Friend calling every day, begging for play dates

H & N have this friend that has started calling every day. If she gets my voice mail, she will hang up and call back several times before leaving a message. Then ahe calls the home phone. After leaving a message, she calls back some days an hour or so later. It's making me crazy. How do you handle frequent callers?

 

Unplug the phone.

God. I'd go crazy! Talk to the parent maybe??

 

I agree with Meaghan.. perhaps a chat with the parents or with your kids.  Good luck!

 

I'd talk to her directly. Whatever the limits are, set them, and communicate them to her. "You are welcome to call once a day to see if the kids can play. If you get my voicemail you may leave a short message or hang up. If you hang up, you may not call again. If the kids can't play, you can try again tomorrow." If the calls continue, you could try talking to the parent then. In these kinds of situations, I try to keep in mind what the child is trying to accomplish (playing with your kids) and what information they need to learn or know to be able to do that (phones are a great tool for communicating but there are rules about how to use them).

 

We encountered a similar problem with a neighbor kid over the summer, except it was with knocking on the door and ringing the doorbell.  And if the kids were not available to play at the moment, he'd come back several times.  My husband gently talked to him and told him to knock once and if the kids are not available, our kids will come out and find you when they are.  It did get better, thankfully.    Now, when he does knock to play, it's once and done.

 

Yeah, I'd either talk to her parents or tell her to call, leave a message and wait for you guys to call back.  But then I'd make sure you actually do call back to let her know one way or the other. 

 

I would approach the parent and explain, gently, the concerns.
 
Same with 'door-knocking' children. A friend even posted a sign on the door to remind neighborhood kids not to knock--- during dinner, homework, etc. It said " We can play!" on one side and the other " Please don't knock, we can't play right now!" With simple pictures. Stopped the craziness!

 

Thanks all! She's already toned it down. I don't know if her parents said something to her or she decided on her own. 

 

Good to hear! My kids are only 6 and I'm already so over playdate requests!

 

Such an annoying friend. Say you got sick

 

I would definitely talk to the parent. That is annoying. Why do they allow that? I wish my friend called me so frequently. I have to use a list of the best free online dating sites in Alberta province to find a person to meet. I am currently talking with two nice guys. I hope to meet them one day.