Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the folks that highly value unstructured kid-led playtime (I think it's important too!), but have been disappointed that kids are not outside roaming the neighborhood for your kid to play with, what have you done from there? Just given up and your unscheduled kid plays alone every day? Have you texted parents of classmates and their friends and asked them for a playdate? (Do your kids have friends?) Invite them over -- I don't believe you that no one has time for some playdates. My kids do lots of activities and so do most of their friends (we like it this way, thanks) and we arrange playdates all the time. My kids have several a week. Surely you have the bandwidth to do this since you are not dealing with EC activities. You could even also sign them up for a few afternoons of school aftercare (I'm not even kidding) -- it's typically just unstructured playtime.

Aftercare at school is not the same thing at all. School has rules and guidance for what kids do and how. At our school, the paras yell at kids for climbing up the slide instead of sliding down. Very different from 2 or 3 kids tooling around outside unsupervised and having to think, argue, cooperate, decide, keep track of time, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the folks that highly value unstructured kid-led playtime (I think it's important too!), but have been disappointed that kids are not outside roaming the neighborhood for your kid to play with, what have you done from there? Just given up and your unscheduled kid plays alone every day? Have you texted parents of classmates and their friends and asked them for a playdate? (Do your kids have friends?) Invite them over -- I don't believe you that no one has time for some playdates. My kids do lots of activities and so do most of their friends (we like it this way, thanks) and we arrange playdates all the time. My kids have several a week. Surely you have the bandwidth to do this since you are not dealing with EC activities. You could even also sign them up for a few afternoons of school aftercare (I'm not even kidding) -- it's typically just unstructured playtime.

Aftercare at school is not the same thing at all. School has rules and guidance for what kids do and how. At our school, the paras yell at kids for climbing up the slide instead of sliding down. Very different from 2 or 3 kids tooling around outside unsupervised and having to think, argue, cooperate, decide, keep track of time, etc.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:To the folks that highly value unstructured kid-led playtime (I think it's important too!), but have been disappointed that kids are not outside roaming the neighborhood for your kid to play with, what have you done from there? Just given up and your unscheduled kid plays alone every day? Have you texted parents of classmates and their friends and asked them for a playdate? (Do your kids have friends?) Invite them over -- I don't believe you that no one has time for some playdates. My kids do lots of activities and so do most of their friends (we like it this way, thanks) and we arrange playdates all the time. My kids have several a week. Surely you have the bandwidth to do this since you are not dealing with EC activities. You could even also sign them up for a few afternoons of school aftercare (I'm not even kidding) -- it's typically just unstructured playtime.

Aftercare at school is not the same thing at all. School has rules and guidance for what kids do and how. At our school, the paras yell at kids for climbing up the slide instead of sliding down. Very different from 2 or 3 kids tooling around outside unsupervised and having to think, argue, cooperate, decide, keep track of time, etc.

Anonymous wrote:To the folks that highly value unstructured kid-led playtime (I think it's important too!), but have been disappointed that kids are not outside roaming the neighborhood for your kid to play with, what have you done from there? Just given up and your unscheduled kid plays alone every day? Have you texted parents of classmates and their friends and asked them for a playdate? (Do your kids have friends?) Invite them over -- I don't believe you that no one has time for some playdates. My kids do lots of activities and so do most of their friends (we like it this way, thanks) and we arrange playdates all the time. My kids have several a week. Surely you have the bandwidth to do this since you are not dealing with EC activities. You could even also sign them up for a few afternoons of school aftercare (I'm not even kidding) -- it's typically just unstructured playtime.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

I think neighborhoods are different. I have friends who live walking distance to the school and they have impromptu play dates even though kids all do many activities. We used to live in a house where my son was in the same class and BFFs with the kids at the bus stop. They would play right after school and before sports or be on the same soccer or bade team and carpool.

We now live in an area where families are more affluent, attend different schools and not many young families because young families can’t afford to live here or would not pick this type of neighborhood as a starter home.

My friends who live in a townhouse hang out everyday at the local playground in their community.

My kids are too old to hang out a playground after school. That all stopped after about 1st grade.

Kids stop playing at the playground in first grade?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

I think neighborhoods are different. I have friends who live walking distance to the school and they have impromptu play dates even though kids all do many activities. We used to live in a house where my son was in the same class and BFFs with the kids at the bus stop. They would play right after school and before sports or be on the same soccer or bade team and carpool.

We now live in an area where families are more affluent, attend different schools and not many young families because young families can’t afford to live here or would not pick this type of neighborhood as a starter home.

My friends who live in a townhouse hang out everyday at the local playground in their community.

My kids are too old to hang out a playground after school. That all stopped after about 1st grade.

Kids stop playing at the playground in first grade?

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

I think neighborhoods are different. I have friends who live walking distance to the school and they have impromptu play dates even though kids all do many activities. We used to live in a house where my son was in the same class and BFFs with the kids at the bus stop. They would play right after school and before sports or be on the same soccer or bade team and carpool.

We now live in an area where families are more affluent, attend different schools and not many young families because young families can’t afford to live here or would not pick this type of neighborhood as a starter home.

My friends who live in a townhouse hang out everyday at the local playground in their community.

My kids are too old to hang out a playground after school. That all stopped after about 1st grade.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

In this case, I have my kids do the same sport/class at the same time (even if different levels). I am not willing to have every minute of every day centered around my kids. I need my own time/hobby.

Cool. But my youngest likes to swim and my middle likes to dance. They can’t be forced to do each others activities. And at different ages and levels they wouldn’t be at the same time anyway. We all make our own choices. I have plenty of time during the day to do what I want.

because youre a lazy SAH

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

In this case, I have my kids do the same sport/class at the same time (even if different levels). I am not willing to have every minute of every day centered around my kids. I need my own time/hobby.

Cool. But my youngest likes to swim and my middle likes to dance. They can’t be forced to do each others activities. And at different ages and levels they wouldn’t be at the same time anyway. We all make our own choices. I have plenty of time during the day to do what I want.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

In this case, I have my kids do the same sport/class at the same time (even if different levels). I am not willing to have every minute of every day centered around my kids. I need my own time/hobby.

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:in my case I have 3 kids. Each kids is not overscheduled, they do 1-2 activities each but that’s about 5-6 activities I am driving them to. I am overscheduled, but each kid is not. They are of an age where I don’t have to take all of them with me all the time so they stay home and play with each other, do homework, whatever. But they aren’t available to run around the neighborhood or have playdates with other kids if I can’t be home or I can’t pick them up later due to a conflict. I don’t see any kids running around anyway in our neighborhood. It’s the parents stretched thin in cases like mine.

I think neighborhoods are different. I have friends who live walking distance to the school and they have impromptu play dates even though kids all do many activities. We used to live in a house where my son was in the same class and BFFs with the kids at the bus stop. They would play right after school and before sports or be on the same soccer or bade team and carpool.

We now live in an area where families are more affluent, attend different schools and not many young families because young families can’t afford to live here or would not pick this type of neighborhood as a starter home.

My friends who live in a townhouse hang out everyday at the local playground in their community.