Quote:
Originally Posted by ree-Xi
I think that this is a really good point. My neices and nephews are busy from morning until night, sometimes attending practice for stuff BEFORE school and after school, and having to do homework late at night or at breakfast.
I grew up in the 70s/80s, when there was still little distraction (I recall having a tv that only had 13 stations, and only listening to AM on the radio). If it wasn't raining or cold, we were outside sunup to sundown. If it was raining or cold, we read, played "school" and "library" and had contests like "whoever is the quietest wins a prize".
If we said we were bored, my mom would offer to "give us something to do", which was usually something cleaning related. So we learned quickly to make our own fun.
We didn't get trophies "just for participating" and nobody was even guaranteed to be on the team! Aside from a few material gifts, birthdays were more about celebrating the person. I remember getting to pick dinner for that night always meant my favorite food - my mom's homemade pizza.
When I was under 10/11 years old, "rewards" for good behavior or grades weren't things, and they didn't cost a lot of money, they were experiences:
- getting to sit in the front seat of the car for the week (otherwise the four of us took turns
- getting to get my dad a soda out of the fridge and sipping whatever didn't fit into the glass (soda was a rare treat, and I used to put a ton of ice cubes in the glass so I got more)
- getting to pick which (homemade) treat my mother would make (brownies? her special-recipe chocolate cake?, etc.)
- staying up an extra half hour to watch tv with mom and dad
- getting to watch all of "The Wizard of Oz", "The Sound of Music" and "Chitty Chitty Bang Bang" while my mom made popcorn - these were usually shown around Easter.
Now, nothing is special. You don't wait a year to watch a beloved movie. You join everything without having a particular talent or skill. It seems to make things less special. Kids don't know what to do with free time. They can't just sit and hang out. And as a result, parents are becoming that way, too - they have to be involved 24/7, keeping pace with other parents. It's sad.
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This made me smile. That is exactly how I grew up. My favorite birthday dinner was spaghetti
. I have always done the special birthday dinner with my kids. AND Charlie Brown!!! My favorite especially around this time of year. I still get excited when I see the ad that it will be on. My kids don't get Charlie Brown at all. Shotgun! ha ha with the front seat and not wearing seat belts in the back. We NEVER had sodas but I drank A LOT of Hawaiian Punch. Bed Knobs and Broom Sticks was my absolute favorite but I also dug Herbie. The biggest treat for us as a kid Pizza! We NEVER went out to dinner EVER.
I have also noticed that these girls who go through recruitment are so sophisticated. My 18 year old self would have never gotten a bid today.
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