older children in pushchairs!

poet123

Hintza wrote: »

Why have you all gone to the extremes in your replies? That is not what the OP meant. Far too many children are mollycoddled these days.

I think people have responded to the angry icon, why use that? How does it impact the OP if a child is in a pushchair? Why does it anger her? Yes, perhaps some people are lazy, equally, there could be very valid reasons, some of which are detailed on here.

Humphrey10

There was an interesting program on foreign nannies a few years ago, there was one family where the nanny took the young children out walking every day, to the park etc, the children were perfectly happy to walk. When the mother took them out, to the same places the nanny took them, she put them in a double buggy because "they're too young to walk".
I couldn't tell if she was genuinely not aware her children could walk, or if she was just too impatient to walk slowly at their speed so wanted to be able to push them along fast in a buggy.

But you can't tell just by looking if a child needs to be in a pushchair or not, and to be honest it's not really any of your business OP, so just try and not let it bother you.

Saturnalia

Notmyrealname wrote: »

In the case of both of my nephews who ended up in this situation it was because they hav Duchenne Muscular Dystrophy.

They're teenagers and wear nappies but not to worry, its a terminal illness and the eldest is on borrowed time already so he'll be dead soon and you needn't worry about being offended by him.

So you seriously think I'd be offended by a disabled child, or pleased at the death of a child? Really?

Or does it just make your day easier to think that of a stranger - if so, wire in.

AvadaKedavra

*zippy* wrote: »

Do you have a car and drive your kids or do you walk everywhere then?

BOBS wrote: »

Each to their own ..... but why posting about it ?

Hi sorry for the delay, yes me and my family walk everywhere and do not own a car.

I understand some of the replies and knew the disability issue would surface, i would like to be more specific, fair enough for those who actually need to be chaired around i understand that and on a personal level empathise, but parents who place there perfectly able children in pushchairs which clog up public lifts etc for no good reason, and shove dummys in their mouths, yes admitted they get me mad. As someone said each to their own but i still am entitled to my opinion.

poet123

AvadaKedavra wrote: »

Hi sorry for the delay, yes me and my family walk everywhere and do not own a car.

I understand some of the replies and knew the disability issue would surface, i would like to be more specific, fair enough for those who actually need to be chaired around i understand that and on a personal level empathise, but parents who place there perfectly able children in pushchairs which clog up public lifts etc for no good reason, and shove dummys in their mouths, yes admitted they get me mad. As someone said each to their own but i still am entitled to my opinion.

What is your issue with dummies? A lot of children have them, and most of those who don't will probably suck their thumbs. At least with a dummy they can be weaned off it, the thumb is always there!!

AvadaKedavra

poet123 wrote: »

What is your issue with dummies? A lot of children have them, and most of those who don't will probably suck their thumbs. At least with a dummy they can be weaned off it, the thumb is always there!!

Yes good point well made, some friends of mine dont let their child who is 5 go around in a pushchair but do give him a dummy 24 hours a day, his teeth are bent because of it and he has bad speech, they only do it to keep him quiet which is quite sad. I think in their case the damage is done and will be hard to reverse.

poet123

AvadaKedavra wrote: »

Yes good point well made, some friends of mine dont let their child who is 5 go around in a pushchair but do give him a dummy 24 hours a day, his teeth are bent because of it and he has bad speech, they only do it to keep him quiet which is quite sad. I think in their case the damage is done and will be hard to reverse.

Presumably his teeth are still milk teeth at five so any damage (which could well appear to be there but is actually other teeth coming through) will be transitory.

Lots of children like the comfort a dummy brings and really they do very little harm long term. I have seen more children with oddly shaped thumbs from sucking that. Far more damage is done to teeth from bottles with concentrated juice in them or other sugary drinks.

AvadaKedavra

poet123 wrote: »

Presumably his teeth are still milk teeth at five so any damage (which could well appear to be there but is actually other teeth coming through) will be transitory.

Lots of children like the comfort a dummy brings and really they do very little harm long term. I have seen more children with oddly shaped thumbs from sucking that. Far more damage is done to teeth from bottles with concentrated juice in them or other sugary drinks.

Well i have seen cases where people have speach impediments because of sucking on dummies for years and years all day and all night, its not just thevteeth its the tongue and the way it shapes itself when speaking, this is not easy to fix.

poet123

AvadaKedavra wrote: »

Well i have seen cases where people have speach impediments because of sucking on dummies for years and years all day and all night, its not just thevteeth its the tongue and the way it shapes itself when speaking, this is not easy to fix.

Really, where have you seen these cases? How long does the average child have a dummy? Probably 2/3 years max? Speech and Language therapists don't agree that dummies cause such issues, and many often encourage the use of them so I would be interested to know where you have seen these children and how you reached the conclusion that it was the dummy which caused their issues.

This is from an article by a SLP;

"Now let’s tackle pacifiers. For some toddlers, pacifiers are not an issue since they never took one in the first place or easily gave it up as an infant. Sometimes not taking a pacifier hasn’t necessarily been a good thing either, since a child may not have found a successful way to self-soothe. Sucking is a very good way to regulate an out-of-control infant and toddler.
Many babies find their thumbs during this phase. While some parents and even experts prefer this habit, I think it’s a lot more difficult to kick, even for 6 and 7 year olds, because you can never truly get rid of it.
For some babies and toddlers (and their parents!), pacifiers are essential and even recommended. For babies with significant oral motor issues, learning to suck a pacifier and keep it in their mouths is a milestone. For cranky babies and toddlers with sensory integration differences, using a pacifier to soothe is the only thing that helps them calm.
Most children should be able to give up the pacifier between age 2 1/2 to 3, or at least relegate this for sleeping or calming only. Walking around all day with a pacifier in your mouth is not recommended as kids move closer to age 3, but not because it keeps you from talking. It makes you look like a big ol’ baby, but that’s another issue in and of itself, and one I’m not going to tackle today!
I think it’s a myth that pacifiers prevent children from talking. Most kids try to talk with it in their mouths and then take it out if their parents insist that they don’t understand them."

balletshoes

Hintza wrote: »

Why have you all gone to the extremes in your replies? That is not what the OP meant. Far too many children are mollycoddled these days.

but the OP hasn't said, and maybe they don't know, how far the older toddler has had to walk who they saw in a pushchair. It could be that they have to walk because theres no car/they're not on a bus route, for miles every day. Would the OP expect a 3 or 4 year old to do that and keep up with their parents every day, twice a day?

I personally don't like school-age kids with dummies, but hey, its not my life, and it doesn't actually affect me personally, so I'm not going to get all hot and bothered about it.