Ah, the joys of soft play. If you are a fairly new parent, you may have never been; you may be full of excitement to take your little one along. If you are a parent of an older baby, a toddler or a fully grown child, then you may have been far too many times already. I have some fond memories of taking my children to soft play; from some playful dates with friends, to showing Grandma or the husband just how crazy the children turn when presented with soft movable play things and lots of colourful balls. I probably should go more, anyway, thinking back to my past experiences I decided to devise 10 points that make for the perfect soft play experience, or will just make you think back fondly or get excited about the future of soft play trips. Or not....
1. Remember socks. Just think of all the verruca filled cheesy feet that have stepped on the mats and in the ball pits. Also remember the cheesy feet or the fact that there is the possibility a child may have peed themselves in the ball pit when you see your baby reach and put a ball in their mouth.
2. Take change. You will need to take an emergency pit stop to get fuel made for Mothers; coffee. Or even for that quick fix chocolate bar, just to keep your mood uplifted.
3. Everyone is your friend. Mothers need to unite against hyper crazed kids armed with lots of balls.
4. You can never apologise enough. For anything. Especially if your child has thrown himself into the ball pit at lightening speed knocking another child to the floor for the 12th time.
5. You will get hit in the face by balls. A lot. And not by your own children so you are just going to have to toughen up and take it on the chin. Literally.
6. You will end up taking about a thousand pictures of your children. I'm not sure why, perhaps it's because the ball pit and the play items are so colourful and make the perfect snap for Instagram, or maybe because you do just want to capture your kids having fun and throwing themselves off of things other than your furniture.
7. Time will go really quickly if you are on a play date. And you won't get much time to actually talk to your play date as you are manically running around after your child. They say it's easier as they get older, so here's hoping!
8. When you're not on a play date, remember the other mums are probably thinking and feeling the same way as you are, so don't feel embarrassed or shy to strike up a conversation about how mental your child is, or how you regret feeding them chocolate before they came.
9. Your child will not want to leave. Ever. So make sure you think of a suitable bribe, like the prospect of something special for lunch/ dinner. They will be hungrier than you've ever seen them afterwards. They may eat more than you ever thought possible.
10. Your child may well probably crash after the trip. Bear this in mind and plan your time at soft play accordingly. I.E not just before dinner as they will stay up until midnight.
What tips would you add for a successful soft play experience? What is your favourite soft play to go to? Pop a comment below, I'd love to hear from you.
For more daily doses of parenting highs and lows, follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
1. Remember socks. Just think of all the verruca filled cheesy feet that have stepped on the mats and in the ball pits. Also remember the cheesy feet or the fact that there is the possibility a child may have peed themselves in the ball pit when you see your baby reach and put a ball in their mouth.
2. Take change. You will need to take an emergency pit stop to get fuel made for Mothers; coffee. Or even for that quick fix chocolate bar, just to keep your mood uplifted.
3. Everyone is your friend. Mothers need to unite against hyper crazed kids armed with lots of balls.
4. You can never apologise enough. For anything. Especially if your child has thrown himself into the ball pit at lightening speed knocking another child to the floor for the 12th time.
5. You will get hit in the face by balls. A lot. And not by your own children so you are just going to have to toughen up and take it on the chin. Literally.
6. You will end up taking about a thousand pictures of your children. I'm not sure why, perhaps it's because the ball pit and the play items are so colourful and make the perfect snap for Instagram, or maybe because you do just want to capture your kids having fun and throwing themselves off of things other than your furniture.
7. Time will go really quickly if you are on a play date. And you won't get much time to actually talk to your play date as you are manically running around after your child. They say it's easier as they get older, so here's hoping!
8. When you're not on a play date, remember the other mums are probably thinking and feeling the same way as you are, so don't feel embarrassed or shy to strike up a conversation about how mental your child is, or how you regret feeding them chocolate before they came.
9. Your child will not want to leave. Ever. So make sure you think of a suitable bribe, like the prospect of something special for lunch/ dinner. They will be hungrier than you've ever seen them afterwards. They may eat more than you ever thought possible.
10. Your child may well probably crash after the trip. Bear this in mind and plan your time at soft play accordingly. I.E not just before dinner as they will stay up until midnight.
What tips would you add for a successful soft play experience? What is your favourite soft play to go to? Pop a comment below, I'd love to hear from you.
For more daily doses of parenting highs and lows, follow me on Facebook, Twitter or Instagram.
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