Today, while I was working at a supermarket, a kid started to cry in line because he couldn't get candy. Since we have free lollipops behind the desk, I gave him one. His mom complained to my manager and said I was grooming her child. FML
Collection
Thanksgiving
Questions about your love life, a burnt turkey and the cousin who knows everything: Thanksgiving, a contact sport.
Today, my son asked for candy at a supermarket checkout. I said no. He laid on the floor and began screaming as if I'd killed his pet rabbit. Other parents nodded at me in silent sympathy, while strangers judged me with their glares. I bought the candy. He still screamed. FML
Today, while working at my local supermarket, I found a boy lost and wandering about, so I took him to the front desk. My reward from his mother was a slap around the face and harsh words for supposedly having kidnapped him. FML
Today, at my store, I had an old man violently accuse me of charging him for an extra pack of 99¢ Mounds candy yesterday. He held up my line for 10 minutes, fighting me about it. I didn't even work yesterday. FML
Today, a child was choking in the store I work at. He was alone in the aisle, so I started the Heimlich without his parents' permission. After dislodging what was caught, his mother turned the corner and went screaming to my manager for touching her kid. I got a write up. FML
Today, I was at the mall, I saw a girl crying that her ice cream had fallen on the floor. Feeling generous, I bought her a new one. She threw it on the ground, laughed, and came over to her mom and told that I was bothering her, so the mom called security. FML
Today, I was so tired at the pet store I was working at that I accidentally offered a kid a dog treat instead of their dog. He ate it. While his mom watched. FML
Today, at my job as a cashier, a man and his 3-year old son got in line. The father said, "Give this to the pretty lady," looking at me. The kid looks at me, looks at his dad, and walks over to the next cashier. FML
Today, a kid got his hand stuck inside my store's giant gumball machine. He started crying, and his negligent trainwreck of a mom bitched me out for being "unobservant." I'd been mopping up the mess she'd made after she'd spilled an open can of beer all over the floor. FML
Today, while at my job in a candy store, a boy stuck his hand into the bin, contaminating the candy. As I politely explained that the dad had to purchase the affected candy he refused, yelled, then angrily agreed to buy them. The total cost of the candy with the extra pieces? $1.69. FML
Today, I waved at a baby while standing in line in a store. It started screaming. Its mom looked over in mild concern and gave me a disturbed glare before moving to the next checkout counter over. FML
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Top comments
WhoopteDo 26
While the mom overreacted, she may have had a reason for not giving him candy. Better safe than sorry and ask.
Calingaladha 21
You are kind of encouraging brattiness when you do that. YDI
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Comments (120)
mrBearBear 11
If the mom doesn't want her kid to have candy don't give him candy. All that's gonna do is teach him that "If mom says no all I have to do is cry and strangers will give me what I want"
KaidensCrow 18
kid shouldnt take candy from strangers anyways
BlackBoyFly 11
This is a very YDI/FML situation, hard to pick a side, but I'd like to know people's reasons for one.
oelfke 5
the parent doesnt need a reason it's her child and if she doesn't want them to have candy then they don't need it. everyone parents in their own way and it's no one elses plces to judge
FlyinOrion 10
****. That. There are good ways and bad ways to parent. I know from experience that my mom would always use that "it's my child" excuse when she whipped the hell out of me in public for minor bullshit like sneaking a cookie. Just because it's your child doesn't mean you can just do whatever the hell you want just because it's legal.
DoomedGemini 38
I believe the whole 'it's their child' to a point. Obviously if they are abusing their child or something, people should step in. But this is a lollipop. As others stated, op just reinforced that the kid crying will get him candy as well as the candy being from a stranger. It also completely ignores the child's mother and her rules, which might make the child think they can just ignore her.
Adam_Power58 16
She just misunderstood what you were doing, I work in a child minding/play area place and you should see how overprotective parents are and judgey , its ridiculous, you did nothing wrong!
amypr 20
Because parents shouldn't be able to make their own decision about what to give and how to raise their child...?
doodlecloud 27
While I agree that parents can be way overprotective and judgey, if you work with children you should really see why this was not a great idea on OP's part.
jumpshot32 11
The kid shouldn't be rewarded for his bad behavior.
amypr 20
Over-reaction on her part, no doubt about it. At the same time, I can understand her being frustrated that you did that. You never know why parents are saying no to their kids. there could be allergies, dietary problems, or medical procedures that require limited food intake - or maybe they just don't want to give their kids crap to eat whenever they ask for it. Best bet is to try to discreetly ask if its okay in the future, so the kiddo doesn't go full meltdown if they hear their parent say no. :)
Starksrule 15
Or maybe they just don't have enough money to buy the candy...
SuperMew 22
How embarrassing to suggest someone is too poor to buy treats for their child. I know Op meant well, but offering sweets when the parent said no is not going to end well. Either the parents doesn't want to buy the candy for some reason or lacks the funds to do it. It would be horrifying for someone to point that out then undermine my parenting like that. Better to just not offer.
ChimeraThorne 19
Voted YLS as the mother did overreact, however I get pissed when strangers give my daughter sweets, especially without my consent. But she deffo went too far IMO
Britt125 16
Well, I mean you don't know why she didn't want him to have candy or what she's trying to teach him. Nothing wrong with offering it, but you should always ask the parent(s) first so you don't overstep their parenting. You also don't know if they have allergies or anything and you could just give them something they can't have because it could kill them, pretty upsetting as a kid to think you're getting candy and then have it taken from you. So I get where the mom was coming from, I think taking it to management was probably unnecessary but I don't blame her for being bothered by it.
doodlecloud 27
Well it's not grooming. That's calculated and it happens gradually over a period of time. Still shouldn't give random kids sweets though, especially if there patent had just told them no. Maybe she was well aware that you weren't grooming the child but wanted to punish you for undermining her?
techiejames 8
Should have asked her first. However, she overreacted with the pedophile part.
LizzysOwner 17
Op was trying to keep a child from having a meltdown in line, likely for the benefit of all the customers and other employees around. While op should have talked to the parent first, the parent/guardian insinuated that op was potentially interested in the child in an inappropriate way ("grooming" said child to take things from strangers). If it was something like a food allergy, a responsible parent/guardian would have stepped in and immediately removed the lollipop. Op was trying to keep everything calm, and there was no reason to claim that he was "grooming" a child, though op likely should have asked the parent first. Hope there was no issue with your manager, op!