coffee shop confessionsBoy, can I ever relate to this week's episode of CafeMom Studios' Coffee Shop Confessions: "I Use Housework to Avoid Playing With My Child." Well, I can sort of relate. See, the anonymous mom in the video has a secret -- she'd rather dust or do dishes than sit down on the floor with her toy car-obsessed son making "vroom, vroom" noises.

I avoid housework at all costs and my kids are both pretty much past the point of making "vroom, vroom" noises, but I still get what this gal is going through. I love my kids more than anything ... still, playing with toys feels and has always felt like a form of torture to me. Even growing up. (Yes, I was an odd child, but that's not the point.) Having my fabulous children did not change my stripes.

So what's a non-playful mom to do? In my opinion, Andrew Shue had the best, most practical advice on the subject ...

Shue's suggestion? Playdates! Because playdates have the potential to make everybody happy: Kids get other kids to play with (which makes a lot more sense, really) and moms get some valuable peer interaction too (not involving vroom, vroom noises). Of course, he's got plenty of experience as a parent (his family includes his three sons and his wife's two daughters).

Of course Alex McCord, Timberly Whitfield, and Julia Knight all had great ideas too -- such as finding a playtime activity both mom and son enjoy.

But I'll never forget how amazing it felt to sit around a kitchen table drinking tea and chatting with a couple of mommy friends while our collective little ones played with cars (or blocks, or play-dough) around our feet. Moms need playdates, too!

Be honest -- do you always like playing with your kid?


Image via CafeMomStudios/YouTube