My husband has recently gotten on the minimalism bandwagon, and because I try to be a supportive spouse, I am learning with him. I am not a fan of the whole thing because it is forcing me to get rid of things that I have accumulated, but what I will say is that it has made me a better SLP mom. Why?? Here are some things I have learned during this process.
We got rid of the TV downstairs (it is hidden upstairs, so not completely gone yet)! Agh…I know, it is my sanity saving grace some evenings and mornings with my two boys. However, it has forced us as a family to do more things together. As an SLP, I know I am supposed to promote reading, pretend play, etc., however, sometimes after a long day, I am exhausted and tired and just want to veg. Without the TV, my crutch is gone. My boys and I are reading more, pretending more, and getting more inventive with our time.
We have also gotten rid of a lot of their toys. Thanks to our wonderful family, our boys have more than enough of their fair share of toys. We have gotten down to a happy medium with the number of toys they have, and what we are noticing is that their play is more intentional. They are not so overwhelmed by “what should I play with” but now go to their favorites with less intervention from us. Their imagination is also flourishing. It’s a tried and true experience for some, but I think we have forgotten as a society how cool an empty box can be.
So, for now I will go along with the minimalism, but I am not sure how I can handle it if the conversations turn to my shoes:) I don’t think I can justify a language increase with less shoes:)
As always, your dedicated SLP,
Dayna Sanders, MA, CCC-SLP
