Ever hear of a jumping pillow? Neither had we!
When we arrived at our Bay of Fires, Tasmania accommodation, the woman at check-in excitedly told the girls that they have a “jumping pillow” just behind the playground. We had to ask what it was :) It’s a huge trampoline thing above ground. Exactly as it sounds, I guess! Once we saw it, we realized we’d seen a few from afar in Faroe Islands. But it was the first time the girls had ever gone on one. They were in hog heaven!!
School Derailed
When we got back from our Bay of Fires boat tour and hike/lunch excursion, we told the girls they could go play on the jumping pillow for a few minutes while we got all the school stuff together. About 10 minutes later we walked over and saw the girls bouncing gleefully on the jumping pillow. But they weren’t alone. There were a good 8 other kids on it also, and Paige & Sadie were playing with two of the kids, girls about their age.
When they saw us, Paige & Sadie immediately asked (pleaded) if they could have more time to play. We didn’t hesitate; we immediately said YES, you can play more. Why? One thing we hadn’t really considered or realized when we embarked on our travels, was the limited social interaction the girls would get on the road. Sure, they each other (thank goodness!), but playing with your sibling is not nearly the same thing as playing with other kids your age(ish). School is important, don’t get us wrong. But any opportunity the girls have to spread their wings and meet other kids from around the world, is amazing. Any chance they get to stretch out of their comfort zone and play with new people, is amazing. Any chance they have to chat with other kids & learn more about how they live & play in their corner of the world, is amazing. And that’s all stuff that can’t be taught in a book. It’s learned by doing. We are grateful for any opportunity for the girls to connect with kids, socialize and grow from those experiences. So that’s why we said yes to play instead of school :)
Happy Hour
We talk to the girls alot about the importance of being open to talking with new people and making new friends, especially as we travel. We try to lead by example, and always make a point of debriefing with the girls after we’ve enjoyed the experience of meeting a new person & learned something from it.
Just the other night, was the perfect example. We checked into the Big4 on Friday afternoon. We were handed a flyer that said there was a Friday Happy Hour from 5-6; BYO and nibbles provided. Both Doug & I had the same instinct . . . let’s go! Perfect opportunity to chat with other folks and enjoy our time here.
We had gone out to explore the area & do grocery shopping, so we didn’t return to our cabin until almost 5:30pm. When we walked up to the meeting point, the Happy Hour was already in full swing. We walked up to a long table full of about 20 people. Folks turned and smiled, and we said hello as we took open seats at the far end of the table. Amusingly (but maybe not surprisingly), we were the youngest by a wide margin; most folks were 65+ years old. We got to talking to the two couples nearest us. One was an Aussie couple from the mainland; he’s a farmer & she works for the local government council. The other couple was British, from Yorkshire, UK. He was a baker by profession and just sold their family bakery this past October after 30+ years in business. We had loads of questions for the baker, as you might suspect, given our interest in & enjoyment of food! Sadie had a great question, which she voiced herself to him (so proud of Sadie, her confidence continues to grow in spades!), “What’s the most challenging thing you ever baked?”
We ended up having a really enjoyable conversation with both couples and some good, hearty laughs. We couldn’t have come from more different lifestyles, but that didn’t stop us from connecting and genuinely enjoying ourselves.
All this to say that, later that night at dinner back in our cabin, we were debriefing with the girls about the Happy Hour experience, and how nice it was to chat with some new people. I confessed to them that those kinds of gatherings are not initially my favorite - that even that night, as we walked up to the crowd of people already in the groove of chatting, I felt nervous and self conscious. But that within one minute of sitting down, saying hello & starting a conversation, I felt at ease and was already enjoying myself. That split second of unease and discomfort blows over, and is replaced by interest & enjoyment in talking to new people. I wanted the girls to know that it’s OK to feel nervous; that it’s OK to be uncomfortable when people are first looking at you; that if you just give it a chance, it will be OK and you’ll be better for the experience.
Do You Want To Play?
The girls ended up playing with their new friends, Chloe (10) and Mia (7.5) for the next 5 hours, only with a 20-minute break for dinner!! The four of them played so easily together (jumping pillow races & color games, truth or dare, card games, playground sessions, “crack the egg” aka “popcorn” on the jumping pillow, etc.) They immediately clicked and were engaged in conversation and play, with huge smiles & giggles the whole time. Success! So much fun to see enjoying themselves on a “playdate” they made happen all by themselves.
At dinner we asked the girls how they first started playing together with Chloe & Mia (since we weren’t there when it happened). They said that Chloe just came up to them on the jumping pillow and asked “Do you want to play tag?” The rest was history! We told them how cool that was that Chloe took the initiative, and how fun their afternoon was all together, just because she came over and said those five simple words “Do you want to play?”. We nudged them that maybe next time they see someone by themselves or other kids, that they’ll be the ones to take the initiative and ask them if they want to play. That’s all it takes. And it can make a world of difference to the person you’re asking to play, and you have loads to gain as well. They seemed to get it.
We later popped over to introduce ourselves to Chloe & Mia’s parents. Tina & Luke were super friendly. We learned they’re a family from Hobart who just purchased a place on the property as a weekend holiday home. It was actually their first night staying there! We had a great time chatting with them about life in Tasmania and learning adding a few new Aussie slang to our list (stubby holder, have tea) :)
Goodnight, Jumping Pillow
Paige & Sadie popped back over to Chloe & Mia’s house after dinner to see if they could play for a few minutes. I told the girls they could play while I folded our laundry from the dryer. The girls were having so much fun that I just let P&S stay playing with C&M until 8:30pm, which was when C&M needed to be back home. Even as the jumping pillow started to deflate (dusk approaching), the girls’ giggles rang out and they leapt across. Made my heart happy to see them playing with new friends, being kids and enjoying themselves. So, yep, I’m OK that we skipped school today :) They gained socialization and new connections, and had a blast all the while. Totally worth it :)
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