This goes right along with what I posted about at BATW last Friday.

Our kids are growing up to be way to dependent on us for everything. No wonder we are exhausted.

I am on a mission to rehabilitate myself from being a Cruise Director (or Helicopter Mom) and you know what? My kids are LOVING the new found freesoms and independence.

Great post!

It makes me PROUD that my girls know how to play by themselves. When Libbey was little and stopped being in her face all day long, I felt selfish if I did a bit of cleaning/showering/book reading/scrapbooking/phone visiting while she sat nearby, “reading” her little books, playing with a toy, or watching TV. Oh, and I felt guilty, too.

Not anymore.

My kids loved being entertained…they especially love playing with Daddy & Mommy. But they also love being by themselves and doing their own thing, and that makes me HAPPY!

Yesterday, while I Swiffered and took care of the cat (Lewis had a bit of surgery on Friday), Libbey sat up a “store” in the hallway. She put a all kinds of toys and pretend food in the store, then she and Caroline spent half an hour going shopping. It was adorable…it was sweet…they laughed and had a good time…and they used their IMAGINATIONS. Wow, what a concept!

So there you go. Obviously I have strong feelings on this matter!

I don’t ever recall sitting down as a kid and my mom actually “playing” with me, especially not all day long. She had other things that needed to be done. I played with my friends, or my brothers, or I entertained myself. I do believe that the world we live in has changed since then though. I remember being allowed to play outside in the neighborhood from sun-up to sun-down… no questions asked. I remember in the summers spending every waking minute at the community pool down the street. There’s no way I’m going to let my own child do this. He’s allowed to go play in the backyard by himself, but not the front yard, at all.

I do make time to do special things with my child each day, though…. just not every waking moment of every single day.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts everybody!!

As for everyday. I do work so our evening time is pretty limited but I always make sure there’s time for story time.

Okay, sorry about all that. I had to laugh at your comment on my blog… my husband was so happy you said I was the only person you met who doesn’t sneeze in the light… ha ha. He feels fully justified… ha ha. I always thought it odd, but I guess I am more odd huh?

Why is it that this generation of parents (w/kids from birth to 18) are responsible for doing EVERYTHING for these kids? What happened to the imagination that childhood is so famous for? And isn’t learning to think and act on your own something kids should do? That doesn’t mean they don’t need some guidance.

At best, you’ve created whiny, helpless, and demanding little creatures. At worst, you’ve created a generation of over-indulged, self-destructive, little blamers who take no responsibility for anything. They do nothing for themselves. Why should they? You’ll do it. They have no respect for anything or anyone – including YOU. Why should they? You tolerate their insolence.

They skateboard off neighbors’ porches, throw trash in your yard, and steal things throughout the neighborhood. Dare to call them on it and you’re called everything but white. If I had ever contemplated doing such things – much less actually DO them – they’d still be finding pieces of me scattered around the planet.

And this is not isolated. This seems to be the majority behavior in my neighborhood, with some of my friends, and even in my own family.

Child abuse is a horrible thing. But the 180 approach to that – to forbid even spanking – seems to have opened the door to a free-for-all for kids. A swat in the butt at least got their attention. That seems almost impossible to do anymore unless a game controller is at the other end of it.

Parents don’t want to discipline their kids at all, in any way. Kids have to be bargained with. Since when is parenthood a democracy? Privileges and rights are not the same thing.

If it is ignored, maybe it will just go away. The parents seem purposefully oblivious to it and when made aware, are angry at you for disparaging their “little darling.” My fear is that if so many of these kids are this way at 4, 8, 10, 15, what will they be like at 18, 21, 25, 30 …? And how will their kids be any different?

I’m not saying all kids are this way, but too many are. And the older they get, the worse it gets. Why? Because a bad pattern has been established.

Parents are not cruise directors. I think they’re more like traffic cops, but with a vested interest and a loving heart.

Their job is to keep traffic moving. To keep it going in the right direction and to try to avoid the big smash-ups. They’re on site when the big smash-ups happen, they make the reports, issue summonses when needed, and try to keep it from happening again so that everyone can keep happily motoring along down life’s path.