Remember When....

I cannot tell you how many times I have questioned, "remember when". I think it shows my age especially since I have heard my dad start far too many conversations that way over the years. Lately, the price of gas and food have been discussed because I feel badly for my kids. They can't clean the change out of the car to get gas and go out and about for the weekend like I did as a teen. Trips to the mall now have to consider the gas expense. And don't even get me started on the price of anything they would purchase once they got there. Seriously, when did $150 become acceptable for a pair of jeans? It still isn't in my house but I know several people willing to part with that cash for something I consider disposable. And I wear my jeans for a decade or until they literally fall apart at the seams....like my favorites I have still been unable to replace. Even Target is pricey lately. Retailers have us over a barrel of sorts. We have to eat, use  personal care items and clothes are essential.

When my teens were little, we always held memberships to the local science center. It was an annual expense of $35 and it reciprocated all over the country. We used it at numerous zoos and science centers when we visited friends in other states. Now that membership is $89 and no longer reciprocates with many other locations and typically only offers a 50% discount. Ty has asked to go to the zoo quite a bit lately and we plan to take him over spring break. Given it will cost Greg and I $60 to walk through the gate with two kids, we are likely biting the bullet and hope it inspires us to frequently visit this year.

Remember when it was considered unacceptable to hover over your children, bubble wrapping them so they wouldn't get hurt? I cannot tell you how many times people knocked on our door when the kids climbed the maple tree in our front yard in Ohio to tell me how unsafe they considered it. They were being kids.....playing in the magical world they created in that tree. How could I rob them of those memories in an effort to keep them safe from falling? Obviously I don't want to see my children injured but at some point, when we fail or get hurt, we learn life lessons. The real question is, how can I rob them from learning how to pick themselves up and move forward more determined to succeed?


I remember when the girls played with the Fisher Price doll house. The people were all named and did things that mimicked our family life fairly closely. Roles and activities were somewhat predictable. I recently pulled the doll house out of the attic for the little girls who spend a few mornings a week here and Ty has taken to it. Watching him play doll house is nothing like watching the girls. There are no rules. Ty prefers to use imaginary people as to not be committed to keeping up with figures that fail to cooperate with his plans. The motor scooter is his chosen method of transportation throughout the house.  It enters and exits the house through windows and deposits imaginary people into their beds....where the little boy gets to sleep with his mommy and the dad can sleep on the couch. Welcome to the world my son creates when he is in charge.