Ode to GI Joe

I was reading an article on the Huffington Post this morning (mmmm politics are GOOD for breakfast!) and there was an article explaining why 'Healthy' habits may be a bad thing. This got me thinking- are we really healthier now than we used to be? I think NOT!

You may read the entire article http://www.huffingtonpost.com/therese-borchard/6-healthy-habits-that-can_b_300013.html

For example: When I was a kid we played outside all day- I mean it- really- all freakin' day. When the street lights came on we had to be home. Saturdays especially, probably due to the Bowling for Dollars and Horror movies that were on. I mean seriously- ewwwwwww. So we played outside and rode our bikes. Yeah- we were girls but we played outside. We made forts and hung out with our friends. I remember taking Barbies to a new level when we used to fling the Barbie's camper down the back stairs and have 'EMERGENCY' episodes of our own.OHHH when they met our cousin's GI Joes........

The real GI Joes with fuzzy hair and cool gear. Kung Fu grip even! These were tough characters with scars and everything. You know they had been through shit. They were made strong but the challenges they had faced. NICE. We didn't have hand sanitizer or half the Immunizations we have now. Nobody wore bike helmets and we never heard of Neosporin. Seriously- are we creating a nation of pansy kids? I guess if I think about it, I am as guilty as the next person. As a fearful yet pragmatic single Mom, keeping the kids safe and well was as much out of love as it was practical. If one of my kids got sick My employer gave me huge problems staying home with them so it was best avoided.

I always tried to make sure they remembered their gloves, avoided strangers, and basically wrapped them in bubble wrap to protect them from the dangers of the world. Did it work? Yes and no. They all survived but at what price? My oldest daughter is 20 and afraid to leave home. My fault. Luckily the man in my life intervened and prevented me from completely turning my son into a pussy, Thank God for him. On more than one occasion he threw his hands up and told me point blank I was being silly and to let the boy go do whatever it was and he would be fine. He was always right.

He grew up with GI Joes too and he knew that to be strong one must tackle adversity and come through it instead of avoiding it altogether....

So here is my advice. Let them play outside and skip the hand sanitizer.

Shut up and eat your Halloween Candy....

The past 10 years have been a blur, really. I got divorced with truly no clue how I would support my kids and raise them to be competant, decent citizens of the world. I had no idea how I would work full time, remember when teacher conferences were, cook dinner in 20 minutes or less, have a love life, do the laundry, clean the house, shop for the holidays, remember birthdays, pay the mortgage, get my nails done, sew on a missing button, and get through each day.

Every morning I would get out of bed a little afraid and a little excited. Some days I pulled off the impossible and other days I sucked.

"MOM! MOM! Erin took my Polly Pocket!! MOM! MOM!what's for dinner???"

"Shut up and eat your Halloween Candy.....'

Balance? impossible. Sometimes stuff had to slide- missing homework, forgetting to schedule dentist appointments, a check bounced, I missed a deadline for a project for my boss because I was up all night with a sick child, you get the idea. I was mostly overwhelmed and exhausted. I look back and remember thinking that I was a failure and we would never survive.

But I was wrong.

Somehow we figured it out. Christmas shopping got done, cupcakes were made for the school bakesale, homework got checked, and immunizations were administered on schedule. Once, I remember calling my sister from the grocery store asking her how to cook a particular cut of meat that was on sale because I couldn't cook to save my life, thank God for her. I managed to love my work and I never got fired. Now, 10 years later, my kids are teenagers- and they are actully pretty neat folks too. Awwww they have their moments, but all in all, they turned out good. They need me less and less nowadays and it makes me sad, funny enough. I suppose I am suffering from being soon to be empty-nester and looking for the ME who got put on a shelf while I juggled life.

So here we are and where are you?

Gingersnap