Do's and don'ts when taking kids to the park.

That’s how me and my best mom friend became friends! When they were three months old we met at the library/park and now they are both almost two.

Stranger danger and fear of strangers are different things. Being fearful of strangers is no way to live life but have self confidence and situational awareness to trust your instincts about others is good. And teaching then to take relationships at the right pace is an important skill. So meeting at public places while you get to know each other is key to helping teach that

@Candice thanks, I'm just a bit nervous. That's not something I normally do.

@Kate thanks, that's helpful.

I love to meet other moms wherever I go. I would love to see other kids playing with my baby.

There’s a difference between meeting strangers who we don’t know like other moms and stranger danger when we teach our kids how to respond to someone random person asking them to “come see my puppies in the car”, or “i have some candy for you just come with me”. Also teaching them never to go anywhere without telling you but also being aware of our surroundings as a parent and not having our faces in a phone. My head is on a swivel at the park. You didn’t do the wrong thing, you can even explain to your children why you did what you did and reiterate the stranger danger if you feel the need to. I’ve exchanged numbers so many times with moms at the parks and library’s.

Another mum might be a stranger at first but she could become a close friend and potentially a bestie. We are all lonely and need friends, and we’re looking for mum friends mainly, and that’s what she is. I’ve met 14 off this app and many IRL, made friends and exchanged numbers in the baby room at the mall 😂. We have that in common- motherhood. Now, whether we click or not, is another subject.

I would definitely never tell my kids to not play with others, especially if I am there to watch I don’t see the harm. I completely understand your hesitation with giving your number out though. Idk what I would do In that situation 😂 sometimes I feel like everyone is bad but I also realize that is a completely irrational fear….i try to find a balance. My oldest son knows that not every kid will want to play every time, and same with him he can say no. We have spoken about “strangers” the best I know how.

I try to use my discernment. At face value and overall I don’t tell my babes to not play with someone. They aren’t super social in the social butterfly way and tend to play together but I’m totally fine with them meeting a new park buddy for that moment. With adults, I too tend to stick to myself besides from the surface level chit chat like “your babe is cute” or whatever it may be but I’m just personally not fast to give my number out. However, I use my discernment and if the energy feels such that I’d love to exchange contact info I totally would. I do teach my daughters that we don’t just go off and tell a stranger where we live, our birthdays, etc. like openly offering unsafe information to share but playing together? Of course

It’s important for kids to have the freedom to socialize at the park with other kids, it’s good for development, it’s how they learn certain skills and test communication methods etc…moms often meet at kid things, all a very normal experience. Stranger danger is about safety and boundaries, not blocking the normalcy of community and engaging peers