Tell me what you really think.
I think we WERE what they call the new movement: Free range kids.
Did the kid care? Nope; he/she knew he/she was fat.
As that kid....oh yeah, that kid cared. That kid was crushed and felt worthless most of the time, but knew better than to complain, because the teasing would only escalate.
Sure, we played outside all day, ran our little fool heads off and ate what was put in front of us, but I don't think childhood 35 years ago was any better than it is now. It's simply different now.
Statistically, kids aren't in any more danger of being kidnapped than they were back then; when it happens we hear about it more because of the proliferation of the media. That terrifies parents. And for that I have deep empathy, probably because someone tried to take my kid when he was 2 months old. It never made the news, not the paper, not TV news. Today it would be splashed all over the place...and scaring even more parents. I wonder how much more freedom kids would have if not for sensational journalism?
AMEN! Luckily, my daughter believes as you do about children. They are fortunate to live in a fairly safe spot and her kids have the run of the neighborhood. I think their childhood will have great memories for them, just as mine does.
Okay....the problem these days with some of the kids that are outside during the summer....they have absolutely no regard for the property of others and feel free to kick dents into garage doors with soccer balls and destroy landscaping....and their parents...when you call them....claim their kids told them they didn't do it (even though adults tell them they actually saw the damage being done). It would be great if kids could play wherever and have fun....but these days they just haven't been taught that it's not okay to damage property. I blame it on the parents. And you're right...it's SO sad that kids don't have the creativity or desire to be outside and physical during the summer.
Luckily, we have our own pool. So The Boy spends many hours out back swimming in the summer.
Guess where the kiddos are right now...jumping like maniacs on the tramp in the back. Going between that and the sprinklers and pool. They do that for a few hours a day. It's great fun.
Yes, I am one of the mothers that did not want a trampoline because of safety, but just like everything else you set limits and watch them as they jump and they are perfectly fine.
Then there's the playhouse that HH made for HG in the back along with the train that he also made. We bike every Saturday morning and sometimes take a detour and get breakfast while we are out. It's fun. The park is awesome and so is a garden.
My carpet is awful, my house is generally picked up but not clean but I don't give a rip. The kids are enjoying life and I am as well...right along with them.
Oh and yes...there are chores before play. Hence why the house is generally picked up but not perfect.
Now I know-- you and I grew up together.
The lady up the street actually brags on me all the time because she sees my kids out in the yard (or lately, up in a tree) playing basketball or riding bikes all afternoon long. She's a PE teacher.
The rest of the moms in the neighborhood are scandalized that I let my children "play in the street" and that I am not standing over them like some sort of demented sentinel and think that I am neglecting them by not enrolling them in 57 different organized activities. I have actually been called out over this. I will stand my ground. This is the suburbs, fercryingoutloud! Get out there and play! The TV is off today!
In spring, summer, and fall, I would come home only to eat or pee. The rest of the time we were playing football, baseball, tag, cops and robbers, swinging, sliding, riding bikes, or at the very least reading under a shady cottonwood.
Kids need time to be kids, without adults supervising and solving every problem for them.
Amen! We are blessed to live in a great neighborhood, we live at the end of a cul de sac, our drive has an incline, so it is "launch central" for scooters, skateboards etc. Our neighbors have a basketball hoop that is open to all, just bring your basketball. On summer evenings, our boys play "Ghost Tag" and come home exhausted. We have block parties and the neighbors actually know each other! Summer lunches are the great unknown, as I never know how many kids my kids will bring home with them! I try to get a vague head count, but really, I love the craziness...and yes, I serve the same lunch.."Take it or leave it"!! My carpets were beige once. I figure the boys will grow up, and we'll replace the carpet before we sell the place and head for our retirement...they are only here for a little while, and I want them happy and healthy, not living in an antiseptic gulag!
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