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[quote=Anonymous][quote=Anonymous]You don't need to vacation with other families to keep his social life healthy.  Invite a friend to go to dinner and do something fun every now and then.  Or lunch and a trampoline park.  Or just to come play video games.  As your kid gets older this involves you less and less.[/quote]

+1 I do think it's important to model social life and to encourage plenty of play time with friends. Some families are so busy with organized activities that IMO they don't leave enough time for just hanging out. For example, when DS was in rec soccer in elementary school, a game was often followed by the boys playing together at a nearby park and/or families going out for lunch. But a couple kids were playing multiple sports and ran from the soccer game to the next game, missing out on that social time.

DH and I are both introverts who struggled in childhood to make good friends. So, we were very mindful of encouraging friendships for our kids. In their early years that, not academic or athletic performance, was our most important priority. DS was pretty easy, naturally social and now at 22 still hangs out mostly with boys he's known since they were in elementary school. DD struggled more and when it was a problem in 1st grade we spoke with the teacher and he made some seating and group assignment changes to help her connect with like-minded peers. She then really clicked with 2 friends in 2nd grade. We always encouraged her to make time for them on weekends. Her friend group expanded over time but she's still very close with those two friends.

We've never traveled with friends (DH would hate that) but I have built strong friendships with a few women I originally met through my kids' school/sports. Having a consistent get-together time helps to build those relationships. When the kids were little it was the soccer games + post-game socializing. Later, a standing "come if you can" Friday night dinner and then that evolved to a Saturday morning coffee time. [/quote]

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