Childs Play
08/05/09 12:55
Are all good children’s playgroups elusive?
“She’s on the waiting list”. I call those all too common words out to my other half. I don’t know if its since we moved into a nice area, or if its just that I’m a bit behind with my attempts, but I seem to find it so difficult to get my five year old into any local school or clubs. Where we live my ten year old has two or three friends that live very close and regularly come round to play, (whether you want them to or not!). My 5 year old doesn’t know anybody local, and of course gets fed up when her brother won’t play with her as his mates are round. Sorry that’s unfair, its not that he won’t play with her, its just that they only play football, cricket and video games. He can no longer be cajoled, or forced, into playing her games of mums and dads, or doctors, or any other pretend game that she is into at that moment. The majority of her playing begins with the words ‘Lets pretend’. At which point you know you are going to have to be the Dad, or the sister, brother or baby, as she is always, without fail, the Mum. Its not that you have to do very much either, just say “bye” when she goes out to the pretend shops, or on holiday etc. (Don’t worry if I’m one of the children there’s always a pretend Nanny or Granddad to look after me!). Sometimes, if her brother is lucky, he gets her to play a football league, where she is a player, or more likely, a manager. At least that way he is managing to play something he is fanatical about.
Its not that she hasn’t got any friends, she has at school. Its just that her school is some twenty minutes drive away, and that’s when there’s no traffic. You see when we knew we were going to move, but before it all eventually went through, we decided to change her school from the one that was close to our old house to one nearer her Dad’s house (you need to read “fathers’ if you haven’t already). So although we’re all in the same area most children of that age only venture to friends houses within a 1 mile radius.
So in an attempt to find her some local friends I’ve tried to enroll her into Rainbows. For anyone who doesn’t know thats this is like Brownies and Guides but for younger children. I was a Brownie and Guide myself when I was younger, along with my older sisters, so I’m quite excited that my daughter is going to follow in my footsteps. I’ll be the proud mum when she comes home with her badges (hmm....I wonder if they still test you can make and serve tea for the leaders for your entertainers badge or whether they’ve gone all modern as hardly anyone uses teapots nowadays?.....I’ll have to check). Sorry I was digressing again back to my youth. You see I was a bit of a goody goody who always strived to please everyone. So for me getting badges was good fun. However I can’t quite see my daughter having the same attitude. Don’t get me wrong she’s not bad or anything she just knows her own mind more and if she doesn’t want to do something she will drag her feet and sulk until you get fed up and give her her own way. Do I sound like a bad Mother? I don’t mean to. I don’t give in to her all the time just sometimes she wears me down. I’m not alone am I? Oh no now I’m getting paranoid about my parenting skills!
Back to Rainbows. The upshot is that I can’t get her into a group. They have a waiting list. How mad is that! Have I moved into such a good area that all of the little angels go to goody goody clubs and there are no spaces? Or is it just bad timing on my part? I’ve only tried to do it now as I’m not working at the moment so I can actually take her there and collect her. Once I’m back at work she won’t be able to go any more unless I can find another mum to take her for me. So you see I can’t wait too long for a place as it’s a race between me joining the ranks of the working mums again and my daughter getting bored with the group and wanting something else. Also in the interim I have to suss out the other mums to see if there’s anyone I can convince to play surrogate mum for the afternoon to take her there so I’ll need a bit of time for that. Oh its all so complicated. Now I’ll have to figure out something else for her to do when she comes in from school so I don’t feel like a bad parent when she sits in front of the TV. Life was soooo easy BC (before children) and I’m going to be on a repeat loop when my latest addition gets to the same age. Lets hope there are plenty of spaces before then or I may have gone brain dead from all the “Lets Pretend”! I’ll let you know how I get on
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Its not that she hasn’t got any friends, she has at school. Its just that her school is some twenty minutes drive away, and that’s when there’s no traffic. You see when we knew we were going to move, but before it all eventually went through, we decided to change her school from the one that was close to our old house to one nearer her Dad’s house (you need to read “fathers’ if you haven’t already). So although we’re all in the same area most children of that age only venture to friends houses within a 1 mile radius.
So in an attempt to find her some local friends I’ve tried to enroll her into Rainbows. For anyone who doesn’t know thats this is like Brownies and Guides but for younger children. I was a Brownie and Guide myself when I was younger, along with my older sisters, so I’m quite excited that my daughter is going to follow in my footsteps. I’ll be the proud mum when she comes home with her badges (hmm....I wonder if they still test you can make and serve tea for the leaders for your entertainers badge or whether they’ve gone all modern as hardly anyone uses teapots nowadays?.....I’ll have to check). Sorry I was digressing again back to my youth. You see I was a bit of a goody goody who always strived to please everyone. So for me getting badges was good fun. However I can’t quite see my daughter having the same attitude. Don’t get me wrong she’s not bad or anything she just knows her own mind more and if she doesn’t want to do something she will drag her feet and sulk until you get fed up and give her her own way. Do I sound like a bad Mother? I don’t mean to. I don’t give in to her all the time just sometimes she wears me down. I’m not alone am I? Oh no now I’m getting paranoid about my parenting skills!
Back to Rainbows. The upshot is that I can’t get her into a group. They have a waiting list. How mad is that! Have I moved into such a good area that all of the little angels go to goody goody clubs and there are no spaces? Or is it just bad timing on my part? I’ve only tried to do it now as I’m not working at the moment so I can actually take her there and collect her. Once I’m back at work she won’t be able to go any more unless I can find another mum to take her for me. So you see I can’t wait too long for a place as it’s a race between me joining the ranks of the working mums again and my daughter getting bored with the group and wanting something else. Also in the interim I have to suss out the other mums to see if there’s anyone I can convince to play surrogate mum for the afternoon to take her there so I’ll need a bit of time for that. Oh its all so complicated. Now I’ll have to figure out something else for her to do when she comes in from school so I don’t feel like a bad parent when she sits in front of the TV. Life was soooo easy BC (before children) and I’m going to be on a repeat loop when my latest addition gets to the same age. Lets hope there are plenty of spaces before then or I may have gone brain dead from all the “Lets Pretend”! I’ll let you know how I get on
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