I booze at soft play – I’m mum-shamed but G&Ts help with noisy kids & lame chat… it’s not like I vomit in the ball pit
WATCHING her 11-year-old daughter squeal with delight in the ball pit, Emmie Barwise gives her pal Nat a knowing wink before pulling out a can of G&T.
The two women regularly enjoy a cheeky tipple while their kids are at soft play, claiming it helps them cope with “boring chit-chat” with fellow mums and the endless din of screaming kids.
Speaking to The Sun, Emmie, 31, from Manchester says it’s wrong to mum-shame parents for having a couple of drinks, arguing it’s “her weekend too”.
“If the kids can have fun, so can we,” she says. “I am standing up for mums who enjoy a tipple at the indoor trampoline park and indoor play centres.
“To criticise a mum for having a couple when it’s her day off in the afternoon is wrong. No wonder exhausted parents feel judged.
“Sometimes a room full of screaming kids is enough to drive you mental. It doesn’t mean you’re a bad mum, just an honest one.
“I don’t care if I am trolled. I always walk home, or I have a designated driver. I’m never legless.
“Having a canned cocktail while the kids play is the same as having a cocktail by the pool on holiday. It’s just about being sensible.
“It’s not like parents are vomiting in the ball pit or passing out on the slides.”
Last week a kids’ soft play centre threatened to ban parents caught boozing on the premises after finding an empty bottle of wine in the toilets.
Managers at Tumbles Play Place in Mossley, just outside Manchester, called the drinking “irresponsible and completely unacceptable” and threatened to check CCTV and ban the drinker from ever visiting again.
Emmie believes the response was “completely over the top”, adding: “I’d only expect a response like that if they found dozens of bottles, or if mums and dads were passed out and not supervising their children.
“I need a couple of supermarket cocktails in the afternoon to deal with the screaming kids and to get my ‘mummy chat’ on. Slightly sloshed Emmie has better mummy chat.”
Emmie says she has been to numerous soft play centres attached to bigger family entertainment areas which do serve alcohol.
“I can’t tell you how many kids’ parties I have been to at soft play centres where the parents have put on a boozy punch, Prosecco or cocktails for mums and dads,” she explains.
“People forget that many indoor play centres, trampoline parks and soft play zones are designed for all the family and have restaurants with adult-only bar zones.
“But booze at licensed kids play centres is often hugely expensive, which is why I prefer to bring my own.
“Aldi or Lidl offer the best bargains and it makes for a cheaper day out.”
Emmie admits she’s been sneaking canned cocktails into soft play centres that don’t have an alcohol licence for years.
“My mates and I enjoy one or two and always dispose of our empties in the bins or take them home,” she says.
“For me, sneaking in a couple of cans for a friend and myself is my way of remembering what it was like when you used to sneak booze into a school dance.
“It’s just a bit of rebellious fun. We’re not alcoholics.
“Yes, we have gotten nasty looks from parents who think they have a right to judge.
“One mum whose children looked like they had never gotten a mark on their clothes told us we were terrible parents and should be ashamed.
“I just smiled and offered her a can.”
Emmie, who was 19 when she became a mum, admits she felt judged by older mums at play groups or soft play afternoons.
“Sometimes a group of other parents is intimidating,” she reasons. “I soon discovered the odd naughty tipple relaxed me. Now I have a two-drink limit.
“It’s our Saturday, too. That’s how I think about it. Plus a couple of drinks helps bring the big kid out in me.
“My daughter Frankie and I can play for hours in the ball pit, climb through the maze or use the climber and swings.
“Let’s face it – I’d rather my child be having fun with her mates than sitting on her phone mindlessly scrolling. Everyone’s a winner.”