The importance of play at all stages of life

 My husband and I had so much fun creating the video game, Super Mario Brothers, for our trunk or treat at the church.  We didn't even have our kids that weekend but he had a blast making the scene, buying the costumes, and we even downloaded the music from the video game and blasted it in the car while the children came up to get candy!






My mom, my best friend, and myself went to a local art workshop where we could choose a picture and try to reproduce it.  We had a blast!


My entire family (grandparents, mother, cousins, etc.) dressed as pirates and when out on a "pirate ship" for the day.  We had a wonderful time!

I come from a family who will always be young at heart.  From the time I was a small child, my grandfather was always playing with me.  We watched cartoons together, drank chocolate milk, created castles out of cardboard, and searched the garage for anything we could use to play games.  To this day, at 86, he still has that playful spirit and finds the time and energy to do the same with my children.  My mother is an art teacher. I often find myself at her house over the weekend creating new things.  We love to shop at the thrift stores and find things we can make even prettier with arts and crafts.  My husband is still a kid himself.  He is an engineer by day, as well as an engineer of fun by night!  At Christmas time he took several cardboard boxes, connected them down our curvy staircase, and allowed all the kids to slide down.  He even tested it out himself to be sure it's safe (I think he enjoyed it more than the kids!) see below:

Play is important all throughout life.  Not only is it healthy for ourselves to play as adults, it sets a positive example for our children, to let them know not to take life so seriously.  There is definitely a time for play and a time for business, but allowing those roots of play to guide our intentions for business is what makes us a success.  For example, as a preschool director I try to plan events for our children and families that I think are fun and educational.  My husband designs boat lifts and is always trying to invent nifty gadgets that look sleek and do cool things for the lifts, toys if you will.  These are always top sellers!

Below are some quotes I feel are an inspiration.  I especially like the one by Theodore Roosevelt.  If children are fulfilled they will learn there is a time for play and a time for school.  They will intertwine the two as long as their teacher allows, and learning will be fun, reducing behavioral problems.

Children learn as they play. Most importantly, in play children learn how to learn.

O. Fred Donaldson
Contemporary American martial arts master

You can discover more about a person in an hour of play than in a year of conversation.

Plato
Greek philosopher
427–347 BC

I believe that those boys who take part in rough, hard play outside of school will not find any need for horse-play in school.

Theodore Roosevelt
American president
1858–1919

Reference:  http://www.thestrong.org/about-play/play-quotes

Relationship Reflection

"Personal relationships are the fertile soil from which all advancement...all success...all achievement in real life grows."

Ben Stein


Growing up an only child and a product of divorce I struggled with sadness, loneliness, and feelings of guilt. I was fortunate to have many people around me who loved me. Without these relationships I do not think I would have had any hope or confidence to achieve the things I have in my life. My grandparents, Nana and Papa, were extremely involved in my life and still are. They are 81 and 86, and they only live two hours away, so I am blessed to be able to spend time with them to this day.  Nana is an outgoing, strong woman who worked her way through college and became a teacher while her husband drove a truck and was away.  Papa is a quiet man who would do anything to help anyone, laughs a lot, and still has the spirit of a child.  The two of them have a dynamic relationship and have been married 63 years!  They have always cherished me and made me believe I was special and capable of anything.  They stood by my side no matter what, and never showed any disappointment in me even when I made poor choices.  They taught me the meaning of unconditional love and modeled for me all the wonderful characteristics I possess today.

My Mom is an independent woman who struggled trying to provide me with the best of everything while raising me.  She worked and went to college full time and finally became a teacher when she was 38.  She always taught me I could do anything I could put my mind to, and she was right.  I ended up divorced with a baby and knew I wanted to finish school.  I was working full time and raising him and didn't think I could, but I knew she did it, so I knew I could.  

Attending school wasn't easy, and I could have NEVER done it without some very good friends. I was fortunate to find a job as an office assistant in a small church preschool.  It was there I met some of the best friends I have today.  After work many of them offered to watch my son when I had classes late at night.  Not only did they help with him, but they lifted me up and told me how proud they were of me.  They told me that I was their inspiration and I hope this is true.  I have been blessed by so many and my wish is that I can provide even more people with blessings in return.

My passion, my preschool, is a place where I depend on many women to help me provide the best quality spiritual and academic early childhood experience.  They dedicate their lives to working toward this common goal and I have learned and grown so much from them.  Without them, I would not be who I am or where I am.

There are many challenges in maintaining relationships.  It is not always easy.  When it comes to work it can be very difficult because I love all the women who work for me.  We are a family.  Sometimes it is very difficult to discuss performance issues or changes in the workplace without letting our emotions get the best of us.  We work through it and we work together in order to establish positive relationships with our families.  Many who walk through our doors can immediately sense the strong bond we all have and comment on the warmth and peace they feel just being around us.  This leads to them placing their children in our care and many of them become our "Sunlight Families" and remain involved with our school for years to come!

EDUC-6161-3 Effective Programs and Practices

Hello everyone!  I am so excited to be enrolled in this course.  As a program director, my main priority is to develop healthy, long lasting relationships with the families we serve.  I know between the content we study in the course and the input shared by myself and my colleagues, we will be equipped to improve our skills in this area.  Looking forward to getting to know all of you!