Entire extended families at soft play/trampoline parks and the like

[Lordofthebutterfloofs]

Why? I don't get it. Am in a trampoline park at the minute letting my two blow off some steam and there are multiple families here with mum, dad, gran, grandad on both sides, auntie, uncle ect ect all with one (if we're honest, too small to be here) child.

Why? I don't get it. They do it at swimming lessons too when your trying to get your kids in and out clogging up the changing rooms.

It's odd and rude. Even when 2 parents come, to most things, I just find it odd. A sign of a controlling relationship more than wanting to spend time together, if it was about time you'd have 1 take to soft play and 1 blitz the house.

Would you say this is also all ok in a hospital waiting room?

And toddlers existing apparently. I’m sure OP never took her precious droppings anywhere until they were all growed up.

It’s a bit like couples shuffling slowly round Tesco - surely you have something better you could be doing.

Also when people bring their other half to meet friends. No one wants them there unless it's a couples meet up!

They no doubt tag them selves in A & E on Facey !

U ok hun?

I'll inbox U
Too many 🐍 on here !

What? Couples doing things together with their kids is a sign of a controlling relationship?

Many soft plays charge extra for adults now, 1 free per child but after that £3. Excellent idea.

A hospital waiting room is absolutely not in the same ballpark as a soft play / trampoline park as the OP stated. I’m not sure what the point of this obtuse whataboutery is tbh.

I would never have inflicted soft play on my parents. I love them 😁

I do this. If my family are e.g. visiting for the weekend, we are not going to spend days on end in my living room drinking tea. And there is fuck-all else to do at this time of year.

I am often amazed at the ways some people find to resent having to share the planet's oxygen with other people.

@Servole 🤣

Soft play isn't doing stuff with your kids. It's not a family hike. Maybe somewhere you take some work or scroll your phone. Hardly family time like a beach visit or nice meal out. It's a kids activity not a family activity!

@RichardHeed

Not obtuse at all - lots of posters have mentioned this happening in hospital waiting rooms and can't understand it. You seemed to think op was totally wrong so thought you might enlighten me if you think that public space is always fair game.

@Boomboom22

Even when 2 parents come, to most things, I just find it odd.

The 'most things' suggested to me that you think this about, well most activities I suppose.

And the adults can take turns with the kids because they somehow have 1 million times more energy than us!

Haha they likely think it shows the Dr's they care more.

To most kid centric not family centric activities, you know, trampolining, playground etc, what the whole thread is about?

@Boomboom22

Yeah, fair enough. I hate those places and my partner loves the chaos of them so I tend to stay at home.

Wouldn't find it weird that parents go together though, especially with two or more kids.

Families in place meant for families shocker.

How elderly are the grandparents? We have in the past used somewhere like a soft play as a good venue to meet up with a grandparent. Grandparent can't walk far or stand for long, whilst rules out somewhere like a walk at an NT property and really just wants to talk and drink coffee. Meanwhile child(den) also need something to do. So soft play or trampoline park works well as there's a cafe with seating and coffee and accessible toilets but the kid can run off steam. Sometimes garden centres have a play area and that serves the same purpose.

Don't have a massive extended family though so wouldn't be meeting up with a large crowd!

Yeah, the equivalence between hospitals and soft play in this thread is really odd.

Completely get that you want to sullenly scroll your phone for an hour while your children bounce, but it's hardly an inappropriate place for a family to have a coffee.

To be fair, IKEA encourage this. Haven't you heard their latest radio adverts about having a day out at IKEA?

Our local soft play is attached to a pub, albeit not in the same room. You turn right from the pub's entrance lobby to go into the soft play room or left to the bar. Adults are allowed to bring alcoholic drinks from the bar into the soft play provided they ask for plastic glasses at the bar. You regularly get whole families in there getting plastered with nobody keeping an eye on the DC. It's the 7th circle of hell.

Truckinghell, this is more about extended families taking over resources that they shouldn't!

Why SHOULD a parent who has taken a kid along to an activity then not be able to find a seat or a table, because of someone else bringing everyone in their family along?!
Similar story with school assemblies and plays etc. I'm not saying they shouldn't go, but they should only get tickets/seats only after all the parents have been catered for! Anything else is unfair and rude!