Dad a poor play dater

* A note to readers: This is the final post for a week or so as I take the Little Girl to the beach. See you soon. *

Play Dates

Play dates have pretty much confounded me throughout the Little Girl's young life. Which is to say I have a hard time making them.

It's mostly mommies who handle the scheduling, and they seem positively uneasy when I, a single dad, suggest something.

Several times I've called the homes of kids who my daughter likes, only to have the mom stammer and hesitate, fabricating what sound for all the world like excuses that would preclude any meeting. I swear, it feels like I'm trying to ask out a woman reluctant to hit the town with me. Is it my breath, my bank account, my politics?

I suppose that moms just have a hard time dealing with a dad who is trying to manage his daughter's social life. It's so out of the norm in the part of South Jersey where I live, where most of the families appear to be intact and conservative, with mom calling all the shots when it comes to the kids.

I want my daughter to develop like everyone else, and to have the chance to interact with peers. But at this rate, we're better off hitting the park and seeing who shows up on the swings.

It's better than waiting for the moms to return my calls.