Hi, my name is Katie, and I am an introverted parent. Of course, I was given an extremely extroverted child who makes friends everywhere she goes and invites the entire world over to our house. She’s still pretty young, so it’s up to me to make sure playdates happen for her, especially since she’s an only child. She doesn’t know my number quite yet (or even the names of her friends), so it takes some extra effort to get these kinds of get-togethers set up.
I will admit — it’s hard, but one new parenting trend might be the solution to all my introverted woes.
Brianna Mullally, an artist in Missouri, came up with the brilliant idea and now sells playdate business card templates on Etsy.
“Liam will go up and talk to anyone,” Mullally told TODAY.com of her 6-year-old son.
When Mullally and her family moved to St. Louis in 2021, she remembers feeling overwhelmed. Liam was ready to start making friends, and Mullally, 34, had just given birth to her second child.
“It was winter and I was caring for a newborn, but Liam really needed to socialize,” Mullally said. At indoor play spaces she would watch in awe as Liam worked the room, introducing himself to the other children and often inviting them over to his new house.”
“He always wanted me to set up playdates and in my head I was like, ‘I don’t want to talk to these parents. This is so awkward,’” Mullally said.
That’s when she had the idea to make business cards for Liam to hand out to new friends.
Each colorful card is printed with Mullally’s phone number and email and Liam’s name. The text reads: “Let’s play! Have your people call my people.”
“I always have them on me, but he’ll ask for extra cards if we’re going someplace where he knows he’ll need them,” Mullally says.
Vanity Rodriguez, a content creator in Texas, went viral after she shared a playdate business card her 7-year-old son brought home from school.
“It had a photo of the child on the front and on the back it said, ‘Let’s hang out,’” Rodriguez, 30, told TODAY.com. The card also included phone numbers for both parents and their son’s Roblox username.
“It makes scheduling playdates so much easier,” Rodriguez said. “It also helps kids learn how to network with other kids in a safe way. I just love it.”
While some think this new-age method is brilliant, others aren’t so sold on the idea.
A person asked on X, “Parents, if your kiddo came home with a playdate ‘business’ card from a classmate, would it be weird?”
“I do this! Not weird at all. It works!” one person replied.
“If I received this I would cringe even though I’m sure you put a lot of time into this. It feels extremely impersonal to me and I would get the sense you’re more into how many play dates can I get my kid than having quality connections,” another replied.
Another said, “Someone in my son’s preschool class does this, and I understand the sentiment behind it, but I do think it’s kind of weird. Maybe let’s go back to good ol socializing at drop off or whatever and build a relationship that way and then get your kids together. That’s just me.”
So, is this a totally weird idea or something you’re immediately stealing for your own kids?
