No way. Not a chance in hell.

In-laws, yes. They do things that irk me, but I think they are spot on safety wise (they are medical professionals, so even if they mess up they can deal). They also follow our directions exactly, which is a blessing.

My parents, yeah I guess. But they don't follow our directions and they are blind to safety issues and we've had some issues. If we had another kid, I'd be very hesitant to leave it with them for a long time and probably would not do it over night until older, unlike my first.

like the OP, i wish i did but i dont. my in-laws are great people but kind of forgetful, hard of hearing, and absent-minded/not so observant so id be worried about safety issues. meanwhile my own parents are stubborn and like to do things their way...if it was just a matter of them letting the kids eat sweets and watch tv, ok, but id worry my parents would try to undermine me/my DH's parenting just to do things "their way"

Anonymous wrote:until this morning, when my mother confirmed to my DD (9) that there is no such thing as fairies or santa claus.

How does your mom know that?

I trust my parents and my ILs to watch my kids, though I worry a lot about them because one of mine has a very severe peanut allergy and I worry MIL won't give him the epipen right because she gets nervous and is not very practical, like my mom who was a nurse. I do trust her to dial 911 right away, though, if he has an exposure and to be really careful with him, so that's the best I can do.

I think that some of you could lighten up on your parents a bit. A little extra TV and a few treats will not hurt your kids, that is what grandparents are for. As long as there aren't any peanuts in it!

Anonymous wrote:until this morning, when my mother confirmed to my DD (9) that there is no such thing as fairies or santa claus.

Well, your DD is 9. what did you want her to do, lie to your DD?

Anonymous wrote:My parents? Hell no. My in laws? Yes, absolutely.

+1.

until this morning, when my mother confirmed to my DD (9) that there is no such thing as fairies or santa claus.

Yes for both. They give him a few more sweets and a little more TV time than I would prefer, but not worth making a big deal out of! We're really lucky that we have both sets of grandparents plus siblings who live close by who are all trustworthy with our 2.5 year old.

^bedTIME routine

Now that they are older? Sure. My eldest is old enough/responsible enough to pick up my parents' slack (they're not up on safety stuff and don't really "get" his food allergies, but he will always make sure his brother is buckled properly into his booster and check package ingredients before ingesting anything someone else gives him). He also has his own cell phone to call me if needed. I'll leave them with MIL in an emergency, but she's 84, so I feel it's unfair to HER to ask her to babysit, even though she'd love to. But again, DS10 is responsible and mature, and takes a lot of the pressure off of MIL ... he is capable of fixing lunches/dinners, supervising shower/teeth time and doing the bedroom routine with his little brother.

Basically, DS10 is awesome.

My parents - no. My FIL - yes, MIL - no (they live separately).

My parent, yes.

My in-laws, not in a million years. Not even with my oldest dc who is 10 and doesn't require the same level of supervision as a toddler.

My parents? Hell no. My in laws? Yes, absolutely.

Yes with respect to my mom. I trust her completely.

I only trust my inlaws for a few hours at a time and I wouldn't trust my FIL without my MIL there. They are horrible drivers and I'd never let them drive my kids. My FIL has hearing problems and my MIL has health problems, so I don't think they are up to the task of chasing around 3 kids under the age of 8.