Well hello 2016! I had a whole blog post about the new year and what it's going to hold but I deleted it. I've seen too many of those recently and for those of you that know me I don't like following the trends for the most part. Anyway....I was having a conversation the other night with my husband that prompted this post. I'd been fighting with my son about Lord only knows what and I was frustrated so I walked away. As I stood in my bedroom I said "When I was a kid..." and before I could finish my husband stopped me. He said "I hear that statement at least once a day....you should write a book filled with nothing but that". I laughed and put it on my mental to-do list (along with my big book of BS which IS coming one day). But later I started really thinking about it. Maybe I'm old. Maybe I'm old-fashioned (yes the two are different) but I swear when I talk I hear my Mom and Dad coming out of my mouth. So today I thought I'd share a few "When I was a kid" statements with you. Feel free to share and comment your own....
When I Was A Kid:
-My parents had the final say. Period. Sure I might have wanted to go to the movies with a group of friends and sure every one else might be doing it but if my parents said no it meant no.
-I was NOT allowed to pit one parent against the other. If I asked Mom and she said no then I went and asked Dad and he said yes that was AWESOME....until my Dad found out Mom had already said no or vice versa. The world as I knew it was over.
-I played outside...in the woods...until dark...and wasn't afraid. Sure kids disappeared when I was growing up and sure bad things happened but I don't think there was this constant foreboding sense all around. I barely let my kids play in my own yard without me out there. We live in the middle of nowhere and you can hear cars coming from 1/2 a mile away. Still....bad stuff happens these days.
-I wrote notes. No...not "notes" scribbled on my SmartPhone screen.....notes...on paper. Then I folded them into awesome little designs before I passed them to the intended reader.
-I had manners. Lord don't get me started on people these days. It's not just kids either. Adults are rude as crap too. Saying "thank you" won't kill you.
-That last statement brings me to this....I couldn't say "crap". My Mom just thought it was a crude word. I see more and more people talking less formal. It's cool to be comfortable and say what you want but looking back I can appreciate my Mom teaching me to speak in an educated manner and not rely on "filler" words.
-I got spankings. Good heavens. Someone call DFCS. No...don't really...but I did. I didn't get beaten (I'm anti abuse of all forms) but I got spanked. When I did something wrong I was punished. Sometimes I got grounded *gasp* My siblings did too (although my spoiled little sister got away with whatever she wanted....she knows I love her though) We learned early on that there were consequences to our actions.
-I ate what was on my plate or I went to bed hungry. Eh. It wasn't really that bad but my Mom did NOT cook to order. She cooked. We ate what she cooked or we found something else to eat. I won't call any names but I recently saw a friend of mine post on FB that she had cooked FIVE different meals for her family due to their different tastes. Um....no....just no. Now I'm not an ogre. If I KNOW my kids or husband don't like a certain food I do TRY and work around it but if we're having tacos and someone decides after an hour they want Italian....sorry Charlie.
-My grades were MY responsibility. I remember bringing home my first "C". That was unacceptable in our house. So I got grounded from all my distractions where I had more time to focus. I talk to my teacher friends these days and they are just bombarded with ways that a child's failure is the teachers fault. Sorry. I don't subscribe to that train of thought. Sure a teacher can be less than efficient but when you have a teacher pouring their heart and soul into their job and a child is failing maybe the child needs to reevaluate their process.
My fingers are tired...and by now your eyes might be tired....so I'll save the rest of my thoughts for my book. I don't really have a typical challenge to you today. Maybe just take a minute and think about when YOU were a kid....until next time. Be Blessed.
When I Was A Kid:
-My parents had the final say. Period. Sure I might have wanted to go to the movies with a group of friends and sure every one else might be doing it but if my parents said no it meant no.
-I was NOT allowed to pit one parent against the other. If I asked Mom and she said no then I went and asked Dad and he said yes that was AWESOME....until my Dad found out Mom had already said no or vice versa. The world as I knew it was over.
-I played outside...in the woods...until dark...and wasn't afraid. Sure kids disappeared when I was growing up and sure bad things happened but I don't think there was this constant foreboding sense all around. I barely let my kids play in my own yard without me out there. We live in the middle of nowhere and you can hear cars coming from 1/2 a mile away. Still....bad stuff happens these days.
-I wrote notes. No...not "notes" scribbled on my SmartPhone screen.....notes...on paper. Then I folded them into awesome little designs before I passed them to the intended reader.
-I had manners. Lord don't get me started on people these days. It's not just kids either. Adults are rude as crap too. Saying "thank you" won't kill you.
-That last statement brings me to this....I couldn't say "crap". My Mom just thought it was a crude word. I see more and more people talking less formal. It's cool to be comfortable and say what you want but looking back I can appreciate my Mom teaching me to speak in an educated manner and not rely on "filler" words.
-I got spankings. Good heavens. Someone call DFCS. No...don't really...but I did. I didn't get beaten (I'm anti abuse of all forms) but I got spanked. When I did something wrong I was punished. Sometimes I got grounded *gasp* My siblings did too (although my spoiled little sister got away with whatever she wanted....she knows I love her though) We learned early on that there were consequences to our actions.
-I ate what was on my plate or I went to bed hungry. Eh. It wasn't really that bad but my Mom did NOT cook to order. She cooked. We ate what she cooked or we found something else to eat. I won't call any names but I recently saw a friend of mine post on FB that she had cooked FIVE different meals for her family due to their different tastes. Um....no....just no. Now I'm not an ogre. If I KNOW my kids or husband don't like a certain food I do TRY and work around it but if we're having tacos and someone decides after an hour they want Italian....sorry Charlie.
-My grades were MY responsibility. I remember bringing home my first "C". That was unacceptable in our house. So I got grounded from all my distractions where I had more time to focus. I talk to my teacher friends these days and they are just bombarded with ways that a child's failure is the teachers fault. Sorry. I don't subscribe to that train of thought. Sure a teacher can be less than efficient but when you have a teacher pouring their heart and soul into their job and a child is failing maybe the child needs to reevaluate their process.
My fingers are tired...and by now your eyes might be tired....so I'll save the rest of my thoughts for my book. I don't really have a typical challenge to you today. Maybe just take a minute and think about when YOU were a kid....until next time. Be Blessed.
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