Sunday, one of my girls decided she wanted to dress herself. I'm not one to argue when any of my children want to actually put clothes ON, so I let her go for it. She came out in her swimsuit bottoms, no top, and just the right amount of sass that let us know we better not question her decision. This gave big brother an idea, which led to our first indoor swim party. Pretty soon, all three kids were in their swim suits dancing on a variety of blankets that were spread out across the living room. They pretended to swim in the blanket pool and giggled in a way that only kids do. I have a personal pet peeve about blankets being on the floor, so I cringed for a moment and looked at my husband. We both shrugged our shoulders, turned up the heat a bit, and enjoyed the show. It was such a great way to fight the winter blues! They were so cute dancing and "swimming." For a few moments, I forgot about the mountain of laundry waiting for me on the other side of the wall.
It seems there is so much pressure in school these days that kids aren't allowed to just "be kids" and play. We all know how much learning is done through play at the baby and infant stages, but after that, it seems that kids are forced into institutional style learning to stay above the curve, and sometimes, just to keep up! I remember stressing about making sure my single had "learning games" and my mom would ask, "can't he just PLAY?" Play seems easier when the swingset is available and the driveway is clear for bikes, basketball, and running around. Now that winter has set in, creativity has hit a slump. I love when they come up with their own characters, scenarios, etc. We do our best to play board games, play doh, even active video games, but I still find myself questioning if they're getting worthwhile play. Some days, they play kitchen, dolls, blocks, magnets, with few fights. But most of the time, they want me with them every second. I appreciate the love, but it sure is hard to take care of them (meaning food and clean clothes) if they are hanging on me or following me around.
So what do you do to encourage play? How do your twins get along when playing? Have you found that plays is easier or harder with age?
Sunday, one of my girls decided she wanted to dress herself. I'm not one to argue when any of my children want to actually put clothes ON, so I let her go for it. She came out in her swimsuit bottoms, no top, and just the right amount of sass that let us know we better not question her decision. This gave big brother an idea, which led to our first indoor swim party. Pretty soon, all three kids were in their swim suits dancing on a variety of blankets that were spread out across the living room. They pretended to swim in the blanket pool and giggled in a way that only kids do. I have a personal pet peeve about blankets being on the floor, so I cringed for a moment and looked at my husband. We both shrugged our shoulders, turned up the heat a bit, and enjoyed the show. It was such a great way to fight the winter blues! They were so cute dancing and "swimming." For a few moments, I forgot about the mountain of laundry waiting for me on the other side of the wall. After lunch, the girls decided they were going to be cowgirls. We spent the afternoon shouting YEEEEHAAAWW while galloping around, still in their swimsuits. The next morning, while on our way to school, they reminded me that they continued to be cowgirls. One then decided she was also a pirate. So we went from yeehaw to ARGGGGGG MATEEEEEEEY and back again! Then they announced not only were they COWGIRL PIRATES, but that they also wanted to listen to "cowgirl music" on the radio. While I loathe country music, I decided it was only fair to make two cowgirl pirates seem as real as possible. I loved watching the pink coated, penguin hat wearing, self proclaimed cowgirl pirates as they did their best carseat dancing on the way to school. What a great way to start the day!
It seems there is so much pressure in school these days that kids aren't allowed to just "be kids" and play. We all know how much learning is done through play at the baby and infant stages, but after that, it seems that kids are forced into institutional style learning to stay above the curve, and sometimes, just to keep up! I remember stressing about making sure my single had "learning games" and my mom would ask, "can't he just PLAY?" Play seems easier when the swingset is available and the driveway is clear for bikes, basketball, and running around. Now that winter has set in, creativity has hit a slump. I love when they come up with their own characters, scenarios, etc. We do our best to play board games, play doh, even active video games, but I still find myself questioning if they're getting worthwhile play. Some days, they play kitchen, dolls, blocks, magnets, with few fights. But most of the time, they want me with them every second. I appreciate the love, but it sure is hard to take care of them (meaning food and clean clothes) if they are hanging on me or following me around.
So what do you do to encourage play? How do your twins get along when playing? Have you found that plays is easier or harder with age?
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| A true imagination kit! |
As bad as it sounds, some days I miss when entertainment came in the form of a cardboard box. So easy, so fun! And yes, that IS an orange pom pom!
For more on the importance of play try this...
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