Remember when we were little and all we wanted to do was be grown up?  Gawd if we only knew how good we had it! No work, no bills to pay, things to fix, errands to run, chores to finish.  Mum and Dad made our dinners, took care of us and tucked us in with a bedtime story. The biggest worry of the day was whether to play hide-n-go-seek, tag or hopscotch outside, or engage in a serious scenario of Barbie goes out with Ken or make a new cake in my Easy Bake oven.  I want to go back to a time when my allowance felt like a heck of a lot of money; when getting dirty didn’t soil your reputation. A time when wearing mismatched clothes and pig-tails made you cute, not a freak and Brownies were the coolest pack of girls to belong to, not something that adds fat to your hips.

Now that I am “all grown up”, all I want to do is be little again; be free of commitments, obligations and endless lists of to do…should do.  So I decided instead of growing up – I’d grow down and make “play” part of my philosophy and day.  Taking time to play, to be silly, frivolous and let our imaginations day dream is medicine for our spirit!  It embraces not caring how you look, what you say or come across. It celebrates being spontaneous, goofy and allowing yourself to be carried away into whimsy and weirdo-ville!  It gives the grown up a break, let’s our mind’s be creative, be occupied with amusement and romp in abandon.

So let your inner child out! Let magic, miracles and dreams be within reach – not squashed by logic, responsibility or fear; and play like you’ve never played before!

Here are a few tips on “How to engage your inner child” from “How to Live Like a Chipmunk and Other Tips for Living an Awesome Sauce Life”.

1. Wrap a towel around your head and pretend it’s your hair.
2. Reunite with your invisible best friend!  I love you Bobo!!
3. Believe in the unbelievable!
4. Jump in puddles, make macaroni art eat peanut butter and hotdog sandwiches.
5. Let your imagination go wild! Go on a safari with your pet flying monkey. Visit Mars in your spaceship, Swim in a sky of stars as a mermaid and always talk to the faeries in the chandelier!