How do you enjoy pacing your days or weeks? Are you one to enjoy the unpredictability of life and you live for that?? Or are you one that likes to have your days and lives planned to the T? I wouldn’t say that I am either one of those. Although, I do LOVE CHANGE! I live for changes in my life. Since graduating college I have had a drastic change in my life every three years. Jobs, ministry, countries I lived, homes I have had, states I have lived in, having children, etc. etc. I guess that is why God has called me into full-time ministry and particularly cross-cultural missions ministry. Only a missionary or military family really understands what it is like to uproot your life, family, friends, community, hardest of all cultures, every few years. It isn’t easy, but you learn to adapt to it and even love it. I think our little Megan and Emma are learning to adapt little by little to the weekly unpredictability we put them through as we raise support. The two sure things they always have is, we do almost everything as a family with BOTH Mama and Papi, and that they have their constant eating, sleeping, and play time at the same times each day no matter where we might be or who we might be with (thanks to my parents for so much help in that area). In the next three months we will be in Texas and Oklahoma (21 days), Buffalo (4 days) Miami (7 days), and in Missouri (16 days). Those are just the traveling in the air, that doesn’t even include the driving and weekly day trips. I think we will be out of our home more days then in our home over the course of two months. So, how do I have intentional play or planned play in the midst of so much travel? Preparation, prayer, and more preparation. The thing about this intentional play is that it isn’t so much about Emma learning, I am not worried about her academics, what is so important to me is to have that one-on-one time with Emma. Megan, Papi, and ministry of raising support takes me away from my Emma so much. Having planned activities and play time has been an outlet for Emma and I to have that time together. It is Emma’s time with me. She is 2, she might not remember that I spent so much time making materials, creating activities, but I do hope she will always remember that Mami still made time for me; purposeful time, intentional planned time. That is what I want both my girls to remember throughout their childhood and simply put, all of life!
So, I made a lot of materials this month for our upcoming trip to Texas and Oklahoma. I based all my activities off of Jan Brett’s books The Mitten and The Hat and of course all her Gingerbread books along with the classic Gingerbread Man and Girl. I am a children book hoarder and just love particular authors. She is one of them! I hope you can use some of these resources. I made a bunch for this unit! I might have missed some, but here is what I found in the remaining minutes I had to blog. Merry Christmas!!!!
Mama's Bilingual Play-School 