No, just put J. in a closet until he's ready to go to kindergarten and then worry about it. Of course play dates should be arranged! Did you not have enough time to come up with something more interesting or thought provoking?

I think that baby play dates are just as important to the parents as to the child. It's wonderful to get out when you're with an infant all day and have some adult interaction. And babies need to be around other babies, too, even if they don't play together.

Wow. That's rude. She's asking about the necessity at that age.

My daughter is 11 months and has some socialization through daycare so I don't worry too much about playdates.
But that doesn't mean I haven't arranged them with a friend and her daughter. Granted, there isn't a huge amount of interaction between them, but babies love other babies and I think it's good to get them out, meeting new people and being exposed to different situations.

I think at the infant stage, it's a good idea to get together with other families with babies. Not necessarily for the babies' benefit, but for the parents! It's nice to talk to other parents who are going through the same things.

wow "Really" is a miserable person! Hanah, please ignore!
I worried that my daughter was not getting enough playtime with other kids as an infant, and now I look back and realize I worried over nothing. It's nice for babies to be exposed to faces in general as they learn to distinguish features, recognize moods, etc. But they don't really "play" with other kids until the late 2's. Prior to that it is more side by side play and I think more necessary for the parents (so they can get a break and have some interaction) than the kiddos. I think a library story time geared to infants would do the trick if you are looking for a weekly type event at low cost.

HC//Thanks SDR for the tip. The story time sounds like a great idea!

My moms' group started getting together when the babies were only weeks old. We had so-called playdates back then, but they were mostly for the parents. However, even when the kids were just a few months old, they interacted with each other some. They all got used to one another, and that ended up making the natural transition to actual playdates pretty easy.

HC//I think I need to find a moms group.

hanah I'm not sure where you live but in the Baltimore area, www.Baltimoremommies.com covers Baltimore, Howard, Eastern Carroll and Northern Anne Arundel Counties. www.ChesapeakeMommies.com covers Harford and Cecil counties. Great resources for activities and family events as well as mom or parent only events too in addition to online support forums. I am one of the site admin's for chesapeake mommies so if you have any questions please let me know! Our sites are part of The Mommies Network which operates 108 sites across the USA.

HC//Thanks Holly. This is so helpful.

Playdates are for parents, and it's selfish that we involve our children. I tried playdates when my child was little. Through several groups and different playdates, all I received were earfuls of gossip, and slants of selfish greedy mothers. I did meet a few nice people, but mostly bad moms who use the kids as excuses to gather, gossip, and drink. In the early afternoon. May be different elsewhere, but my organized playdates didn't go well.

I have found it beneficial to socialize my 3 year old at local places like museums and the inflatable playground places. We have met some really nice people who have proved to play well with my kid, and we do plan outings together for the kids. We let the kids decide who they want to hang out with and then the parents come together. Yeah, he's 3, but he's got more ability to see truth than we.

I tend to agree with those who say that play dates are primarily for the parents. My sister is still getting together with her Moms' Group on a regular basis, and the "babies" are now in their 20s!

I have to ask...is there something wrong with playdates for infants being more about the parent? At that stage, the parent needs others to talk to in the same boat. For working mothers that go from working 8+ hours a day with a lot of adult interaction to going home with a baby that can not talk....it's a huge adjustment. It feels like everyone you know is at work. Many of those at work while you are home also don't really want to hear about your new found love either. They've either been there done that or aren't there yet and aren't really interested in discussing diapers and spit up. It's nice to find a group that can share in the experiences of the mother you are becoming.