Amazing that the kids had survived, a Look At Parenting Through The Decades.
Did you ever hear an "old school" mom say "we never had that when are kids were little and we survived"
Maybe we should take a look,back in time, at how yesterday moms approach at parenting.
"Leave it to beaver" show Beaver and Wally Sharing Soda Pop
1950- 60s Flashback
No child proof caps On medicines.
Did they still take medicine? Yes, but they managed to keep it out of going in their children's mouth.
Nothing but glass bottles and they heated them in a pan on the stove with Hot Water.
How did they keep from burning the babies,?they checked the temperature by squirting it out on their wrist.
Toys filled cribs everywhere
Dolls,stuffies and more filled the sleeping crib of babies, this would keep them entertained while they were falling asleep.
Babies drank bottles of Milk
Mother's milk or regular milk,and they started eating baby food and solids earlier
Cloth Diapers With pins
no huggies then,you would find moms wrapping their babies in cloth diapers and pinning them.(the diapers not the babies) .
No Baby Monitors,and.Babies were further away.
The only monitor moms had were ears.Retro moms also left their babies in the carriage outside alone,while they would clean.
No locks on cupboards, moms let Kids bang on pots and Pans.
They didn't have any locks on cupboards and drawers,kids explored moms had to keep a watchful eye where things went in their kitchen.
No outlet plugs.
Yes, they had electricity then,how did they do it?
School-kids walked to school when they started school,as little as 5 years old.
It was common then to see a group of small kids, walking together ,or as little as one kid walking alone.
Kids rode bikes without helmets,sometimes without Shoes.
You would not See helmets,knee pad, and elbow pads,kids scraped knees and elbows,moms patched them up.
No internet, kids socialized on the street,and home work help was encyclopedias.
When kids couldn't spell a word,they looked it up,in a book,and didn't Google it.
No Video game systems, kids entertainment was fairs and Carnivals.
It is hard to imagine life before Video games,like Xbox but kids managed to have a happy childhood without them.
Most kids Didn't have their own swingset.
If they wanted to swing and slide they went to the local park,if one was available.
Kids drank soda pop and ate Candy,there were usually trips to the candy store frequently.
Most parents are a NO Zone for Soda,but the soda shop was the place to be back then.
Toys Toys Toys
Toys were made of metal,some with sharp edges, some toys were made out of wood with Lead Paint.Toys had small parts and were not age labeled parents used their own judgement.
School days
Kids would fight on the playground and would not go into counseling.They would call their parents in to the school and send them home.
Society
Society was more innocent then, even television, kids did not get pressured in growing up and were able to enjoy being kids longer.
So in conclusion there was good sides and bad sides to parenting in the 50s and 60s, but Isn't that true today,too?
How did parenting change through the 70s and 80s
Since the early 1970s, parental anxieties greatly increased both in scope and intensity. Many parents sought to protect children from every imaginable harm by baby-proofing their homes, most cars had safety belts, but no one barely used them,until the safety belt law came in effect.Moms started trying to get the kids to wear helmets but mostly kids with health problems were the only ones that did.
Television was a babysitter
Kids television programs become more popular and kids could watch tv as much as they wanted,why? Because no one said it was bad for them.Although parents believed back then,that sitting to close to the t.v. was bad for kids eyesight.(which was later disproven)My Aunt still goes along with this myth,as well as, the chewing gum myth it taking 10 years to disgust swallowed gum.
Missing Children, Parents become aware of Kidnapping danger.
Missing kids are still everybody's fear.The whole milk carton phenomenon began in the 70s.Starting by a dad searching for help finding his missing son,Etan Patz, who vanished on May 29th, 1972. Eatans dad was a professional photographer,who put his son's picture with a number to call,on posters and he was first to put his missing child on a milk carton.
Sun Protection for kids
Although 70s and 80s moms,slightly touched on the protection from the sun,Spf was really low protection.It was quite common for kids to be dark bronzed from being out in the sun all day.
TV Dinners
As a lot of moms started working in the 70s and 80s,and the Television room, replacing the dinner table,a lot of tv dinners were served.They didn't stress about the health-worthiness, they were something new and convenient.
In Conclusion, I believe the 70s and 80s were a turning point in a lot of ways.But I am glad some things changed.With the dangers of no seat belts and Motor Vehicle accidents and the sun causing skin cancer,some things are necessary to keep kids safe.
90s til today,Safety Bubble,What Happened how did we take it this far?
So in the 90s through today things got a little crazy let us start with..
Childproofing your home-
So starting in the kitchen,this is what we are supposed to have.Cabinet Covers,Drawer Locks, Burner knob Covers, and Refrigerator door locks.not to mention no hot to touch burners,oven door lock.
Bathroom-toilet lid lock,flushable wipes,lockable medicine cabinet,cover for tub faucet,Toothbrush Cover,Bath ducky to test temperature Of water.(elbow works just fine).
Gates on stairs also gate in frront of home office door,and the list goes on and on.Including an alarm on the slider to the deck,that will sound if child tries to sneak out.
No movement detector, goes under babies mattress to alarm you if baby stops moving.
I have even seen a bumper around a fireplace. Video monitors, well past baby stage And leash harnesses so little ones don't run from their moms.
Toys
Toys are not only made for certain ages,sspecifically marked on them,They Are also recalled at the drop of a hat.(marbles recalled child sticks it up nose)Obviously this is a made up scenario,but this is what happens,child is not supervised and gets hurt and the toy is to blame.
Toys are being made more than safety for Fun.(this boggles my mind).
Food
Food is supposed to be organically grown and no artificial flavors,soda for kids is banished and candy and Microwave food are out.
Television
TV is advertising sexual themes,even on cartoon channels And violence is record high.Parents limit children watching TV to one hour a day,but kids walk around with their cell phones like zombies and they never put them down.
Kids wear helmets
Kids also wear knee pads,elbow pads, have reflectors and take a safety course for riding their bike.
Parents Are Afraid Of Strangers
Parents are so afraid of kidnappers taking their children away, they sometimes take this to far nowadays, by not letting children socialize with adults even when parents are present.
In conclusion I think we have a lot of great things for kids now,but think that we are keeping them too safe and need to relax a little more.There had been research about too safe of environment actually hindering children's development. It seems that the more information we find out of what is bad for kids,the more emphasis is put into trying to protect them from it.
