31 Days of Play! The Playroom, Part 2

I feel so blessed to have the space that allows me to dedicate a room for Beansprout! Here are the TOP 10 things I love about the playroom in no particular order:

Playroom from the stairs.

#1: There is so much natural light! Though it's the lowest level of the house, I never actually call it the basement because it looks nothing like the basements of the Midwest.

Dress-up station.

#2: We have another space to go to, making it feel like a change of scenery! This comes in handy on the dreary rainy days we get here in the Pacific Northwest.

#3: The space is large enough for movement! I have been known to fly around all of the furniture in the room pushing Beansprout in his wagon.  I'm sure it will be useful for him to be able to run around and blow off energy this winter.

Reading chair.

Duplos.

#4: Family and Friends contributed!  It's nice to have the extra touches that come from family and friends.  Grammy made the alphabet quilt that hangs above the reading chair; Beansprout loves pointing to the animals and I know it will continue to grow with him as he learns his ABCs.  Grandma and Grandpa sent him the pirate tent, which has become a second reading spot.  Play tents are also quite versatile for play scenes- I imagine it will become a vital part of the playroom as Beansprout starts to do more pretend play!  The cars and trucks accessories were also gifted by Grandma and Grandpa - admittedly, I'm the one who loves this, Beansprout will appreciate it, I hope.  Beansprout also received a huge package of play food from Auntie De - he loves cutting all the food and putting it in the basket as if he's out shopping.  The train baskets in the Dress-Up area were gifts from friends when Beansprout was first born.

Staying organized.

#5: The 5-cubby Expedit.  It has been perfect for parallel play.  I also love that we can have the Farm area and the Fire House area - two of Beansprout's favorite things to play with right now.  (It's also a super versatile piece, as we can flip it when Beansprout is older.)

Wagon.

#6: The Radio Flyer Wagon.  Beansprout has been playing with this since his first Christmas!  He pushed it everywhere for months and months and then we pushed him in it.  He now pushed the dolls and stuffed animals, and I love that he'll continue to use it for all kinds of play scenes.

Trains, Trains, and more Trains!

#7: The train table.  Beansprout plays with the trains everyday.  He loves to push them around and around and around again!  His parents love creating new configurations, adding on new pieces whenever we can.  There are some toys of Beansprout's that I don't embrace fully, but the train table is pretty much a win-win for the whole family.

#8: The play kitchen.  I talked about it a bit in yesterday's post, but there's so much more to say.  Isn't it great that Beansprout has "stainless steel" appliances!?!  And that the oven door window was created with a piece of weed-blocker.  Would it be too much to put up a backsplash of sorts?

#9: There's a wet bar.  Now, now, it's not what you think!  Any signs of a true wet bar are slowly being replaced with finger paint and Play-Doh.  What I really appreciate about this feature of the house is the fact that there is a sink right there!  It has made life a whole lot easier.

Plan toys Barn.

#10: The playroom is a YES zone.  I tend to run a pretty child-center household over here.  Even so, I often find myself having to say no to Beansprout as his curiosities can often land him in danger.  The fact that there is so much for him to do and that it's all his without limitations is the best thing about the space.

I'm finding I really enjoy taking pictures of TOYS - guess I picked a suitable topic to write about for 31 days.  Have you checked out my other posts about play?  Playing with Food, Play at Work, or This Mom Loves Music are a few of my favorites.  I'm writing 31 posts on play, one for every day of October; you can find all of them here!

31 Days of Play! The Playroom, Part 1

This is one of 17 posts about play - I'm writing a post about the topic everyday this month. Check out my other posts here and an explanation of the challenge from thenester.com here!

What's cookin'?

We never had an official playroom growing up - in my circle everyone played in the basement and it was never anything fancy. Yet, somewhere between being a kid and having a kid playrooms became a thing. Lucky me! With the lowest level of the house mostly unused, I was pretty excited by the possibilities for Beansprout! Already armed with IKEA's Expedit and then some, I turned my attention to ohdeehdoh for play kitchen ideas! This website is full of amazing diy play kitchens -- re-creations of IKEA pieces, kitchens made out of old TV stands, and today they're featuring a play kitchen made from a chair! Matt and I were inspired and loved the idea of personalizing a kitchen for our little chef.

Eat, Drink, Make, Create

As the play kitchen was underway, I fretted about what to do for a table and chairs. I always find it so cute when kids know that things are made for them. They seem to be able to spot the little people furniture and zoom in on it. I didn't want to buy something that would fall apart, but also couldn't justify spending money on the Pottery Barn and Land of Nod items circled and dog-earred in our catalogs. I guess I was in a good karma space because a quick look through the local antique market and I found a lovely little table and two chairs made of solid wood for $25. Deal.

Beansprout's Play Kitchen Area

So began the playroom . . . build a kitchen, add some pots and pans, receive the perfect play food as a gift, and outfit a crafting/eating table - let the play begin. Beansprout was thrilled at the beginnings of his play space.


What are your thoughts on playrooms? Could they be the child's equivalent to the man-cave? What would be the perfect item for a playroom in your eyes?


P.S. Happy Birthday, MOM! xoxo

31 Days of Play! The Backpack

Beansprout's bag October 2011:
3 jars of Play-Doh, 2 books, 1 marker, roll of crayons, 1 diaper, diaper wipes,
snack bar, Kleen Kanteen, Grover Enviro Sac,
toy cement mixer, 2 Thomas trains with coal cars, 1 toy tractor, 1 toy school bus

After examining the contents of my purse in yesterday's post, What's in Your Bag?, I thought I should mention that anytime I'm planning on breakfast, lunch, or dinner in a restaurant, I usually try to bring along Beansprout's backpack.  I started stocking his backpack pretty well after our trip to Michigan this last August and (after having seen the contents of my purse) think you may be surprised to see that it's quite organized!  Realizing that I'd elbow my neighbor trying to find anything in his backpack in flight, I decided to try the bag-within-a-bag trick.  The inspiration comes from both a post I read on A Little Delightful about her organized purse, which puts my hodge podge of a purse to shame, and a post on "busy bags" from The Princess and the Tot via Ohdeedoh.  I found make-up bags at the Dollarama that were perfect for the job and I'm still using a few of them to keep things under control today.

It's wonderful to see all the contents of his backpack at one time - evidence of what stage is at in his development and his play.  Cars, trucks, trains, cars, trucks, trains, cars, trucks, trains. He gives crayons and Play-doh a try once-in-awhile, but the only thing he really wants to do is play with all things that GO!

Do you have a bag of tricks for your kids?  How have they differed through the years?  Do you remember taking along a prized toy when you were a kid?

Check out my other posts about play here!  Is there anything you'd love to read about regarding play?  Leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

31 Days of Play! What's in Your Bag? Toys.

Awhile back I stumbled across the blog Dos Family featuring "What's in your bag?"  This 31led me to realize there's actually a whole Flickr group dedicated to taking pictures of the contents of bags or purses to share with the world.  This is the thing about the blogosphere! you find people who are also fascinated by the little things in life.  I can't tell you how many times I've laughed at myself when emptying the contents of my purse or bag . . . talk about odd!  Four-item lists from months back, gum wrappers, empty gum containers, three or more pens, countless receipts, and multiple tubes of lipstick!  Sheesh.  I sure hope you don't do a personality profile on me when you see the photos :)

What's in my bag: October 2011
(Keys for classroom, Toddler hat, Tissues, Sunglasses, Shopping list, tea bag, tampons, lip gloss, receipts,
check-to-be-cashed, snack bar, $1.13 in change, Quarter machine prize, Robin Motorcycle, Elephant tape measure,Chocolate Bunny Grahams, Hair clip, Dental floss, Starbucks gift card, and a pack of gum.  Not shown: empty pack of gum, about 5 gum wrappers, and a pen)

The thing is the contents of my purse/bag have changed quite a bit since having Beansprout.  Don't get me wrong, the litter is still there (something Hubby will never seem to understand) as are the various necessities for primping, but now there may also be a small container of Play-Doh, a diaper, a half-eaten snack bar - who knows these days!  It makes me giggle to myself whenever I happen to be out sans child and open my purse to find Robin on his motorcycle peeking out at me.  Here I am out trying to be a "big girl" - wearing heels and clothes that you couldn't wear to yoga class, having to sift through Elmo stickers and toy phones in order to pay for my glass of Merlot.  Outed.

However, change the scene to dinner at our favorite sushi joint and those stickers, toy phones, Play-Doh, Robin motorcycle, and even the diaper are life-savers!  We have something to entertain the little one while we people watch and talk about the day's events.  Phew!  It's amazing how much fun Beansprout can have with that motorcycle.  Toys to the rescue.

I've been writing about play for over 2 weeks in my challenge to cover one topic everyday for a month.  Check out my other posts and an explanation of the challenge here.

31 Days of Play! Little Scientist at Play

I think one of the great perks of parenting is the fact that you get to re-live some of your own favorite childhood experiences!  Though I only have vague memories of the specifics, trips to the museums as a kid were a huge hit; I clearly remember that it always felt magical to be in such large buildings with so many fascinating things to learn.

Science World

Our first visit to Science World was a huge hit!  It's wonderful that something so "educational" is just one big playground in the eyes of my little guy.  Beansprout loved the toddler area, experimented with some of the hands-on stations, and (much to our surprise) went around the dinosaur exhibit FOUR times.  We had a great time seeing the experience through the eyes of a two-year-old!  It's wonderful to know that each time we explore a museum like this Beansprout will be a different kid - that the learning and the play will be new each time.

What are your memories of museums when you were a child?  Do you enjoy them today?  Would you consider a trip to the museum play?

I've joined The Nester in a challenge to write about one topic for 31 days!  Check out my other posts here!

31 Days of Play! Play = Research

"Play is the highest form of research"

                                      -Albert Einstein

Science World October 2011

Do you love play?  Leave a comment to let me know what you'd love to read about!  Also, check out my other posts in a month-long challenge to write about all things play here.

31 Days of Play! Fall Fun!

31 Days of Play is my newest challenge for myself!  I'm writing a post for every day in October - check out my other posts here!

Moms with the Boys October 2011.

Last year we started a new tradition!  On the weekend of Canadian Thanksgiving, we meet up with friends at the local pumpkin patch!  It's nice to be able to spend the time with them on this holiday, especially since they also only have one Canadian in their household -- a two-year-old.  

Pumpkin hunting.

Pushing wheelbarrow.

This pumpkin patch offers so much opportunity for play!  Of course, there's the whole hunting for a pumpkin bit, which is it's own adventure.  The boys are really cute walking through the field in the mud, as they seek a pumpkin of their own.  

Driving the John Deere.

Milking the cow.

These little guys were also thrilled to see that they could ride around on a trailer pulled by a TRACTOR!  The tractor goes around in a fairly small oval track, but they think it's the best thing ever and want to go around multiple times.  I think it's so interesting that they seem to know when things are made for them.  Both of the boys were immediately drawn to this year's newest attraction, a section dedicated to wooden silhouettes of tractors, trains, horses, pigs - all things farm.  We spent a lot of time in this area hopping on and off all of the different plywood creations.  They were completely at home - at play.

 

It was a perfect day of fun for all of us.  (And the grandmas even got to share in the play!)  What do you make of play at such attractions?  Does it work?  Do you go out and do seasonal/holiday activities that are playful?  I love to hear your comments and thoughts - thanks so much for reading!

31 Days of Play! Playing with food.

"Looks Delicious" Board on Pinterest!

Have I mentioned before that I currently have over 100 magazines stashed in various places around my house?  It's actually part of my play - I can spend hours pouring over them.  The thing is I just can't seem to let go of them because I'm afraid there are too many ideas I'll forget and once I start cutting out articles, I find myself cutting away the whole magazine, so why not just hold on to it in its entirety?!?  (This is the argument I have with myself when I try to de-clutter.)  I bring this up only because I have found a new solution!  Pinterest!  I know there are more and more people talking about it and I'm thrilled about that because that means there are going to be more and more ideas floating around!  This website is perfect for housing ideas I find on the wonderful blogs I peruse everyday and for finding even more ideas from the people I follow!  I especially love that it holds a picture of what the idea and a link to the original website.

This screenshot of my "Looks Delicious" Board shows how much I'm into the idea of making food playful for the little guy.  Though Beansprout is far from school-age, I've already begun my collection of fun lunch and cute food ideas!  Two of my favorite sites so far are, Meet The Dubiens, where Fun Food Friday and Bento Lunch are featured.  You have to visit her site - the photos are amazing, the ideas are unique, and the directions are clear.  I also like Cute Food For Kids! - she can do some great stuff to make Babybel  into a work of art.

Would you take time to make food playful for yourself or your children?  Do you think it counts as play?

This is my 12th post about PLAY!  Did you enjoy reading?  I hope you'll check out other posts here!

31 Days of Play! Playing in the kitchen.

Morning Pancakes.

When I saw Jamie Oliver's TED talk for anti-obesity in America, I was astounded to see that some kids didn't recognize basic fruits and vegetables.  Have you seen his program Food Revolution?  I love that he is working so hard to empower children and families and communities to eat well.  Keeping this program in mind helps me remember (especially when I'm not feeling super patient) that it's crucial Beansprout is involved with cooking our meals whenever he can be.  Luckily play finds it way into this process!  I know that it won't always be so, but for now anytime he gets to help make things that require stirring and pouring and stirring some more it is absolute play for him!

Do you remember making food as a child?  Did it feel like play?  How do you make cooking and eating fun?

I am really enjoying writing about play!  Check out my other posts and an explanation of the challenge here!

31 Days of Play! Grown-ups playing solo.

This will be my 10th post about play in my challenge to write for the whole month of October!  Check out an explanation of the challenge and my other posts here!

A gift: Double Wedding Rings Anniversary Quilt

10th Anniversary Gift: Double Wedding Rings

In my post a few days ago, I was reminded that we grow old because we stop playing!  I'm happy to say that I think a lot of grown-ups have that feeling of being a kid again when they're immersed in the things they love to do!  It's the things you can spend hours doing and not realize that hours have gone by in what feels like a minute - maybe it's knitting, playing sports, cooking, playing guitar . . . it's all PLAY!  I know for my mother-in-law play is quilting!  (And watching Detroit/Michigan sports, which is really funny when she comes to visit us!)  As she said recently, she loves to read, but she doesn't have tons of time for it - she has to get to her quilts!  We have been blessed by the beauty she creates in her quilts and have them in almost every room in the house now.  Stunning is the only way her anniversary gift to us can be described.  It is absolute perfection.  When I hear of the labor involved in the process of quilting I scoff at all the WORK it must be, but when I'm talking to her about it, I realize it is fun - it is play.  (Lucky us!)

Guitars.

A year or so before Beansprout was born, Matt took up learning guitar.  I was envious.  It was play that he LOVED and I suddenly felt fearful that I didn't have that kind of play anymore!  Taking the drama up a notch,  I worried that I wouldn't have a hobby to sustain me in retirement (as if I have to worry about that anytime soon!) and that I would ultimately be bored or boring or both.  I realized later that I could spend hours thinking about and working on decorating projects in our home (and others') but luckily I also found photography!  It's my grown-up play and I've a huge playground to explore!  Oh, and did I mention how wonderful it is  when your husband comes home from a guitar lesson knowing how to play "Someone Like You" from Adele!?!  Swoooooon.

Cheeeeeeese!

Do you feel you still play?  What does your play look like?  What do you love to spend hours at?  Thanks for reading - I hope you'll leave a comment and let me know your thoughts!

31 Days of Play! Kids Playing Solo.

Monster trucks!

I am no expert, so I don't claim to know much about age-appropriate play, but at just shy of 2 1/2, I'm thrilled to see that Beansprout can easily spend 20-30 minutes at play by himself.  It's interesting to observe him engrossed with his trains or his trucks or his animals . . . the trick is watching without being noticed!  I love to see what he's doing and how he's playing, but always fear too many looks from my direction will throw him off and the moment will be over.  I try to listen in as he whispers to himself, so wishing I could know what he was thinking!

Trains below.

I think everyone needs some time for solo play, but I imagine the only child must master it.  Having had a sibling close in age, I don't really know what it will be like for our one-and only.  My sister and I could always count on each other for play even in the most boring of situations.  Though it's not always what he wants, it's a relief to know that Beansprout is able to find such pleasure creating play for himself.  And even though I worry that I won't always understand his childhood experiences, the little bit I have read about play indicates that solitary play builds a stronger imagination.  That, of course, remains to be seen, but I can definitely appreciate the beauty in being able to entertain yourself anywhere you go.

Have you enjoyed reading about play?  You can read more here, as I'm exploring play everyday for the month of October!

31 Days of Play! Favorite Quotation

At the park with Grammy and Papa!

"We don't stop playing because we grow old; 

we grow old because we stop playing."  

                                                                     -George Bernard Shaw

I'm writing about play for 31 days!  Check out my other posts here!

31 Days of Play! Roughhousing!

Jumping on Daddy!

Our little Beansprout LOVES roughhousing! He gets so excited when he can run around the living room and leap into Daddy's arms, only to be thrown overhead like Superman.  "More, more, more" are the words that often follow this play. Climbing, twirling, and flying bring out the biggest smiles in our guy. He also loves to see his dad get "stuck" upside down on the armchair. He's supposed to "help" Daddy get unstuck, but I think he often gets so caught up in the fun of Matt doing these physical antics that he forgets his job! Besides, it's much more fun to climb on top of Daddy on top of the chair! Beansprout has been a digger, an airplane, Superman, a helicopter - you name it, he is thrilled to play his part. I think a lot of parents are afraid to do this roughhouse kind of play with their kids today - we often worry we'll hurt them and the one-in-a-million story of something going awry is always in the back of our heads. I know Matt and I were both pretty cautious with Beansprout when he was younger. Luckily for him, he's grown! He's feeling less like you could break him in half with one wrong move and so roughhousing is almost a daily part of our play routine. I always thought it was a great way to get out energy and have some fun, but it turns out there's much more to roughhousing than a good laugh! The New York Times interview of two authors who wrote the book, The Art of Roughhousing: Good Old-Fashioned Horseplay and Why Kids Need It, gives a great summary of some of the key reasons we should be interacting with our kids this way.  The article focuses mostly on dads, but offers some quick insights into the benefits of playing rough.  Two of my personal favorites are that it means your child is more in tune with you and that it helps him regulate his emotions better!  Ahhh, the science behind everyday, ordinary play.

Each time I write a post on play, I can't help but think of my own childhood experiences!  Do you remember how fun it was to jump around on your parents?  I even remember having a blast with my cousins as we all attacked our uncles at the family Christmas party!  What are some of your memories?  Do you roughhouse with the children in your lives?  Do you think it's just for dads?

This makes seven days of writing about play!  Phew!  I'm 1/4 of the way there :)  Check out my others posts and an explanation of the challenge here.  Thanks for being a part of this fun opportunity to explore play!

31 Days of Play! Play at work!

I'm writing about play for 31 days!  Check out an explanation of the challenge here and check out my other posts so far: 31 Days of Play!, Play for the Senses, This Mom Loves Music, Mastering Playdates, Pretending.  Thanks for reading, I love reading your comments and thoughts!

Welcome banner 2011-12

I've been writing about kid play for a few days, so I thought I'd jump over to talking about adult play - at work no less!  I know work is work and some days play isn't even a blip on the radar, but I can say it's such a thrill when work does feel like play!  I think everyone has their own version of playing at work - just watch a few episodes of The Office and you're sure to see some play - but for me the play part of work is the creating.

Desks and chairs 2011-12

Creating a cozy classroom was first on my list as I began the new school year in a new room.  Of course "cozy" is not exactly what you feel when you walk into our 50 year-old building, but Roomie and I worked hard to bring some points of interest you could rest your eye on amidst all the drab.  It was wonderful to get compliments on what we "had done with the room" and I'm still thinking of ways to keep the room interesting and somewhat inviting.

Classroom 2011-12

And though I love decorating and crafting for the classroom, the best part of my job is designing lessons that will fire up my students about our content!  I am happiest doing this part of my "work" and feel there is never enough time to do everything I want.  Even when not at work, I find myself  talking about these aspects of my job all the time; I talk with other friends who are teachers and with Matt, realizing the bouncing-ideas-off-of-each-other aspect of the job is FUN!  As nerdy and geeky as it may sound to non-teachers (or other teachers for that matter), it's where I find my flow - it's my play.

How do you play at work?  Does it involve the flow aspect of things or do you prefer more The Office-like antics?

31 Days of Play! Pretending!

Cutting fruit!

It's actually a bit surprising that I committed to writing about play all month, as I have some real hang-ups about it. I think they mostly stem from the fact that I always wanted to be around the adults when I was a kid.  Don't get me wrong, I played my fair share of Barbies and spent hours outside playing with the neighborhood kids, but there's something stuck in my mind that makes me fear I may be really bad at playing with my little Beansprout.  Of course, at this point in the game, there are days when it IS really hard to play with him - it's pretty repetitious and limited most of the time.  All that being said, I really try - I try to stay focused and try to remember that if I let him take (most of) the lead, all of those fears will fade.  One of my favorite things to play with him is pretend!  Because it doesn't require a lot of imagination, pretending has been a great way to ease me into this whole world of play.  We pretend to do things that Beansprout sees us do all the time!  I think this is what I love about pretend play so much - I love to see what he sees.  He'll "talk" on the phone and just start laughing, he loves to "vacuum" (even has his own!), and will laugh himself silly pretending to shoo flies!  My absolute favorite pretend game right now actually started in May --- he takes his basket, says "bye-bye", walks out of sight to the garage door, and then "comes home"!  The game is made extra sweet by the fact that he even gives us kisses upon leaving and returning.  I know that this form of play is a necessary part of learning for kids, and I'm thrilled that it's so much FUN!

I'm writing about play for 31 days!  Check out an explanation of the challenge here and check out my other posts so far: 31 Days of Play!, Play for the Senses, This Mom Loves Music, Mastering Playdates.  Thanks for reading, I love reading your comments and thoughts!

31 Days of Play! Mastering play dates.

Beansprout playing with his friend E.

"Play fosters belonging and encourages cooperation."

--Stuart Brown, MD

Before having kids I definitely joined in the bewilderment of why on earth parents would schedule their kids with play dates; I had never participated in formal play dates as a child which left me suspicious that these plans were just another way parents were forcing kids into adult behavior too soon.  Even in Beansprout's first year of life, I had to admit that any "play date" we had was really a time for me to get together with other moms to share the experiences of motherhood, not really an opportunity for Beansprout to play with his friends.  Yet as Beansprout's play changes, I'm beginning to see how true Stuart Brown's words are.  When we returned from having been away for a few weeks, I was totally shocked at the way Beansprout greeted his friend E. when we met at the local playground.  He was SO happy to see his friend!  And it was in that moment that I realized all of our weekly "play dates" with E. were really good for my little guy.  Because of living so far away, Beansprout doesn't have family to play with and learn from - an issue many families face today.  Seeing the familiar face of his friend, with whom he has been playing since they were six months old, and being able to chase after him on the playground gives Beansprout that sense of belonging we all need.  Now if we could only master the cooperation, lol.

I'm writing about play for 31 days!  Check out an explanation of the challenge here and check out my other posts so far: 31 Days of Play!, Play for the Senses, This Mom Loves Music.  Thanks for reading, I love reading your comments and thoughts!

31 Days of Play! This mom loves music!

Beansprout and Guitar

As I turned idea after idea over in my brain deciding what I passionately wanted to write about for 31 days, I was convinced I had my theme after hearing about Dr. Stuart Brown's inspiring research on play.  I watched his TED Talk, "Play is more than fun," and haven't stopped thinking about it since.  I highly recommend having a look at it, as Brown is a wonderful speaker who makes his research on play accessible to all.  Watching his talk really forced me to take a look at my own practices of play, and I felt especially reflective about how my own parents played with me as a child.  Chatting with Matt, I came around to talking about my mom's love of New Country music.  (Stick with me here, it does actually relate!)  It seems whenever I'm in the car with Mom, listening to her music, she feels she has to explain herself; in our most recent conversation on the topic she equated New Country to Old-time Rock and Roll, but wondered if she shouldn't be listening to classical music.  I realize now that what she really fears is that her choice in music is fun, but not necessarily grown-up.  I remember telling her, "you like what you like!"  Yet now I feel I have a whole new insight . . . listening to music is her PLAY!  Belting out a few tunes on the way home after a long day at work makes you feel young and alive.  Play at it's best.  Thinking on all of this I understand now that this is how we played together (and still do!)  Memories of standing in the kitchen at not more than six or seven years old, competing to see who knew all the words to Billy Joel's "It's Still Rock and Roll to Me" or singing together in the car to "Backwards" from Rascal Flatts are some of my favorites.

Guitar concentration

Today, this is my play with Beansprout!  The play that I love.  We sings songs together all the time and dance around the living room being monsters or airplanes or horsemen.  I hope he has fond memories of these moments one day as this is the play that comes naturally to me.

What play memories do you have of your parents?  Do they reflect the way you play with your own children?


I'm writing about play for 31 days!  Check out an explanation of the challenge here and check out my other  posts so far: 31 Days of Play!, Play for the Senses.  Thanks for reading, I'd love to hear your comments and thoughts!

31 Days of Play! Play for the senses.

I'm writing about PLAY for 31 days -- did you see my October 1st post?  

Playing at the sink

I have a distinct memory of my sister and cousin getting in trouble for playing with the water in the bathroom - they'd slipped away unnoticed and when one of the adults realized it was too quiet, they'd been found out -  water play over!  Thinking only of the mess, I often cringe when Beansprout wants to "wash" his hands; and it's this memory that helps remind me of the pure fun kids have playing with water.  When we're able to oblige, the scene usually plays out the same way - Beansprout starts by actually washing his hands, and then he quickly moves to grabbing things out of the drain pan to re-rinse them (I must have missed a spot), soaking any cloths he can find near the sink, and just holding his hands under the water - he could spend hours at this play.  

The brilliant thing about play is all that you can learn while in the flow.  Hot, cold, pour, float . . . no need to set up structured learning scenes, the kitchen sink is scientific learning at work!   Not Just Cute has a great post about the benefits of sensory play, if you're interested in sensory play for little ones. What I love about watching children play, however, is how much it reminds me of what I'm learning or re-learning by being around them.  As adults we DO play with water -- how many of you have you ever felt renewed by a simple game of splash in the pool?  And, do any of you indulge in a relaxing bath filled to the top with bubbles?  Simple ways to refresh our spirits and senses with water.

31 days of PLAY!

Play!  Play!  Play!  Does it seem all the rage lately???  The subject keeps popping up everywhere I turn and what I'm finding is truly inspiring.  I guess the research has finally gotten pretty serious about how important play is no matter your age.  It's my goal to really look at play this month - play for kids, play for adults, play at work, play at home . . . I can't wait!  I've also decided to try a new challenge . . . a post everyday for the month of October!!!  I'll be linking up with over 600 others doing the same - 31 Days of XY or Z over at The Nesting Place.  There's a lot of inspiration from the women joining in on the challenge!  Welcome to my 31 Days of Play!