RQOTD: This one is a bit more serious

[KristinCB]

What is the #1 thing that the youth of today are missing out on compared to when you were a kid?

[krystalhartley]

Trixie Belden books

[Robin Carlton]

Winding a cassette tape back onto the reels after your cassette recorder had eaten it.

[krystalhartley]

Honestly, when I compare childhoods (theirs and mine), I don't appreciate any of the stuff I had that they don't. I was basically a child slave who despised being outdoors. I think I'd much rather grow up as they are growing up with the interests and technology available today.

[jacinda]

Gratitude.

[KristinCB]

Originally Posted by krystalhartley

Honestly, when I compare childhoods (theirs and mind), I don't appreciate any of the stuff I had that they don't. I was basically a child slave who despised being outdoors. I think I'd much rather grow up as they are growing up with the interests and technology available today.

That is a really good point! I wonder if kids are able to appreciate the technology available today though since they don't know any different?

[emmasmommy]

8 tracks

[MommaTrish]

Having to try to talk to friends and crushes while having to sit in the kitchen or living room because my parents made us use the stinking phone with a cord.

[emmasmommy]

i'm kidding. LOL
i wish my kids could just play outside and run the neighborhood without having to worry about "strangers." we live in a small town/neighborhood, but i still feel they need to be in my sights (or with a trusted friend). when we were kids, we roamed the neighborhood from sun up until sundown.

[NeverendingJen]

Disconnection. I remember going on family camping trips and we'd be out there for days, just us and all of our friends that went together. We'd play tapes or CD's on the boombox or car stereos, but there was no radio service. No one would dream of bringing along a computer. We'd sit around the campfire and play games. We'd truly GET AWAY and spend time as a family focused together.

[nesser1981]

More freedom I think. Things aren't as safe as they were when we were kids, we are more protective now.

[nesser1981]

Originally Posted by emmasmommy

i'm kidding. LOL
i wish my kids could just play outside and run the neighborhood without having to worry about "strangers." we live in a small town/neighborhood, but i still feel they need to be in my sights (or with a trusted friend). when we were kids, we roamed the neighborhood from sun up until sundown.

Yes

[nun69]

Originally Posted by emmasmommy

i'm kidding. LOL
i wish my kids could just play outside and run the neighborhood without having to worry about "strangers."

mostly this.....especially after seeing those 3 girls found this week and they were not very far from where they were all abducted
Luckily we have a neighborhood where there is ALWAYS at least 2-3 adults outside keeping an eye on all the kids...my neighbor even texted me over the weekend and asked if Abby could come inside and play and she would walk her home since it was dark

and the drive in that is where we hung out at all the time...there are still some drive ins around, but not like they were when I was a kid/teenager....

[MommaTrish]

Originally Posted by emmasmommy

i'm kidding. LOL
i wish my kids could just play outside and run the neighborhood without having to worry about "strangers." we live in a small town/neighborhood, but i still feel they need to be in my sights (or with a trusted friend). when we were kids, we roamed the neighborhood from sun up until sundown.

yup. I grew up in one of the worst areas of Memphis and my parents still let us play outside unsupervised. I get nervous just letting Zach run to the driveway to get something out of the van on his own.

[YepBrook]

Freedom. The blissful feeling of exploring the whole town on my bike...

[Robin Carlton]

I think we're more protective because our news is a 24/7 fear mongering multi-billion dollar industry now. I dont think crime is happening more often than it was when we were kids, we just hear about it more now and have been conditioned to be afraid of the boogeyman.

I let my kids run all over the neighborhood, but I was a scaredy cat as a kid because my mom watched the news a lot and I was afraid of all of those things. I actually slept with a steak knife under my pillow because I was afraid the LA night stalker was going to get me. I refuse to raise my kids the same way, afraid of all the bad guys, I want them to have the freedom of childhood, so they do.

[xboxmom]

Outside! Seriously my parents had to make me come inside now I have to beg them to go outside!

[staciahall]

Yes, to wishing we didn't have to worry so much about keeping our eyes on them at all times. I remember playing outside with the neighbors all the time.

Yes, to Trixie Belden books too! I adored them as a girl!!

[Laura_A]

Competition

I hope I don't step on anyone's toes here, but I think the whole "everyone is a winner" thing is doing our kids a huge disservice. I agree that, if you tried your best, you're not a loser, but we're not teaching our kids how to lose gracefully and have good sportsmanship when every single person on a team wins a trophy just for showing up or schools can't give away prizes for, for example, the neatest handwriting or getting the highest score on the Math test, for fear of someone's feelings getting hurt. I believe competition is healthy...it teaches us to work hard toward something we want.

[nun69]

Robin you bring up a very valid point...the media...it is everywhere, the tv, your phone, the internet, radio, EVERYWHERE and it is always BAD.....luckily for myself and my kids, I didn't watch much tv as a kid (actually remember sometimes not even having a tv) and my kids don't watch anything but cartoons or good feeling fun shows......I actually don't think I have watched TV news in almost 2 years

[KristinCB]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

I think we're more protective because our news is a 24/7 fear mongering multi-billion dollar industry now. I dont think crime is happening more often than it was when we were kids, we just hear about it more now and have been conditioned to be afraid of the boogeyman.
.

I actually had started posting this exact same thing. The internet has blown things up too much. There has always been the news and newspapers but now you hear about things before it even makes it that far!

I live in a small town and we are pretty easy going, we don't have to worry about people coming up and hurting our kids.. we do have to worry quite a bit about cougars and bears though :/ LOL!

[emmasmommy]

i don't watch the news. i'm just a worrywart about my kids lol

[KristinCB]

There is also the stigma that is placed upon mothers in this generation too.. when we were kids moms didn't call on other moms and talk down to them about their parenting skills and what they are doing wrong/right but it seems a common everyday for moms to feel as though they should be able to judge other moms on how they are doing.. so even if you wanted to let your kids run out and play there is probably going to be talk about your parenting skills

[Robin Carlton]

Originally Posted by KristinCB

we do have to worry quite a bit about cougars and bears though :/ LOL!

When I was a kid, I was also afraid of poltergeists and bigfoot. We lived in the hollywood hills and I was literally afraid bigfoot would come to my window, break it and take me away to the wilderness. I also thought a werewolf lived under my bed too.

Seriously, I was a wreck as a kid.

[emmasmommy]

Originally Posted by KristinCB

There is also the stigma that is placed upon mothers in this generation too.. when we were kids moms didn't call on other moms and talk down to them about their parenting skills and what they are doing wrong/right but it seems a common everyday for moms to feel as though they should be able to judge other moms on how they are doing.. so even if you wanted to let your kids run out and play there is probably going to be talk about your parenting skills

this is a lot of my issue. small town. everyone knows when you take a sh!t. if someone saw my kids crossing the street by herself, DCFS would be called in a heartbeat, i can guarantee it.

I know when we were kids, everyone's mom looked out for ALL the kids in the neighborhood. now, everyone is so segregated, i don't think that could ever be possible.

[Laura_A]

Originally Posted by emmasmommy

this is a lot of my issue. small town. everyone knows when you take a sh!t. if someone saw my kids crossing the street by herself, DCFS would be called in a heartbeat, i can guarantee it.

That's how it is on Army bases, too...especially over seas. The walls are thin (literally) and everyone is in your business!

[MommaTrish]

Originally Posted by Laura_A

Competition

I hope I don't step on anyone's toes here, but I think the whole "everyone is a winner" thing is doing our kids a huge disservice. I agree that, if you tried your best, you're not a loser, but we're not teaching our kids how to lose gracefully and have good sportsmanship when every single person on a team wins a trophy just for showing up or schools can't give away prizes for, for example, the neatest handwriting or getting the highest score on the Math test, for fear of someone's feelings getting hurt. I believe competition is healthy...it teaches us to work hard toward something we want.

yes. totally agree with this. someone tried to do away with the awards that the gym teachers give out at the end of the school year last year because they said it wasn't fair to do a "fastest runner," "longest jump," and such. I mean heck, they even had a "tried the hardest" and the mom said it wasn't fair to all the other kids (they had like 10 they gave out in each grade).

[LeeAndra]

Interaction with other people: having to go to the store to buy music/movies, having people always ring up your groceries or library books for you, having to call or visit people to have a relationship with them.

(I realize the irony of posting this on an online message board to people I have not met. )

Self-awareness: not everyone is good at everything, not everyone should get a participation ribbon/medal, having a Facebook and/or Twitter account does not suddenly make you more interesting or more special than any other person your age, etc.

Grammar: text speak is not real English, when it is appropriate to use and when it is not, how to spell words, how to use words with more than one syllable, how to write in cursive.

[emmasmommy]

Originally Posted by LeeAndra

(I realize the irony of posting this on an online message board to people I have not met. )

hey now. you know me

[LeeAndra]

Yes, yes, I do, LW.

Oh, and mystery! There is so little mystery left in the world. With social media, the news, and the Internet, we know every single thing that every single person is doing at every single moment. Ugh. I hate that.

[nun69]

Originally Posted by LeeAndra

Grammar: text speak is not real English, when it is appropriate to use and when it is not, how to spell words, how to use words with more than one syllable, how to write in cursive.

OMG......and I seriously don't know any of the abbreviations.......and in our school district that don't even teach handwriting (hardly) and as you get older, they teach "keyboarding" WTH.....no matter what you will ALWAYS have to write something.....hell most kids don't even know how to write a check! I write and sign my name to something EVERYDAY, why do people (school districts) think that is ever going to go away?

[KristinCB]

Originally Posted by LeeAndra

Oh, and mystery! There is so little mystery left in the world. With social media, the news, and the Internet, we know every single thing that every single person is doing at every single moment. Ugh. I hate that.

The internet has brought me lots of mystery :/ LOL!

[jessica31876]

I think just appreciating the little things. I feel like my kids do ok with that I think but I have met a lot of kids who could definitely use improvement.

[KristinCB]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

I let my kids run all over the neighborhood, but I was a scaredy cat as a kid because my mom watched the news a lot and I was afraid of all of those things. I actually slept with a steak knife under my pillow because I was afraid the LA night stalker was going to get me. I refuse to raise my kids the same way, afraid of all the bad guys, I want them to have the freedom of childhood, so they do.

I was much the same.. for some strange reason my mom let me watch unsolved mysteries as a child and there were a few episodes that seriously scared me for life.

[Robin Carlton]

My mom let me watch Unsolved Mysteries too, KCB! Is it weird that I will let my kids run all over the neighborhood alone, and will drop katie off at the mall or the movies with friends, but I wont let my kids watch scary movies or much TV at all?

[DawnMarch]

This will probably sound weird, but I think my kids would do better with a little more "boredom". They are so used to always having a computer or TV to entertain them that they rarely have to come up with creative ways to entertain themselves like we did.

I also agree that the ability to play outside for hours on end is something our kids are sorely lacking. I know this is partially my fault because I DO worry if they are out of my sight, even though I know the risks are way overblown.

[MandaT]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

When I was a kid, I was also afraid of poltergeists and bigfoot. We lived in the hollywood hills and I was literally afraid bigfoot would come to my window, break it and take me away to the wilderness. I also thought a werewolf lived under my bed too.

Seriously, I was a wreck as a kid.

We are at the top of the state and there is a town here where there is actually a celebration JUST for/about Big Foot. The town has a GIANT big foot statue. For spring break we went that way on our way to the ocean and the kids FREAKED out when they saw it. Every time we were on a part of the coastal highway where there were big trees/mossy/'big foot' forests, they kept looking for him. My middle kiddo, couldn't say Sasquatch though....so we were always on the look out for Scratch Crotch.

[KristinCB]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

My mom let me watch Unsolved Mysteries too, KCB! Is it weird that I will let my kids run all over the neighborhood alone, and will drop katie off at the mall or the movies with friends, but I wont let my kids watch scary movies or much TV at all?

I don't think it is weird because for me watching anything scary would get all sorts of weird ideas in my head and I'd start being scared about all sorts of things.

[mrshobbes]

Originally Posted by DawnMarch

This will probably sound weird, but I think my kids would do better with a little more "boredom". They are so used to always having a computer or TV to entertain them that they rarely have to come up with creative ways to entertain themselves like we did.

I totally get you! I was stuck waiting in an airport the other day, and noticed how many of those waiting were on phones and iPads. The hubs himself was reading on his iPad, so we weren't talking. I made the conscious effort to not read on my phone and just people-watch. It was kind of fun. I did wish I had another fellow bored person so we could talk.

[catgoddess]

Saturday Morning Cartoons.

Now they get to watch them whenever, just like everything else with the internet and cable TV. Nothing seems special when you can watch stuff whenever you want. I remember looking forward to Saturday mornings in my PJs eating fruity pebbles or some other special treat we never ate on any other day.

[SmallMoments]

My very first thought was the time spent outside playing. I do make Luke play outside but most days he's in after an hour or so... 1. b/c he's bored b/c the only kid in the neighborhood to play with is a 5 year old punk who thinks rules don't apply to him. and 2. he "needs" to get his video game time in.

That led me to the thought of no distractions. Kind of what Jennifer was saying. It bugs me to death when we go on a family outing- vacations or just eating out- and Joel's on his phone the whole time and Luke is on his DS. I can tell Luke to get off his DS, which I normally do... but I'm not Joel's mom. lol

[KimberlyMorris]

Having a big close knit family. I grew up within walking distance of my Grandmother, 5 Aunts and 10 Cousins who were around my age. It makes me sad Aiden doesn't have easy access to our extended family.

[mariewilcox]

Originally Posted by krystalhartley

Trixie Belden books

LOL - My daughter has been reading these! They were my favorite series and we've been able to find a lot of them at our library, ebay, and Amazon.

[mariewilcox]

Originally Posted by Robin Carlton

I think we're more protective because our news is a 24/7 fear mongering multi-billion dollar industry now. I dont think crime is happening more often than it was when we were kids, we just hear about it more now and have been conditioned to be afraid of the boogeyman.

I let my kids run all over the neighborhood, but I was a scaredy cat as a kid because my mom watched the news a lot and I was afraid of all of those things. I actually slept with a steak knife under my pillow because I was afraid the LA night stalker was going to get me. I refuse to raise my kids the same way, afraid of all the bad guys, I want them to have the freedom of childhood, so they do.

I totally agree. There were bad people around when I was growing up but you just didn't hear about it 24/7. A girl in my small town was raped and murdered while she was running at the high school track one weekend day in 1980. We were seniors in high school. Population of our town was about 1200. I let Cheyanne roam around but with common sense - not at night alone, not with people she doesn't know very well, etc. She goes to the basketball courts in our town which is up the road about 1/4 mile and meets a group of friends there, bikes to her friend's homes, goes to the mall with friends, etc. etc. At our camp she has even more free range. I don't want her to be scared to live and she's learning to cope and handle herself sensibly.

[mariewilcox]

Originally Posted by Laura_A

Competition

I hope I don't step on anyone's toes here, but I think the whole "everyone is a winner" thing is doing our kids a huge disservice. I agree that, if you tried your best, you're not a loser, but we're not teaching our kids how to lose gracefully and have good sportsmanship when every single person on a team wins a trophy just for showing up or schools can't give away prizes for, for example, the neatest handwriting or getting the highest score on the Math test, for fear of someone's feelings getting hurt. I believe competition is healthy...it teaches us to work hard toward something we want.

THIS!!!! I so agree with you! I've been saying this about our school sports program. No kids get cut from the junior high teams! It's ridiculous! They have a soccer team with 25 kids on it so no one's feelings get hurt and only 9 can play at any given time so you have all these kids who get mad because they ride the bench. I'm sorry, but if your kid can't handle being cut at the age of 12/13 then don't try out! This has been a pet peeve of mine for years. Other sports are the same way. There's a reason we have a sports program that starts in Kindergarten - they learn the skills, learn sportsmanship, etc. and no one gets cut from these programs but once you get to the Jr. High level they need to be able to handle rejection! When they get to high school they're going to be shocked when they don't make a team because we've been mollycoddling them up to that point

[joelsgirl]

I think all the electronics {that I let} in my kids life keeps them from learning how to entertain themselves; I think there is this whole generation of folks who don't know how to be bored, which I worry will lead to a lack of creativity, but maybe it's just a different kind of creativity.

But I would hate to grow up now where everything I did went online for all the world to see. I read an article recently about how Instagram is affecting youth, how their self esteem is tied to how many "likes" they get and so forth, and I am pretty sure I would have bombed if I'd had to live that way.

[Kara]

This.

i wish my kids could just play outside and run the neighborhood without having to worry about "strangers." we live in a small town/neighborhood, but i still feel they need to be in my sights (or with a trusted friend). when we were kids, we roamed the neighborhood from sun up until sundown.
__________________

[tanyiadeskins]

the biggest thing...probably just playing and being a dumb kid, the whole outside thing again. I remember playing jumprope, hide and seek, catching grasshopper and kick the can of all things for HOURS... I was so mad at night when the street lights came on cause that was my sign to come in for the night

Now my kids are so used to being overstimulated that if they sit for 3.5 minutes without something to do they whine they are bored and it is crazy! Just play ... be a kid...


and also I totally agree with the whole everyone is a winner bs... no, no they are not. If you want to win something you need to work your tail off for it and prove it, you need to be able to be glad for other when they win and come to understand that you can try harder and try again

[Keely~B]

Passing notes, you know writing a bazillion notes back and forth with your friends and folding them up funky. Loved that back in the day. Also my kids can't really read cursive and it horrifies me. ( yes, I'm working on it but they don't care so it's a battle)

I can agree with quite a bit of the other stuff. My kids did/do play outside a lot though, I have to force my ten year old to come in on a regular basis. She'd much rather be out running around with her friends than doing anything inside.

[MamaBee]

Robin - I LOVED Unsolved Mysteries was a kid... for the LONGEST time I wanted to work in a crime lab... which now my hubby find really funny... I refuse to watch anything scary or intense... and blood and stuff grosses me out... haha!

The one thing I think kids miss out on is just being a kid. I hope I don't touch onto too many toes, and I'm sorry if I do... but I think some parents just over schedule their kids... I think of friends of ours... go to school all day, home to gather stuff - not even eat together before out the door to sports or some other activity until 9-10pm, every night of the week... and the weekends are all tied up with sports competitions or music lessons... when can the kid depress? and it's sad, in my opinion that a child has to depress...