I can't help but wonder though, if instead of Ash posting her version of events and getting her side, we had the other side of the story and someone posting how absolutely beside themselves they are because she was in the shower and her DH was on the phone (or something) and their toddler got out of the house and escaped but someone brought him back home and now DH feels awful because he seemed a bit cranky to the person but OMG I'm just so glad he's OK.

Would you say to that person "I think you should be reported to DOCS for letting that happen"? I don't think so. We'd all understand how things like this can happen so quickly and so easily. There have been more than a few well regarded BB members who have had children escape and often they have posted about how awful it was.

For all we know somewhere out there in forum land this family has posted about what happened and I'm sure they would be getting loads of "OMG that would have been so scary for you, so glad he's OK" type responses. Just as we would do for anyone here. And then what if their thread got an update with "I feel sick - someone reported us to DOCS because of what happened the other day and now they are wanting to come around and interview us. It was just something that happened, and now they are going to put us through the wringer and make us out to be bad parents."

This type of thing really does happen and while yes, I do understand that the little boy was a long way from home (in toddler terms) they can get away so quickly and go faster than you think they can. Hell, I live on a farm and I've found my kids wandering down our nearly 1km driveway and sometimes even all the way to the front gate and it doesn't take all that long for them to get that far, especially if you spent time searching the rest of the house and yard for them first! I know there have been times when we say "if only someone said something", but is this one of those times? Probably not. if I saw this child doing it time and time again, then yes. But once? No.