Saw this image on reddit.com today.
I don’t know who it is, I just thought it was funny.
Have you seen leash kids at WDW or Disneyland? What do you think? Are you pro-leash, or anti-leash?
I guess I don’t see anything too evil about it. It’s better than having your kid wander off into a crowd. Or even worse – into Journey Into Your Imagination. (I kid! I kid!)
The first time we took Katie to WDW, she was 3-years-old. She was in a stroller, but kept sliding out and going for short walks. She wouldn’t go far because she’d get scared (and we were watching her closely anyway,) but if I had a wandering kid it would force me to think of ways to keep her close.
A few alternatives to the Leash Kids:
- The Super Glue Kids
- Lil’ dog shock collar
- Duct tape
- Baby’s first taser, by Playskool
- Guilt (a parent’s best friend)
How do you keep your youngsters from wandering off?
Discussion
I have leashed my child because he is a runner and I am not. I want to keep him safe and that is the best way I had found. He was wandering over to Journey into Your Imagination w/ Figment and the horror and the nightmares that might have produced was worth the cost of the child harness.
I leashed my son on our first trip back in 2005. Big mistake. The leash was long and he wanted to walk farther away and people kept snagging themselves on the leash. Never used it again.
Discipline. It’s an amazing concept that has seemed to vanish in the last 20 years.
“Jeffery, get down! I said get down! Jeffery! Jeffery get down. I’m going to count to 3! 1, 2, 3! Jeffery get down! Don’t make me tell you again! JEFFERY!!” “Oh I give up, honey go buy him an ice cream.”
My house – “Do what I say RIGHT NOW or we are leaving and you can sit in the corner! If you still act up, you will get a spanking.” No yelling, no cursing – just children who know I mean what I say.
And yes, I still believe in spankings. Flame away, I do not care!
I am 100% with you John. It’s a shame that our society seems to confuse beating with spanking. I am told on a regular basis how well behaved my children are, ages 9 and 12. Typically it is by older people who probably aren’t used to seeing this sort of thing anymore. And I can count on one hand the number of times I actually had to go so far as to spank them. Follow thru was the key, “If you do that again we are leaving.” We left.
I used to threaten a walk from wherever we were. “Do you want to take a walk?” Only a few times did I have to take that walk. Not exactly a spanking but…….I used to call the smack on the butt a reality check. It brought my son back to the real world! And a lot of the time he would tell me he was sorry for making me flip out on him. Kim I agree about the follow thru. My sister would warn her kids over and over and nothing ever happened. Til this they are 21,17,14, they debate with her! At 26 my son who still lives with us(!) hahha will say that he can’t believe some of the things his cousins say to my Sister! On the issue of a leash, I never used one, but I only had one child. Easier to watch over. BUT one of my sons best friends (a girl) tells us she missed her leash when her parents stopped using it. It was her security blanket!
I am a parent of five children. They are currently ages 12,8,5,4 and 11 months. We have been to Disney EVERY year for the past 6 years. For those of you that are counting that means that we’ve brought kids of ALL ages with us. Its always my husband and I and we are always out numbered and I have to say – I have NEVER and will NEVER put ANY of my children on leashes like they are animals. It is NOT a matter of “they want to explore” … it’s a matter of DO YOUR JOB AS A PARENT. If I brought my dog to Disney I would do so with it on a leash. If I bring my children to Disney I use strollers, and old fashioned “gasp” HAND HOLDING. I have my eyes on them at ALL TIMES – did I mention I have 5?!?! I am overwhelmed by the amount of people that can’t handle or watch just one or two. I’ve seen kids go to run and fall backwards, slamming their head because they got to the end of their restraint device. I’ve seen parents pull on the leash to get the kid to walk the way that they want them to. I’ve seen kids trying to explore and then the parent just yanks them away. There are BETTER ways to treat your child and to keep them safe then by treating them like a pet. Parents have tried to justify this with t shirts that say “I love you too much to lose you” fabulous … are you saying I don’t love mine because I chose to treat them like human beings? My husband loves me … but he wouldn’t dream of putting me on a leash and I wouldn’t dream of letting him. We wouldn’t allow ourselves to be treated that way as an adult so why do we treat our children that way? Leashes our not giving our children a sense of freedom – it is telling our children that we have control over them …
Whether you strap your preschooler into a stroller or put them on a leash, you are restraining them. I can’t stand judgmental people, stop throwing stones. I am a teacher who works with young kids and I can tell you that there is not black and white here. Kids, their needs, and the needs of a parent often fall into a gray area. I use 1-2-3. I also use spankings from time to time. We follow through on consequences and threats. I am told my kids are very well behaved, most of the time. They are young and do have their moments, but they are good kids overall. My daughter is 3 and very free spirited and very clever. All I’d have to do is be distracted by a bird flying overhead, and she will wander off. Not because she is not disciplined but because she is curious and determined. So in crowds and in unfamiliar places, I will either tether her on a backpack leash or I will restrain her in a stroller. You may judge me. Just make sure your house isn’t made of glass walls first. I think it is funny if a child comes up missing people whisper among themselves that if the parent were more responsible that wouldn’t have happened, but if the parent is responsible enough to know that their child needs an extra measure of security, then they are cast to the lions.
I don’t have kids, but I have beem tempted to put my best friend on a leash… she’s short and when she wanders away in a crowd I can’t find her….
Of course it might work the other way too; me and my friend are shopping at merchant of venus
friend: what do you think of this tee shirt
me: I like this one… oooohh(squeal) it’s PUSH the trash can (cue maddly running out of store to see trash can)
friend: Amanda? Amanda?
hence the leash…
Amanda you are hilarious. I am certain that when you do have kids, your sense of humor will see you through! P.S. I finally got to meet PUSH after 6 trips to Disney World. He’s kind of a leach…;”Hey pretty lady you can take my picture.” And then I swear he winked at me with his flap.
well, he’s a trash can not a recycling bin so he may be a little dirty…
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