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I agree. I was an only child and it was often very lonely. A lot of adults are lonely too now a days! One thing that I've found very helpful is to plug into a c

I agree. I was an only child and it was often very lonely. A lot of adults are lonely too now a days! One thing that I've found very helpful is to plug into a community that meets regularly. Homeschoolers are really good at this. There are a lot of unschooling/homeschooling groups that you can find on facebook that meet regularly. For "regular schoolers", classes can be a great way to connect. I used to have a great friend group from being in the theatre/drama geek:) Classes can get expensive but there are a lot of freebies and scholarships if you start to ask around. In fact, any kind of shared activity you can connect around is good: Magic, Minecraft, sports, sewing. Just getting out and going to the park/playgroup can be great as well. I've also seen people make wonderful/close friends through childcare sharing. I'm not sure how old your child is and what kinds of activities they enjoy - and if you live in a big city or rural area, homeschool, remote school, public or private school, but I'd be happy to give you some more tailored suggestions if you can give me more info here or reach out to me directly. One big problem in our day and age is there are very few "true communities" where people are independent, beyond the church. If you're not a church goer, another option can be a meditation group like Zen Buddhism. Or even consider starting some meetup for only kids and posting it on facebook. It can be a once a week thing at the park, nature hike, book club or some other activity. This is a great topic and one I relate to keenly as an only child.

theonething 4y ago
Have you done any research on the advantages and disadvantages of having only one child and the effects it has on children? I tend to hear about all the disadvantages, not so much the advantages. That would be an interesting blog topic (to me at least).
abraxas 4y ago
Thank you for the great response and to fill in some details here, my son is 10 and he goes to a public school and has a handful of friends through school but unfortunately none of them are within a walking distance. He likes the kind of stuff that I imagine most 10 year olds like these days. He's into Minecraft, robot kits, bicycles, plays pickleball and is learning to play the saxophone. Where we live is a suburban neighborhood that has a couple of kids in his age bracket but they aren't close friends. We live in a lower middle class subdivision but have a pretty high net worth and tend to gravitate towards activities that other neighbors likely can't afford. Stuff like skiing or tips abroad for example. On the flip side they do stuff that doesn't draw us in like hunting or ATV. That's to say that we are not close to any of our neighbors and our kids don't often hang out although everyone is friendly so far as I can tell.
- actfrench 4y ago
  Ah wonderful ! This is so helpful ! A couple ideas 1) So first of all, I’m assuming you are already proactive about organizing play dates ? If you can invite another kid to your house at least once a week after school to play, do homework and have dinner together, I think that would be great. Maybe the other parent would reciprocate ! And sleepover on weekends ! 2) Minecraft Club! Can you set up a Minecraft club at your house ? Invite the classmagrsx over after school every Friday to play Minecraft and have pizza:) 3) Arduino robotics club : if you don’t have one you can start one at your house. 4)social/bonding after-school activities : soccer and other team sports, theater, board games, cheerleading anything collaborative/team-oriented , not so much ballet/ski/individualistic stuff 5) date night babysitting co-op. Can you get another couple with a kid your child’s age to babysit for him while you go on a date night and then you do the same for them ? You could even do it w four couples and everyone gets a night out while the kids get a party :) Let me know how it goes and if you want tips on setting this up. Try one idea at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed

theonething 4y ago

Have you done any research on the advantages and disadvantages of having only one child and the effects it has on children? I tend to hear about all the disadvantages, not so much the advantages. That would be an interesting blog topic (to me at least).

abraxas 4y ago

Thank you for the great response and to fill in some details here, my son is 10 and he goes to a public school and has a handful of friends through school but unfortunately none of them are within a walking distance. He likes the kind of stuff that I imagine most 10 year olds like these days. He's into Minecraft, robot kits, bicycles, plays pickleball and is learning to play the saxophone. Where we live is a suburban neighborhood that has a couple of kids in his age bracket but they aren't close friends. We live in a lower middle class subdivision but have a pretty high net worth and tend to gravitate towards activities that other neighbors likely can't afford. Stuff like skiing or tips abroad for example. On the flip side they do stuff that doesn't draw us in like hunting or ATV. That's to say that we are not close to any of our neighbors and our kids don't often hang out although everyone is friendly so far as I can tell.

actfrench 4y ago
Ah wonderful ! This is so helpful ! A couple ideas 1) So first of all, I’m assuming you are already proactive about organizing play dates ? If you can invite another kid to your house at least once a week after school to play, do homework and have dinner together, I think that would be great. Maybe the other parent would reciprocate ! And sleepover on weekends ! 2) Minecraft Club! Can you set up a Minecraft club at your house ? Invite the classmagrsx over after school every Friday to play Minecraft and have pizza:) 3) Arduino robotics club : if you don’t have one you can start one at your house. 4)social/bonding after-school activities : soccer and other team sports, theater, board games, cheerleading anything collaborative/team-oriented , not so much ballet/ski/individualistic stuff 5) date night babysitting co-op. Can you get another couple with a kid your child’s age to babysit for him while you go on a date night and then you do the same for them ? You could even do it w four couples and everyone gets a night out while the kids get a party :) Let me know how it goes and if you want tips on setting this up. Try one idea at a time so you don’t get overwhelmed