so tell me what u do....

[Asparagus and Lemons]

I usually have someone with me (mum or dh) and they sit in the car.. otherwise I will just lock the doors and be in and out really quick!

[~me~]

I usually leave mine in the car with some music on them for them.

[ShootingStar]

I leave mine in the car.. though i always use our local servo which is a really small one, car and fuel pumps are right at the door, counter is just inside the door too.

[KimB]

I've left mine in the car too. I use a small station and know they are not busy so usually I'm the only one there

[<3 Mumofthreetobe <3]

I take her with me 99.99% of the time. There have been only a 3 occasions I have left her in the car, when she's been asleep, but I feel sick to the stomach leaving her there.

[Netix]

Around here, I leave them in the car. However, in Melb, I often take them out.

[Gigi]

when i had a 13 week old bilby, i was not driving (was still getting after post labour complications that took a long time to heal), so i didn't have this issue.

i was driving when she was five months old, and i made the decision to take her INSIDE the petrol station with me, every time i filled up. i made my decision to do this, whether it woke her up or not. This felt right for me, as i worried about
- baby overheating (this can happen in a car, even when temps in low 20's - due to car being made of high conducive metal and glass)
- baby waking and being frightened they can't see you
- me getting delayed in the petrol station (something i couldn't guarantee)
- random person stealing and hotwiring my car with my child in the back
We had already had so many things go wrong (conceiving taking so many years, delivery going wrong, difficult early bonding), so i was probably over protective, but it felt right to me. I knew if i did anything else, my anxiety levels would skyrocket.

i wanted to minimise any risks, so i always took and still do (she is four) take her into the service station with me. i park as close to the servo as i can. When she was "a runner", i put the koala backpack/child restraint on her, to walk her to the servo. A few extra seconds, but her safety is everything to me.

i fully accept, our situation and my personal medical history, has prolly turned me into an over protective mum. it's what i need to do. I don't expect others to do what i do.

i started off doing this in a nuclear family, now i'm a single mum doing it. I used to aim to "fill up" when i could leave bilby with her dad, and i go off to do some errands on my own. These days, i try to "fill up" when she's at kindy. Doesn't always work out, but it's my aim, much easier to do it on my own.

I'm only dealing with one child too, i'm sure i would do things differently if i had multiple children to get in and out of the car.