We are having a cold front in Memphis. (And by cold I mean in the 70's.) We have opted to skip the pool the last few days- not because of the weather but because we can get outside and play.



I took BIG and LITTLE to the park today (after unsuccessfully trying to get HOT HUSBAND to play hookie and go to the zoo.) Let me start by saying that I am a big fan of unstructured and undirected playtime. That being said, here is my tale...



When we arrived at the park, there was a mom and her two kids there already playing. We said hello and off my two ran. Naturally to meet and greet LITTLE's two new best friends. (Note- all people his size he immediately calls friends) I will call her mom number 1 since she was at the park first. She seemed really chilled out and let her kids run and play and have fun.



Her friend arrived shortly after- I will call her mom #2. Mom number two didn't let her son do anything. No playing in the grass. No sitting on the ground. No running. No ladder. No picking up rocks.



Then a funny thing happened. Chilled out mom #1 started to tell her crew no running. No big slide. No none of the fun stuff she allowed them to do before mom #2 arrived. Her boys looked confused.



I should have mentioned earlier that everyone was in play clothes- nobody looked like they were going anywhere fancy after the park. None of the kids were doing anything dangerous. It wasn't that mom#2's child was throwing rocks. Or sitting on an ant hill in the grass. Or running so uncontrollably fast that you might give a gentle "calm down" warning. It just seemed like she didn't want her child to play. At least not his way. She wanted him to play HER way.



And what fun is that?

Bub
7/16/2014 12:26:57 pm

Indeed! Ya gotta play like you mean it!!

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