Thursday, March 25, 2010

Psst, Don't Tell The Kids....They're Kids.


I don't understand why so many parents seem to feel the need to treat their children like adults. Who ever decided it was a bad thing to be treated like a child, when in fact you ARE a child?! I remember when sitting at the 'kid's table' was fun and I never once remember feeling slighted or left out when adults did things that were not for children.

So, why this need to keep kids from being kids? Why are parents running out and piercing their daughter's ears when they are only infants? Aren't you essentially poking permanent holes into your baby's otherwise perfect little body? Shouldn't that be a decision she makes for herself when she gets a little older? I, for one, am looking forward to the day when I get to take my preteen daughter to get her ears pierced. I want her to be old enough to not only want it for herself, but also to be able to be excited about it, to pick out her first set of earrings herself!

Now, I've heard the theories that drinking an occasional glass of wine with dinner just like the adults, will help teach your children not to be alcoholics...but quite frankly, I'm not buying it! Whatever happened to talking to your children and educating them?

Letting your young child drink wine or beer, well quite frankly, the whole concept kind of blows my mind! There is a reason the LEGAL drinking age is 21. Consuming alcohol is a very serious thing. Alcohol does physical damage to your body (primarily YOUR BRAIN) every time it is consumed. How about instead of a glass of wine to make your child feel special, you pour some grape juice and sparkling water into a fancy glass and let him or her drink that. It can have the same effect without doing the damage.

Honestly, where do you draw the line? If drinking alcohol is acceptable,are you going to let your child light up a cigarette at the dinner table too? Where do you stand on the subject of Sex? I am no prude and I certainly have no objections to other adults engaging in any of those activities, but there is absolutely no way I will be promoting my children doing them until they are in fact adults themselves.

I'm not going to lie, I'm a big fan of 'Do as I say and not as I do', and I don't think there's anything wrong with it. I am an adult. I'm not saying that I don't always try to lead with a good example as a mother, but I'm also a grown woman. I have earned certain privileges and I'm not going to give them up now just because I'm a mom. I'm also not going to enable my daughter to enjoy those same privileges until she has earned them herself.

That's the part I don't think anyone is really taking into consideration here. By including our children in our adult activities we are taking away their rites of passage. We are giving them all of the fun without any of the responsibilities and we are virtually eliminating their level of motivation to grow up and become productive responsible adults. If we don't let them earn these things, if we let them grow up too soon in some ways...they may never grow up in others.

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