Thursday, December 06, 2007

Gender ... politics ... innnnnn ... space!

Pigs in Space at Muppet WikiI'm ashamed to admit this. A few days ago, Jo announced that she wanted to have a playdate with a boy in her class. And for some reason, I was a little freaked out at the idea of a boy-girl playdate. I have no idea where this came from because she has at least three other pals, who happen to be boys, who she's been playing with for years; I would never blink at a request to play with any of them.

Still, like a loser I tried to stall her a bit on this particular playdate request. I asked her what she and D. would play with if he came over. Right away she mentioned her telescope, her art supplies, and her puppet theatre. And almost as quickly I came to my senses and said "OK, I'll call D's mom."

We haven't had the playdate yet, but Jo's idea to show off her telescope is perfect. We've loved playing with this toy (received for review via Parent Bloggers Network) and I'm sure D. will too. Get the full scoop at the Full Mommy.

And is anyone else as intimidated as I am about calling other parents for playdates? Instant transportation back to 4th grade and fearing that no one likes me. It didn't help when one of the first kids we called this year didn't respond for about three solid weeks. She finally did, but not before the damage had already been done to my psyche.

8 comments:

PunditMom said...

I'm always worried they're not going to work. But fortunately PunditGirl likes to do "boy" things part of the time, so the few that we've had have gone well. Good luck!

Suzanne said...

I hate calling for playdates. Hate it. And it's especially humbling when they aren't reciprocated.

mamatulip said...

ME! *waving hand*

The idea of a playdate and setting up said playdate scares me to no end.

Julie Pippert said...

I suppose the answer to that from me is YES.

Seeing as how I haven't done it, period.

We still just play with the neighbors, kids I know and parents I know.

For one thing, I am so nervous about guns here. Everyone except me seems to own one.

For another, well...that's a list, LOL.

I get away with it because my girls like their neighbor friends.

Julie
Using My Words

Julie Marsh said...

I have these cute little "mom cards" that I got through CMP, and I love to hand them out. Upon request, of course.

Problem is, nobody calls. It's nearly as nerve-wracking as when guys would ask for my number and then never call. Except now I have to put on a happy face for my kids' benefit.

(Yes, it's my pity party, and I'll cry if I want to.)

Jennifer (ponderosa) said...

Well, when my son was in preschool he came home one day talking about how great this other kid was, and at that point my son was shy so of course I immediately asked the other mother (at drop-off) if her son could play sometime. I gave her our number & the days that we were free. Did she ever call? She did not. In fact once I asked, Did you lose our number? and she just said No. With no explanation or apology.

That boy is in my son's kindergarten class now. I see the mom all the time and turn my nose up. I like to make fun of her husband's bleached-blonde hair : )

Other than that, all our experiences have been grrrrrrreat. Really. This afternoon we played with a girl from my daughter's daycare -- we made gingerbread houses!

Alex Elliot said...

I always feeling like I'm asking someone out on a date! I hate it. I also don't understand the etiquette behind it. If a playdate is a success, how long do you wait before setting up another one?

Kimberly said...

I worry ridiculously about calling for playdates to the point where half the time I don't (which is just ridiculous and hurts no one but my kid). One of my NY resolutions is to just get over this silliness and pick up the phone.