Errands with Maskless ASD child?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:What errands do you absolutely have to do?

This. I think you need to rethink your life more and stop running so many errands. Grocery stores offer free curbside pickup. Pharmacies can deliver medicine through the mail. What errand is so essential that you have to do it in person?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

Are you kddding me?? You are suggesting she take her maskless kid with her into a store during senior hours???

[Anonymous]

OP, I am very empathetic to your situation and don’t judge you. I haven’t been in a store since March, not one. I get all deliveries. I would worry about your child getting it. The virus is very widespread in the community. And we simply don’t know the long term effects from the virus. I do NOT want my child to get this. Especially because your child has special needs (as does my child).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

Please don’t bring your maskless child to senior citizens hour at the grocery store which is there to reduce risk of disease transmission to seniors 🙄

The stores are completely empty during those hours. Obviously keep your distance, but her kid isn’t giving anyone covid. It’s for people with disabilities too, not just seniors.

Her maskless kid could absolutely give someone covid by breathing into the air.

Op needs to rethink this. What errands are so essential? And it sounds like she has a partner?

Op, no. People should be doing everything possible to avoid bringing their kids anywhere, but especially if the kids won’t wear a mask.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I have both a neurotypical child and a child with severe ASD. Neither has been in a store since lockdown in March because I order everything online and it gets delivered or brought curbside. It isn’t safe for them or me to be unmasked indoors, in fact, it would be catastrophic if our ASD child got Covid-19. Please try to figure out another way to get these necessary items without exposing your child and household.

This.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

No, these are precisely the hours OP should avoid with a small unmasked child. They are for the elderly and for people more at risk to Covid, everyone with be masked and wearing face shields.

I would do grocery pickup so that you can stay in the car, as do as many drive through errands as possible. If you are in MoCo, that may mean you have to drive out of your way to newer areas.

If you can't do pickup or delivery, I would go during the afternoon or anytime you think more people are going out to do errands with kids.

It would be during the afternoon because therapy is in the morning, anyway.

Grocery pickup/delivery is terrible. I've been trying it more the last few weeks because of the changes with therapy, and as I've said, it just makes me need to go to the store anyway to get things they missed or to replace things that were bad. I'll keep doing it for some basics that they can't possibly screw up, but it's absolutely no replacement for trips to get ingredients for meals.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

Please do not take a MASKLESS child to a senior shopping hour. I am super sympathetic to this, but this is NOT THE SOLUTION!!!!!!!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

No! Don’t take a maskless child to senior hour! This is a terrible suggestion!

OP here. Yeah, I wouldn't do that. Realistically I think it would be fine, but I know those people are going to be particularly freaked out.

Boy OP, I feel for you. You have all the anxiety-ridden, mask-shaming, know-nothings coming on here, not even answering your question. I am a 50-something mom with older teenagers, so I cannot put myself in your shoes. But I would not give you and/or your child a second glance if he wasn't wearing a mask. In fact, it is your right to take him out without a mask so you can do what you need to do. I guess you'll just have to be tough and ignore those who stare you down in judgement. It's their problem, not yours. Best of luck and here's hoping we will all be in a better place soon.

As I'm sure many of the parents in the special needs forum can attest, you grow a thick skin when you have a special needs kids. In the pre-COVID days I was already getting snarky remarks from other parents at the park/playground. There's a lot of pretty awful people in MoCo, particularly the further south you go.

As I said, though, I think I got a reasonable suggestion with the stroller and going in the afternoons (which I would have had to do anyway). I'm certainly interested in any other constructive suggestions people have, but those are probably the main things I can do besides driving to Frederick or Anne Arundel county where they don't even try to say the mask orders go that young. But I don't see a good reason to do that given that the people complaining here would likely still complain in those neighboring jurisdictions, and it's no less legal in MoCo than AA/Frederick.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

No, these are precisely the hours OP should avoid with a small unmasked child. They are for the elderly and for people more at risk to Covid, everyone with be masked and wearing face shields.

I would do grocery pickup so that you can stay in the car, as do as many drive through errands as possible. If you are in MoCo, that may mean you have to drive out of your way to newer areas.

If you can't do pickup or delivery, I would go during the afternoon or anytime you think more people are going out to do errands with kids.

It would be during the afternoon because therapy is in the morning, anyway.

Grocery pickup/delivery is terrible. I've been trying it more the last few weeks because of the changes with therapy, and as I've said, it just makes me need to go to the store anyway to get things they missed or to replace things that were bad. I'll keep doing it for some basics that they can't possibly screw up, but it's absolutely no replacement for trips to get ingredients for meals.

What stores are you using that make delivery and pick up so difficult? This totally baffles me.

[Anonymous]

Do you want me to tell you it’s okay? I can’t. We’re at a huge surge in the pandemic.

You can find a way to keep your child home, OP. You know you can.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

No, these are precisely the hours OP should avoid with a small unmasked child. They are for the elderly and for people more at risk to Covid, everyone with be masked and wearing face shields.

I would do grocery pickup so that you can stay in the car, as do as many drive through errands as possible. If you are in MoCo, that may mean you have to drive out of your way to newer areas.

If you can't do pickup or delivery, I would go during the afternoon or anytime you think more people are going out to do errands with kids.

It would be during the afternoon because therapy is in the morning, anyway.

Grocery pickup/delivery is terrible. I've been trying it more the last few weeks because of the changes with therapy, and as I've said, it just makes me need to go to the store anyway to get things they missed or to replace things that were bad. I'll keep doing it for some basics that they can't possibly screw up, but it's absolutely no replacement for trips to get ingredients for meals.

Then your spouse can go to the store for missing ingredients. Problem solved.

[Anonymous]

OP, I do grocery pickup because I can't risk being exposed to Covid right now.

I've just accepted it is what it is and I can't get exactly everything I want when I want it. I just don't plan rigid meals, use what I have, and try to stock on on ingredients we use all the time each order. Sometimes I get them, sometimes I don't. It's a pandemic, something has to give.

I've supplemented with mail order and delivery, which has taken some creativity to find suppliers. I've driven about a half an hour to find a pharmacy with a drive through, while I am working to get prescriptions accurately delivered.

If you have a dh or partner, you could also have them stay with the child and go to the store at night.

[Anonymous]

This thread is a microcosm of society. Appreciate it when you meet kind ppl Op. It doesn't get easier but you'll get tougher and even develop a sense of humor (I explained to one person that the only way to get mu kid to mask is to tie him up and gag him, but my pediatrician frowns upon my doing this and suggested gentler parenting methods.)

[Anonymous]

I am sympathetic and empathetic, but please do not do this. You are exposing everyone around you to your child, not to mention your child to everyone around them. Use the $$ you were spending on daycare, and throw that at the errand problem. Do curbside pick-up, or instacart or whatever needs doing.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Some stores still do seniors and people with disabilities hours. Maybe go during those hours?

No! Don’t take a maskless child to senior hour! This is a terrible suggestion!

OP here. Yeah, I wouldn't do that. Realistically I think it would be fine, but I know those people are going to be particularly freaked out.

How would it realistically be fine?!?!? Are you 80? Is your child a recent solid organ transplant recipient on immunosuppressive treatment? No? Then stay the F out! Especially without a damn mask. Come on people.

Close. So remarkably close it's actually a little funny.

So you’re 80, with a 3 year old? Or your 3 year old had a heart transplant 4 months ago but you’re still taking them maskless out to the store?