playground, playgroup, etc etiquette

[dividedsky]

i tend to be pretty lax in that if my sons' friends are over, they are free to play with our toys as if they're their own. if they bite them or whatever... it's fine by me. that's what kids do IMO. if i bring my guys to the playground and put out a bunch of sand toys, i'm thrilled to let all of the kids use them until it's time for us to leave. same goes for at the pool. and if i'm at a friend's house and their kid grabs my kid's cup and takes a sip, i don't get too uptight about it.

thankfully i have friends with kids who are the same way. but i know that some people are not down with sharing and get really squicked about slobber and germs. this makes me... uncomfortable? like i have to be on guard all the time at the playground in case heaven forbid one of my sons picks up a toy that isn't his own, or, if that's ok, puts it in his mouth and makes the situation not ok to the other kid's mom.

so i guess my question is... what is playground etiquette with this type of thing? i guess it varies by location. thoughts?

[cakemama579]

My experience tells me that whenever possible, when on the playground and dealing with kids/parents you don't know, it is always best to ask the parent first if they mind (or if the child is older, ask them if they mind).

I'll give you an example. My DS and I were at our community pool the other day, and DS decided he wanted to take a dip in the baby pool. There was another little girl there that brought her bath toys to play with, and DS had no toys. Irrisistable, right? If there are toys in the pool, what kid wouldn't want to play with them, despite to whom they belong? Just as my DS grabbed for a toy, I looked over at the girl's mom and said, "is it ok if he plays with your daughter's toys too?" To which she replied, "Of course!" And you never know, you might just make a friend in the process, or at least open up friendly dialogue.

As far as germs go, and foreign sippy cups, etc., I would deter your child from digging in to someone else's food/beverage. Even if you're cool with it, it would definitely save an awkward moment if the other parent is a germ-a-phobe. And it would potentially save your child from a cold.

Good luck!