When I was pregnant, I always got annoyed that there were never any specially designated “stork parking” spots at my usual haunts- grocery store, Target, etc. Being pregnant, while not a handicap, does have its physical limitations. Especially when you’re trying to shlep a heavy cart through a full (and icy) parking lot in wintry Chicago. Like designated handicapped parking, preggos should get their own spots too!
But I digress. The real reason I bring up the pregnancy issue is that Self-Made Mom was faced with a similar dilemma yesterday when in the airport after landing from vacation. With my son in his stroller, I went to use the ladies’ room while my husband waited for the luggage. We all know how difficult such a simple task can be.
As planned, I walked into the bathroom and looked for the handicapped stall. How else was I supposed to go with the stroller? It was then that my worst bathroom nightmare happened. When I left the stall, to my horror, a wheelchair was parked in the aisle in front of me. Visions of an angry mob gathered at the sinks filled my head.Â
But what’s a mom to do? Leave her defenseless child to go the way of lost baggage? Uh uh. That’s why I’m lobbying for wheelchair AND stroller designated stalls. It would do a lot to help a guilty mom who really has to pee.
Tags: pregnancy, traveling with childrenÂ
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I agree! I almost always see those diaper-changing stations in restrooms. (Granted, they are probably crawling with germs, but at least they’re there in a pinch.) So why not stroller-friendly stalls? Also, any store who wants the big bucks that pregnant women spend should pony up a few parking spots for the moms-to-be. And have store security hand out “Shame on you!” citations to the non-pregnant folks who park there illegally.
Susan @ Working Moms Against Guilt
http://wmag.blogspot.com
Ditto! It’s real hard to schlep sleeping babies and a Mommy who has topee.
I encounter this all the time and I am all for it.