or your kitchen, it's a public place where most of the people trying to go about their day and shop don't want to have to listen to your child's earsplitting screams while you work out its behaviour issues.
How do parents not understand that? It seems so simple ...
Amanda - hi! Just making sure... it was two customers I overheard. The clerks were just rolling their eyes silently ;)
Hi anonymous. I might not have been very clear about this in my post, but my friend was waiting for the store clerk to check on whether or not the bowl she wanted was in stock. I agree with you that parents have the responsibility to "share the public space" with others just as much as everybody else. My major beef with those two ladies was that they were talking about disciplining a toddler for crying, not that they were bothered by it. I didn't particularly enjoy the experience myself!
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