Okay-Is This Bad?

DS has started sleeping a few hours in the morning, so some days I take his baby monitor outside (it works there) and do a little yardwork. When he wakes up, I can hear him and go in, and if he stays asleep, I usually come in to check on him at some point. He gets bored just sitting outside in his stroller while I do this.

One of my neighbors thought I should not leave him inside--the house could burn down, etc. My yard is not that big, if there was a fire, I would see it, and the smoke alarms would be audible on the detector. He is not raising himself up yet, so I can't see how he could get out of his crib. I peek at the video monitor regularly too, so I would see if something was up with him.

Am I wrong? Is there some danger I am ignoring here? She was so adamant, it just made me question whether or not this is okay.

Re: Okay-Is This Bad?

ABsolutely not! My family does this all the time. It is not like you are a block away. She sounds neurotic!

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I leave my son in the house sleeping while I am doing gardening. Its the only way I can get it done! If the house is on fire, I probably will be able to tell before it burns down to the ground.

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your not wrong.. a baby is not a life sentence to staying in the house! If you had to stay in b/c of fire, then you would have to stay in there room. Whats the difference between being outside or in another room.

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Thanks for the validation! I disregarded her fire comment, but later I wondered if there were other things I wasn't thinking about. When he's mobile, I think I'll need to bring him outside with me, but now, this seemed okay to me.

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No way...as long as you can hear him. And even if there was god forbid a fire you would definetely hear the smoke detector especially through the baby monitor. They pick up every sound.

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i was just thinking about this the other day, last summer DD wasn't on a schedule, so this year i was thinking how great it will be on weekends to be able to work outside while she naps.

your fine, your neighbor is a little paranoid.

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So, in the same light, that means that you can NEVER sleep. What if there is a fire while you are sleeping? It's the same thing. The same with taking a shower, or going to the bathroom.

As long as you have the monitor (and aren't driving down the road to go shopping...), you're doing everything fine.

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Personally, I see nothing wrong with it at all. You are still near the house and you have the monitor.

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No way, not bad at all. Your neighbor is nuts! Its sounds like she thinks you should sit there and watch the video monitor the entire time he's sleeping.

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Thanks again! I get nervous sometimes that I'm missing something when I think something is safe and someone else strongly disagrees. Guess I just need to build my confidence in my judgement as a mom.

She's an older woman, and I thought maybe she didn't get the idea of the monitor, so I showed it to her. She still disappoved. What is it with the old ladies? They have given me more criticism with DS than anyone!

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I don't think there is anything wrong with it. If it were for Marron's naps and the monitor, my yard would NEVER get done!! She was a year old last year when I did it, and I'll be doing it again this year when she's 2.

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I'm a smoker, so I'm in my yard a few times a day while DD is napping inside. If you can hear him on the monitor, then what's the big deal? It's not like you're leaving him, getting in the car and going to a store while he's napping, you're still on your own property.

Geez, tell your neighbor to mind her own beeswax! I hate when people say things like that. Did your neighbor give birth to your kid? Tell them to SHHHHHHH!

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I dont see a problem with it. But my DH got mad at me one tiem b/c i left Milan in the house alone to step outside for like 2 minutes. He is protective anyway. But to me if i want to go outside to get fresh air i will regardless of what he says.

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I don't see anything wrong with it. YOu have a video monitor - whats the difference if you have a HUGE house and are on the other side of it, or just outside in your yard. I don't know, I don't see anything wrong with it.