{"id":2413,"date":"2019-09-14T00:49:56","date_gmt":"2019-09-13T21:49:56","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/?p=2413"},"modified":"2019-10-02T01:11:00","modified_gmt":"2019-10-01T22:11:00","slug":"kidcadia-sanctuary-for-parent-and-child","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/kidcadia-sanctuary-for-parent-and-child\/","title":{"rendered":"Kidcadia: Sanctuary for Parent and Child"},"content":{"rendered":"<h1><strong>How One Doctor Heals With Fun &amp; Games<\/strong><\/h1>\n<p><iframe loading=\"lazy\" title=\"KidCadia: Sanctuary for parents and children\" width=\"500\" height=\"281\" src=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/embed\/XDVxKSljuQ4?feature=oembed\" frameborder=\"0\" allow=\"accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share\" referrerpolicy=\"strict-origin-when-cross-origin\" allowfullscreen><\/iframe><\/p>\n<p><strong>By Brian Stone &#8211; <\/strong><strong>YAN &#8211; Dearborn<\/strong><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-medium wp-image-2414\" src=\"http:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/KID2-300x149.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"300\" height=\"149\" srcset=\"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/KID2-300x149.jpg 300w, https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/KID2-768x381.jpg 768w, https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/KID2-1024x508.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/2\/2019\/09\/KID2.jpg 1398w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 300px) 100vw, 300px\" \/>\u00a0 <strong><em>Dearborn, MI (Exclusive Interview)<\/em><\/strong>: <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">The Yemeni American News editor Brian Stone sat down for an interview with Dr. <em>Moneer Abdo<\/em> in what looked like a lush, enchanted forest from a Disney movie \u2013 only they weren\u2019t in an enchanted forest, they were in Kidcadia, East Dearborn\u2019s newest business. Kidcadia is a playscape for children that also has a cafe and equal space for parents to sit and relax. The new business, located at 13939 Michigan Ave in Dearborn, is a new venture with him and <em>Nasser Mozep<\/em>. We wanted to learn more about the inspiration for this unique new locale.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><em><strong>YAN<\/strong>:<\/em> <em>What was your first memory as a kid of playing and how did that impact your decision to open up this business?<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> When I was 9, my dad died. It was a tough time for us, and I remember our family trying to get things back to normal. If I remember it correctly, during that first year, a family friend took the whole family to \u2013 I think it was Discovery Zone \u2013 and I remember thinking it was the coolest place. I remember sneaking through tunnels, mazes, and getting lost for hours. It was so much fun.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><strong>YAN:<\/strong> Do you have a medical background?<\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">I finished my residency in 2017 and I took a job as an ER doctor so that takes the majority of my time. This was supposed to start as a fun passion project, but it took on a life of its own.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> What made you want to do this? Was it because of those earlier experiences?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> The earlier experiences are part of the concept development, but it\u2019s having my kids that created this need for a space for the whole family, one that didn\u2019t exist for us. It was years ago, probably 6 years ago, that we took my now 7-year-old to this little play cafe while we were in Chicago. I remember my wife and I thought it was the coolest concept. We were able to have a cup of coffee, and [my daughter] was able to crawl around this padded room. There was no structure, no ball pits, just a soft floor, and a place for parents to sit. That was kind of the first seed.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<strong>YAN<\/strong>: A lot of the seating here is beautiful, it\u2019s opulent. It seems that the place is as much designed for the parent as it is for the child. Tell me a bit about your thinking that went into that.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> We\u2019ve been to a ton of indoor playgrounds over the years,\u00a0 but it\u2019s never that comfortable for us as parents. Usually, it\u2019s some plastic seats, sometimes there\u2019s an old leather couch, overall not very nicely designed, like we\u2019re an afterthought. The play structure may be nice, but not geared for parents. We wanted to disband that concept \u2013 the idea was, 50-50. We wanted adults to truly want to come here, not just for their kids, but for themselves.\u00a0<\/span><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> So, part of your mission isn\u2019t just for the kids to play and have a place to destress, it\u2019s also a place for parents to enjoy themselves?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> Yes! We tried to capture a bit of an enchanted forest within our facility\u2026 We also wanted to create a play structure that was accessible to parents also. You\u2019ll notice that a lot of the entrance ways are six or seven feet tall, which lets parents in without much difficulty. It\u2019s designed to support the weight of an adult.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> Can you describe your average day at the ER?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> So, on a good day, you can walk out of the ER with a relatively low emotional impact on your overall psyche. There\u2019s a lot of trauma \u2013 essentially, any kind of physical injury a person can sustain, whether it\u2019s a car accident, whether it\u2019s a stabbing, a gunshot, and we\u2019re also a burn transfer center \u2013 so we see some of the worst burns in Southeast Michigan.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> So people come in [to the ER] with gunshot wounds, burns, all kinds of ailments, diseases, and in some cases they have a really hard time to recover. Does that take a toll on you?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> I think the ER is a special place. In medicine, they call it burnout. It\u2019s a thing we commonly talk about. They have a list of top specialties, and we are usually number one or number two for most burnout. It does impact you.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN<\/strong>: So you have this stressful job \u2013 you\u2019re a parent \u2013 and there weren\u2019t any spaces for you to relax at the same time as your kids. Which, you probably needed?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> Yeah, I wonder if it was a big subconscious driver to all this? But, there wasn\u2019t [a place for us.] We chose to live in Michigan, which has a beautiful summer and a beautiful spring, but we have a lot of clouds and a long winter, which was a big driving force in the thought process and development of the facility.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> Have you heard of parents burning out? Do you think that happens?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> Oh my gosh, yeah\u2026 You see it, with friends and family\u2026 you do get tired, especially when you have young ones running around, but you\u2019re willing to tolerate more, you\u2019re willing to take it easier on your kids, but it is a give and take and [burnout is] there.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> So part of what you\u2019re manifesting here, in your business, is that you\u2019re not just trying to prevent the burnout you experience professionally, but you\u2019re trying to prevent parent burnout? You hear about parents being stressed out, so you\u2019re creating a place not just for kids, but for parents.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> Absolutely. The idea was \u2013 how do I take an afternoon for a parent and make it just a little stress-free? How do I give them a few moments to escape the hectic, normal routine and give them a place where you can breathe for a few minutes? And when you look at what we\u2019ve done, from training our staff, to how our facility is designed, it\u2019s tied into that. We have multiple monitors that walk around and play with the kids, so if mom and dad want to sit back and relax on the couch, they can feel OK for a few minutes. That\u2019s a huge part of this.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> So part of your mission here is the same mission for you as a doctor. You\u2019re trying to heal people.<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> It\u2019s funny, because I\u2019ve gotten multiple questions from some of the visitors, and people ask me how I went from an ER to a play cafe. I didn\u2019t connect it, really, until now, but I guess we are doing something very similar here to what we do in the ER. We\u2019re creating a safe zone, but instead of patients, we have parents, kids, and grandparents.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> What do you think about that? A lot of uncles, grandparents, aunts are involved in kids\u2019 lives. Do you think this is a good place for them to go?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> We\u2019ve had some grandmothers who bring their kids here a couple of times a week. It\u2019s been a very nice way for families, and even extended families, to spend more time together. It\u2019s a great destination for uncles, grandparents, any caregiver really, to come together.<\/span><\/p>\n<p><em><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>YAN:<\/strong> Is there anything else you want to tell parents or readers of the Yemeni American News about why they should come?<\/span><\/em><\/p>\n<p><span style=\"font-weight: 400;\"><strong>Dr. Abdo:<\/strong> We\u2019re hoping we can decide to come very easy. When we opened up the play cafe we were thinking about what was out there. We realized that not only was there nothing like us in the area but \u2013 with confidence \u2013 nothing like this in the country. We are the first of its kind in regards to the effort to make this a destination for parents, too. So it\u2019s an easy decision \u2013 you have the best indoor play cafe in the country right in your backyard.<\/span><\/p>\n<p>&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div class='clear '><\/div><\/div>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"How One Doctor Heals With Fun &amp; Games By Brian Stone &#8211; YAN &#8211; Dearborn \u00a0 Dearborn, MI (Exclusive Interview): The Yemeni American News editor Brian Stone sat down for an interview with Dr. Moneer Abdo in what looked like a lush, enchanted forest from a Disney movie \u2013 only they weren\u2019t in an enchanted [&hellip;]","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2418,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[18,17,19,21,14,16,20,15],"class_list":["post-2413","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-community-news","tag-children","tag-dearborn-children-playground","tag-doctor","tag-healing","tag-kidcadia","tag-kids-playing","tag-medicine","tag-playtime"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2413","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2413"}],"version-history":[{"count":11,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2413\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2460,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2413\/revisions\/2460"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2418"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2413"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2413"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/yemeniamerican.com\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2413"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}