Anonymous
03/28/2019 09:12
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:Anonymous wrote:I think the truth is somewhere between what your nanny said and what the mom said. It sounds like your nanny is exaggerating, and the mom is playing it down. I don't think this is something to get worked up about - don't let your son go back if you are not comfortable with the mom's level of supervision.
+1 The "acres and acres" comment is a bit of a giveaway. An acre is a bit less than a football field, so I doubt that she could have seen them if they were "acres and acres" away from the house.
And I agree with the poster who noted that this is precisely the kind of play that we lament the loss of, until we're actually confronted with it. If you're not comfortable with it, then your kid doesn't play there anymore. But he's safe, so there's no point in overreacting now.
+1
Btw op, you can confirm "acres and acres" on google maps.
Anonymous
03/28/2019 09:08
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:I think the truth is somewhere between what your nanny said and what the mom said. It sounds like your nanny is exaggerating, and the mom is playing it down. I don't think this is something to get worked up about - don't let your son go back if you are not comfortable with the mom's level of supervision.
+1 The "acres and acres" comment is a bit of a giveaway. An acre is a bit less than a football field, so I doubt that she could have seen them if they were "acres and acres" away from the house.
And I agree with the poster who noted that this is precisely the kind of play that we lament the loss of, until we're actually confronted with it. If you're not comfortable with it, then your kid doesn't play there anymore. But he's safe, so there's no point in overreacting now.
Anonymous
03/28/2019 06:30
Subject: What would you believe?
This sounds like the type of thing that, in the abstract, we'll all complain that kids ought to be doing a lot more of these days, just like we used to do. (And we did.)
When confronted with the specifics, it's all "Kid doesn't go back. End of story."
I also think that OP (and others) are more than a bit class biased here, too. Because the property had some salvage junk (not "savage junk" presumably), the people seem different from our world of HOAs -- lower. If the children had been free to roam a delightful equestrian estate with a pond in Purcellville, the story would have gotten a better reception.
God, we're so quick to judge sometimes.
And how far is an acre, by the way? (Trick question.)
When confronted with the specifics, it's all "Kid doesn't go back. End of story."
I also think that OP (and others) are more than a bit class biased here, too. Because the property had some salvage junk (not "savage junk" presumably), the people seem different from our world of HOAs -- lower. If the children had been free to roam a delightful equestrian estate with a pond in Purcellville, the story would have gotten a better reception.
God, we're so quick to judge sometimes.
And how far is an acre, by the way? (Trick question.)
Anonymous
03/27/2019 23:03
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
The truth is somewhere in the middle. Mom would have surely heard kids yelling. I grew up in an area where this is completely normal, so we knew what precautions to take. Don’t swim in a murky pond, don’t touch guns you see, don’t go in the pasture with the mean bull...
Anonymous
03/27/2019 21:59
Subject: What would you believe?
OP, you obviously don't let your son go to this house again, ever again. I would not let your son think this is a "maybe", based on you figuring this out -- so in order for this to happen you need to stop talking about it with him, or he'll think you can be convinced if he says the right thing.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 21:38
Subject: What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:DS6 was at a classmates house after school yesterday. Nanny went to pick him up. Nanny called and said no one was home and wanted me to confirm address. Waited for a bit, and heard kids. House is apparently on property, with a pond in the back. She said she walked behind the house and saw three boys playing by the pond several acres away from house. Walked down and it was DS and two friends (one of which lives at the house). No adults in site. Walked to the house with the boys and no adults inside. She asked the boy where his parents were and he said next door. Nanny wanted to let parents know she was picking up DS so walked next door where there was no adults. Finally saw 2 adults further back on property walking around. Decided to leave and texted me to text the mother. DS told her they basically ran around unsupervised. He obviously had a blast. I’m not thrilled. Nanny described property and house as littered with savaged junk. Also worried he could have fallen in pond. When I asked DS he said he wasn’t alone and that the mom was around. Nanny said she was with them for 15-20 minutes before she saw any adults. Texted mom and she made it seem like she was with the boys the whole time.
Not sure what to think... can’t imagine an adult would leave three kindergarteners alone for so long need a pond.
I would love to see savaged junk! Obviously, you need to fire your nanny as you question her honesty. Maybe you can hire the MB who is so stupid she lets kids play around a pond unsupervised!
Anonymous
03/27/2019 21:14
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
The nanny has no reason to lie so I would believe the nanny.
That said, I wouldn't be upset about it because honestly that sounds like a fantastic afternoon.
That said, I wouldn't be upset about it because honestly that sounds like a fantastic afternoon.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 17:40
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
I think the truth is somewhere between what your nanny said and what the mom said. It sounds like your nanny is exaggerating, and the mom is playing it down. I don't think this is something to get worked up about - don't let your son go back if you are not comfortable with the mom's level of supervision.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 16:20
Subject: What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:DS6 was at a classmates house after school yesterday. Nanny went to pick him up. Nanny called and said no one was home and wanted me to confirm address. Waited for a bit, and heard kids. House is apparently on property, with a pond in the back. She said she walked behind the house and saw three boys playing by the pond several acres away from house. Walked down and it was DS and two friends (one of which lives at the house). No adults in site. Walked to the house with the boys and no adults inside. She asked the boy where his parents were and he said next door. Nanny wanted to let parents know she was picking up DS so walked next door where there was no adults. Finally saw 2 adults further back on property walking around. Decided to leave and texted me to text the mother. DS told her they basically ran around unsupervised. He obviously had a blast. I’m not thrilled. Nanny described property and house as littered with savaged junk. Also worried he could have fallen in pond. When I asked DS he said he wasn’t alone and that the mom was around. Nanny said she was with them for 15-20 minutes before she saw any adults. Texted mom and she made it seem like she was with the boys the whole time.
Not sure what to think... can’t imagine an adult would leave three kindergarteners alone for so long need a pond.
Does your nanny really appreciate how big an acre is? How could she see the kids clearly if they were really "acres" away? Also, the pond depth question is a good one.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 12:25
Subject: What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:Is the pond deep enough to be a genuine threat to a kindergartner? Does your kid know how to swim? (Yes, I realize kids can drown in the bathtub, but there is a huge difference between a 2 foot deep koi pond and a 5+ foot deep actual pond in terms of the parental supervision necessary for a 5 year old.) If yes and no, I definitely wouldn't let him go back. Parents are probably free range-y (fine with me) and trust their own kid -- who probably has lots of experience with it by now/a history of trustworthy behavior/can likely swim -- near the pond. If yes and yes, I'd think about how much I trusted my kid and have a chat w/ him about it. If no and yes, I'd let him go back (unless I had other reasons to be concerned) without much of a second thought. If no and no, I'd talk to him about the pond and probably want to check it out myself; I'd warn the mom my kid didn't know how to swim, which would probably pass the message of my general unease along w/o being directly accusatory. If he was still invited/I trusted my kid, I'd probably let him go. All that said, if this is a boy he's good friends with, I'd make sure he learns how to swim if he doesn't know yet and have a talk with him about how to behave given the kind of freedom he enjoys at that house.
All of this.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 12:06
Subject: What would you believe?
I would be pissed. Water accidents happen so easily. The parents are crazy AF for leaving another young child, who’s swimming strength they don’t know, alone near a body of water. Mine wouldn’t be back.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 12:05
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
Anonymous wrote:Your son is safe, your son doesn’t go back. Not something to dwell on
This
Anonymous
03/27/2019 12:02
Subject: What would you believe?
Is the pond deep enough to be a genuine threat to a kindergartner? Does your kid know how to swim? (Yes, I realize kids can drown in the bathtub, but there is a huge difference between a 2 foot deep koi pond and a 5+ foot deep actual pond in terms of the parental supervision necessary for a 5 year old.) If yes and no, I definitely wouldn't let him go back. Parents are probably free range-y (fine with me) and trust their own kid -- who probably has lots of experience with it by now/a history of trustworthy behavior/can likely swim -- near the pond. If yes and yes, I'd think about how much I trusted my kid and have a chat w/ him about it. If no and yes, I'd let him go back (unless I had other reasons to be concerned) without much of a second thought. If no and no, I'd talk to him about the pond and probably want to check it out myself; I'd warn the mom my kid didn't know how to swim, which would probably pass the message of my general unease along w/o being directly accusatory. If he was still invited/I trusted my kid, I'd probably let him go. All that said, if this is a boy he's good friends with, I'd make sure he learns how to swim if he doesn't know yet and have a talk with him about how to behave given the kind of freedom he enjoys at that house.
Anonymous
03/27/2019 11:06
Subject: Re:What would you believe?
Your son is safe, your son doesn’t go back. Not something to dwell on
Anonymous
03/27/2019 11:04
Subject: What would you believe?
DS6 was at a classmates house after school yesterday. Nanny went to pick him up. Nanny called and said no one was home and wanted me to confirm address. Waited for a bit, and heard kids. House is apparently on property, with a pond in the back. She said she walked behind the house and saw three boys playing by the pond several acres away from house. Walked down and it was DS and two friends (one of which lives at the house). No adults in site. Walked to the house with the boys and no adults inside. She asked the boy where his parents were and he said next door. Nanny wanted to let parents know she was picking up DS so walked next door where there was no adults. Finally saw 2 adults further back on property walking around. Decided to leave and texted me to text the mother. DS told her they basically ran around unsupervised. He obviously had a blast. I’m not thrilled. Nanny described property and house as littered with savaged junk. Also worried he could have fallen in pond. When I asked DS he said he wasn’t alone and that the mom was around. Nanny said she was with them for 15-20 minutes before she saw any adults. Texted mom and she made it seem like she was with the boys the whole time.
Not sure what to think... can’t imagine an adult would leave three kindergarteners alone for so long need a pond.
Not sure what to think... can’t imagine an adult would leave three kindergarteners alone for so long need a pond.