Dad berated for 'inappropriate' act while out shopping with his baby

After a store employee clocked onto him, he made a run for it.

Brent*, a 31-year-old dad, was at a large department store yesterday with his five-month-old son when his baby "did what babies do."

"I went over to the restrooms and saw that there wasn't a family/companion restroom, just a men's and women's," he explained to Reddit.

"I went into the men's room and saw there was a cubicle and a few urinals but no changing table. The sink didn't have a counter either."

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The department store debacle

So, he walked out and hunted down an employee to ask where the changing table was.

She said it was "in the bathroom", and he asked where, assuming there was a family restroom in a different part of the store.

But she just took him back to where he was before.

"I asked if there was another bathroom, and she said no. I told her I was just in the bathroom and there was no changing table. She asked if I was sure and suggested I look again," Brent continued.

"I was annoyed, but I went back in the men's room. No changing table. When I came out the employee was gone. Keep in mind, my son has been in his poopy nappy this whole time."

Eventually, he gave ups and headed into the lady's room, which sure enough, had a changing table.

Image: IStock

The dad recounted, "There was a woman in there washing her hands, and she said 'wrong bathroom, buddy.'

"I gestured to my son and said, 'no changing table in the men's room.' She laughed and said, 'bro, that sucks.' Then she walked out. So I rush to change him, hoping to be done before anyone else walked in.

"I'm almost done when a woman walks in and starts screaming at me. I tried to explain what I was doing, but she kept screaming 'Get out! You can't be here!' Then she ran out."

Brent finished putting the nappy on and rushed out of the bathroom, where he saw the woman talking to an employee and decided to leave without buying anything he came for.

The employee tried to wave him down and stop him, but he got out of there as soon as he could and ran to his car.

"My wife said I absolutely did the right thing, but my mum said I'm an idiot and was 100% in the wrong. My sister won't stop laughing at me and is no help at all. AITA?" he asked.

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"The store is 100% to blame for this"

As you'd expect, the overall consensus was that Brent wasn't the a**hole in this situation.

Most of the comments agreed that the department store was at fault.

"Not the asshole. That store is 100% to blame for this," one person replied.

"I wouldn't be shocked if they've received complaints about this in the past and haven't done anything about it. That mum was way out of line. You needed to change your kid.

"What'd she expect you to do, change him on the floor? Drive home with him in a dirty diaper? Your wife is right. 

"You did the right thing, and that lady was rude. Who does that?!? Screams at a father for changing his kid's dirty diaper."

Another added, "You have every right to find a clean and secure space to change your son, even if it's in a women's bathroom. The store could easily get with the 21st century by installing a changing space in the men's and chose not to, so that's on them."

And others said that the woman who came into the bathroom wasn't very understanding, especially given the fact she could see exactly what the dad was doing. 

"Not the asshole, but that woman sure was," someone wrote. "Not your fault the men's room had no changing table."

However, a few people suggested he could have gone about it better.

"I get it, but maybe next time you could wait outside until everyone was out, or get a woman to wait outside while you're in there," suggested one.

What do you think this dad should have done? Let us know in the Facebook comments. 

Originally published as Dad berated for 'inappropriate' act while out shopping with his baby