My Connections to Play

Quotes that represent play to me:

Play gives children a chance to practice what they are learning~Fred Rogers

It is in playing, and only in playing, that the individual child or adult is able to be creative and to use the whole personality, and it is only in being creative that the individual discovers the self. ~D.W Winnicott

Play energizes us and enlivens us. It eases our burdens. It renews our natural sense of optimism and opens us up to new possibilities.~Stuart Brown. MD

My friends and I loved to play double dutch as a children.

My favorite color has always been red. When I was younger I remember my mom buying me a red 10 speed bike and I loved it. I named the bike Samantha.

My favorite doll was my cabbage patch kid. My mom bought me a cabbage patch that was a cheerleader which is a sport I participated in as a child.

Play was an activity I participated in on a regular basis. Although my siblings and I had “Nintendo”(video games) we could play with my mom made sure we went outside and didn’t sit in the house. My mom supported us playing by purchasing us outdoor toys and games. One of my friends next door would support us in “play” by playing jump rope with us sometimes, chasing us when we played “hide and go seek” and during the summer would take us swimming and to parks.

Paternal Absence-Stress on Child Development

As a child, I grew up in a single parent household. Up until the age of 8 I would see my father one weekend out of the month. The visits became fewer and fewer as I grew older. I remember maybe seeing him once every few months and then there came a time where I only heard from him on holidays and my birthday. In my teenage years I remember not hearing from my dad on a few birthdays. As I grew older and became more aware of his absence I became more aware of the stress and difficulties my mom faced providing for my younger brother and I. I began to participate less in activities in school, at 16 I got a job so I could help and contribute to the house.I was able to cope without my father being in the home by developing a close relationship with my uncle(Uncle Shorty mentioned earlier in the blog). My cognitive and psychosocial development was affected my this stressor. My self-esteem(feeling unloved) was poor and I’ve always struggled with trust. For a long time I was passive and did not express my feelings (in general). This story does have a happy ending,at the age of 18, my dad re-entered my life and I am glad to say that I was able to forgive and have a good relationship with him today.

Birth Experience

This is a photo of me and my god-daughter Kayla. I chose her birth as my birthing experience because she was the first baby I witnessed enter the world. I was 21 at the time of her birth. Her mom was in labor for 16 hours. I was with her the entire time. I remember it not seeming like it took 16 hours(however I was not the one in labor).I remember the nurse being so nice. She was so willing and patient to help my friend through her first birthing experience.I watched my friend go from smiling, to frowning, to crying throughout her labor. This experience made me excited about one day having this experience. This experience reminds me of how nurturing relationships can impact a child’s development.

Just me

Alycia Sutton…The creator of this blog