Noticing parents in shops

I've noticed that I have become very aware of bad parents in shops in the past few weeks, I was in B&Q in Newbridge and a woman had 4 kids from 10 down to 7 with her and said "shut the F*ck up, I've spent all that money on you and you are still not f*cking happy". I was appauled. Then yesterday in Dunnes Stores, there was a skanky mom and her little boy was about 5, she was going around shouting and roaring at him, and the poor little fella was cleaving to the side of the buggy walking beside her, looking up at her with a "please don't be cruel to me" look on his face, I felt like saying something to her, but I daren't. I guess I don't notice good parents because you expect a parent to treat their child well, not abusively, I was very upset altogether.

theres no point even commenting. i have learned this the hard way!! people dont take too kindly to strangers butting in and I have been that stranger!

my pet hate is people who dont strap their babies/kids into car seats or seat belts. when youve seen the head injury that such stupidity can cause its hard not to get annoyed. ive often rolled down the window at lights and told drivers to buckle up their kids, and lets just say no one has ever taken it kindly. i dont mind that tho, i think child safety is everyones business.

Have to agree that a child's safety and wellbeing is everybody's business. Unfortunately, I have been one of those parents in the last couple of weeks and I have felt guilty ever since. I had a m/c three weeks ago tomorrow and a couple of days after it, I was collecting DS from creche and he was being extremely bold and I said "Shut the F up". Felt terrible as soon as I said it but the looks I got from people....I wanted to scream at them -"I've just lost my baby leave me alone, my heart is breaking". So while it was a one off and I don't agree with any swear words on front of children, sometimes you just don't know what somebody is going through. Totally agree with the post on seatbelts though. Its incredible that adults and children alike are travelling without them. MP

i could relate to the B & Q woman at times, but i would never ever speak to my daughter like this - kids learn from you and if you are going to roar at them and curse at them - well then they will do the same to people & other kids when they get annoyed. i was walking down the street a few weeks ago and i saw a young woman slam her little girl - about 2 yrs old - into a buggy cause the child wouldnt get in. the child was then terrified and roaring. i was actually crying myself when i saw this cruellty first hand - rang DH crying - maybe it was hormones - but i was so upset for the poor little thing.

I'm definitely finding it harder to cope the the sound of kids crying in shops etc - must be a hormonal thing. There was some woman in Easons with 4 little boys and she gave one of them quite a smacking - he was roaring and his older brother gave him a hug - I thought I was going to bawl myself on the spot! I'd be really upset if I saw someone being really cruel to a child - I guess smacking is one of those things people disagree on - but I agree you pay a lot more attention now to that kind of thing.

The worst I ever saw was this woman in Tesco, her little boy was beside her, he was about 6, he picked up a packet of sweets and said very nicely "please mommy can I have these", and what did she do? she ripped the sweets from his hand and beat the sh1te out of him. The poor child, if he had been screaming or throwing a tantrum, I could understand her being annoyed, but there was no excuse, she abused that child, laying into him slap after slap, and he had such good manners. There is no excuse for child abuse, and after a while children become immune to smacking.

girls...i saw something horrible yesterday and i am ashamed i did nothing to help....i will explain i pulled up outside a large shopping complex in limerick ( its the childers road shopping centre i parked over by dorothy perkins ) i went into one or 2 shops had a look around and was walking back to my car when i heard a child crying...as some of ye mentioned i am more aware of crying kids so i looked around a saw a people carrier with the 2 windows in the back wound down fully. there was a girl in the back and she was possibly about 7 or 8. she was with a young boy in a car seat ( not strapped in ) who would have been about 8-9 months old. the child was screaming his head off and she was shouting at him to shut up...no one else in the car....so she grabbed him and all the time shouting picked him up and started to kinda shake him..he obviously kept crying and she started shaking him again .now i was appalled and my first instinct was to go over and try and soothe the child but i didnt....it was just horrible to see this child so upset and this girl shaking him but i did nothing. i was scared of how it would look i guess...cause some people are really not impressed with people interferring and i guess i just chickened out.... what would u guys have done...

I would have taken the number plate and the colour of the car and make and rang the gardai, isn't it illegal to leave children in a car alone? well, that's what I would have done, and I would have put a note on their car under the windscreen wiper to tell them that their daughter was shaking the shit out of the child that they had left her in the care of, and that you have reported it to the authorities.

oh mrs gk..thats really good thinking...i wish you had been with me. i was really just in such a tiz i blanked it completely...i am such a moron.