Friends from all over

Members from different countries share interests

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Join Zoe Hill's playgroup and you'll learn a new vocabulary.

She calls diapers "nappies." A pacifier is a "dummy" and a stroller is a "push chair."

Hill is a native of Great Britain and her playgroup includes new mothers from various countries -- Sweden, Australia, Poland, Ireland, the U.S. and Hungary. The loose-knit group is called the International Play Group (IPG).

Hill, who has two boys, Elliot, 2, and Ethan, 9 months, said she didn't plan to set it up to include mostly those from various countries, it just happened that way.

"We're all about the same age, in our 30s and we recently moved here," she said. "Being we're all from other places, I thought, 'Why not give it a name (that reflects) the different countries?' "

The group is capped at 20 to keep things manageable. It was formed in October 2005. That month, Hill went back to work -- she's an attorney -- and worried she would miss her newfound friends at Family to Family Connection, 6114 W. Charleston Blvd. So the playgroup seemed the perfect way to stay in touch.

Accents can make things a little confusing.

"The problem with living here is you use the English term for things but you want to be understood so you use (both terms) for things," Hill said. "Like, I'll use 'bin' for 'trash can.' My 2-year-old, he understands both."

American Cynde Burley has two young children, ages 2 and 7 months. She said she can tell where every mother is from just by their accents. Sometimes she has an accent, too.

"I'll hear Zoe telling her child to 'get down off that swing' and I'll start calling to my kid, talking with an English accent, too," she said.

Angela Smith is a native of Australia and is more likely to greet you with a "G'day mate" than a hello. She has a 19-month-old child and was close to her due date with another child when interviewed.

Smith said she's grateful to Hill for starting the group, especially since she has no family here.

"We talk about resources and finding links to other organizations that deal with (child rearing)," she said. "And we talk about places that have international foods like Whole Foods. My little girl likes Vegamite and I finally found it here."

IPG meets every other week at a member's home. The other weeks find the group trekking to sights of Las Vegas. They've visited the Las Vegas Zoo, Lied Discovery Children's Museum, Wiggly Fun and Steve-N-Kids Clubhouse. They are taking advantage of the nice weather to visit parks, as well.

As every mother needs a break, they also are planning mom's night out events -- going bowling, taking in a movie, playing bingo and enjoying dinner together.

To add a Las Vegas touch to things, the group uses poker chips for baby-sitting IOUs. Any mother who wants to be involved gets five poker chips with their name on them. When a mum, as Hill calls it, baby-sits for another mum, they are paid with one of that mum's chips and they then know they are owed a return babysitting favor.