Childhood Robber

There's a robber in our house....and it's me.  I am guilty as charged of robbing my kids of a true childhood.  I am also guilty of denying them many developmental opportunities.  What am I talking about??  I'm talking about my desire to keep them clean and germ free.  Or what's more likely the issue...my desire to not have more chores to do.

I was so proud of myself yesterday.  We got home from being gone overnight and before we even went in the house, I asked the kids if they wanted to play outside for awhile.  I knew how muddy it was and before yesterday I wouldn't have dreamt of letting them play outside in that.  I don't like dirt, mud, I hate giving baths (because they make a giant water mess in the bathroom), and I particularly dislike having to scrape mud and dirt off of shoes.  Maybe it was because this was our first opportunity to play outside in 3 months, but I didn't even bat an eye when they were getting dirty. 

Well, a small part of me was having a little anxiety, but mostly I was pretty calm.  The small part was that I kept thinking 1) our dryer is broken so I can't do laundry right away to clean their clothes and 2) Wyatt only has 1 pair of shoes...and they are crazy muddy!!!  Until yesterday, I didn't see the point in having more than 1 pair of shoes for a little boy.  It's not like they need them to match their outfits or anything...just a good pair of tennis shoes to run around in, right?!?!

This looks like a great chore for Daddy, who said "that's my boy"!
 

I know that playing outside and getting dirty is part of childhood, and probably something kids really actually NEED.  Ironically, a friend posted this article on Facebook yesterday and I saw it after we came back inside. http://wakeup-world.com/2015/03/08/dirt-is-not-dirty-how-playing-in-the-dirt-benefits-the-immune-system/  It reaffirmed my good feelings about having them playing outside yesterday.  As I think back to my childhood days, most of my memories are playing outside.  Some summers we would be outside with neighbor kids the entire day.

I know they say farm kids have some really great childhood experiences, but I have to admit, I feel really bad that mine will miss out on all the fun running around the neighborhood with other kids all summer long.  Maybe I can just drop them off to play a few times a week. 

Another thing I'm really bad about is letting Wyatt (and Rylee when she was his age) eat anything messy.  If he wants yogurt, for example, I hold the container and spoon feed it to him.  I know I'm haulting his ability to learn to do it himself...but I just really don't want to have to change his clothes and clean yogurt off the table, chair, and floor.  It has also taken me a really long time to let Rylee drink from a cup that doesn't have a lid, for the same reasons.  I know when I have toured daycare centers, they have young toddlers using cups without lids....but I just couldn't let Rylee do that until recently (and she's almost 4).  Wyatt will probably be 10 before he gets to do that ;)

I think I will make my goal this summer be to let them just enjoy their childhood and do the things kids need to do.  I realize that will likely mean more work for me, but at the end of the day, it will all be okay.....I think....I don't know, yesterday I saw some kids wrestling in the mud and all I could think was, "Glad I'm not their mom!"