Cub Scouts and Bridges

It was a no school day so our Pack had scheduled a field trip to see Portland's Bridges. Timmy rode the train with his den, Nate and I decided we wanted to drive up so we did. I have learned to cherish the time spent with my children individually. Nate has quite the sense of humor and when we are not butting heads he is pretty fun to be around. We got to Omsi and walked to meet our group. It was a lot of fun. Maybe we will all ride the train next time. 

The older kids were able to go underneath the bridge while the younger ones stayed on top. They were able to see what happens when the bridges open. It was really cool.  

Apparently I am mean and unfair. Oh well get use to it.

I love my kids. They didn't happen by accident. We actually had to try and have them. So I didn't come into parenthood accidentally like some do. It was on purpose and by choice. I knew I was going to have to make sacrifices and never quite have privacy ever again. It was still something that I happily ran towards.

So fast forward ten years and I have become mean and unfair according to some parents and my children. Oh well. They can deal with it. My kids do not have TVs in their room and have limited electronic time each day and only if their chores are done. Oh yes, my children have chores. They have things that they are expected to do around the house. If things are not done then they don't get to do fun stuff. Even my two year old is expected to throw her diapers away (we are starting to potty train), put her dishes in the sink and help pick up her toys. 

We all want to our children to have more than what we had growing up. I think where parents differ is on how they define more. To some its more stuff and less responsibility. And that is their right I guess. I actually thought about this quite a bit this week. What was the more that I want to give my kids? 

My conclusion was that it had nothing to do with stuff at all. I want them to have more opportunities than I did. I want them to try more things than I was able to do. I want them to find more out of life earlier than I did. I want them to have more.