Have/would you leave your kids sleeping alone in the room and go f/swim? *SEE #159*

[minandmick]

OP, it seems pretty obvious that you were/are planning to leave your kids alone in the room the whole time. So what was the point of this thread? Maybe you were hoping other folks would sooth your guilty conscience and help you justify what you were always going to do anyway? Make no mistake about it, what you are suggesting is wrong, and is the kind of thing that will warrant a visit from Child Protective Services. If you don't believe that, just call your local office and ask them what they think about it.

^^^^^ Yeah that!

Meanwhile, I'm pretty sure the OP is sitting around doing to all of us. She knew exactly what would happen when she posted this question.

Self-proclaimed overprotective? Ok....surrrrrrrrrrrrrrre.

 

[Sugar Jones]

I am actually totally surprised at the responses here.

I am in the minority here when I say under the circumstances the OP suggested I think it's perfectly fine to go for a swim.

Especially the picture shown of the CSR. I would have absolutely no problem with taking a dip in that pool while my kids were sleeping if I had one of those ground floor rooms.

I would be much more comfortable doing that than leaving my kids with a complete and total stranger in the room while I went to dinner. That I could never do. However I don't think people that do are negligent or terrible parents. It's completely a personal comfort zone.

I am comfortable leaving my kids sleeping in a room withing 20 ft of me where I can see the door at all times. I am not comfortable with a stranger being alone in a hotel room with my kids. I comfortable taking a dip in a pool that has a clear view of my hotel room door while my kids are sleeping. I am not comfortable sending my 6 year old into a men's washroom alone with multiple strangers.

The OP is not a bad parent, I am not a bad parent, and people who choose to do the things that I am not comfortable doing are not bad parents either. It's a personal choice.

The OP clearly stated she wasn't looking for advice, just other's opinions and thoughts

 

[DisneyScraps]

what a protective freak I am.

Someone just wants to argue!

Lisa

 

[maxiesmom]

The OP clearly stated she wasn't looking for advice, just other's opinions and thoughts

And that is what she is getting. It is just that most people are not comfortable leaving an "almost" 8, 6, and 2 year old alone in a strange environment while mommy and daddy go enjoy the pool. Why too the "almost" ages when on every other post she lists her children as 7, 5, and 1, unless the OP thinks adding a year makes what she wants to do sound better. Because it doesn't.

When posting a question on the Dis there is no guarantee that the majority will agree with you. If you don't want to hear disagreement, then don't post. Simple.

 

[4HppyCamprs]

Short Answer: NO

 

[summerrluvv]

Not in a million years! You just never know what could happen...a fire could break out and you wouldn't have access to the kids. I always think of that little missing Madeline girl that was left alone with siblings while her parents dined out while on vacation. I value my children too much to risk something like that I do however know MANY people that would do that.

 

[Mkrop]

Even though the OP stated that she wasnt looking for advice, I am left scratching my head as to why she posted this thread...

Would I be comfortable doing what the OP suggested? NO!

We are on a family vacation, I dont need alone time with DH to go swimming. If we wanted to swim off that badly we would take turns.

My family must be weird bc we have never crashed that early at WDW.

I equate this with feeling comfortable leaving a child in car to quickly run in somewhere, like pay gas, or pick up dry cleaning. I would not do that either. A friend of mine locked her two kids in the car to run into pay gas while they were sleeping, she told me she could see them. A cop pulled in and gave her a stern warning to never do that again.

 

[Sugar Jones]

And that is what she is getting. It is just that most people are not comfortable leaving an "almost" 8, 6, and 2 year old alone in a strange environment while mommy and daddy go enjoy the pool. Why too the "almost" ages when on every other post she lists her children as 7, 5, and 1, unless the OP thinks adding a year makes what she wants to do sound better. Because it doesn't.

When posting a question on the Dis there is no guarantee that the majority will agree with you. If you don't want to hear disagreement, then don't post. Simple.

I get that, and I don't see where she has had a problem with anyone disagreeing with her She's been back to address things, and state her opinions when questioned.

 

[maxiesmom]

I get that, and I don't see where she has had a problem with anyone disagreeing with her She's been back to address things, and state her opinions when questioned.

I think her repeated use of and an insistance that those who don't agree with her just are not reading her posts indicate she does have a problem with those who do not agree with her.

There is no possible way that her or her husband will have their eyes on either the door or the baby monitor the whole time they are swimming. Which makes what she wants to do pretty irresponsible. You shouldn't leave 3 kids under the age of 8 unattended in a strange place. That is my opinion. but apparently it is not hers.

 

[Danibelle]

I'm surprised this thread is still going!

 

[KerriL]

I have two concerns regarding this possible idea or this discussion since you are just wanting opinions...

1. Depending on which resort especially if you ever stay at a Deluxe or DVC, how many doors are available into a room. I realize currently you're talking about POP or a moderate but if you doing something once and gain a comfort level, you are probably more likely to consider repeating it even if some of the circumstances have changed. Our recent DVC villa was about 20 feet to the quiet pool at BWV. I would never even consider leaving either of my children in a room alone on vacation to take quiet time at the pool with my DH. Neither would he. Every DVC villa we've stayed in has the entry door and also some type of patio door to either a patio or a balcony. Yes, it's a slim possibility of someone realizing you're outside and not in the room but I cannot imagine taking that chance.

2. My second issue is less about something happening to the kids and more about the what-ifs of something happening to you and your spouse. For example, if you're in your room and you both have a heart attack, the kids are going to wake and cry and scream and possibly call for help. Someone will hear them and get help. But they will know without a doubt that you are there with children and make sure that they get taken care of. What happens if that pool is only 10 feet away but you both have that heart attack (or whatever) out there. Who knows that you're traveling with children except you and your DH. The personnel who call for help aren't going to know you left your kids alone. How many hours before someone discovers a situation like that.
Insurance companies (and no, I don't work for one) call pools attractive nuisances for a reason. It's similar to texting or talking while driving. IT'S A DISTRACTION!! No, matter how vigilant you are, accidents can and do happen.

One of our neighbors nearly lost her youngest son about 4 years ago to drowning in the neighborhood pool. She was there, he was 2 and in he went. It had never happened in our neighborhood before or to her with her older child. But even though she meant to be attentive, she had developed some complacency from the lack of accidents with her first child. It's easy to say, no, never me... but ask any parent (not the headliners) who've had a child taken either by a kidnapper or through death by accident. My neighbor was lucky, acted fast and saved her son. But every summer, I read or hear about a child drowning locally.

The other thing that pops up in this thread and I've seen other threads along similar lines is about the "quiet mommy/daddy time" or the "mommy and daddy alone time"...if you went on a FAMILY vacation, why are you taking time away from the whole FAMILY? If my DH & I want alone time, we're going to get that while we are at home and can call on the people that we know and trust to watch our kids and not try and hire complete strangers (even if Disney does background-check them) to stay with our kids during our FAMILY vacation.

Really!!!?? OP has a better chance of hitting the lottery than both her and her husband suffering from a heart attack at the same time in the pool....

 

[sunshineNJ]

Please DON"T do this. It is NOT okay. It's not worth the risk. Anything can happen and does. All you have to do is have your back turned for a second. That's all it takes.

 

[cheshireqt]

My answer is NO.
Two years old is to young to be left alone in a strange place. At home a 2 yr old knows don't touch this or that and knows the rules. You are essentially asking a 6 yr old and an 8yr old to monitor the youngest in an unfamiliar environment while you...exercise?
I have stayed at CBR and I do not recall a single room where a door is visible from the quiet pool. There is a lot of foliage. The children will not be able to find you in an emergency as the paths are windy with plenty of branches off the path. At home they will be able to find you if you are out in the yard or on the front porch. So not the same at all to compare being at home and being at the resort. You will be just as far as Madeline's parents were from her and her siblings. It is the same thing. The exact same thing.
You show great naivety when you say you will walk around the resort, pick a room and believe that you will get that room. If you have experience with being able to do that then stay at that resort.
Lastly is your baby monitor an underwater baby monitor? And is it waterproof? Is it bullhorn loud? Even at the quiet pool there was plenty of noise from music, other guests and children. The seats and tables were enough away from the pool that you will not set this monitor down and hear it while you are swimming with your head in the water. Which I assume is the whole point.
And for those who point to other countries and how they raise their kids, check out the CIA world factbook and look under infant mortality rate and look under longevity. There is a reason the average lifespan in some countries is only 40. That does not mean everyone lives to 40 and croaks. It means their people die in sufficient quantity at a young age as to bring the stat that devastatingly low. I know there are numerous reasons for that, but quite frankly it is silly to say this country with an average life span of only 40 has a better system.
I truly wish you well, I know you are going to do whatever you want to do and are not really seeking opinions to weight your decision but for what it is worth you have my opinion.
Enjoy your family vacation.

 

[brooklyn615]

Here are my thoughts and opinions: I would not leave my kids to take a quick dip in the pool. I think that I'm a little more parnoid- I wouldn't feel comfortable, even if I could see the door. I also agree with a previous poster that by the end of the night, I'm exhausted!
There you have ir OP, my opinion and thought.
Good luck on your trip, have a great time and be safe.

 

[Wadecool]

Really!!!?? OP has a better chance of hitting the lottery than both her and her husband suffering from a heart attack at the same time in the pool....

And what do you think the chances are of something happening with the kids in the hotel room while mommy & daddy are playing in the pool?!?? Quite a bit better than the chances of hitting the lottery I'll bet. As I mentioned in an earlier post, this scenario is the kind of thing that will get Child Protective Services involved (DW works for them and has gone out on calls like this). They take this kind of thing very seriously. All you have to do is call a local office and ask them if it is appropriate, see what they tell you.

 

[sam_gordon]

Anything can happen and does. All you have to do is have your back turned for a second. That's all it takes.

I agree I wouldn't do it. But using your answer of 'anything can happen and does' means you should never let you child out of your sight... whether to walk to a friends home or to simply play outside.

Again, I would not do this. But I don't think it's very good form to call the OP a 'bad mother' (I know you didn't do this, but others have)

 

[MistressMerryweather]

OP, if you end up in a room where this is possible, and you don't fall asleep before your kids (chasing a 2 year old through the parks while pregnant can do that to you). I think you have a fine plan.

This is a very high possibility. I am wondering how I will not fall asleep with the kids.

You know your kids. I assume that you have a normal 2 year old who makes lots of noise when he's in trouble, and an older sibling who would wake up and get you if needed. I also assume that your kids are not going to panic if they wake up in a strange room (although maybe waiting until night two just on the off chance that the first night is disorienting), and will remember that you're just outside the door.

I also trust that you are sensible enough that if you happen to win the lottery after doing this, and upgrade to the Beach Club next time you will notice the lack of exterior doors and weigh that into deciding whether to continue. For that matter, I also assume that if you return to a value for another trip and end up on the other side of the building, far from the pool you'll put two and two together too.

Yes, definitely. I would never consider it unless the circumstances were as I posted previously. Sitting in the pool would have to be feet away in full view of the door. Literal hearing distance if I talking to someone in the doorway. Of all the deluxe resorts I have been to, there is no set up remotely like the moderate resorts...specifically CBR and CSR.

I'd actually rather have my kids alone for a few extra hours before they came to look for me and my also dead husband, than have them be the ones to find my body. I think the latter is even more traumatic. However, I also think the odds of 2 simultaneous heart attacks are so slight that planning around it is not something I do.

My only thoughts are, don't spend too much time fantasizing about it in case you get a room outside your comfort range and end up disappointed, warn the kids before they go to sleep so they know where to find you, and, if it works out, have fun! I also assume that you already knew those things.

I think it's interesting that you're the one being accused of "making excuses", when some of those that I listed above

Thanks very much for your rational and kind post.

Yes, and people can rationalize anything in order to justify doing what they want. I fail to see how leaving the kids is rational and best? Call me crazy, but taking turns going out with the other parent would be rational and bestif swimming is the most important thing, or sitting directly outside the room if alone time is the most important thing......(mumbling to self)

If the headline is "Parents leave 3 small children alone in hotel room to go swimming" I will wonder why they left them alone...

People can irrationalize anything too, it seems.

Based on your reactions to people's views it doesn't really seem like you wanted to hear them.

Just because I don't give a happy nodding smilie and agree with other people who disagree with me doesn't mean I don't want to hear views.
When people start getting ridiculous(double heart attack and madeleine mccann) and when they obviously haven't read any of the other posts...well, that does get a bit annoying.

And that is what she is getting. It is just that most people are not comfortable leaving an "almost" 8, 6, and 2 year old alone in a strange environment while mommy and daddy go enjoy the pool. Why too the "almost" ages when on every other post she lists her children as 7, 5, and 1, unless the OP thinks adding a year makes what she wants to do sound better. Because it doesn't.

When posting a question on the Dis there is no guarantee that the majority will agree with you. If you don't want to hear disagreement, then don't post. Simple.

If you read my posts in other threads you will see that I have been posting "almost" ages for some time. When we go on vacation my 5yo will be 6 in a month and my 7 in 2 months. My 2yo just turned 2 in January.
You can make assumptions as much as like, but just because you think it doesn't make it so.

Not in a million years! You just never know what could happen...a fire could break out and you wouldn't have access to the kids. I always think of that little missing Madeline girl that was left alone with siblings while her parents dined out while on vacation. I value my children too much to risk something like that I do however know MANY people that would do that.

(bolding mine) Thank you for insinuating that I do not value my children.

I think her repeated use of and an insistance that those who don't agree with her just are not reading her posts indicate she does have a problem with those who do not agree with her.

When you post something ridiculous, well.... If you are going to forewarn me that my husband and I may have a simultaneous double heart attacks while sitting in the pool, well...I can't say that I am not on the other end literally laughing out loud.

My answer is NO.
Two years old is to young to be left alone in a strange place. At home a 2 yr old knows don't touch this or that and knows the rules. You are essentially asking a 6 yr old and an 8yr old to monitor the youngest in an unfamiliar environment while you...exercise?
I have stayed at CBR and I do not recall a single room where a door is visible from the quiet pool. There is a lot of foliage. The children will not be able to find you in an emergency as the paths are windy with plenty of branches off the path. At home they will be able to find you if you are out in the yard or on the front porch. So not the same at all to compare being at home and being at the resort. You will be just as far as Madeline's parents were from her and her siblings. It is the same thing. The exact same thing.
You show great naivety when you say you will walk around the resort, pick a room and believe that you will get that room. If you have experience with being able to do that then stay at that resort.
Lastly is your baby monitor an underwater baby monitor? And is it waterproof? Is it bullhorn loud? Even at the quiet pool there was plenty of noise from music, other guests and children. The seats and tables were enough away from the pool that you will not set this monitor down and hear it while you are swimming with your head in the water. Which I assume is the whole point.
And for those who point to other countries and how they raise their kids, check out the CIA world factbook and look under infant mortality rate and look under longevity. There is a reason the average lifespan in some countries is only 40. That does not mean everyone lives to 40 and croaks. It means their people die in sufficient quantity at a young age as to bring the stat that devastatingly low. I know there are numerous reasons for that, but quite frankly it is silly to say this country with an average life span of only 40 has a better system.
I truly wish you well, I know you are going to do whatever you want to do and are not really seeking opinions to weight your decision but for what it is worth you have my opinion.
Enjoy your family vacation.

(bolding above mine) So, you have not read my posts at all. This is where the comes in. Pictures of the actual or similar spot have been posted whether you have been to CBR/CSR a million times and have not been in that spot. I'm not sure what else to say to your post as I have already addressed what your concerns are.

 

[LaurenLC]

I still wouldn't do what the OP originally asked about, but I have to agree that the 'what ifs' are getting a little silly.

 

[MistressMerryweather]

I'll post one more time my final opinion, then I'll try to stop responding unless something really annoys me(which is highly probable). LOL

I still believe that many naysayers that have posted in absolute shock are unclear as to what *I* am talking about. Some not, but still.
I realize how disturbing it sounds to simply post and read, "Hey, dh and I are leaving our sleeping kids in the hotel room to go for a swim. Woohoo!"

A picture has been posted of the exact location where rooms are not more than a few feet from the water. Where pool chairs and tables are within touching distance of hotel doors. Where hanging on the edge of a *quiet* quiet pool, facing the door, and speaking with someone in a normal voice could be heard by someone standing in the hotel room door.
I have been there before. I have seen it.

That brings me to the whole "swimming" thing. I should have used another word, I guess, in my OP, though I have clarified many times.
Dh and I won't be taking laps, or doing somersaults under water. We wouldn't be back floating in the middle of the pool or giggling like 16yo's while necking unawares. We will be hanging on the edge of the pool facing the door, soaking our weary bones and feet, enjoying the weather and coolness of the pool after a long day.
If you don't understand hanging on the pool edge, here are some visuals...not us of course, but you get the idea.

*Note that these people above are not swimming.

If my children wake up, it would take me less time to unhang myself from the pool edge and walk to the door then the time it would take me to walk from my kitchen to my kids bedrooms at home.
Honestly, the doors are so close to the pool, that I would actually feel fine to leave it propped open while "dipping". I just don't see the point in that, but that must tell you that I would be close enough to see if someone were to stroll in or out of my open hotel room door, and even close enough to lob my cell phone through the open door from the pool edge and hit my kid in the head with it LOL, or I wouldn't consider it. Which means all of the mad crazy "scenarios" being posted aren't really relevant.


I'm not sure how else some of you want me to respond.
If I respond to your incorrect assumptions, you say I am making excuses. If I say that I posted because I was curious of the responses, you say I am trying to appease my own guilt because I must truly feel this isn't a good idea, when that is not true.
Of course, I figured this may be a controversial topic. I figured the answers would be black or white and wanted to hear them for the heck of it. It is amusing and fun at times, reading the responses. Isn't that why we are on boards and forums a lot of the times?

As far as the bad mother comments, well, I realize we are online and I take comments such as these from strangers that don't me at all, with a grain of salt. It's all good. I am not offended.

And again, at this point in time, we are booked at POP. I've never been there, but from what everyone but one person has said on here, there are no rooms comparable to the ones at CBR and CSR. So the whole thing is moot and I won't be getting my hopes up to "dip" and float my very large pregnant self for a few minutes in the evening hours with my dh.
I will still however, likely be sitting directly outside my door with dh chatting with a baby monitor, if we don't feel like sleeping yet or sitting in the dark eating cheese fries while the kids sleep.
Though still, I realize that some of you would still think that sitting up against the closed hotel room door outside, is a neglectful horrendous thing.
All I can say to that, is that I am thankful that we are the parents of our children and not you.

 

[CandleontheWater]

I can't believe you would consider sitting outside the door of your room! Don't you know that you and your DH could have a double heart attack, and then the kidnapper that was hiding in the bushes waiting *all week* for his chance to steal your children will break in and get them....

but don't worry, maybe a spontaneous fire will break out in your room and some other guests will be alerted to the situation by the smoke and flames just in time to save your children from his dastardly clutches.

Its really too bad you'll be dead and not able to witness the heroism.

::