Alyssa & John 9: It’s All About Dressing Up and Looking Perfect on Instagram

[Born Skeptic]

3 hours ago, llucie said:

I am not sure about this. When they moved they had a pool wall around it, that was some kind of mesh fabric. They took it out and never put anything else in its place. I dont think they have any safety gate currently.

We are talking about the same thing.  I called it a safety gate.  You called it a pool wall.  It is more accurately called a pool security fence, but you will see it by several different names. The fence poles of the mesh barrier previously pictured on instagram go into holes drilled into the pool deck.  It is designed to be removed and rolled up out of the way when the pool is in use.  Generally, these fences are installed inches from the edge of the pool making it impossible to use the pool with the fence up.  If you see pictures of the Websters (or anyone else) using the pool, the pool security fence will likely not be visible.  As MomJeans said above, pool alarms (also a good choice) would not be easily visible.

[Born Skeptic]

2 hours ago, AussieKrissy said:

all of you guys worrying about drowning in random water ways in florida and all I can think of, is when I was there, and what I see on the internet, there is gators everywhere. Kids getting eaten is what I would worry about. I live in a nice croc free state of Australia, I know that gators are slightly less dangerous than crocs but I aint messing with either.

Not to make light of it, but Gator attacks are extraordinarily rare and kids getting eaten are even more rare.   Generally they won't attack unless you threaten them or their territory.  The small toddler eaten by a gator at Disney 5 years ago was a notable exception.  Since gators are not unheard of in our neighborhood, we taught our kids important lessons like Don't approach, Don't engage, Don't create a disturbance, Back away, etc.  I'll admit that I was very freaked out when my youngest told me that he occasionally saw baby gators while out kayaking in the Everglades slough behind our (across the street) neighbor's house.

[AussieKrissy]

4 minutes ago, Born Skeptic said:

Not to make light of it, but Gator attacks are extraordinarily rare and kids getting eaten are even more rare.   Generally they won't attack unless you threaten them or their territory.  The small toddler eaten by a gator at Disney 5 years ago was a notable exception.  Since gators are not unheard of in our neighborhood, we taught our kids important lessons like Don't approach, Don't engage, Don't create a disturbance, Back away, etc.  I'll admit that I was very freaked out when my youngest told me that he occasionally saw baby gators while out kayaking in the Everglades slough behind our (across the street) neighbor's house.

The poor disney child was the actual case I was thinking of. I was also curious I see that most pools over there are "indoor" inside patios and under cover, I assume that is to keep stray gators out, I am serious and if it as a stupid question, I am not serious lol. 

[QuiverFullofBooks]

15 minutes ago, AussieKrissy said:

The poor disney child was the actual case I was thinking of. I was also curious I see that most pools over there are "indoor" inside patios and under cover, I assume that is to keep stray gators out, I am serious and if it as a stupid question, I am not serious lol. 

I think it’s mostly to keep leaves and other debris out of the pool. Among other things, Florida has an abundance of vegetation. The gators mostly stay in their own bodies of water. Pro tip: gators don’t corner well, so run in circles or zig-zag when you’re running away.

[Born Skeptic]

24 minutes ago, AussieKrissy said:

The poor disney child was the actual case I was thinking of. I was also curious I see that most pools over there are "indoor" inside patios and under cover, I assume that is to keep stray gators out, I am serious and if it as a stupid question, I am not serious lol. 

Absolutely not a stupid question!  Pool enclosures help keep out leaves and debris.  More importantly they keep out mosquitos and other bugs.  

[CanadianMamam]

1 minute ago, Born Skeptic said:

Absolutely not a stupid question!  Pool enclosures help keep out leaves and debris.  More importantly they keep out mosquitos and other bugs.  

Yeah, we have a small above ground and it has a cover to keep the leaves and debris out. 

[AussieKrissy]

15 minutes ago, QuiverFullofBooks said:

I think it’s mostly to keep leaves and other debris out of the pool. Among other things, Florida has an abundance of vegetation. The gators mostly stay in their own bodies of water. Pro tip: gators don’t corner well, so run in circles or zig-zag when you’re running away.

same with crocs and its best to stand in front of them as they are slower going forward than they are snapping their neck to the side  Straya baby everything but volcanoes and tornados are trying to kill us lol

I honestly did think of leaves and bugs, we must just tolerate that shit down under rarely are any of our home pools under cover, honestly gators was the only thing I was thinking off, The internet gives me an obvioulsy inaccurate view of how gators can just waddle into florida homes, must be all those gator golf vids too...

[MomJeans]

Growing up we regularly had alligators in the back yard, because my parent's house was on a lake, and they would climb out and sun themselves next to our dock.  Idiots would occasionally feed them, and then trappers had to remove them.

Alligator's rarely attack humans, though it would be risky to enter the water where they live. (Thank god JRod doesn't live in Florida, or the Rodlets would be bobbing around in gator infested retention ponds). Honestly, I much more afraid of the drivers on the road in Florida than an alligator attack.  The Disney tragedy was so sad, but it's very rare. 

Alligators can easily get through the screen enclosures around pools, but typically they aren't that interested in doing so.  (One did take a dip at a neighbor's last summer).  The enclosures do keep out bugs and snakes, and block a little bit of the sun.  

The weirdest thing was when I moved to Austin and saw stray cats every where.  I had never seen a stray cat before, let alone 20. And then I realized why I didn't see stray cats growing up. . . . .

[Jackie3]

5 hours ago, Born Skeptic said:

We are talking about the same thing.  I called it a safety gate.  You called it a pool wall.  It is more accurately called a pool security fence, but you will see it by several different names. The fence poles of the mesh barrier previously pictured on instagram go into holes drilled into the pool deck.  It is designed to be removed and rolled up out of the way when the pool is in use.  Generally, these fences are installed inches from the edge of the pool making it impossible to use the pool with the fence up.  If you see pictures of the Websters (or anyone else) using the pool, the pool security fence will likely not be visible.  As MomJeans said above, pool alarms (also a good choice) would not be easily visible.

That sounds safe, assuming they put the safety gate back up again, every day after the kids swim. I wonder if they do. It sounds like Alyssa would have to bring the kids inside, then get the safety gate and walk around the pool, sticking the posts in the holes in the ground.  I hope she does that. The next day, before they swim, she'd have to do everything again, but in reverse. 

If there is an alarm on the door, I hope she sets it. I hope she doesn't get lax or lazy or tired of setting it because she walks in and out of there so often.

[llucie]

13 hours ago, Born Skeptic said:

We are talking about the same thing.  I called it a safety gate.  You called it a pool wall.  It is more accurately called a pool security fence, but you will see it by several different names. The fence poles of the mesh barrier previously pictured on instagram go into holes drilled into the pool deck.  It is designed to be removed and rolled up out of the way when the pool is in use.  Generally, these fences are installed inches from the edge of the pool making it impossible to use the pool with the fence up.  If you see pictures of the Websters (or anyone else) using the pool, the pool security fence will likely not be visible.  As MomJeans said above, pool alarms (also a good choice) would not be easily visible.

I actually dont think we are talking about the same thing because this fence was black fabric and had a door. It didnt dissapear when in use, and it was actually a big eyesore on their patio. When they did the house tour and the first months there they showed it and how they would open the gate and use the pool just fine. But now it doesnt look like it is there anymore.

They did mention back them that their plan was to put a new wall and gate up because they didnt like the one that was there, so maybe the new one is a lot more discreet to the point its impossible to see it as you say, but i am skeptical.

Edited July 26, 2021 by llucie
to add

[Born Skeptic]

16 hours ago, AussieKrissy said:

I honestly did think of leaves and bugs, we must just tolerate that shit down under rarely are any of our home pools under cover, honestly gators was the only thing I was thinking off, The internet gives me an obvioulsy inaccurate view of how gators can just waddle into florida homes, must be all those gator golf vids too...

There was an outbreak of West Nile Virus in Florida in '99 or 2000 that drove a lot of homeowners to put up screen enclosures around their pools.  After that it just became a common thing to do.  People were surprised when we removed ours when we renovated our house.

[MomJeans]

It was even common before the 1999 West Nile outbreak in many parts of Florida.  My parents have had a pool cage since 1983, as did all of their neighbors.  The mosquito-born encephalitis outbreak in 1993 closed most of the playgrounds, outdoor public pools, and little leagues in my area for two months.  

If you look at photos from the destruction by Hurricane Andrew, you see tons of pool cages twisted and on their sides.  That was 1992. 

I know they are ugly (my husband hates it), but I can't imagine life without ours.  We eat most dinners by the pool, and we would be overrun by bugs without. 

[SassyPants]

These are not the kind of people who would be putting up and taking down an entire safety fence with each pool use, and aesthetics are king, so my money is on no pool fence . I mean 3/4 of the kids did do I session of swimming lessons :severe eye roll:

[HeartsAFundie]

20 hours ago, AussieKrissy said:

The poor disney child was the actual case I was thinking of. I was also curious I see that most pools over there are "indoor" inside patios and under cover, I assume that is to keep stray gators out, I am serious and if it as a stupid question, I am not serious lol. 

I also thought pools were under cover in Florida to keep the gators out.  You are not alone.   

[Born Skeptic]

5 hours ago, MomJeans said:

I know they are ugly (my husband hates it), but I can't imagine life without ours.  We eat most dinners by the pool, and we would be overrun by bugs without. 

Hurricane Wilma (2005) took out out screen enclosure right after we bought the house but before we moved in.  Our windstorm insurance company paid for the damage and advised us that they would not cover storm damage to a new enclosure should we choose to replace it.  Since we were in the middle of renovations, we took the opportunity (and the cash) to screen in the lani, fence the backyard, and do some landscaping.  The adjacent golf course sprays extensively for bugs so we don't have much of a problem.

[Expectopatronus]

On 7/25/2021 at 12:16 PM, Jackie3 said:

I agree, while the kids are uncertain swimmers or nonswimmers. However, the three oldest will soon be strong swimmers, given that they swim all the time. Then it is easier to keep an eye on them. I've had a bunch of kids over to swim, but they were all 7-10 years old and had been swimming since they were little. That's a lot easier than watching four small children who are still learning.

I agree to a point but the oldest three are still so young! I’m not sure that I would be comfortable with an unfenced pool and children under 6. That said, my sister and I swam unsupervised all the time as little kids (not toddlers but elementary school aged). The 80’s were a different time in terms of parental supervision. 

[GuineaPigCourtship]

Man, I may have said this already but I can't believe how much unsupervised swimming I did as a kid who was a very mediocre swimmer. Not a chance for my kid doing the same. Drowning statistics are no joke. And no grapes, either! (Mostly joking on that one)

[Jackie3]

14 hours ago, Expectopatronus said:

I agree to a point but the oldest three are still so young! I’m not sure that I would be comfortable with an unfenced pool and children under 6. That said, my sister and I swam unsupervised all the time as little kids (not toddlers but elementary school aged). The 80’s were a different time in terms of parental supervision. 

I meant I'd be comfortable supervising a bunch of school aged kids who could swim. I'm in no way comfortable with the Webster setup.

[rebeccawriter01]

5 hours ago, Jackie3 said:

I meant I'd be comfortable supervising a bunch of school aged kids who could swim. I'm in no way comfortable with the Webster setup.

I wouldn't be comfortable in Alyssa's position. I also have to wonder about her own skillset when it comes to swimming. Erin and Whitney (speaking for Zach) took Bradley and Carson to swimming lessons and spoke of how fearful Kelly Jo was about the 19 being in the water. She allowed Jud and Jed to go to the lessons too. It gave the impression that the older children did not have that opportunity. The family has been seen boating, jet skiing, etc. so she might have gotten past any fears. 

However, I have to wonder how strong of a swimmer Alyssa is and if she knows CPR or any sort of rescue techniques. If one of the three had an issue, would she know what to do? If she has Maci in one arm and a phone in the other? That would concern me, if I was in her place, thinking that I had to keep the other three safe while I tended to one in trouble. 

Edited July 27, 2021 by rebeccawriter01

[Melissa1977]

I think I wrote it before, but one of my friends has a daughter who slipped and fall onto the swimming pool and didn't react. She was drowning but was rescued immediately. Children who can swim drown every summer, because they don't react (shock) or bump when fall or feel dizzy. 

I did a lot of unsupervised swimming when I was a kid. My mom thinks that nowadays swimming regulations (children under 14 must be supervised) are ridiculous. 80's parents were very relaxed about safety!

I would be very stressed having 3 children in the water plus a baby. But to be fair,  Websters swimming pool looks like it is enterely walkable. So even if Alyssa isn't a good swimmer, she can reach the kids easily. 

[Jackie3]

6 hours ago, Melissa1977 said:

I would be very stressed having 3 children in the water plus a baby. But to be fair,  Websters swimming pool looks like it is enterely walkable. So even if Alyssa isn't a good swimmer, she can reach the kids easily. 

Well, no. If a child is in the center of the pool, Alyssa couldn't reach her without swimming. That's a pretty big pool. There's lots of room in the center that's unreachable from the side. I am sure there's a deep end where you'd have to swim to reach a child. 

I've seen "play pools" that are much smaller (though still with a deep end). Alyssa's pool is not like that. It's quite large and there's lots of places a child could get into trouble.

My main problem with the pool is that it is attached to the house. Presumably, there's a lock on the door. But it's so easy to forget to lock the door! Particularly when people are over, and they're walking to and from the pool. Or when they kids get older, it's easy to get more relaxed--but there's still Maci to worry about. Or if John goes in for a late night swim after work, but forgets to lock up afterwards, and set the alarm (if there is one). Attached to the house, that pool seems far more of a threat. 

[freethemall]

On 7/25/2021 at 6:52 PM, AussieKrissy said:

all of you guys worrying about drowning in random water ways in florida and all I can think of, is when I was there, and what I see on the internet, there is gators everywhere. Kids getting eaten is what I would worry about. I live in a nice croc free state of Australia, I know that gators are slightly less dangerous than crocs but I aint messing with either.

New thread title: a million reasons why living in Florida sucks. Drowning hazards, gators, dont forget snakes, hurricanes, awful heat, the fact that climate change in general will likely wipe the state off the map sooner rather than later, and awful politics. They are now in the COVID "high transmission" zone too for the delta variant.

My SIL lives in Florida with her 2 toddlers, near Alyssa. They have a pool and have had to do those emergency classes where the kids learn to get to the side to save themselves. Her husband once had to save his niece from almost drowning in a pool. Their house is on a small river that has gators and snakes, the latter terrify me. She sent a picture of one crawling over the pool covering. Yuck.

On 7/25/2021 at 9:46 PM, AussieKrissy said:

I was also curious I see that most pools over there are "indoor" inside patios and under cover, I assume that is to keep stray gators out, I am serious and if it as a stupid question, I am not serious lol. 

I think the patios/lanais count as outdoor, most of those covers are just mesh. You can see in Alyssa's stories that when it rains it rains over the whole pool area.

[fluffernutter]

She just posted a pic of one of the girls holding the baby and called herself a helicopter mom (regarding letting the girl hold the baby). ? Ummmm I don’t think she quite fits the description imho. 

[freethemall]

New Alyssa stories related to feeding baby Maci, who seems to not be having it. Isnt she only 5 months old? I understand feeding solids before the recommended 6 month mark if the baby shows interest, but if she is not opening her mouth than clearly shes not ready and shouldn't be forced. Theres no reason to push solids outside of milk/formula before the baby's body is ready for it.

[JermajestyDuggar]

On 7/28/2021 at 6:33 PM, fluffernutter said:

She just posted a pic of one of the girls holding the baby and called herself a helicopter mom (regarding letting the girl hold the baby). ? Ummmm I don’t think she quite fits the description imho. 

Compared to her own mother, I bet she is a helicopter mom! KJ let her kids do whatever without much supervision. I can’t imagine how many stitches and broken bones happened in the Bates house over the years. 

Edited August 1, 2021 by JermajestyDuggar