AMEN!!
I had tons of "freedom" as a kid. Only it was the 70's instead of the 60's, well ok part of the 60's......... lol
My Mom acts like it was all a bed of roses back then for a kid. HA!
1. I can't begin to count the number of times while walking to and from school someone would attempt to coax us into their car. (but at least Mom had the forsight to tell us people with a blue star posted in their windows were "safe" houses and we were allowed to run up and bang on their doors for help.) And we lived in a decent neighborhood.
2. Took us kids at the grade school more than 10 times to get a teacher to believe us there was a perv hanging out on the other side of the playground fence exposing himself. ugh
3. I had a stalker in the 3rd grade. A blue ford station wagon that followed me home (creepily) every single day from school. Told my Mom over and over and she never believed me. It was my imagination! Until my step dad heard about it. And handled the situation "man to man" by beating the guy to a bloody pulp. Station wagon never followed me again. And I got rides home after that.
Don't get me wrong, we had loads of fun during my childhood. But there were also huge dangers out there and if you weren't one to get smart quick, you got hurt, sometimes badly.
I used my own experiences to teach my kids to be wary from the get go. They knew their full names, parents full names, street address, state, and phone number with area code by the age of two. They had a secret password, and anyone trying to pick them up without it was considered off limits, period. Backfired on me once when I needed mother in law to pick up easy child from pre-school and forgot to give her the password, easy child flat out refused to get into the car......after 20 mins of unsuccessfully trying to change her mind they called me and I told her it was ok. lol We used that password with them even though highschool. easy child has one for Darrin. Reminds me to ask Nichole if she has one for Aubrey.
And another biggie with me........if my kids were outside playing, so was I. Always. Until they were about 12 or so, and then usually I was because it had become habit. lol
I hate it when the older generation gets on the younger one about their parenting. Ok if you're really neglecting or abusing a kid, sure. But otherwise...........Just don't get it. I've heard it from my Mom since the day my first was born. Nothing I did was right. Now according to her I have the best kids she's ever seen.
Kills me.