Play

I believe that children should have lots of free play time. Not time that we parents orchestrate, but play that the kids make up. I love to see creativity.

Last night as I walked through the house I could see evidence of play throughout the house.  Yes, my kids are great at play but not so great at picking up. 

With 4 kids with ADHD there is also a lot of flitting from one activity to another.  They were tired of their memory cards so decided to make their own cards.

I find scraps of paper everywhere. 

And random toys everywhere.

Play is very important for a child's development.  Many times we receive foster children who do not know how to play. When Anthony came he had no clue how to play.  There were a lot of guns in his home and all he knew was how to play guns. You could give him cars and he would hold them like a gun.  Give him blocks and he would put two together to make a gun.  It took a long time for him to learn how to play but he did learn.

When Emma and Michelle came they did do some playing but a lot of it was inappropriate and they didn't have much imagination.  They have come a long way and learned a lot from Anthony and Larissa. 

From play comes imagination.  From imagination comes dreaming. I can't imagine not knowing how to imagine, how to dream.  So, I put up with the messes and look at all the evidence that the kids are playing.  So if you come for a visit, please ignore the piles of papers, toys and general clutter.