Park Place
I know I need to expose the children to more of their peers, at least until I can unload them on preschools and start essentially paying children to hang out with them. Without seeing other children at play, they could grow up without role models and turn into weird, humorless kids who think turning on the television is a bad idea, and unloading the dishwasher is one of the most important jobs of the day.
Taking the kids to the library helps expose them to other children, but that’s only once a week for 20 minutes a day. I need to get them out of the house more often than that, so I’m trying to regularly take them to the playground.
If we were in a warmer climate, such as the kind that doesn’t get a couple inches of heavy snow overnight in mid-March, I’d just send the kids to our conveniently located park right outside our front door. That’s what I do during summer when I only have to worry about mud and sunburns. For now, I have to worry about snow and frostbite, so I’m trying to take the kids to the mall playground where the biggest problem is clouds overhead that limit light through the windows, making it a little dark. Oh, and rugburns.
Afternoons are the perfect time to take the kids to the mall. The morning chores are complete, and various speech therapists have come and gone. Unfortunately, afternoons are also the perfect time to work on irregular chores, such as cleaning off the kitchen table, or wiping out some of the more advanced bacteria colonies based in our bathroom.
So, I only get to the mall once a week at best, generally on Fridays. Plus, until the kids start making their lunch, or at least developmentally advance to the milestone of eating sandwiches in the car, it takes too long to get out of the house after lunch. By the time we eat, clean, change diapers, and pack into the car, we have about 20 minutes to spend at the mall playground before we have to pack back into the car to make it home for naptime. As much as I want to expose my children to their peers, nothing interferes with naptime.
Yesterday being Friday, I packed the kids into the car long after lunch, and drove to the mall. I knew we’d have limited time, but I didn’t mind since it was for the children’s sake, plus I could stop for a Shamrock Shake on the way home.
The most rewarding part about the trip for me, besides the shake, was seeing how far the kids have developed. Abbie has now mastered the slide, going up the right way and sliding down with ease. Even though she still isn’t talking well, she’s showing some social interaction by laughing at other children when they act goofy.
The boys can’t interact with other children much yet, but they’re showing physical development. Ian has developed into a slide fiend. He spent most of his time going up the stairs and waiting for my help going down the slide, and generally holding up the line of children who are old enough to correctly use it.
Tory has developed a sense of knowing where the exit is, and when to use it. Specifically, he seems to know that if he runs out while I’m helping Ian down the slide, he’ll be able to make it halfway to Build-A-Bear before I can catch him. In a year, he might be picking out a shell before I notice he’s gone.
Me, I’m developing a sense of time passing, a sense that my children are growing, a sense that my children are learning about the outside world, a sense that Shamrock Shakes are almost gone for another 11 months.
Taking the kids to the library helps expose them to other children, but that’s only once a week for 20 minutes a day. I need to get them out of the house more often than that, so I’m trying to regularly take them to the playground.
If we were in a warmer climate, such as the kind that doesn’t get a couple inches of heavy snow overnight in mid-March, I’d just send the kids to our conveniently located park right outside our front door. That’s what I do during summer when I only have to worry about mud and sunburns. For now, I have to worry about snow and frostbite, so I’m trying to take the kids to the mall playground where the biggest problem is clouds overhead that limit light through the windows, making it a little dark. Oh, and rugburns.
Afternoons are the perfect time to take the kids to the mall. The morning chores are complete, and various speech therapists have come and gone. Unfortunately, afternoons are also the perfect time to work on irregular chores, such as cleaning off the kitchen table, or wiping out some of the more advanced bacteria colonies based in our bathroom.
So, I only get to the mall once a week at best, generally on Fridays. Plus, until the kids start making their lunch, or at least developmentally advance to the milestone of eating sandwiches in the car, it takes too long to get out of the house after lunch. By the time we eat, clean, change diapers, and pack into the car, we have about 20 minutes to spend at the mall playground before we have to pack back into the car to make it home for naptime. As much as I want to expose my children to their peers, nothing interferes with naptime.
Yesterday being Friday, I packed the kids into the car long after lunch, and drove to the mall. I knew we’d have limited time, but I didn’t mind since it was for the children’s sake, plus I could stop for a Shamrock Shake on the way home.
The most rewarding part about the trip for me, besides the shake, was seeing how far the kids have developed. Abbie has now mastered the slide, going up the right way and sliding down with ease. Even though she still isn’t talking well, she’s showing some social interaction by laughing at other children when they act goofy.
The boys can’t interact with other children much yet, but they’re showing physical development. Ian has developed into a slide fiend. He spent most of his time going up the stairs and waiting for my help going down the slide, and generally holding up the line of children who are old enough to correctly use it.
Tory has developed a sense of knowing where the exit is, and when to use it. Specifically, he seems to know that if he runs out while I’m helping Ian down the slide, he’ll be able to make it halfway to Build-A-Bear before I can catch him. In a year, he might be picking out a shell before I notice he’s gone.
Me, I’m developing a sense of time passing, a sense that my children are growing, a sense that my children are learning about the outside world, a sense that Shamrock Shakes are almost gone for another 11 months.
posted by Matt at
11:31 PM
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