Do I need to check my Home Insurance?

play date (noun) The occasion of a child having a friend come over to play at their house.

The play date is a fairly new concept and one that I associate with a particular episode of "Friends" where Ross takes his son on a play date with a stripper and her son, much to Rachel's annoyance.

In my day we were shoved out the house to roam the streets in a pack with our runny noses and scraped knees.  Our social lives weren't managed by our parents.  We made our "dates" in the school playground with questions of "Yoo goan oot t'play the night?".  Plans were made to meet at a street corner where many happy hours of skipping, bouncing balls and hula hooping were to be had.  Those were the days.

Now it takes at least an email and three texts before children can play with their friends outside of school.  Parents have to check their child's diaries to find a suitable slot between gymnastics club, tennis club and spanish lessons.

The Wee Man has been on a few play dates with class mates.  I always tag along of course, under the pretence of the Wee Man's allergies when in fact I just want to have a nose at other people's houses.  :0)  Not really. I'm sure  the parents expect and indeed demand that I tag along with the Wee Man for all his social engagements.  I'm pretty sure they don't relish the thought of having to deal with an allergic reaction and I for one wouldn't trust them.

It seems I have been rather selfish in the play date department though and have not invited any of the Wee Man's classmates to our house to play.  The Wee Man has asked several times and in fact one child practically followed us all the way home, all the while his mother trying in vain to reason with him. Only a well timed Milky Way bribe distracted him enough not to follow us onto our street.

So, this term I am going to invite at least one child over to play.  In preparation I have moved all the Wee Man's toys into his room to try and contain any ensuing mayhem. I told the Big Man my plan and a brief look of panic skipped across his face and he said two words to me and walked out the room.  "Home insurance".

Really?  Do I really need to go the the extreme of checking my home insurance?  What are the chances of a major disaster happening that needs me to hunt out our policy documents?

Note to Self:  Hide the Chalk Paint