A Public Time-Out Is Sometimes Just What the Parent Ordered

The other evening I was at our wonderful local library (Montgomery campus) checking out some books for my sleepytime/naptime routine with our son, when... I heard...

"Children! Get down from there!" And so on... First of all, I loved that this mother (of 3) addressed her children as a group, so anyway...

I had to smile because I was happy to see a parent disciplining her children in public. As a new parent (my son is 2.5 years old), I often feel the evil eye and judgemental eye (or at least it feels that way) when I put my son in time-out. And oh man... he has been in time-out at.. Meijer, the library, the mall, BabiesRUs, Wal-Mart, the park, where else? Pretty much anywhere we have been, he has most likely experienced time-out. Sure, I have the option of giving him that toy that he wants at the check-out line, or letting him throw all the books on the ground and not pick them up, but why? There are behaviors that are not acceptable, at home or in public. 

Why do I get the bad looks? I am not sure, but I do feel that there is a severe lack of parenting/disciplining going on with today's children.

Case #1:

This weekend, a few kids were riding around the block on their bikes. One of their bike's chain broke, and the kid threw it in frustration. Well, it landed on my neighbor's brother's (A) car. My husband happened to be outside and told the kid to make sure he told them what happened. My neighbors came out and went to talk to the kid's father. The father (B) said sure, sure, and gave him a phone number. Well, A called the number when he got back to his house, and it was a fake joke number (one of those with a prank-like recorded answer). Why would someone do that? A grown adult, no less. As it turns out, because this was an accident and not a malicious act, A will have to pay out of pocket for the damage done. Not right.

Case #2:

Before I had my son, my husband and I went on a trip (can't remember where). As we were waiting to pick up our car at the off-site parking lot, a little boy (5 or 6) came up to my luggage and kicked it. I told him not to kick it. He went back to his parents, and then proceeded to venture towards my luggage again. I took a stance in front of my luggage with a stern look and the father came up to his son and said, "Don't go there or the mean lady will yell at you AGAIN." Hello? What about apologizing for your son's bad behavior? What about telling your son that he should a) not be touching other people's stuff b) should definitely NOT be kicking other people's stuff and c) apologize to that nice lady over there.

In conclusion, I discipline in public because I want my son to learn that there are certain behaviors that are unacceptable, and if he chooses to engage in those behaviors, well, then there are consequences.

So, mother of three at the library, I stand up and applaud you.