{"id":6525,"date":"2023-01-18T09:53:16","date_gmt":"2023-01-18T14:53:16","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.mlparentcoach.com\/?p=6525"},"modified":"2023-01-18T09:53:16","modified_gmt":"2023-01-18T14:53:16","slug":"i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/","title":{"rendered":"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more?"},"content":{"rendered":"
\n
 <\/p>\n

Q: <\/b><\/i>I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?<\/i><\/p>\n

A: <\/b>Whoa, whoa, whoa. \u201cTreasure it?\u201d Hold the phone. You are supposed to \u201ctreasure\u201d every moment of block-stacking, car-pushing and swing-pushing? I remember once thinking I was going to die of boredom while I took the clothes off and put them on the Calico Critters.<\/p>\n

First, we are going to stop \u201cshould-ing\u201d ourselves, immediately. A simple tip: When you use \u201cshould\u201d (\u201cI should treasure\/enjoy\u201d), know that you are on a path to guilt and misery. Swap out something else that feels more truthful: \u201cI aspire to,\u201d \u201cI would like to,\u201d \u201cI choose to.\u201d If it feels clumsy in your mouth, is it because you aren\u2019t used to it? Or is it because it isn\u2019t true? Maybe you don\u2019t need to treasure or enjoy parenting any more than you already are, or maybe you realize you\u2019ve been sad for far too long and need some support.<\/p>\n

As for your question, \u201cHow can I enjoy it more?\u201d Let\u2019s break it down as simply and clearly as possible.<\/p>\n

As much as I eye-roll when I read it, I know this advice is true: Get outside whenever physically possible. Sunlight, fresh air, exercise and nature provide most 2-year-olds with almost everything they need to be happy. Throw in some simple playground equipment and some other children, and you have the perfect environment for a 2-year-old. Playing outside works their gross and fine motor skills, perks up their imagination by allowing them to create their own toys out of sticks and more, makes them tired (meaning great naps) and leads to good eating thanks to their burned energy. Win, win, win. Find some […]<\/p>\n

View the full article on The Washington Post<\/a><\/p>\n

Looking for more parenting support? Click Here<\/a>.<\/p>\n

Sign up for my Newsletter here<\/a> to get this in your inbox every week!<\/p>\n

 <\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

  Q: I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more? A: Whoa, whoa, whoa. \u201cTreasure it?\u201d Hold the phone. You are supposed to \u201ctreasure\u201d every moment of block-stacking, car-pushing and swing-pushing? I remember once thinking I was going to die of boredom while I took the clothes […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":5,"featured_media":6527,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_monsterinsights_skip_tracking":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_active":false,"_monsterinsights_sitenote_note":"","_monsterinsights_sitenote_category":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[27,301],"tags":[671,531,612,270,667,584,762,585,1701,13,8,592,591,748,865,1700,918,566,10,593],"class_list":["post-6525","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-parenting","category-washington-post","tag-2-year-old","tag-3-year-olds","tag-4-year-old","tag-children","tag-how-to-play","tag-meghan-leahy","tag-meghan-leahy-advice","tag-on-parenting","tag-outdoor-play","tag-parent-coach","tag-parenting","tag-parenting-advice","tag-parenting-tips","tag-parenting-toddlers","tag-play-and-children","tag-pretend","tag-raising-a-toddler","tag-toddler","tag-washington-post","tag-washington-post-parenting"],"yoast_head":"\nI don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Meghan Leahy Parent Coach\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/0000aRR-YXDo.jpeg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"900\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"874\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Meghan Leahy\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Meghan Leahy\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"2 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\/\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/\",\"name\":\"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#website\"},\"datePublished\":\"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00\",\"dateModified\":\"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/74ff7f6e6196b92bb9881fbaff25225d\"},\"description\":\"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more?\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/\",\"name\":\"Meghan Leahy Parent Coach\",\"description\":\"Helping parents. Plain and simple.\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":\"required name=search_term_string\"}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/74ff7f6e6196b92bb9881fbaff25225d\",\"name\":\"Meghan Leahy\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/\",\"url\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4109b08a6ecac6d5c68c5d4a8c8372dc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4109b08a6ecac6d5c68c5d4a8c8372dc?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Meghan Leahy\"}}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more","description":"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more","og_description":"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?","og_url":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/","og_site_name":"Meghan Leahy Parent Coach","article_published_time":"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00","og_image":[{"width":900,"height":874,"url":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/01\/0000aRR-YXDo.jpeg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Meghan Leahy","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Meghan Leahy","Est. reading time":"2 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/","url":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/","name":"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#website"},"datePublished":"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00","dateModified":"2023-01-18T14:53:16+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/74ff7f6e6196b92bb9881fbaff25225d"},"description":"I know I should treasure it, but I get bored playing pretend with my 2-year-old only child. How can I enjoy it more?","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/"]}]},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/parenting\/i-dont-love-to-play-pretend-with-my-toddler-how-can-i-enjoy-it-more\/#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"I don\u2019t love to play pretend with my toddler. How can I enjoy it more?"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#website","url":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/","name":"Meghan Leahy Parent Coach","description":"Helping parents. Plain and simple.","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":"required name=search_term_string"}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/74ff7f6e6196b92bb9881fbaff25225d","name":"Meghan Leahy","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/#\/schema\/person\/image\/","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4109b08a6ecac6d5c68c5d4a8c8372dc?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/4109b08a6ecac6d5c68c5d4a8c8372dc?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Meghan Leahy"}}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6525"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/5"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=6525"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6525\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":6528,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/6525\/revisions\/6528"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/6527"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=6525"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=6525"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mlparentcoach.com\/new\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=6525"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}