How did they do it?!

As summer descends upon all parents we are hit with the dread of keeping our children safe and occupied! But this got me thinking...what about all of the women (and men) that came before us. Here we are in an age with swim clubs, gym childcare, TV, strollers, bouncers, playmats, iPads, Kindles and the most amazing toys...yet still here we are answering the question of "I'm bored, what are we going to do?" 50 times a day. 

It struck me yesterday, as I was trying to bring my three children outside to play in our back yard. I was lugging toys and jumpers and wrestling a canopy to the right place, slathering 50 organic SPF...just to get everyone outside and my kids to say "mommy, I'm hungry", "mommy, go in(side)", "mommy, I'm bored", that there were parents who put their children in cages in windows. There were thousands of years where children knew that parents were busy, hunting and gathering. 

How did Harriet Tubman bring children over 600 miles in the dark and we have a hard time getting through a meal at a restaurant without keeping our child completely entertained and occupied? How did Sacagawea travel all the way across the United States with a baby on her back? Do you think her son did 20 mins of tummy time everyday when they would stop to set up camp...NO! 

So moral of this story, parents...be kind to yourselves. If your child is bored...good! Let them use their imaginations, let them become self sufficient (to a point). I've decided I am going to stop feeling guilty when my kids say they are bored...because look around...our children live in the most advanced and socially caring time so far. I can guarantee this will not harm our children and I can guarantee that allowing them to be creative will only help them in the long run. 

We as parents put so much pressure on ourselves to make sure our children are as happy as possible and that is great...but we forget that there are children in every age of history that have experienced wonderful childhoods and it really just comes down to feeling loved. 

So let me be bored, then give them a big hug...and remind them that when you were little you used to have to "walk to school up hill, both ways in 6 feet of snow". ;)

 



At Our Legendary Ladies, we believe that when it comes to our children, the sky’s the limit. That’s why we’ve dedicated ourselves to creating beautiful, fun, and inspiring baby books that touch on some of history’s most iconic women. We’re not talking about famous pop stars or movie stars, we’re talking about amazing historical figures! Our children’s books go far beyond the basics of things like colors, numbers, and shapes. We discuss amazing women like Anandi Gopal Joshi and Harriet Tubman through beautiful illustrations and easy-to-understand language. Numerous studies have shown that when you read to your child at an early age, they are likely to have a large vocabulary later on (it can also help with math and science, too!).

HOW WE GIVE BACK

When you buy an educational baby book from Our Legendary Ladies, you can feel good about the fact that you’re helping us give back to the community. Not only are we passionate about creating amazing children’s books, we are also committed to helping the community any way we can. That’s why we’ve partnered with a variety of incredible non-profit partners including Sheltering Arms Children & Family Services, Bright By Three, and Jumpstart. You can learn more about our partners here.