Lessons From Home

I’m learning many things during the shutdown/quarantine, but one of the biggest pulls I didn’t expect was the ache due to missing our time at the playhouse. We’ve been going to GiGis Playhouse Deerfield since Conner was like, 2 weeks old. Fast forward a year and we haven’t seen our family in 2 months. That amount of time has felt a lot longer and I didn’t realize just how much I used the playhouse for support and what everyone there means to me. That is, until we “met” up with the live stream of LMNOP and it immediately felt like okay, now we’re back in gear. When Jill starts singing the hello song, its like Conner’s memory is struck and he is so excited. It is familiar to him which I am so grateful. As young as he is, with our previous schedule of weekly therapy and going to GiGis, I truly believe he had an adjustment period when this started. I know that sounds silly for a 1 year old but he has been accustomed to seeing these people, hearing the music & having the routine of LMNOP & GiGiFIT-infant every week. Then the wonderful Shannon brought us moms together from our play group via zoom chat and it was so uplifting to get a check up on the kiddos and verbally say hello and check up on the other moms; not just Facebook likes & comments. Conner was able to hear familiar voices and “see” his friends. The kids got restless, they were crabby, some slept and some had to “run off” for therapy. when the call was done I looked at the clock and realized we had been talking for close to 2 hours or more. The time flew as we reconnected. As the saying goes, time flies when you’re having fun and that’s what the playhouse is. Everyone genuinely cares about each other, we have a great time together and we cannot wait to gather again! Except we’ll have to carve out an entire day because there are so many more awesome kiddos and families than just the few in our LMNOP group!

~ Alyse, Conner’s Awesome Mom

 

If you want to help us continue to provide free programs like LMNOP you can donate to Conner’s Crusaders Step to Accept team here: https://support.gigisplayhouse.org/steptoaccept/team/conners-homies-have-less-chromies

#gigisathome

#steptoaccept

#connerscrusaders

Recent Posts

Cassie-teaching-cooking-2

My Journey to GiGi’s Playhouse

Serving others has always been a passion of mine. I think that’s how I ended up in the field of Early Childhood Special Education, and...
Deerfield-Blog-Post-Pic

What Has 2023 Meant to Us?

The GiGi’s vision has always been to see a world where individuals with Down syndrome are accepted and embraced in their families, schools, and community....

NEW Partnership with EDP and GiGi’s Wrapped Truck

With October recognized as Down Syndrome Awareness Month, Chicago-based EDP – one of the largest propane marketers in the U.S. – has partnered with GiGi's...

Leave a Comment