there's nothing to do!

"Mommy.... can we go to Bounce Magic?"
"No."

Can we go to the Aquatic Center?"
"No."

"I'm bored."
"Too bad...find something to do. Go outside."
"I don't want to go outside! There's nothing to do out there!"

Sound familiar? Ahhhhh..... summer vacation. The time of year the kids look forward to.... and the parents.... well...... that's another story.

In thinking about the world today, I am saddened. When I was younger, my mom told me to go outside and didn't start to wonder where I was until dinner was ready. We played in the fields behind our house, kickball in the street, hide-and-go-seek at a friends house 5 blocks away.... all without telling my parents where we were going. We probably skipped lunch, drank from the garden hose, and walked around with bare feet.

It's now 2011.... my kids don't leave my sight. I need to know where they are at all times, even if it's in my own backyard. I only leave them alone back there for 5 minutes at a time without peering out the window to make sure they're ok. There are no neighborhood kids playing outside.... perhaps it's the neighborhood I live in.... but regardless... my kids constantly turn to me for entertainment. Did I bring this on myself? Perhaps. However how many of you would allow your children to roam freely through your neighborhood without parental supervision?

So as I sit here with my two kids constantly asking me what there is to do.... I think about how I really miss the old days. I wish there was a big game of kickball going on in the street, or a unplanned pool party at a house 8 doors down. I feel bad for my children. They'll never know what it's like not to worry about some creepy man or woman grabbing them to their car... or following them down the street. It makes me sad to know they're growing up in a world of danger and over-protectiveness.

But.... let's look at the positive. They can google "What to do when I'm bored." (Yes.... Mehri did.)

Wishing all my friends a safe and happy summer.... and look at the bright side. School supplies are out already.