In Episode 011 of Playfully Faith Parenting, I seek to help you make more time for play with one quick tip.
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Show Notes
Episode Summary:
In this episode, I share about a little mental shift we can make to help us make more time for play. I introduce the ideas of:
micro-play
meso-play
macro-play
mega-play
Play is important, but it doesn’t need to meet certain expectations. It can be quick and easy while still making a positive impact.
Verses from the episode:
Deuteronomy 6:4-9
Links from the episode:
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Transcript
Here is a rough transcript of Playfully Faithful Parenting Episode 009: Help! I don’t know how to play with my kids. This isn’t meant to be pretty and perfect but is here as a resource for those who want it.
Hey Mamas, welcome back to playfully faithful parenting.
I’m your host joy and I’m really excited for you to be here today with me.
I am going to share this idea I had over the summer of a new way, maybe new.
I’ve never heard this before, so we’re going to claim it as.
New a new way.
To think about play and to have ways to fit it in to your life.
So this summer I attended an online summit called Free to play and it’s a secular summit, mostly of early childhood education experts.
In this summit, there was someone there who was talking about mindfulness for kids.
And she talked about this idea of micro moments of mindfulness, and I wish I could remember which speaker it was, because I would love to give her credit, but I can’t find my notes and I can’t remember what her name was.
So I’m so sorry.
And if any of you listening.
Happen to be with the free to play Summit online and know what I’m talking about.
Please email me and let me know her name so I can give her credit in the show notes.
However, she.
We talked about these micro moments of mindfulness and so I had this idea.
What if we thought about play instead of just this?
Like Oh my gosh, my kids need to play I.
Need to carve.
Out this 30 minute to two hour opportunity of time.
For us to play.
Now what if we thought about play in micro moments?
What if we had microplay meso?
Play and mega play right or Macro play I guess would be the technical word, but mega play sounds more fun, so we’re going to talk about what are some ways that we could incorporate micro play, meso play, macro play, and then maybe even Mega play, which would be like super big time.
Great into our lives, not only for our kids but for ourselves as Mamas as well.
OK, so we’re busy.
Late we have things to do, have kids to drop off other kids to pick up maps to make sure happen meals to make and clean up, and diapers to change in all this stuff.
How do you fit in play right?
We we.
We adjust our expectations of play and so here are my move.
Four types of play.
Micro play something that takes less.
Than five min.
It’s it might be one song dance party and this could be with your kids.
It could be with yourself, right?
I have found that I if I turn on an old song that just makes me happy that it can really change my mood and so, uh, one song.
Dance party.
Is an example of microplay or.
For me also just a warm cup of tea, especially now as the seasons are changing and it’s getting stormy and windy here in the Pacific Northwest with rain and I’m loving it.
And if I can just take a few moments to sit down and drink.
A good cup of tea or maybe a Chai tea latte then?
That is a moment of microplay for me with your kids.
It might be.
A quick session of red light green light or hide and go seek or some silly game or a dance party with them.
Sending something from one of their favorite movies or a worship song.
They like anything that’s under 5 minutes is microplay it could be.
Like 30 seconds, it’s micro play as long as it brings some refreshment to your soul, that’s what we’re looking for.
With micro play.
Then we have meso play.
That’s that middle area.
So I think missile play is going to be somewhere some kind of activity in the five minutes to.
Up to two hours and this doesn’t necessarily mean you sitting there for two hours with your kids.
This could be for them, or it could be for you, or it could be an activity done together.
Muscle play could be going to the park.
It could be taking a walk.
It could be doing Play-doh.
It could be baking something.
It could be gardening, going and jumping on the trampoline dolls, a longer dance party watching a movie.
Those are all mezzo play, so they’re right in the middle.
They’re kind of probably what we typically think.
When we think we have to play with our kids, something in the five minute to two hour range, then we have macro play, right?
So macro play I’m saying is in the two to six hour.
Range, so like a day trip.
Maybe you go to the zoo.
Maybe you go to the beach or you get really creative and you set up, you know a Fort in the living room and you have a camp out overnight with indoor s’mores and all.
Of that kind.
Of stuff that is macro play macro play is going to take.
A little bit of prep and planning, and it doesn’t usually just happen.
It’s macro play.
Here we have mega play mega Play OK, Mega play is like a vacation.
Or that’s maybe a weekend long.
Or maybe a full week, couple weeks, whatever.
That’s big.
That’s like the big adventures that just totally refresh your whole family.
But maybe sometimes you’re more tired from.
The play then you were going into it in the beginning, but it’s so worth it because you’ve created a ton of memories and you.
You know met.
People or saw animals or did something new or stepped out of your comfort zone, but it could also be a really big staycation.
So staycation’s are happening a lot right now. Whether it’s for budget reasons or COVID reasons or whatever mega play is.
It’s great and I encourage you and your family to try to do mega play when you can.
Once a year or twice a year, but I think we get stuck saying I don’t have enough time to play because we think that our kids want.
Macropore and Mega play all the time.
Time and that’s
What they need to make their childhood perfect and have all these wonderful memories is they need this big play.
All the time.
And I think really incorporating small moments of microplay throughout our day is going to be really refreshing.
For our hearts, our souls.
Are going to give us opportunities to delight in God and to glorify him and the blessings that he has given us and are really just going to have a bigger impact on our kids and also using that microplay to point our kids.
To God is going to be much.
Bigger, make a much bigger impact on our kids than macro play or mega play, right?
So your kids are going to be more shaped by the small moments of play that you incorporate into your life than by the big vacations that you take.
Come on and I love our family.
Loves to go on like little day adventures even just a couple of hours.
Something macro play we we do a couple times a month and we call them adventures and we we go to Seattle Zoo we.
Go to the beach or.
Parks and those kinds of.
Of things that are farther away and and it’s great, and we love it and we all enjoy it and we enjoy the time together in the car and doing different things.
But I think the small moments of tickle fights and being silly together those micro moments.
Are the ones that I think are going to have a bigger impact on their lives so Mom’s? What do you think? Have you heard this idea before?
Or is it something that helps you to feel like you can better incorporate play into your life?
Can you, as a mom, incorporate some micro play into your own life everyday, like less than five minutes?
Just be intentional over your coffee or tea flipping through.
A magazine, few minutes of reading a book.
Take a short drive, put on some music.
Here’s my slightly embarrassing truth for right now I have been.
Listening to something that I to travel strips.
It’s a great day to be alive, but you when you sing that.
When I was a young life leader when I was at college and so I’ve been listening to it this past week and.
It’s really helped to pump.
Me up and to like live in these spirits and my girls and I or singing it together.
I hadn’t thought about that song in years and it was just like I need something fun and I thought of this song and so I’ve been listening to it every day just for a little.
Bit of microplay.
So kind of embarrassing.
Maybe I don’t know.
I’m not normally a country music listener, but they haven’t.
I’ve been listening to country music every day this week, so uhm, yeah Michael.
Play can be anything.
It can be 20 year old.
Country music can be a cup of tea.
It can be even squishing your kids.
Play DoH in your own hands and making something as you’re helping to clean it up.
Really, anything that helps you to become intentional with incorporating just a smidge of play in your life, because moment you need it.
We all need it.
And science shows us that it’s so good for our brains and our emotions and everything.
I think God created that need in you and so please please find some time just a few moments for some microplay today and every day.
And on behalf of God.
Thanks for loving and playing with his kid.
Talk to you soon.
