WEBVTT - Adults can enjoy parallel play too

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<v Speaker 1>Welcome to Before Breakfast, a production of iHeartRadio. Good Morning,

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<v Speaker 1>This is Laura, Welcome to the Before Breakfast podcast. Today's

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<v Speaker 1>tip is that if you are looking to spend more

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<v Speaker 1>time with a friend, consider getting together while you each

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<v Speaker 1>do your own thing. This will create more time together

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<v Speaker 1>without sacrificing the opportunity to do whatever activities you each

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<v Speaker 1>want or need to do. So. If you have observed

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<v Speaker 1>Toddler's playing, you will notice that playing together often means

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<v Speaker 1>playing while near each other, but not actually playing with

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<v Speaker 1>each other. Annie is building a tower of blocks while

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<v Speaker 1>Kelsey is in her play kitchen. Jake is playing with

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<v Speaker 1>a firetruck while Allison is also playing with a firetruck,

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<v Speaker 1>but there is almost no chance they will collaborate on

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<v Speaker 1>putting out the same fire. As kids grow and develop,

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<v Speaker 1>they discover the pleasures of truly playing with a friend,

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<v Speaker 1>but until then, proximity creates its own form of connection.

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<v Speaker 1>Being together while doing your own thing can be a

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<v Speaker 1>way for adults to strengthen their sense of connection as well.

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<v Speaker 1>Adults can enjoy parallel play too. In a recent New

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<v Speaker 1>York Times article, friendship coach Danielle Bayard Jackson and Davidson

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<v Speaker 1>College psychology professor Katherine Bagwell describe how parallel play can

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<v Speaker 1>work for adults. While kids don't necessarily interact much during

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<v Speaker 1>parallel play, adults often chat a bit while they are

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<v Speaker 1>engaged in their own activities. They suggest that one friend

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<v Speaker 1>might knit while the other cooks, or one friend might

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<v Speaker 1>garden while the other sketches the plants she sees in

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<v Speaker 1>the garden. Now, obviously certain sorts of parallel play aren't

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<v Speaker 1>going to work. You can't really go for a run

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<v Speaker 1>while your friend paints at home and expect to enjoy connection.

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<v Speaker 1>It might not even work to both read your separate

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<v Speaker 1>books together. I mean, that could be fun, but you

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<v Speaker 1>might wind up chatting and distracting each other. But other

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<v Speaker 1>activities don't require such full focus. You and a friend

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<v Speaker 1>could meet up at a coffee shop and both work

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<v Speaker 1>on your twenty twenty four photo books together, or do

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<v Speaker 1>separate crossword puzzles. Or you could meet up at your

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<v Speaker 1>house and you do a puzzle while she colors in

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<v Speaker 1>a coloring book. As adults, we have limited free time,

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<v Speaker 1>and so it makes sense that we'd want to spend

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<v Speaker 1>our free time doing things that we actually like. And

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<v Speaker 1>it's great if you have friends who really like the

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<v Speaker 1>same things that you do. I have friends I run with,

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<v Speaker 1>or walk with, or even podcast with, and that is awesome.

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<v Speaker 1>But we might also want to spend more time on

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<v Speaker 1>our personal pursuits and spend more time with friends. The

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<v Speaker 1>good news is that these desires can sometimes overlap. Parallel

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<v Speaker 1>play means space for our own fun with the pleasure

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<v Speaker 1>of good company, which can be the best of both worlds.

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<v Speaker 1>If you try parallel play, I'd love to hear how

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<v Speaker 1>it goes. You can reach me at Laura at Laura

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<v Speaker 1>vandercam dot com. In the meantime, this is Laura. Thanks

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<v Speaker 1>for listening, and here's to making the most of our time.

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<v Speaker 1>Thanks for listening to Before Breakfast. If you've got questions, ideas,

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<v Speaker 1>or feedback, you can reach me at long Laura at

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<v Speaker 1>Laura vandercam dot com. Before Breakfast is a production of iHeartMedia.

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<v Speaker 1>For more podcasts from iHeartMedia, please visit the iHeartRadio app,

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