I keep getting told that I'm a bad parent.

[oesdog]

I COMPLETELY imagined that Irish accent while reading that

I am ENGLISH! - But I try to have a bit of an irish accent!

Oes

 

[downsm75]

I am ENGLISH! - But I try to have a bit of an irish accent!

Oes

lol my daughter attempts a brittish accent when she really, REALLY wants something

 

[chubbydog811]

Some of these posts are just hilarious to me...I believe in freedom of children - to a point. I like Oes's parent's method. That's pretty awesome.
When I was in kindergarten, I actually was allowed to run down the street to play with my friends unsupervised. The difference was, we were way in the middle of no where on a dead end road. All the neighbors watched the neighbor kids (keeping a hidden eye), so we weren't really ever not watched. I was also allowed to play out in our own yard without being supervised. I didn't wander, and and no one ever drove down the road.
When we moved to the other side of town, a more populated area, when I was around 8, I was still allowed to run down the road on my own. Again, it was still a dead end road, and all the neighbors kept an eye out.
Of course, both places you couldn't really see the house from the road anyway. We never lived in a very populated area. We didn't like have people around.

I do think many parents now are way too over protective...I can see the need to "hover" outside because of all the crazy people out there, but kids do still need to learn how to be independent at some point.

 

[Ibicella]

I for one applaud you. The greatest thing my parents ever taught me was HOW to learn. I wasn't taught that in school....I was a HORRIBLE student that did not do well in that environment at all. My parents were the ones that taught us how to use the library, read to us, taught us how to pursue our interests, and showed us different techniques in learning to do something. It was my mother who recognized that I had learning disabilities (I have dyslexia, which was not a common diagnosis...the school just called me "slow"), and she figured out new ways to help me read and do math because I couldn't keep the numbers and letters straight. They encouraged independence and experimentation.

I am a strong and highly educated professional writer nowadays who has successfully worked in all kinds of jobs and run my own home business for years. Having a good education has been the greatest joy of my life, and most of it was not gotten in a school setting. I live with the confidence of knowing that I absolutely can do anything I want to do in life and know how to get it.

So, kudos to you. I want to see our public school system ripped down to the ground and rebuilt.

 

[punk-a-doodle]

Quote: Same here. I learned so much from the outdoors, from exploring with friends, and from solitude too. Most importantly perhaps, I learned not to let fear completely dictate my life.

 

[HeatherLynn]

Thank God we live on a farm and the kids can run. I admit when we lived in town I was a wickedly overprotective mom and I still had CPS called on me. Apparently the neighbors felt that them playing even with me there was dangerous. I moved a couple months after that. I think how you parent depends on where you live. I have a friend who lives in a very close neighborhood. All the kids run from yard to yard. You don't generally see any parents until one gets hurts, then you have 5 moms running out their doors. Not sure how they manage but those kids have more moms and dads watching them than they can manage to escape and yet still have tons of freedom. Our old neighborhood was nothing like that and you had to be careful. We had convicted pedophiles living within walking distance. It was awful and I was nervous any time the kids were out. We had alarms on windows and I slept with a gun near bye. Nice old neighborhood that i grew up in but in a few short years it changed. Was not a good feeling. At the farm the kids are back to running free. All 3 ways are right for the circumstances.

I would just ignore everyone and do what you know is best.

 

[oesdog]

I guess parents can be too over protective.
Today I got a clear example of that. DH and I were out shopping. He was buying some shirts to take away on holiday with him. So while he was in the checkout queue I went to look in the ladies section. Well I felt this pull behind me and I turned round to find a lovely little girl holding two hair bobbles out to me. She said "I don't think I want these anymore?" - She was about 5 yrs old. I said, "I think you need to tell your Mummy that!" Then she looked at me and said, " I don;t know where my mummy is?" - Immediately I was seeing red lights flashing remembering the Jamie Bulger case ( 2 yr old abducted and murdered from a shopping mall!) So I held on to her hand and asked her, her name and what her mummy looked like? Blank expression and quivering lip! I don't know where mummy is? UGH!!!!!! Held hand a little tighter and said "don't worry we will find mummy"- as I am heading towards the checkout and staff! I saw DH at the counter and said to him, "Oh this little girl is lost she can't find her mummy!". The girl at the checkout looked up and said - " Bring her over and we will try to find her mummy?" I didn't know where the child had come from. She could have wondered into the shop from the main mall and her Mum could have been anywhere in any shop but it was important that she would stay in the place I had found her.
Just then a sour faced girl shows up - "don;t you be going off with strangers" she hollors at the child grabbing her and hawling her away without a backward glance or a simple thank you for taking the time to care for the child? She vertually treated me like I was going to take her child away not help reunite them? God knows I had 4 kids of my own and a grandaughter I sure wouldn't want to bring another home from the store! I was a bit angry with the mother for that because a simple thankyou for looking after her would have been nice!

It is sad that the world has come to this.

Oes

 

[furbabymum]

My 1 year old can wander as far as he wants on our property so long as he does not go near the stairs or the duck pond. Accidental drowning or death by falling down cement stairs are the only things I worry about. Since he usually has our St Bernard with him stranger danger and snakes don't worry me one bit.

 

[redhen]

I'm sure that hes in your eyesight though...that's different.

 

[oesdog]

My nephew drowned in a pond 2 years back he was only 2yrs old. If you have a pond NEVER EVER leave your child unattended.

Oes