It's easy to forget that playing with ourselves is a lot of fun.
As we get older, we look for external sources of play and entertainment.
We're social creatures, so we seek out other people to spend our playtime with. Sometimes the other person is not actually there with us, but instead in our favorite forms of media.
Just like you grab that bottle of shampoo when you forget to bring your phone to the bathroom, you can come up with many ideas to entertain yourself.
Play is important for everyone!
Play is critical for child development. Most kid toys and games are designed to help a child's development, even if the parent doesn't know that's what's happening.
Blocks help with dexterity. Dolls & action figures help with storytelling and cognition.
Play is just as important for adults. Playing can help with things like:
Reducing stress & anxiety
Sparking creativity
Recharging your energy
Strengthening relationships
Being able to play with yourself means that you can do this ANYTIME. It also has the benefit of strengthening the relationship you have with the most important person...YOU!
Ok. Enough toying around. I know you are ready to get started.
Here are ways for you to really enjoy playing with yourself, even in public:
Solo dance party
Who needs a club or a dance partner? Not you! Throw on that song that gets your body movin' and groovin' and GET. TO. IT! I highly recommend you create a playlist for this.
Fancy pants dinner for 1
Go have an awesome meal by yourself.
Pick that favorite spot of yours or that one you've been wanting to try and proudly say "Table for 1".
I love going to places where I can watch the cook or bartender create their goodies.
Fancy doesn't have to mean expensive or fine dining. This girl loves a solo meal at the Waffle House. (Breakfast all day for the win!)
Scavenger hunt Head to any place of your choosing. Create a list of items (use ChatGPT if you need help).
See how many items you can find in a set amount of time.
Think about various levels of difficulty. For example, if walking outside, leaves may be easy to find, something pink may be medium, something Gwenyth Paltrow would sell on Goop may be hard to find (or easy. I don't really know. What's really up with Goop?)
Basket o'crafts
My mom's a genius y'all.
She was off in the summers and had 3 kids in the house during the day. Every day, she'd pull out the big basket of random crafting supplies, put it on the table, and tell us girls to get craftin'.
We'd sit there for at least a couple hours making random things while she got to be kid-free. GENIUS!
Get some random crafts, throw them in a basket, and then pull it out whenever you want to get crafty. Color a picture. Make macaroni jewelry. Draw on your body.
Oh, definitely put googly eyes in the basket. Googly eyes are hilarious on almost anything. Trust me.
The one you are thinking, but thought I wouldn't actually say
You've been thinking it since you read that title so why not just call it out? Heck, rent a hotel room and order room service if you want to get fancy. ;)
I'll be honest. I hesitated to add this one, but we're all adults and I bet this made you giggle. Worth it!
Also, my mom reads these and I can already hear her high-pitched laugh before she rolls her eyes and blames my dad for my sense of humor. Hi mom! Love you!