"Can you watch my kids for me?"

[Seanette]

Seems like a good way to handle the matter. You at least made sure the child was being protected.

[AnaKhouri]

My son likes to play those demos at game stores, and I know with 110% certainty that he would play quietly and bother no one. But I never leave him alone, not even for five minutes. I'm not a helicopter parent but I don't want to make an employee stress about it, waiting for him to throw a tantrum or something.

I've picked up a couple lost kids at my store and I'm amazed at children who don't know their parents' real name or phone numbers. Not small children either- kids 5 or older. When my son was a toddler I taught him to recite my phone number and full name (which led to him calling me by my name instead of Mommy for a while).

[notalwaysright]

I've picked up a couple lost kids at my store and I'm amazed at children who don't know their parents' real name or phone numbers. Not small children either- kids 5 or older. When my son was a toddler I taught him to recite my phone number and full name (which led to him calling me by my name instead of Mommy for a while).

Even little kids should be taught their parent's names, as soon as they can! If a kid comes up to an employee at my store and is lost, we're not supposed to page that there is a lost child. We are to ask for the parent's name and page "Jane Smith to the cutting counter, your party is waiting." I think that's pretty standard nowadays.

[Seshat]

Seems like a good way to handle the matter. You at least made sure the child was being protected.

Thank you.

I was a little wary of being accused of abducting him, which is why I never so much as took his hand. Which is a shame, he was scared (poor thing), and might have been happier if he had a hand to hold or legs to hug.
Still, he seemed happy when I left, and as you say, Seanette, he was safe.

I think that's the only time it's reasonable to ask customer service to watch a child.

When I took my niece and nephew (7 and 9, I think) to the science museum, I made sure to point out the security guard at the customer service desk, and tell them that if they get separated from me, find anyone wearing that uniform and ask to be taken to the entrance, and I'd come find them there.
The security guard and the guy at customer service both looked approving at that. I hope they were.
I know the primary job for the security staff at a place like a museum is protecting exhibits that can be absolutely invaluable and irreplacable. But as I understand it, it also includes protecting the humans - not from ourselves, so much as from accidents.

[raudf]

Having an actual plan of action does make Security happy. The museums and parks around where I live deal with lost kids all the time and usually the little ones are scared beyond belief. Some, thanks to the whole, "if you don't behave the police will come get you" mentality of failed parenting, are terrified of security in uniform too. By telling the kids that a security guard is a safe person to for the child to come to makes Security's job easier if the child does wind up losing their parents in the museum. The kid isn't likely to run away or become so afraid they hurt themselves.

My oldest knew my name, our address, my cell phone and the home phone. As he got older, we added in my mom's name and number and how to unlock my cell phone. This way, if something had happened and I was incapacitated either due to accident or sudden illness, he could tell them who he was, who I was, and who to contact.. and my phone has my allergy programmed into it, along with other emergency contacts.

[wordgirl]

Long, long ago, I worked at Haus of Maus. At the time, it wasn't really considered unusual for kids as young as 10 or so to be let off the leash for at least part of the day - they would just be told to report to Spot X at Y time and usually, it worked out. (I worked in the castle, which was a popular meeting point.) This would, of course, be unthinkable today.

But even then, there were a few cases of parental negligence that really stuck in my teenaged brain. One was an 10- or 11-year-old girl who was in full-blown meltdown because her brother didn't come to the castle at the right time. The kicker? This same girl was supervising TWO OTHER KIDS - including a toddler in a stroller. Their parents were back at the hotel. My heart broke for that poor little girl - she should have been having the time of her life, and instead she was so stressed out she was trembling. I know they called her parents to come get them; I wish I could have witnessed the confrontation.

Another Parent O'The Year left her kid - a cherubic four-year-old - in our shop full of expensive collectables. When I saw her go out the door, I sent one co-worker after her while I went over to the kid, who was quietly busy, snapping the horns off the ceramic unicorns on display. From the looks of things, he'd been occupied with this fascinating task for quite some time before his mother left. Co-worker "escorted' Mom's indignant butt back and I was standing there with my hands on my hips.

Now, we were not allowed to enforce a "you break it you bought it" policy, but I rolled the dice. I had the broken figurines lined up with their horns in a pathetic little pile, and I told her how many had been destroyed, how much they cost and asked how she planned to take care of that. She wasn't happy, but she did pay up - after trying to argue that the figurines were still sellable, but now they were horses instead of unicorns. I did tell her how to superglue the horns back on and wrapped them all up for her - I don't remember exactly how many but it was more than a dozen. I suspect a lot of her friends got slightly damaged unicorns for Christmas that year.

[RealUnimportant]

Another Parent O'The Year left her kid - a cherubic four-year-old - in our shop full of expensive collectables. When I saw her go out the door, I sent one co-worker after her while I went over to the kid, who was quietly busy, snapping the horns off the ceramic unicorns on display. From the looks of things, he'd been occupied with this fascinating task for quite some time before his mother left. Co-worker "escorted' Mom's indignant butt back and I was standing there with my hands on my hips.

Now, we were not allowed to enforce a "you break it you bought it" policy, but I rolled the dice. I had the broken figurines lined up with their horns in a pathetic little pile, and I told her how many had been destroyed, how much they cost and asked how she planned to take care of that. She wasn't happy, but she did pay up - after trying to argue that the figurines were still sellable, but now they were horses instead of unicorns. I did tell her how to superglue the horns back on and wrapped them all up for her - I don't remember exactly how many but it was more than a dozen. I suspect a lot of her friends got slightly damaged unicorns for Christmas that year.

Makes you wonder if her plan was to come back "in distress" & hope that would get her off the hook for Junior's hornicidal tendancies...

[flyonthewall]

And when the kids refuse to talk to us because they've been brainwashed by militant stranger danger. >.<

Stranger danger brainwashing session parodied by SNL:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZZ6wPdcYG4

How many of you have ever been told by a mini-customer: "I don't talk to strangers!"

[Ironclad Alibi]

I suspect a lot of her friends got slightly damaged unicorns for Christmas that year.

Nope. They received ceramic horses.

[An Haddock]

I'd be concerned with getting the whistle blown on me for trying to escort a kid to a security guy, help desk, etc. because I'm a big ugly single middle aged guy.

If I found myself in that situation I'd probably stand near the kid, ask him to stay there for a moment, and try to locate the nearest employee. Even call the store on my cell if need be. I could just see some ignorant parent accusing me of attempted child abduction to get the attention off their bad parenting skills.


I do remember a cute story from Comic Con or a related convention from a couple of years ago: a kid of around 6 - 7 got separated from his parent and was freaking out. Until he spotted the Flash and Wonder Woman (or the equivalent) - he recognized them as "super heroes" and went to them for help. They quickly got the kid to a help booth and reunited him with his parent.


Hah! Found it:

http://www.comicvine.com/profile/xer...al-life/71963/

[protege]

They received ceramic horses.

Horses...given to them by a jackass...

[workerbee222]

I remember when a new country club opened nearby. Many of the members had never belonged to a social club before.

The newspaper article reported that it was routine for the dining room wait staff to be *told* they were to baby sit Snooks and Junior while Mumsy took a lesson with the pro.

[NecessaryCatharsis]

I'd be concerned with getting the whistle blown on me for trying to escort a kid to a security guy, help desk, etc. because I'm a big ugly single middle aged guy.

If I found myself in that situation I'd probably stand near the kid, ask him to stay there for a moment, and try to locate the nearest employee. Even call the store on my cell if need be. I could just see some ignorant parent accusing me of attempted child abduction to get the attention off their bad parenting skills.

I think anyone would be concerned about that, regardless of size, attractiveness, marital status, age or gender. I think the best policy for anyone would be to stay put with child, try to call/flag someone else down for help tracking down child's parent. That would be my planned route

[DGoddessChardonnay]

And when the kids refuse to talk to us because they've been brainwashed by militant stranger danger. >.<

Stranger danger brainwashing session parodied by SNL:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gZZ6wPdcYG4

How many of you have ever been told by a mini-customer: "I don't talk to strangers!"

I actually encountered a parent a few years ago who made that statement to me while we were chatting (she had asked where something was and while I was explaining to her where to find it, I'd noticed her small child in the cart and made a comment about how well behaved her child was.)

I hope she had a game plan w/her child for what to do if the child somehow got separated from her but from the tone she used when explaining that she doesn't allow her child to talk to strangers, I kind doubt it.

[Seshat]

I think anyone would be concerned about that, regardless of size, attractiveness, marital status, age or gender. I think the best policy for anyone would be to stay put with child, try to call/flag someone else down for help tracking down child's parent. That would be my planned route

I was concerned about accusations, yes. I look 'conventional' and female and probably slightly 'mumsy', but while that makes it less likely for me to be accused, it's not a solid shield.

Sadly, understaffing made it unfeasible to use the 'flag someone down for help' option. That's why I used the 'make a beeline for customer service' option.

By putting the poor kid in the care of people in uniform - even if it's "only" a retail-staffer uniform - they had the shield of being staff. And quite likely had a camera pointing at the desk, in case they got a totally unreasonable accusation.