Early childhood teachers may be autistic women and are, anecdotally, often autistic women. Early childhood teachers are experts in observing and supporting play. Our longitudinal study of play has cultivated means of supporting a neurodiverse research team, which has enabled the study to more fully include early childhood teachers in the design of the study. This presentation will describe and discuss several unexpected methodological developments, all related to neurodivergent joy, that our research process has produced. The principal investigator is autistic and will present with fellow participant researchers from the project, including a current CUNY student and recent CUNY graduates.