Years before I was a mother, my husband and I babysat our young niece and nephew for the weekend. We were living in Vancouver and wanted to show them a good time so we took them to restaurants for meals, ice cream parlours for desserts, and costly tourist attractions for entertainment. We also took them to the arcade and the movies.
After two days of running around town, emptying my pocketbook and trying to keep up with the two Energizer bunnies, I felt exhausted and wondered if I would ever be ready to be a parent. And then I heard two words I felt confirmed the answer was no: “I’m bored,” the older one sighed loudly.
I was shocked as I heard the younger one agree: “Me too.”
I couldn’t believe it. We’d been having a blast and I couldn’t imagine what more we could have done to entertain these youngsters.
“Only boring people get bored,” I responded. I don’t think they understood what I meant by that, but it was something my mom said to me when I was a kid, and it always stuck.
It seemed to work on them as well. At least temporarily.
Our next activity was blowing bubbles, and though it was far less expensive and much simpler than anything else we’d done, the kids seemed to have the most fun with it.
The next day, after they’d gone home, I told my friend about the experience and my concern that I’d never have enough energy to be a mother. She laughed and said it’s different when the kids are your own. She was right.
I have two children now. Sam and Daisy are turning 14 and 11 this summer, and while I’ve treated them to things like I did with my nephew and niece, the bulk of their entertainment is left up to them, just like it was left up to me when I was a kid.
With school breaking for the summer, it’s a good time to remind myself of that. I want to hang out and make memories with them, but they have a lot more vacation time than I do.
And if they run out of ideas of things to do, a reminder of inexpensive activities could be helpful to them, so I made a list and attached it to the fridge. Part of it I got from suggestions I found when I searched the internet, and part of it was from a brainstorming session with Sam and Daisy.
We had fun compiling the list and came up with some great ideas on what we could do together – with friends and family as well.
Most of my best memories as a kid weren’t from the pricey vacations, but from simple pleasures that didn’t cost much at all. Playing games, riding bikes, running through sprinklers, throwing water balloons, skipping rope, tenting in the back yard – the possibilities seemed endless.
Solo pursuits were enjoyable as well. My kids tend to turn to electronics such as the computer, phone or television when they’re on their own, so we made a separate list of solitary activities that don’t involve technology, things that kids from the old days used to do.
While Sam and Daisy can easily amuse themselves with the digital world, I want them to appreciate the simple, pure fun of life that surrounds them. Just like I did in the olden days, so far back, the kids tease that I traveled by wagon.
Well, some us did travel by wagon I guess. The station wagon was one sweet ride.
Lori Welbourne is a syndicated columnist. She can be contacted at www.LoriWelbourne.com