It’s funny how much joy it brought to me to see Rachael running to me with an old favorite toy. She came to me to show me one of her favorite toys from when she was learning to crawl until walking. And for a 17 month old, any toy that makes the favorite list for a good 5 months is a big deal – that’s a good part of her life. This little toy sings a rhyming song about the animal that is face-up on the cube. It’s a completely fabric cube toy so it’s little baby-teething safe. Rachael loved it so much that Matt and I have the rhyming songs for each of the 6 sides memorized. We could practically sing them in our sleep.

But what means more to me than the cube is the memory of the smiles and animation that toy brought out of little Rachael. It was that same animation and excitement the small toddler had as she ran to me with the toy.

I remember that specific cube toy going on a trip with me to Dallas. I was nannying for a three year old and a 9 month old on their vacation. I had those same songs memorized since the cube was one of a handful of toys we had with us for a week. And when the news spread of my pregnancy with Rachael, the hand-me-down cube toy found it’s way to our home. How funny to think of the now 8 or so year old (once 3 y/o) and her younger brother who is 5 (once 9 months) – and since then there’s been another brother added to the family. It was just funny how Rachael running across the room to me with utter joy flashed all the memories through my mind at once. And now our little Abi will get the blessing of playing with the same cube of memories.

I am happy to be found old fashioned when it comes to raising Rachael.

I guess I just think there is too big of a push for kids to grow up. I have found more exposure to this regarding the kind of comedy that kids are watching on say, the Disney channel. Like “I Carly” for example. I don’t have anthing against the show, personally, there’s not any garbage in the show or poor material. It’s just that it’s encouraged to have a small child watch the show. The show’s designed for the “pre-teen” population, but many of the clothes are sold in preschool sizes. Again, there’s nothing distasteful about the show, it’s just that there’s something about cartoons and silly little kid shows disappearing that makes me a bit sad. (Gotta love PBS, but somehow they’re the only channel that has kept truly preschool shows.) Dora, which was actually designed for the preschool age, is now a “baby show” and something “older” has taken Dora’s place in the preschooler’s eyes.

It’s sad to watch a child really have no idea how to play. It reminds me of two little girls in my old afternoon kindergarten class. They were “surprise” kids in a line of older siblings. And these girls were so obesssed with appearance and “boyfriends” that they did not know how to play. They just sat around talking about others. It was so sad. Sticks and dirt and rocks meant nothing to them. I remember how I used to play outside all day long n the summer. I have no idea what I did, but I loved it. Now don’t get me wrong, there’s the book readers verses outdoor kids among us everywhere, but the book readers used to be the exception to the other “normal” kids who played outdoors. Now the book readers remain still the exception and the majority being kids that struggle to play. The routine instead is coming home from daycare , where a tight schedule is created with minimal freeplay, supper, bath and bed. Where’s the imagination encouragement?

I miss the concept of putting a kid in play clothes and letting them tear loose in the backyard mud. Now their polo might get dirty.

Sure I’m stuck in my own bias, I’ll be happy to own up to that. I just wish I heard of more parents who play dressup with their kids instead of turn on the TV. I wish I saw evidence of more parents stacking blocks without needing to announce colors and shapes with Einstein movies in the background for their 9 month old. There is value in learning, but sometimes we can push too hard to grow a child up that we lose the joy of their current development. Sometimes splashing in the bathtub and mouthing toys is enough.

Hope I don’t forget that any time soon.