Are These the Worst Grandparents Ever?

There is no doubt that today's grandparents aren't much like the generation before them. There are a lot fewer rocking chairs and a lot more activities. Many grandparents even like to take their grandkids out to do their favorite activities. But some grandparents should think twice (or in some cases a hundred million times) before they do so, especially when their favorite past time is drinking, driving, and towing things behind their car as one set of Florida grandparents was recently caught doing with their granddaughter.

Read More:
Top 7 OMG Parenting Moments of 2011

According to The Smoking Gun, Paul Berloni, 49, and Linda Berloni, 47, were arrested on child cruelty charges (among other things) on Saturday after an officer saw them towing their seven-year-old granddaughter's child size motorized toy car down the road behind their own SUV...with her in it! Can you imagine? But it gets way worse. Perhaps the only person who would think this was a good idea would be a drunk person, and you guessed it, they were both intoxicated. The grandmother was reportedly hanging out the cargo hatch cheering on her granddaughter while the grandfather reeked of alcohol and could not provide a driver's license because it had already been suspended for ten years for driving under the influence.

Read More: Entrepreneurial Grandmas: A New Market is Born

For the record, in case that all wasn't bad enough, there was also no evidence of any shred of a single safety precaution taken. The toy car was reportedly attached to the SUV with two dog leashes and the girl was wearing nothing but a bathing suit.

On a plus note, the girl's father was reportedly livid with his mother and her husband's behavior so there is a strong chance she will never be left in their care again. And if there is anything the rest of us can take away from it, it is perhaps that in all those moments when we think we are the worst parent ever for forgetting a doctor's appointment or not having a band aid in our bag, we can rest assured that we indeed are nothing close to being a horrible caretaker to our children.

Top Articles on Child Rearing Across Generations:
Is This Generation of Parents More Thoughtful, or Just Plain Neurotic?
Kids are Twice as Safe When Grandparents Drive Than When Parents Take the Wheel
Working Moms Hire Grandmothers to Help Out at Home