A Lost Child

I don't mean that literally. So I have told you before about my babysitting job. I don't intend to share much about that because its not my place to get into someone else's personal life. However, this little 3 year old boy is already beginning to lose his way. It's not him doing it but his parents. It seems to me that this is a growing trend across the United States. Parents fail to discipline their children. With no discipline the child learns no boundaries and feels they can get away with anything. They are spoiled and are manipulators later in life. I am afraid to say that this little boy doesn't get disciplined except by me. His mother came home last night after work and took a quick shower and left to go out with some friends and while I do understand her want to go out does she need to? What about her son? Of course the boy had a tantrum and didn't want her to leave and rightly so he never sees her. She threatened to put him in a timeout if he didnt stop. How many times did she say that? More than enough and never put him in timeout. She said to me, "I'm so horrible. I threaten but never follow through. I'm just a softie." I don't think thats an excuse. I'm teaching him the word no and what a timeout is. If he misbehaves he gets a warning if he does it again he sits in timeout. But I feel that its a wasted effort since I don't live with him or raise him. Poor kid! And unfortunately he's not the only child who goes through this.