At some point we have to let them go out to play.

Wow! My 1st born turned 10 this week and I had a moment of realising I need to start loosening the apron strings a little....not too much but a little. My 10 year old Esmie, reminds me so much of myself strong minded, strong willed and if given the opportunity to be independent she thrives on this and it does her good. She appears to have a really good attitude and has a good level of self discipline....which is great. I don't want her to be nervous and scared about her independence, I want all of my children to go out and see the world and explore it to their fullest potential. I suppose I am exploring the right time to let her go the shop on her own, or walk to school or home, play out the front etc.....decisions to make as well as looking after my other 3 children and my own life, it's mad just how do we make that balanced decision? I let her walk the shop with Lexx my youngest brother who is 11 last Saturday and too be honest it went well, I didn't feel worried, I breathed and stayed calm, whilst calling only once lol. The world isn't the same as it was when I was a kid playing rounders out on the street with friends. Suppose what I am exploring is the fact that I had a great childhood in terms of playing out. I have explained to Esmie Responsibility and Trust is what we are working on at the minute and she gets it, she knows where I am coming from. So I have put together 3 top tips that I have found useful ..... 1. Talk to your child about responsibility and Trust mean, when I say talk I mean a 2 way conversation not us just talking at them, explore examples. 2. Give them some things to be responsible for, maybe tasks in the home, or a particular item, or park up outside a shop and let them go in. I got Esmie a Go Henry Card too so that her money is safe when she is out. 3. Go with your gut instinct, if things don't feel right talk it through with your child and explain you are not comfortable yet. Start of identifying somewhere local they can run an errand for you. It's important we don't add to there anxiety because they will feel anxious there first trip out alone. I hope those points help, please let me know what you think and what has worked for you. I'm planning on letting Esmie and Harrison play out over the summer so I'll let you know how we get on there. We have the next 2 half weeks off school for Easter so let's see how we get on with that. Thanks for taking the time to read. Xx