The One Activity Improv Challenge
I've been in a rut. I like to think of myself as "mama-who-embraces-messy-play" and philosophically, oh yes, I do! And....the reality of messy play is sometimes not something I want to deal with (i.e. clean up after). I've noticed that over the past month or so, I haven't been as open-to, generative or creative about finding the fun mess.
LP is oriented to tactile experiences. She's the kid painting her arms and legs and sometimes hair who can engage with clay for an hour and who is so happy when there is glue involved because she delights in that texture. She's the kid taking a mud bath and rolling in the sand. It makes us a good match...I love the idea of messy play and she's all over the reality of it.
SO here's the improv challenge for me...how can I say a bigger YES to messy play?
Over this week, I'm going to look for opportunities...maybe it will be about incorporating new materials or about finding a way to go for it even more in the getting messy. Maybe it will be about me getting more into the materials simultaneously (I have to confess I often use messy play time as a little "me-time" because LP gets so engrossed in it). I'll be finding out and after I've cleaned up, I'll post about what I learned.
AND here's the improv challenge for you: take an activity you enjoy doing with your little person and see if you can say YES to it in a new way. The activity can be art, playing ball, gardening, reading, racing toy cars...anything at all. Experiment with different ways to offer more engagement with something you both like to do.
This morning I got the ball rolling with an art project...it started with glue and paint and evolved with more paint, cornstarch and some bits of nature from the back yard:
LP is oriented to tactile experiences. She's the kid painting her arms and legs and sometimes hair who can engage with clay for an hour and who is so happy when there is glue involved because she delights in that texture. She's the kid taking a mud bath and rolling in the sand. It makes us a good match...I love the idea of messy play and she's all over the reality of it.
SO here's the improv challenge for me...how can I say a bigger YES to messy play?
Over this week, I'm going to look for opportunities...maybe it will be about incorporating new materials or about finding a way to go for it even more in the getting messy. Maybe it will be about me getting more into the materials simultaneously (I have to confess I often use messy play time as a little "me-time" because LP gets so engrossed in it). I'll be finding out and after I've cleaned up, I'll post about what I learned.
AND here's the improv challenge for you: take an activity you enjoy doing with your little person and see if you can say YES to it in a new way. The activity can be art, playing ball, gardening, reading, racing toy cars...anything at all. Experiment with different ways to offer more engagement with something you both like to do.
This morning I got the ball rolling with an art project...it started with glue and paint and evolved with more paint, cornstarch and some bits of nature from the back yard:
Labels: activity, improv parenting, saying yes
posted by Susan at
1:37 PM
2 Comments:
Hey, Susan -
I love the idea of always seeking Bigger Yes-es - even to the stuff we already theoretically "yes".
You reminded me of a "messy" adventure I had a while ago. I agreed to paint the pristine white Pottery Barn dresser that Grandma bought with Lia, who was 4 or so at the time. But my heart was in my throat the whole time. I thought she'd ask for a color or design and we'd do it, but she wanted to take all 100 acrylic colors and go. I almost stopped her, or tried to control the process about six times, but the little improviser voice in me held me back.
Then we finished and she said, "Mommy, you made my dream come true." Very nice validation.
Thanks for the memory, S.
That is a mighty leap to take, Kat! What a beautiful thing that you gave her space to create...I hope I remember that for future projects...especially ones that are more permanent. ~ s
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