As a SAHM with children under 5 years old I enjoy the benefits of the school year. This means the mall is empty, McDonald’s is empty, the park is empty, any place I want to take my kids is sparsely populated in the middle of the week. The summer — well that is a whole different ball game. I’ve never felt the contrast so dramatically as I have this summer. Lucy and Max are shy children, as I was (ok, stop laughing) and big crowds and loud noises scare them (yes, I realize I’m making them sound like a couple of small bunny rabbits, but its true). So far this summer we’ve had to leave 2 mall play areas, the aquarium (twice) and the park with at least one of them in tears. Today it was the play area in Chick-fil-A. Most of the time I feel that my children just need to face and overcome their fears. There are going to be people, kids, noises, etc at the park. HOWEVER, the blatant disregard for the rules at fast food play areas BY PARENTS turns a gym into a “Lord of the Flies” – only the strong survive kind of place. So Mommies, listen up cuz I’m talkin’ to you!

1.) SUPERVISE YOUR CHILDREN
This is not a time to read a book, play Scrabble with a friend, write that novel you’ve been meaning to get to, talk on your cell phone, etc. You have a child who is interacting with children in a very small, confined area, pay attention. Unlike a school playground the age differences between the children in this tiny space can be as much as ten years so please focus on your child and what he/she is doing. This becomes even more true as the number of children increases.

2.) THERE IS AN AGE LIMIT
Most of these places don’t want kids over 10 years old. You know why? because it is a small, confined space and 2 ten year olds physically take up room and between their endless energy, large bodies and sheer force of nature they can be like giant Gorillas in one of those places. This also applies if your 8 year old is the size of a 12 year old. Sorry, but please be considerate of the age and number of the other children. A sweet gentle 10 year old can quickly become a playground bully just because he/she towers over the 3 year olds playing next to him/her. And as Lucy puts it “they move so fast”.

3) NO SCREAMING
Can I get an Amen on this one? Again, enclosed, small, lots of children don’t allow your child to scream at the top of their lungs like they are outside. They are NOT outside. And once one of them screams they all scream. I’ve been at rock concerts that have done less damage to my hearing than some fast food play areas.

That’s it. Those are my 3 big guidelines that I think we should all follow in order to make these community play areas a bit more pleasant for both child and parent. Until then, I’m not returning until September.