can I bring my little one to older kid's playdate?
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Anonymous
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Okay, my little one is not little, almost 3, and he can run and climb a bit. We are thinking to have 1:1 playdate at local playground with my friend, and they are 1st graders. The problem is that if I bring my little one, he will definitely interrupt their playdate because he is at the stage that admires and follows his brother everywhere. He may not outrun them, so he may keep chasing after them. But if I don't bring the little one and have DH keeps him at home, I feel he is miserable because I know that he would want to go to playground to play.
What do you do with younger kids (tag along or keep home) when you are doing playground playdates when there are other kids presented as well? If it is indoor playdate, I would definitely not bring him along. The other family does not have a kid of my little one's age. |
Anonymous
| In this situation, I would leave him home. Why would he be miserable with dad? Maybe dad could take him to a (different) playground. Or you could stay home with the toddler and dad could do the play date with your older if there’s some reason why he can’t handle the younger kid (I hope that’s not the case, but sometimes kids have crazy parental preferences at that age. |
Anonymous
| I'm sympathetic, OP, but I'd leave him at home since your DH can watch him. It's not fair to your older kid (or his friend) to have a toddler there when you already know the little one is going to disrupt their play. And really, at almost 3, your younger one isn't going to be too sad unless you get him worked up about it. It can be a special time for him and his dad to hang out together - maybe your DH can even take him to (a different) playground. |
Anonymous
| Leave him home. Let older have time with his friend. |
Anonymous
| DH can do something special and age appropriate with the little one |
Anonymous
| Leave him home. He does not need to tag along on older sibling's fun - let him have his own fun. |
Anonymous
| My kids are 6 and 4 (boy/girl) and if there's a playdate at a playground the other always tags along and it's never been a problem. The other mom usually does the same. The two kids run on the playdate run off together (1st graders don't really need supervision) and I deal with the younger/socialize with the parent. |
Anonymous
| Have dad take him to another playground while you take your older child. |
Anonymous
Not fair to the other kid. I’m sure your child will survive the trauma of hanging out with dad instead 
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Anonymous
| I think if you know that little kid will interrupt, then it's a no. We're an only child house and we've always welcomed littler kids at playdates with DD, but we've also never really had to deal with that dynamic you're describing. |
Anonymous
| Leave him at home. |
Anonymous
I'd probably do a drop off playdate at that age, and then just play with my little one when the kids were with me while I supervised on the playground. But if you really want to socialize with the mom, could your DH take the little one to a different playground? |
Anonymous
| If you did that with me, I would not invite your kid for a playdate again until your older kid didn't need a parent to attend as well. |
Anonymous
| Dad can do something special with him. |
Anonymous
+1 |