Take Time to Play
Ruth Ayres invites us to share our celebrations every weekend. Please visit her site to read what others are celebrating and share your own.
"Sometimes you need to stop working and make time to play," I said to my husband as he stood at the sink finishing up dinner dishes.
Did I really just say those words?
I believe those words with all my heart, but I've always practiced the exact opposite. No playing until all the work is done. We all know that the work is never done, which means, I rarely gave myself permission to cut loose when I knew there were tasks to be completed. As our kids got older and they didn't really want to play with me anymore, working long hours became easier and easier. My husband was the one telling me to make time for play in my life. He reminded me again and again that I can't work all the time. Life is too short and it must be enjoyed. And now, here I was saying those words to him.
Making time to play has become very important in our home. We are learning the importance of play in helping children with attachment disorder. Play, along with eye contact, safe touch, and a calm voice all help a child connect to her caregivers. She begins to know it's safe to trust the adults in her life.
So we play. Before bedtime means it's time to stop all work and we play together. Destiny rolls a die and depending on the roll, we either play a card game, do some yoga, draw or color together, write together, listen to a children's meditation, or do progressive relaxation.
Last night she rolled a 6, just what she wanted. It was time to play Go Fish with Destiny's new Shopkins cards. Keith left the dishes in the sink, I put away my classwork, and we played. I couldn't help but smile. Such a simple game brought so much joy to a little girl. Giggles erupted among all three of us and we all slowed down just a bit. The slowing down is what I savor most.
Creating a space for play has become more and more important to me.
I forgot how fun it was.
If you are interested in reading more about caring for children with attachment disorder, I highly recommend the following books.
Integrative Parenting by Wesselmann, Schweitzer, and Armstrong
The Connected Child by Purvis and Cross
"Sometimes you need to stop working and make time to play," I said to my husband as he stood at the sink finishing up dinner dishes.
Did I really just say those words?
I believe those words with all my heart, but I've always practiced the exact opposite. No playing until all the work is done. We all know that the work is never done, which means, I rarely gave myself permission to cut loose when I knew there were tasks to be completed. As our kids got older and they didn't really want to play with me anymore, working long hours became easier and easier. My husband was the one telling me to make time for play in my life. He reminded me again and again that I can't work all the time. Life is too short and it must be enjoyed. And now, here I was saying those words to him.
Making time to play has become very important in our home. We are learning the importance of play in helping children with attachment disorder. Play, along with eye contact, safe touch, and a calm voice all help a child connect to her caregivers. She begins to know it's safe to trust the adults in her life.
So we play. Before bedtime means it's time to stop all work and we play together. Destiny rolls a die and depending on the roll, we either play a card game, do some yoga, draw or color together, write together, listen to a children's meditation, or do progressive relaxation.
Last night she rolled a 6, just what she wanted. It was time to play Go Fish with Destiny's new Shopkins cards. Keith left the dishes in the sink, I put away my classwork, and we played. I couldn't help but smile. Such a simple game brought so much joy to a little girl. Giggles erupted among all three of us and we all slowed down just a bit. The slowing down is what I savor most.
Creating a space for play has become more and more important to me.
I forgot how fun it was.
If you are interested in reading more about caring for children with attachment disorder, I highly recommend the following books.
Integrative Parenting by Wesselmann, Schweitzer, and Armstrong
The Connected Child by Purvis and Cross
You are right that it is so important to take the time to play. We all need time to unwind, relax, take a break, but too often we are just too busy. We all need that reminder to enjoy life!
ReplyDeleteWow! It’s a good idea and platform to share our celebration experience, happy moments of life with others, and also to get ideas of celebration shared by others. I have bookmarked it and share with my office colleague at CV Folks which is one of the leading CV writing services providing company and I am CV builder over there and have expertise in providing receptionist CV https://www.cvfolks.co.uk/receptionist-cv/ to candidate. And we are celebrating all the festivals and birthdays of the employees in a very different ways. I loved to try new ideas and spread happiness.
DeletePlay gets harder the older we get older. The simple joy of playing simple games is something we don't do unless we have kids in our lives. She is lucky to have you as you are her.
ReplyDeleteThis celebration makes me smile! Blessed are the gamers, for they shall inherit the joy!
ReplyDeleteEven as empty nesters play is important. I remember loving to play card games with our kids.
ReplyDeleteSounds like things are going really well! Hurray! I haven't read either of those books, but I'm definitely going to look for them!
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a win for everyone! Play is important and often forgotten.
ReplyDeleteIt seems that you are learning things good for your new daughter, but also for you, Julie. Time to play is a great thing. I'm glad you shared with us, and I'll keep the books in mind for friends who may find them helpful.
ReplyDeleteI think we could all use a little more play in our lives. During the summer, we've made it a rule around our house that we do not work on Sundays. Instead, we hang out together, go somewhere or just relax on the patio. At first, it was hard -- there's so much work to do! But then, it really transformed our family life. Thank you for the reminder that we need more play in our lives EVERY day. Have a great week, Julie!
ReplyDelete"Make time for play" - good reminder for home and school, for kids and adults.
ReplyDeleteJulie, we all need more play time in our lives to find the joy. Today, I put aside all to enjoy having friends over for an impromptu dinner. I am glad that you have made time to let play take a prominent place in your family's life, Julie. This is an important topic and you illustrated it so well with your examples.
ReplyDeleteTake Time to Play is really good game which is impressive for the kids to make the mind sharp and complete detail have this post. On the other hand, I want to get best place to buy essays online and whole piece of information regarding the kids related to activities.
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