Do you think four is to old for a stroller? My son is extremely active...?

Question

I am taking him to the county fair on Sun and it will be hard to keep a hold of him. Would you use a stroller or get a wrist leash? I don't know if the are called leashes or not, but I don't like the harnesses if at all possible. What is your opinion. I just want to keep him safe.

Oh I should have added for those that want me to tell my child to stay with me that my son is developmentally delayed and he doesn't always understand what you tell him he is also lacking a lot of verbal skills so he can't tell you if he understands what you are saying.

Answer 1

We took our three year old to the county fair last weekend. We left our seldom used stroller in the car, but I regretted it. Not to keep reigns on him, but rather because he got very tired walking around. You can usually rent wagons at fairs and you can dump stuffed animals, kettle corn, and your tired four year old into the wagon as needed.

If you're simply looking to keep him close by and safe in such a big crowd, go for the a harness. They make them that fit onto the child like a backpack. To heck with what other people think, you'll see a LOT of parents that use one only for crowded situations. Put yourself in your child's position: would you rather walk around and do stuff or be strapped into a stroller? You aren't keeping your child tethered to a post, for goodness sake! Most of the little guys wearing a harness aren't even aware of it.

Answer 2

My son is 3 and a half and I still put him in a stroller from time to time. If we go to the zoo or somewhere where it's very crowded I take it because if he gets too wild I can put him in there and if he gets tired I can put him in there instead of carrying him. I also have a "baby leash" that you are talking about, but only used it once. If he pulls really hard and I'm not right behind him he will fall down. I didn't like it. I would say take the stroller, put all your stuff in it instead of carrying it and use it if you need to, nothing wrong with that. Also sit him down before you leave for the fair and tell him what you expect of him and the consequences if he doesn't stay with you/hold your hand, etc. Good luck and have fun!

Answer 3

I would actually try both. The stroller is very convenient towards the end of the day because they can get off of their feet for a while and sometimes even nap in them. If it comes down to it you can buy a child backpack that has a strap on it so that you can make sure he doesn't bolt away from you. I understand that lots of people are against using that but if it keeps them safe why not. However, I have noticed that a stroller seems to be better at fairs and amusement parks and if he begins to get wiggly, try to find a not so crowded place to sit and have him run around for a while to let his energy out that way he will be more willing to sit in the stroller. Good Luck!!

Answer 4

I totally understand where you are coming from. My son must be your son's long lost twin!

I use the stroller to help with containing him as he is a runner! He would just run in the street if I wasn't careful. I think the stroller is great and they are safe there! Plus you don't have to worry about him saying, "Mom I'm tired, pick me up."

I think the leash is fine too. I worry about big crowds if my son isn't in the stroller as he can take off and I can't catch him. The leash works in two ways: a) your son is near you and next to you, b) no one can snatch him when he's attached to you. (Don't worry about people's opinions about the leash. It's your son and his safety is paramount! If they had a runner, they would know.) I haven't had to use the leash yet as we use the stroller when we need to.

Best of luck and basically just do what you want and what you are comfortable with and what you feel is safest to do. It's your son and you get to decide! Best of luck!

Answer 5

My son is 18 months and half the time the stroller is completely useless as he won't stay in it.

I don't see any problem with a wrist leash, it is unreasonable to expect a child to keep their hand above their head to hold your hand for a long period of time. Also a leash (or whatever you want to call it) gives added security just in case at some point.

Personally I use the harnesses (commonly found at walmart). My son has a doggy one and a monkey one (my mom went a little nuts)[FYI not for a dog, it is a stuffed dog and the other is a stuffed monkey]. He loves them, he wears the monkey one around the house all the time and always asks for it on. He likes to pet the straps and play with the feet.

Answer 6

I definitely brought a stroller for my kids up through age 5 if we went anywhere that required a lot of walking and I thought they may be tired. I think either option, the stroller or the wrist leash would be fine for your son. I'd pick the stroller if you think he may get tired from all the walking, and I'd pick the wrist leash if you're just worried about not losing him. Good luck!

Answer 7

Do you have other kids you have to keep an eye on, too? If so, you can go with the stroller if you really feel you have to. Otherwise, can't you just hold his hand? It's not that hard to keep track of one kid, even in a crowded place. At some point you're going to have to teach him to stay near you in a crowd. Might as well start working on it now. If you don't have other kids to keep track of and he squirms out of your hand-hold and runs off, run off and get him and impose a consequence. That's a better long-term solution than keeping him in a leash or stroller until he's a teenager. ;-) If you do have other kids and it's just impossible to keep track of all of them, either try to go with more adults or make sure you are using other occasions when the other kids aren't with you to teach your son the importance of staying with the group.

Oh, and put him in a brightly colored t-shirt so you can spot him as he runs off, and put your cellphone number in his pocket, and tell him to give it to a policeman, or a mommy, if he can't find you. Also tell him if he doesn't see you to stay in one place rather than wandering all around looking for you.

Answer 8

Your the mother. You must keep him safe and you know him better than anyone else. I think a stroller is a good idea. even 4 year olds get tired of walking at events like a fair. just take it and see what happens. Think of it as not because your sons active but because he might get tired because he's active. great idea and the leashes are leashes in my eyes. I don't put my dog on one why would I put a kid on one. No thanks. The stroller is made for kids so use it.

Answer 9

I think it just depends on what suits you and the height and weight of the child. I mean my little one is 4 and she's almost 4feet tall and is about 50 something pounds so that would be way to big to be in a stroller. It's up to you don't allow someone else to tell you what is too big or too small for your child. If you feel comfortable with him/her in a stroller than go for it.

Answer 10

I think he may be too old for the stroller. Plus, I know that my 5 year old cousin would never put up with being in a stroller. If he is very active like you said it is very important to teach him what to do if he does get lost.