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Forum -> Parenting our children -> Preschoolers
Four year old runaway !



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ny21




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 04 2006, 8:59 pm
What would you do if you had a four year old who ran away

from you at supermarkets ! etc? is their a book about this to

read to her ? (its not my kid ),
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SingALong




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 04 2006, 10:14 pm
my daugther is only 2 and she does it all the time. she escaped from me in target and I was frantic for 5 minutes till they paged me. I just need to keep a closer eye and try to keep her interested in staying next to me with a nosh, story, or conversation...something.
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BlumaG




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 04 2006, 10:27 pm
there is a kids books by Menucha Fuchs called SHira the Sheep and its about a little boy who always runs away from his mother when they were out so the story is of a sheep who daydreams and doesnt follow her parents and gets lost and last she gets sad when she realizes shes lost...
I bought it bc I like the author and hte pages are laminated, my 2 yr old likes the story and seems to really get it
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Tovah




 
 
    
 

Post Mon, Sep 04 2006, 10:58 pm
either strap her in a stroller or buy her one of those harnesses. ppl might judge her parent but at the end of the day her daughter will return home with her.
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ssbarnes




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 05 2006, 8:00 am
I was one of those children that always ran away. When we would go to the bank, I would get bored. Once when I was 3 I actually got on the bus and told the bus driver to take me home. I was once found at a department store asleep in the stairwell. There is a story of me being found playing on a fire escape.

I did have the harness for my children when they were little. I didn't care what others thought of me, I was not going to lose my children.

Dena
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princessdiane1




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 05 2006, 11:45 am
I always wandered away, as a two year old I walked out of the house and crossed two avenue blocks till my sis found me. my mom used to use the harness on me, that worked but my siblings hated it!!!!
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ny21




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Sep 05 2006, 8:34 pm
when I was a kid - I once was lost at the beach in isreal=
I was found two beaches over
the polica gave me icecream etc I had a good time

another time I got lost in a supermarket
when I was litlle very little !
somehow when they asked me my name
I said I was a girl -it sounded like I said gail?
they announced on the loudspaker we have a child whois missing
by the name of GAIL.
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chanimommy




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 10:03 am
hi all!I just joined in here and have a question on this topic..
my 3 year old leaves the house all the time without permission--I am usualy lucky enough to hear the door slam and can run out after him, but sometimes I don't hear the door and only after a good few minutes do I realize he is outside alone...It is obviously very dangerous and scary--any suggestions???? a bell for the door maybe???
help!!
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ssbarnes




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 10:06 am
When ours were in that curious stage, we had windchimes on all of our doors so that we could hear when our little escape artist opened any doors.
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Imhappy!




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 10:12 am
how about a lock that he can't open.

I know of an elderly woman that's a bit confused and her kids didn't want her wandering out on her own so the installed a combination lock (shabbos lock) with the number key in the house.
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shopaholic




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 10:19 am
My neighboor put an extra lock only a few inches from the top of the door so their 4 year old doesn't escape.
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queenyemk




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 10:23 am
I am freaking out over what will I soon be going thru, cause dd who has only been walking for 2 months already now thinks it is hysterical to run down the hall away from me till I catch her!!! I hope she won't be an escape artist!!!
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chanimommy




 
 
    
 

Post Fri, Sep 29 2006, 11:11 am
Thank you all for your advice
now here's the thing. The windchime sounds great but what about shabbos? I guess it is pikuach nefesh for him but what about the rest of the family using the door??
ABOUT THE EXTRA LOCK AND ONE HE CAN'T OPEN, THE PROBLEM IS THAT THER ARE b"h OTHER KIDS THAT NEED TO BE ABLE TO GET IN AND OUT OF THE HOUSE WITH EASE . (Sorry about that all caps I am at work and the computer automatically does that..)
I am too scared to put a lock too high up for safety reasons for the other people in the house.
I have a combination lock on the door a "shabbos lock". It is pretty high up but he takes a stool, chair, or whatever he can shlep to the door himself and climbs up and gets the door open--he is unbelievable!! The whole block and neighborhood think he is so cute and adoreable but it is very stressful..... 2 days ago he left and went to aneighbor all by himself!! a non jewish child saw me come out and looking in all directins and he just told me--he went that way!!
oy..........
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HelloEverybody




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Oct 03 2006, 5:28 pm
While this is definitely a problem averted by living on the third floor down a long hallway, I don't know what I would do in this situation.

However, to queenyemk - the more you chase her the more she'll run away. The key is to make sure you can watch her from where you are but not run "after" her. She will eventually realize you're not playing the game and come back. My son tried it the other day, he ran to the end of block (a gate at end so I knew he wasn't going to go across it and he knows he's not allowed to go in street by himself) andeventually turned around and came right back, b"h. It will take a while for her to learn but eventually she won't even bother. Hatzlacha Rabba!
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busymom




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Oct 03 2006, 6:46 pm
one of my kids was like that. she'd just walk out the door and by the time I noticed she was gone, there was no trace of her! it was absolutely terrifying. and like another poster said, you can't always keep doors locked, bc there are other children going in and out. one reassuring thing I can say is that kids eventually outgrow it. although this child is still my most independent kid, she rarely does that anymore.

what helped me get her to stop? lots of talking! (calmly but VERY firmly and when the child is most likely to be receptive)I told her that it's ok to visit a neighbor (we live in a complex) but she must LET ME KNOW first that she's going out, and where exactly she is headed. otherwise there would be consequences... when that didn't work right away, I scared her a little too.said that there are scary ppl who are looking out for little girls walking around alone... and if she tells mommy first where she's headed, I can watch from the window and the neighbor can know to expect her... but when she doesn't inform anyone, we don't know where to find her and some bad person can get her before we do. (it's especially important to warn these children about not getting into strangers cars, etc. etc., bc they're the ones who are found outside alone)
it took some talking but eventually she got it! best of luck with urs.
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mommy2




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Oct 03 2006, 8:30 pm
I can relate, my son would go and open the garage, take his bike and go for a ride. He did it once on shabbos too... that was when he was 3, I think its a certain personality type, like s/o else said "very independant" but they do get out of it w/ talking ... no easy solution
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miri78




 
 
    
 

Post Tue, Oct 03 2006, 11:57 pm
I don't know if this will help, but I bought a guard that goes over the door know for our front door. It is a plastic cover and you need to pinch two grey tabs and then turn the door knob to open it. My 3.5 year old does not have the fine motor skills to open the door, but older kids can.
Good Luck.
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