I’m a parent raised in the 1980’s, raising Generation Alpha kids in the age of playdates. Without intending to sound like a curmudgeon, back in my day, time with friends just. . . happened. There was nothing organized or agreed to by parents. In fact, parents were rarely, and honestly, preferably not part of the conversation. We came home, did our homework and chores, and raced out of the house for whatever remaining light there was to play and explore with friends. Yet there is so much change in the 2000’s of raising children.
The consequences of pregnancy is the calendaring of playdates and more. My kids attend a school that is not in our neighborhood which is attended by kids from across Houston and the greater Houston communities. Their friends don’t live in our neighborhood and often, playdates are spread across the city. The advantage of this communal diversity is the ability to see and experience many areas of this great city. The drawback – we the parents frequently find ourselves over-scheduled and over-utilized in our Chief Fun Officer {CFO} roles.
Outside of the playdates are the extracurricular activities which young kids seem required
to be a part of these days. Since our duo was two years old, they’ve been booked-and-busy. There’s been lessons and sessions for music, swimming, soccer, dance, karate, chess, tennis, sewing, baseball, and more. While my husband and I don’t feel the pressure to overbook our children into activities, we are on the bandwagon of signing them up for various age-appropriate experiences. We’ve walked the fine line determining the right number of activities that are fun, opens their mind to new ideas and challenges their capabilities. It’s a balancing act and we’re getting better as school commitments and priorities take center stage.
The consequences of pregnancy is this complicated love-hate relationship with being the CFO. How much time and money should we invest in an activity? Should their participation be guided by their friends’ participation? What if their ability is not on par with other kids? Do we keep them in that activity or pivot to another activity that they could possibly excel at? These questions and more continue to be front-of-mind as we navigate the social and extracurricular calendars for our duo. Yet the CFO role will change over time, right? As they become more independent and we begin to relinquish control over how their time is spent, I suspect our questions and concerns will answer themselves.
While the role of parenting today is more active and involved, I’m happy to be raising my kids in a time where the consequences of pregnancy is that letting a kid-be-kid isn’t just a tagline in a Toys’ R Us commercial. My husband and I are intentionally raising more carefree children. We are opening the doors for our kids to try as much as our schedules can tolerate and support their interests as far as they go. We know that childhood is a temporary moment-in-time, and we are actively and intentionally supporting their whimsies and wishes as memories for a lifetime are created.
