The worst parenting I ever saw in Disney was...

[AshleeH]

I've seen so many children being screamed at by tired parents who just need a break. I really couldn't begin to think of stories for all of those circumstances.

As far as parenting - our worst experience was our first trip to Disney in 2010. We needed a day to sleep in, so we threw the tentative plan out the window and had a resort morning. By the time we got to HS, of course all TSM fast passes were gone and the standby line was near the 120 minute mark. We decided to brave it (not wanting to have to wait longer later) - we hate lines, but this was the ride my kids really wanted to ride and we knew they would love it, so it wasn't a question that we would wait in the standby line.

We start toward the entrance and a foreign family speaking English cuts us off to the door (should've been our first tip at their manners). We don't make a big deal - we weren't in line yet, it was just rude, but the same level of rudeness you encounter all over Disney. Their daughters were about the same ages as my kids (6-8 maybe).

Throughout the entire 120 minute wait, we witnessed them spinning in circles (running into us and the people in front of the family), climbing on the bars like monkeys - I'm not talking the average climbs you see at every ride, but treating the bars like a jungle gym. Doing all kinds of movements that had them stepping on us and had me and DH pulling our kids out of their way (we were giving them a wide berth, too, but they still made contact).

But the worse was when we got to the part of the line where the potato head is first visible - these girls cut through the bars and cut across several lines to get up in that area - ruining the pictures people in that area were taking of their kids with the potato head (you could literally see a sea of swiveling heads as these girls appeared out of nowhere and cut in front of dozens of people and no one had a clue where they had come from). After playing up there for five minutes, they cut back across the bars and make it back to their parents.

And what were their parents doing? Absolutely nothing. Not paying attention, not saying anything, having a nice conversation with each other while their daughters behaved like heathens. Some people in the lines around us said something to the parents about controlling their offspring - and these people who had been speaking English as well as any native when they entered the line, conveniently didn't understand it anymore. Around this time was when I stepped on one of the girls - it was unintentional, but I never thought I would be put in a situation where I stepped on a child and didn't feel guilt about it. She looked at me as if expecting me to say something, but I just stared back at her - I wasn't about to apologize when she had been running into me for the last hour.

Well, right before you get to the glasses area (before the stairs), the girls get it in their head to try and play with my boys. My well-mannered, patiently waiting children (who had been staring in horror at the spectacle these girls were causing because they knew if that were them, they wouldn't last two minutes before we were on our way back to the hotel). One girl grabbed my oldest DS by the shoulders and started talking to him and trying to get him to climb on the bars with her. That was when I snapped - I took my child's hand and pulled him behind me, saying loudly and clearly: "Bad influence." The father of the group finally looked at us at that point, but I - an extremely non-confrontational person - just made eye contact and asked him if he spoke English now. Luckily the line was almost over at this point.

We ended up exiting the ride at the same time as that group and DH said to wait and see which way they were going so we could go the opposite way - making the people behind us (who had witnessed all of this and been in the crossfire a time or two) laugh and agree.

This might not seem like much to most people, but next time you're at Disney, pinpoint the wildest, most out of control child you see, multiply by 2 and imagine being trapped in a five foot space with him or her for two hours. If my kids hadn't wanted to ride that ride so much, we would've been out of that line! We learned - it's FP only from now on.

 

[Mom2aJessieGirl]

In Feb, we were walking down the Streets of America in DHS. We rounded the corner and saw a family sitting on a bench...with their young son peeing in the street. Pants around ankles, peeing in the street. So classy. My DD6 even knew that was nasty.

I LOUDLY say, "It's not really New York City, y'all."

 

[ZoeisMommy]

working in the line of education and being the mother of a toddler i can understand that children get out of hand fast but just a little understanding that they are in fact still children can quickly remind you to keep your cool.

With that said 2 years ago we were at DTD in December and there was a man (clearly tired of walking and shopping) left to sit with a sleepy and crying toddler, as i walked past them i heard him exclaim "if you dont shut up ill beat the *bleep* out of you" of course I gladly stood there staring at him and told him "Excuse me?!" waiting for him to make good on his promise and he realized that as a mother myself if he touched his child i was calling security! I understand wanting (and NEEDING) to discipline your children but threats and foul language are not it! Especially for a baby!

there comes a point in time while at WDW that a nap would do everyone some good..

 

[marmalade]

In Feb, we were walking down the Streets of America in DHS. We rounded the corner and saw a family sitting on a bench...with their young son peeing in the street. Pants around ankles, peeing in the street. So classy. My DD6 even knew that was nasty.

I LOUDLY say, "It's not really New York City, y'all."

Kids pee in the street in New York City?

 

[brymolmom]

I guess to each her own - I think vacation is a great time to teach kids about nutrition, diet and moderation. I give my kids plenty of treats while we are at Disney -- but we always to try to balance it out with healthy choices (hard to do at DW). A giant cup of pop is totally unnecessary and just reinforces bad habits.

It is possible that family is also balancing with healthy choices - we're not seeing them at every meal, just one moment.

No treat is necessary - even the ones you allow your own kids on vacation. Pop definitely isn't...but neither is ice cream or pizza....

We sometimes have an 'ice cream for lunch' day at WDW - especially when on the DP. Kids love it but obviously could reinforce a bad habits....but it's vacation and we never do it at home.

 

[pigletto]

Of the incidents I've witnessed the only ones that bother me go on opposite sides of the spectrum.
If your child is screaming and ruining the meal/ride/show for everyone around them.. take them out of there. All of us had to do it at some point. Drives me nuts.

On the other hand I'd rather listen to your child scream if your so inept at parenting that you are going to swear at them or threaten them with violence like some examples in this thread.

Every single family out there has upsets/crying/ ruined plans with little kids. It's the ones that don't deal with it or deal with it like neandrathals that bother me.
Being frazzled, cranky or having a meltdown doesn't bother me. It's all in the way it's handled.

 

[BuzzLiteyear]

...when I pushed my the 6 year old daughter out of the way so I could be in line for Space Mountain first. Maybe I didn't push her, but I was able to run faster than her

 

[Pikester]

Heard a father tell his daughter that if she didn't stop doing whatever it was she was doing he was going to choke her.


Watched one kid being pushed around in a stoller happy as can be by mom while the other child was whining and complaining to dad about the fact that he wasn't in the stroller. Dad takes happy kid out of the stroller and throws whining now crying kid into the stoller and yells at him "Are you happy now!". Now both kids are crying.

 

[GiJohnsGirl]

There is a difference between abuse and just bad parenting. And I agree with the soda issue. At least ice cream has calcium, pizza has vegetables and carbs - soda has NO natural ingredients of any kind. My 5 year-old has never had a coke and will not drink one if offered.

 

[jennyjinx3]

There is a difference between abuse and just bad parenting. And I agree with the soda issue. At least ice cream has calcium, pizza has vegetables and carbs - soda has NO natural ingredients of any kind. My 5 year-old has never had a coke and will not drink one if offered.

I agree...maybe there should be two threads, one about bad parenting at Disney, and one about witnessing abuse! I also second the soda comment and agree with GiJohnsGirl about it. My kids will also refuse soda, they don't like it and only associate ginger ale with being sick. That doesn't make me a better parent though, different strokes for different folks!

 

[marmalade]

There is a difference between abuse and just bad parenting. And I agree with the soda issue. At least ice cream has calcium, pizza has vegetables and carbs - soda has NO natural ingredients of any kind. My 5 year-old has never had a coke and will not drink one if offered.

It does contain water.

 

[Sabrefan]

...when I pushed my the 6 year old daughter out of the way so I could be in line for Space Mountain first. Maybe I didn't push her, but I was able to run faster than her

One time a snake slithered by us - I ran for my life and left my little ones to defend themselves. I didn't have to be fast, just faster than my kids.

 

[t_catt11]

Sad thread. Amazing, however, that in the face of the child abuse, meltdowns, and everyday insanity we see posted here, we also have a small (but vocal) contingent of sanctimonious posters who somehow equate a soft drink on vacation with people choking and threatening their children.

Do you folks realize how absolutely disconnected with reality you are?

Here's a hint: choking a child not only introduces physical harm, but can emotionally scar that child for life. A soft drink yields some empty calories. Which is honestly worse? Please, use some logic on this question.

If you choose to ban soft drinks at all times for your family - good for you. If you feel that vacation is no excuse to deviate from your chosen lifestyle, more power to you. If you want to look down on the rest of the unwashed masses who sully their children with carbonated poison, be my guest.

But do everyone a favor, please - discuss this in another thread. Only a lunatic would honestly think that giving a child a soft drink is the same kind of example of bad parenting as some of the other craziness posted here.

I also second the soda comment and agree with GiJohnsGirl about it. My kids will also refuse soda, they don't like it and only associate ginger ale with being sick. That doesn't make me a better parent though, different strokes for different folks!

Thank you, sanity.

 

[michsig]

This was at Islands of Adventure not at WDW. We were in line for Dueling dragons BEFORE the harry potter section opened up. This 12 yr old girl was TERRIFIED to go on it & her dad yelled at her " You p*ssy you are going on" she was shaking & crying I felt so bad for her.

That's terrible. This is exactly why some people should not be allowed to have children.

 

[ars0525]

I have seen the children crying, whining, complaining, yelling, being obnoxious, you name it.

Usually the parents I see either do nothing or do something very minimal that does nothing (asks child to stop, then ignores child who has ignored their request).

I am shocked by how many people have seen parents actually hitting (not a little smack/tap, but REAL HIT), choking, death threats, kicking, etc... their children or family.

 

[DRDISNEYMD]

~I just hope those who scoff at the idea of drinking soda feel the exact same way about fruit juice, sweet tea, lemonade, lol. The only drink that's worth bragging about is good old H2O, otherwise you are no different than a pop drinker, IMO.

~Speaking of drinks, we were dining at Captain Cooks and there was a father and son between the age of 10 and 12. The son struggled to carry his food tray and his drink toppled over. The dad just went ballistic and shouted at the very top of his lungs "g** d*****!" Everyone in the place froze, we were all in shock, the boy burst into tears and said, "Dad, I'm so sorry", over and over. Before the father could react a CM already had a replacement drink in hand for the boy, and several CM's starting cleaning the mess, they reassured the father that everything was okay and it happens all the time. The dad quickly calmed down and they left with their food trays.

 

[Ciorsdah]

*slipping on the flame suit*

I am going to add my views on the children/soda/eating crap at Disney debate.

It makes my heart sigh to see small children (in fact any child..) holding big cups of soda or huge sugary treats. As an adult you can make an educated decision about if you want to bombard your body with artifical sugars, caffiene, excess colourants and potentially cancer causing chemicals, but as a child you are eating and drinking what your parents offer or suggest to you.

These children are not able to make an educated choice of if they want the suger laden treat or the carbonated drink, and often their parents are using these "treats" as a way to pacify a crying child.

If as a child you become accusomed to sugar as a treat, this may have a negative impact on various aspects of your health and not just your weight. Repeated exposure to overly sugary drinks and food can lead to diabetes, heart problems, water retention and fatty livers and kidneys in childhood. Again, I return to my point of not being educated to make an informed decision.

I'm not personally attacking any parent on here, I have the greatest respect for the job that a parent does. I know I do not have the strength mentally to birth and raise a child.

I have no objection to people who decide to feed themselves processed garbage and drink carbonated drinks, but when it comes to children nutrition and healthy lifestyles have to be considered. Regardless if you are on vacation or not.

 

[t_catt11]

*slipping on the flame suit*

I am going to add my views on the children/soda/eating crap at Disney debate.

It makes my heart sigh to see small children (in fact any child..) holding big cups of soda or huge sugary treats. As an adult you can make an educated decision about if you want to bombard your body with artifical sugars, caffiene, excess colourants and potentially cancer causing chemicals, but as a child you are eating and drinking what your parents offer or suggest to you.

These children are not able to make an educated choice of if they want the suger laden treat or the carbonated drink, and often their parents are using these "treats" as a way to pacify a crying child.

If as a child you become accusomed to sugar as a treat, this may have a negative impact on various aspects of your health and not just your weight. Repeated exposure to overly sugary drinks and food can lead to diabetes, heart problems, water retention and fatty livers and kidneys in childhood. Again, I return to my point of not being educated to make an informed decision.

I'm not personally attacking any parent on here, I have the greatest respect for the job that a parent does. I know I do not have the strength mentally to birth and raise a child.

I have no objection to people who decide to feed themselves processed garbage and drink carbonated drinks, but when it comes to children nutrition and healthy lifestyles have to be considered. Regardless if you are on vacation or not.

Again, I respectfully submit that this is a debate for another thread.

But yeah, we get it. Soda = child abuse. Man, am I ever glad the the courts do not agree with you. Otherwise, I'd have surely lost custody of DD16... she weighs all of 115 pounds soaking wet. They'd have taken DS14, as well... despite him also being in great shape and competing for a varsity baseball spot as a freshman.

No telling what sort of shape my children would have been in if not for those WDW sodas.

 

[shalom]

Hmm heres an idea - make the nanny take the screaming darling back to the room so you dont have to deal with it, and as a mother of a toddler and a preschooler Im sure that is just what that poor kid needed a nice rest in a comfy bed

Seriously. Why pay for a nanny and then not let her do her job?

sorry but i find the kids with absolutely enormous cups of pop and usually already overweight to be one of the worse examples of parenting.

Malarky. Most parents who indulge their kids in those huge things of pop at a theme park do it for one of two reasons: either the whole family drinks soda all the time, and the parents would be hypocrites to deny the child while indulging (in which case the soda is most likely diet), or the family never has soda at home so this is a huge, but very rare, treat. We only have soda a couple of times a year (Memorial Day, 4th of July, and usually a birthday party or two), and some of my kids were a little obsessed about that particular treat. My dad found one of my kids at a family party once with four cans of opened soda sitting in front of him; my son had grabbed one of every flavor.

~I just hope those who scoff at the idea of drinking soda feel the exact same way about fruit juice, sweet tea, lemonade, lol. The only drink that's worth bragging about is good old H2O, otherwise you are no different than a pop drinker, IMO.

Exactly what my doctor says! I confess that eldest son and I still indulge in orange juice at breakfast a couple of weeks a month, despite that doctorial advice.

One girl grabbed my oldest DS by the shoulders and started talking to him and trying to get him to climb on the bars with her. That was when I snapped - I took my child's hand and pulled him behind me, saying loudly and clearly: "Bad influence." The father of the group finally looked at us at that point, but I - an extremely non-confrontational person - just made eye contact and asked him if he spoke English now.

That comment -- "Bad influence" -- is sheer genius. Even if the parents don't think twice about imposing on others, they might consider the fact that their parenting methods could cause their children trouble in the long run. And if they're all-around jerks, at least it's putting the blame where it most lies -- on the parents.

 

[skeeter31]

Worst I saw on my last trip was waiting in line for Dumbo. Mother and little girl right in front of us in line (girl was probably 4). Mother was holding ice cream and kept asking girl if she wanted some. Girl kept saying no, and she wasn't feeling good. This went on for about 4-5 times of asking with the same reaction from the little girl.

Finally, the girl says that her throat feels weird and she pukes all over the ground, then pukes again on the railing. Mother takes her off the line, but doesn't inform any of the cast of what happened, just runs away. Other kids were stepping in the vomit and putting their hands in it on the railing. When we got up to the operator booth, we informed the dumbo operators and they went to take care of it.