When I was picking up my children from day camp yesterday, a dad and his daughter came in to check out the day camp and its private school. While the staff was giving him a sales pitch, he pointed to his 5-year-old daughter and engaged her by saying, "What do you think?" Then he looked at the staff member and explained smiling, "I'm a single dad, so she runs the house."
Wait. What? The kid is in charge?
Based on what I've observed, they're not the only family with that dynamic – he's just one of the few to verbalize it. And then today, I heard a radio commercial that asked the question, "Having a hard time keeping the kids busy this summer?"
Wait. What? It's my job to provide 24/7 entertainment and activities to my children?
I love my kids to death and would do anything for them. I also try to provide them with opportunities to do fun activities and learn more about things that interest them, but I'm not their personal activities director. We don't live in the dark ages – we have all the electronic gadgets and probably spend way too much time in front of the TV – but my husband and I also like to see them stretch their minds and their muscles.
Today my 7-year-old son and his buddy have had so much fun as "Captain America" and "his sidekick". I'm not even sure if Captain America actually has a sidekick, but nonetheless, they have been non-stop busy ALL day riding bikes, climbing trees, making themselves snacks ("No thanks, Mom, we can do it."), changing clothes to create their own "costumes" and generally just being boys.
So, if someone were to peek inside your home, who would they say is in charge? It's something to think about as we strive to help our children grow into responsible, thoughtful and respectful individuals.
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