ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, April 23, 1996 TAG: 9604230074
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-2 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
DATELINE: BLACKSBURG
SOURCE: LISA APPLEGATE STAFF WRITER
Imagine shopping for some new spring clothes. Or getting a shampoo and cut at the salon. Or sipping tea as you sink into the pages of a good book.
Now, imagine trying any of those activities with a fussy infant or a rambunctious toddler in tow.
"It's impossible," said Donna Pearsall, mother of 3-year-old Mathew. "You just can't take a toddler into a beauty salon."
But at her last hair appointment, Pearsall didn't have to watch her son with an eagle eye to make sure he didn't tumble a rack of shampoo or spray the water hose at passers-by.
Instead, she dropped Mathew off at Blacksburg Christian Church in one of the few small, cooperative child-care programs called Mother's Morning Out.
The concept is simple. Once a week, mothers (or fathers) can drop their children off to play with a small group of other children.
Each parent is assigned one day to stay with the children, while the other parents have three hours of freedom. Usually, a paid baby sitter watches the babies and infants while toddlers tackle crafts or listen to a story.
Most morning-out programs are started in a church, then nonmembers join through word of mouth. Several Blacksburg churches sponsor mornings-out; the programs are less common in more rural areas.
The cost is minimal, usually about $3 a day. And the benefits aren't only for parents.
"I was hesitant to give up our together time," said Ginny Worthington, who works part time for the U.S. Forest Service, "but I wanted Elsa to start socializing more with other kids."
Her 3-year-old daughter will start preschool next year, and Worthington said she wanted to begin the separation process between Elsa, herself and the baby sitter who watches her part time.
"Elsa seems to really enjoy it. She talks about the kids at home - they've become buddies," Worthington said.
It's a good deal all around, said Jenny Shuster, mother of two who heads a morning-out program at Christ Episcopal Church.
"For very reasonable fee a mom has a chance to drop her child off in a safe environment; where she can go home and take a bath - all by herself!"
LENGTH: Medium: 51 lines ILLUSTRATION: PHOTO: ALAM KIM/Staff. At Mother's Morning Out at Blacksburgby CNBChristian Church, Ginny Worthington (right) attends a group of
pre-school children while Xianghong Qi (left) and Linda Dascanio
(second from left) look after the toddlers.