Guest Blogger: Renee on The Art of Play

Note: Our friendship began when Renee was a committed college student also working full time at the Peace Corps Denver Office. Her sparkle lit up every world-saving soul who entered. That was when Ned was my boyfriend and Y2K was a massive concern for all. A decade+ later, Renee is mom to sweet Colt, a one year old with eyes that sparkle like his mama’s. We’re thrilled to have Renee on the Sweetlife team on the Corporate Adventure side. And we’re thrilled to have her guest blog post about a recent outing with her #1 little man.

I’m new to this whole ‘mom’ thing. The first 12 months flew by in a blur and up until now the most exciting activity my son wanted from me was to pick him up.  Then, it feels like overnight, he turned into a little boy. Now he wants me to play with him. I’m honestly not sure how to do that.

You see, I’ve spent the last ten years building a career and in that realm its qualities like confidence, time management, organization and grace under pressure that matter.  Now, it’s my ability to get goofy on a level that a 12 month old can relate to that’s most important.

I’ve been honing my elephant noises, practicing facial contortions and trying to figure out why my son does not want any of the animals to actually go in the fisher price barn. It’s a point of contention with us, I want each animal tucked properly in its pen/gate/hayloft and he wants them floating in the dog bowl/stuck under the couch/ in his mouth. It was clear that we needed to get out of the house before the barn became a deal breaker.

With serendipitous timing, we were invited to attend the 1 year anniversary of Big Time Fun Trampoline center in Arvada. When the invitation arrived I was thrilled – I mean the place has FUN in the name – this is a no brainer.  And yes, it’s ambitious to put a one year old on a trampoline but hey, I am nothing if not ambitious.

I’m not gonna lie, when we pulled up and watched the other moms walking in with their much older children, I had a moment of trepidation. Then I realized that I had a one year old who had just woken from a solid nap and if I didn’t get him out of the car seat and burning off energy, he was going to make me pay.

We barreled into that fun center like it was a Nordstrom Rack with a fresh shipment of Hudsons and free coffee. We conquered the tunnel, two slides, a foam pit, a bouncy castle and of course – TRAMPOLINES! My son lit up at the sight of his momma bouncing from her knees to her back and over again.He thought I was magic.

After two hours (an eternity in the world of 1 year olds) of solid playtime we were both flush with new experience and smiling.  The more fun I had, the goofier I was (ahem, climbing through a child sized tunnel with a stuffed lion on my back) the happier my son was.  I learned a valuable lesson – the art of play requires practice, adventure and someone to appreciate it with you… trampolines don’t hurt either :).