Leashes....YAY or NAY??

So I stumbled on this question today on the "Multiples and More" blog. Leashes. Seems like a pretty simple thing, they're made mostly for dogs, and maybe the occasional strange cat, pig or ferret, but not for kids...or are they?!

Having two older children, I did buy a leash for my oldest when he was about 18 months old. We were flying for the first time with him, and I thought it would be nice to be able to "leash" him in the airport so he wouldn't get away! Needless to say, we didn't need it! 2 parents + 1 child = plenty of eyes to watch him!

Then baby #2 comes along! Now they have cute little backpack leashes for kids! We bought a little puppy backpack, thinking what a great way to give her some freedom when we are shopping or something! And yet, once again, 2 parents + 1 older brother + 1 toddler = plenty of eyes to watch her!

AND then the twins come along! They have just recently started walking everywhere, and while they are fairly content in their stroller when we are moving along shopping, they are much less content sitting in their stroller for the 90 min long baseball game their big brother plays twice a week! Added to my grocery list one week was a second leash! See, the simple one we had for Sean has disappeared over the years, and we only had one puppy dog one for kaelyn. Until I realized how LARGE and bulky those backpack leashes are! I have plenty of other necessities in my diaper bag, 2 big bulky leashes are not acceptable! So we bought a couple simple nylon strap leashes and stuffed them in my already overloaded diaper bag, to be brought out at the next ball game. At this point, the equation looks more like 2 tired stressed out parents(and sometimes it's just 1 tired stressed out parent when my husband works) + 1 child playing baseball + 1 child running around playing + 2 toddlers = far less eyes than are necessary!

And the leashes worked GREAT! I was able to let them roam around in about a 6 foot area around me, still keeping a small eye on them, but still able to watch my oldest son hit his first homerun, watch my older daughter to be sure she doesn't play in the creek....or worse run into the parking lot traffic, and not have to worry about the babies disappearing on me! I even had another parent say she used one with her second child, she can't imagine NOT using one when you have more than one toddler at a time!

So, all in all, I'm in favor of leashes being used appropriately. This is to say if I ever saw someone tie their child in one, or leave them attached to a building post or bicycle rack like I've seen people do with dogs, I would be calling the authorities ASAP. But as far as using them at baseball games....they get a big old from me!