Playground Stress

cedenton · March 2014

Does anyone else find that taking your kid, especially a young one, to the playground is stressful? I added to the stress by being an idiot and taking my dog.

DH works every other weekend so I'm usually there as a solo parent. I can't be at the top and the bottom of the slide. DS decides not wait for me to get to the bottom and goes flying down like a greased pig doing a roll at the end and ultimately landing on his tummy. He didn't even cry, but still...

Then there's always those couple of areas on the equipment where they can just step off and I visualize horrible things because there are metal bars

While I'm trying to coax him to a safe area I look over and there are two kids sitting in our wagon (maybe 2 & 4). The two year old is drinking out of DS' sippy cup. After I finally wrangle DS off the equipment with only a small tantrum, I go over to the kids and just as I'm about to say something the older one gives me a pitiful look and asks if I can help him out. They buckled themselves in and couldn't get out. SMH.

Where were their parents? In their car in the parking lot. Sleeping or playing on their phone.

Please, tell me, that I'm not the only one who finds the playground stressful.

Rach7170 · March 2014

Yeah. The other parents not watching sucks but, I cannot relate to the other stuff. When Oliver was that age I let him slide alone. Also why do you need to be at the top of the slide at all? Let him climb up and wait at the bottom if you need to.

ASmallWonder · March 2014

At that age I was more concerned with being behind him as he climbed up than at the bottom. The worst that's going to happen is he hits the ground with a little speed from about a foot up vs potentially falling far from atop the ladder.

Sad about those other kids though. No way would I ever leave my kids alone like that. I don't even know how old they'll be before I'm ok with that.

cedenton · March 2014

Rach7170 said:

Yeah. The other parents not watching sucks but, I cannot relate to the other stuff. When Oliver was that age I let him slide alone. Also why do you need to be at the top of the slide at all? Let him climb up and wait at the bottom if you need to.

Because of the places where he could (and totally would) just walk off the equipment and bust his chin on a metal bar. Otherwise, I wouldn't worry and just be at the bottom. Also, there were a bunch of older kids running all over the equipment like maniacs not caring if a little kid was around or not.

RondackHiker · March 2014

It is stressful. I don't bring my dog if I'm alone and i don't know the playground well. I want to be able to help DS climb and play and chase and I also want to feel like I can protect my dog.

He's got the patience of a saint but that doesn't mean it's okay for unattended kids to crawl all over him and yank on his ears. And when I've said something to kids in the past the parent usually gets defensive and says, "but my kid just LOVES dogs!" Well, don't let them abuse my poor beast, thanks.

I did a lot of walks and geocaching alone. Or we'd go to a park where we could walk and run and chase each other around paths and fields and we'd end up spending less time at the playground there.

cedenton · March 2014

fredalina said:

If you stay at the bottom, you can put your hand up to stop him at those open places and maybe catch him if he falls. Relax a little and let him play, just be there underneath until you feel he has the agility to do it himself. I always found the playground to be fun rather than stressful. And I don't think kids playing in a wagon is a big deal. Could have happened if mom and dad had been nearby. Can't imagine sleeping in my car while my kid played, but by 2 or so I didn't follow every step she made either. By 3 I could sit and watch. By 4 she was riding bikes or scooters off outside my immediate line of sight.

Good point @fredalina. I tried to keep him on the equipment that only had one of those open areas. He kept wanting to go on the bigger equipment that had multiple open areas on both sides and throwing a tantrum when I tried to redirect him to the more age appropriate equipment. Toddlers, yo.

Yeah, I wouldn't have been upset about the kids in the wagon if there had been a parent around trying to redirect them or get them out. I mean, I wasn't freaking out that they got in and not "mad" at the kids, but a parent should have been paying enough attention so it didn't get to the point of being buckled in and drinking out of DS' sippy. It seems like there's always at least one kid at the playground with no supervision ruining it for everyone else.

cedenton · March 2014

RondackHiker said:

It is stressful. I don't bring my dog if I'm alone and i don't know the playground well. I want to be able to help DS climb and play and chase and I also want to feel like I can protect my dog. He's got the patience of a saint but that doesn't mean it's okay for unattended kids to crawl all over him and yank on his ears. And when I've said something to kids in the past the parent usually gets defensive and says, "but my kid just LOVES dogs!" Well, don't let them abuse my poor beast, thanks. I did a lot of walks and geocaching alone. Or we'd go to a park where we could walk and run and chase each other around paths and fields and we'd end up spending less time at the playground there.

Yeah @RondackHiker. I was feeling guilty because the dog hasn't gotten as much attention since DS was born, but he will NOT be going to the playground again, certainly not unless DH is with me. He barks and then I end up holding him and I only have one hand free. That was a big park of the stress for sure.

robyn2201 · March 2014

I always worry about the big kids plowing LO over, especially when it's the 10 year olds who should be playing on the big kid set and not on the little kid set.

I would suggest you do like what Fredalina suggested, stand on the ground and when he goes over to the open area stop him and turn him around. I think you will find it less stressful than trying to follow him and be at the bottom of the slide at the same time.

cedenton · March 2014

WhoCanItBeNow said:

cedenton said:

fredalina said:

If you stay at the bottom, you can put your hand up to stop him at those open places and maybe catch him if he falls. Relax a little and let him play, just be there underneath until you feel he has the agility to do it himself. I always found the playground to be fun rather than stressful. And I don't think kids playing in a wagon is a big deal. Could have happened if mom and dad had been nearby. Can't imagine sleeping in my car while my kid played, but by 2 or so I didn't follow every step she made either. By 3 I could sit and watch. By 4 she was riding bikes or scooters off outside my immediate line of sight.

Good point @fredalina. I tried to keep him on the equipment that only had one of those open areas. He kept wanting to go on the bigger equipment that had multiple open areas on both sides and throwing a tantrum when I tried to redirect him to the more age appropriate equipment. Toddlers, yo.

Yeah, I wouldn't have been upset about the kids in the wagon if there had been a parent around trying to redirect them or get them out. I mean, I wasn't freaking out that they got in and not "mad" at the kids, but a parent should have been paying enough attention so it didn't get to the point of being buckled in and drinking out of DS' sippy. It seems like there's always at least one kid at the playground with no supervision ruining it for everyone else.

LOL that you don't think a 4 year old could buckle them both in the wagon in under a minute. I was standing next to our stroller talking to another mom and her kid managed to crawl in and start drinking DS's water. Them not being close by is a big issue, but you are making the rest into a much, much bigger deal than it needs to be.

I get that they can be quick, but they were in there for a good five minutes before I wrangled DS to go talk to them. I didn't make a big deal out of it and helped them out very nicely. At no point before, during, or after did a parent make contact with them or myself. That was the frustrating part. I should have had to deal with them, their parent(s) should have. I wasn't upset about their behavior, just the lack of supervision.

To @fredalina's point I like your idea about it being a sharing lesson. The oldest kid was certainly old enough to have asked. I honestly don't know what my answer would have been as I would have been since I had my plate full and wouldn't want to worry about them, too, since they weren't being supervised. I don't think not taking the wagon is an option, it sort've defeats the purpose of buying it.

Also, by unsupervised, I mean literally no parent ANYWHERE on the playground.

ASmallWonder · March 2014

@fredalina is wise but there's a big difference between kids not being hovered over and kids not being supervised (i.e. the parents aren't close enough to see them, hear them yell, correct an action within a reasonable time frame, etc.)

LaurelBee · March 2014

Yeah, dogs and playgrounds do not mix.

aglenn · March 2014

I think part of the stress will vary dependent on the kid. DD is more cautious and I didn't worry as much about her stepping off those open spots because I knew she would stop and think about that, even as a younger kid. DS, on the other hand, plows forward at full speed at all times and has no fear, so he does make me nervous. He's getting better now (just turned 2) but in the toddler days it was stressful for me.

colliebabe · March 2014

I try to let DD be as independent as possible at the playground, but the falling off the platform thing stresses me out too. Some of the drops are really high. Hopefully she will be a little better this spring/summer, but last summer she had zero self-preservation and would give me a heart attack some days.

RondackHiker · March 2014

DS did go off the playground last spring. He jumped actually, to catch a butterfly. He did sprain his knees but it taught me that the playground surfaces are pretty well designed and squishy. He fell 8 feet and he had no serious injury.

I'm not saying not to hover by the openings... But a good playground is designed to let kids "safely fall". Be ready to catch him, but I'd stay on the ground.

ASmallWonder · March 2014

Huh, I'm surprised more people vote to be at the end of the slide vs the top. I definitely see more bad things from a top of the ladder fall.

cedenton · March 2014

RondackHiker said:

DS did go off the playground last spring. He jumped actually, to catch a butterfly. He did sprain his knees but it taught me that the playground surfaces are pretty well designed and squishy. He fell 8 feet and he had no serious injury. I'm not saying not to hover by the openings... But a good playground is designed to let kids "safely fall". Be ready to catch him, but I'd stay on the ground.

@RondackHiker

Not so much worried about him falling (it's just dirt/mulch) but all those openings go to those curved ladder things. There are metal bars for him to catch his chin or arm on. It actually makes me sick to my stomach to picture it.

I'm not a helicopter mom. I don't run over every time he falls. I let him climb up and down the stairs on his own at home. When he landed hard at the bottom of the slide I just brushed him off and we moved on. But I'm not about to let him just walk off one of those openings that go out to those metal ladders.

Obviously as a pp said I can stand at the opening and keep him from walking off. But, when the equipment has more than one on different sides of the equipment and every damn one has some sort of metal bars he could slam into on his way down, well...another pp said it...they move fast. That's why I sometimes feel like I need to be at the top and the bottom.

cedenton · March 2014

elmoali said:

Huh, I'm surprised more people vote to be at the end of the slide vs the top. I definitely see more bad things from a top of the ladder fall.

@elmoali I'm guessing it's because it's pretty rare to have stand alone slides. They're usually attached to the rest of the playground equipment. There's nowhere for them to fall from at the top of the slide.

ASmallWonder · March 2014

cedenton said:

elmoali said:

Huh, I'm surprised more people vote to be at the end of the slide vs the top. I definitely see more bad things from a top of the ladder fall.

@elmoali I'm guessing it's because it's pretty rare to have stand alone slides. They're usually attached to the rest of the playground equipment. There's nowhere for them to fall from at the top of the slide.

Hm, that makes sense. Our playground has a stand alone slide and it's fucking tall. It honestly still gives me anxiety for him to climb up it.

NeneCakies · March 2014

Hi cedenton! I feel the same about playgrounds. I've not ventured out alone yet, B is not much of a climber anyway, but even in a padded environment I imagine all sorts of incidents and had to make myself take a step back. I imagine it gets easier as they get more confident on the equipment and we come to terms with their growing abilities.

FTR, I would be one to go down the slide with B the first few times because that just sounds like fun.

I also vividly remember being on crutches myself after a playground accident in kindergarten. So yeah.

The kids in your wagon is kinda funny though. Missing parents not so much.

chardonnay24 · March 2014

The only thing that stresses me out is that my kid pushes other kids off the play structure. So basically we don't go to parks unless they're deserted. Or I hover and look like an insane helicopter mom.

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