We Did It, But Today They'd Call Child Services (daycare, lawyers, spanking)

[happycamper5]

Here's the best !! A large truck use to ride up and down the blocks spraying [then] Toxic pesticide fog from the back of it and my friends and I followed right behind it ,riding in the Chemical Fog ! ....no wonder I'm not normal!

[aomething]

My parents have an RV (truck camper-slides into bed of truck). Well one night when I was about 4, my mom was working, and Dad had to take my sister and I to work with him. He had the camper on the truck and we rode in the back of the camper. Not allowed anymore as there are no seatbelts. Any way, he went into work, left sister (age 8) and I in the camper to go to sleep. I slept on the bunk over the table and sister slept in bed at table. Dad left work (didn't want to wake us) and drove home. We slept in the bunks all the way home, which was just a half hour, but if anyone knew that we had been in the camper sleeping in the bunks....Dad and Mom would have been in SO much trouble!!!

We did so much as kids that as a parent I cringe to let my son know what I used to do!!

[momof2dfw]

^^^ TOO FUNNY!!! LOVE IT!
We used to play IN the cars and trucks all the time. Even in the heat of the summer they were unlocked and we would be crawling all over and in them. Playing like we were driving and all.

Then of course to get to REALLY drive when I was 12. By the time I was 14 I was driving by myself w/ my little sister and younger cousin IN THE CITY! My grandfather would hand me the keys and tell me to take them to the store for us to get a coke. My parents knew and didn't mind a bit. My oldest is 13 - I just taught her to start the car earlier this year for it to "warm up" in the mornings and that IS IT! Maybe next summer when she is 14 I'll let her drive in an EMPTY PARKING LOT! MAYBE!

Originally Posted by JC JC Mom

I remember the springing horse, merry go round, see-saw, metal slides (which really did burn) Playing Freeze tag, monkey in the middle, jumping rope riding bikes, or big wheels. Just having fun I didnt care how dirty i was - Oh i also remember going into the corner grocery store and picking up cigerettes for my cousin with no questions asked I was about 14 at the time.

At a park close by us this summer they removed all of the old metal playground equipment including THE Rocket Ship. You can find it online probably and some pictures (City of Richardson, Texas at Heights Park). SAD DAY! Took the kids and got lots of pictures. LOVED the old metal slides and stuff. The AWESOME merry-go-rounds and all. THOSE were FUN! Run till you puke and jump on.

Originally Posted by happycamper5

Here's the best !! A large truck use to ride up and down the blocks spraying [then] Toxic pesticide fog from the back of it and my friends and I followed right behind it ,riding in the Chemical Fog ! ....no wonder I'm not normal!

OH MY GOSH!!! TOO FUNNY! LOVE IT!

[momof2dfw]

Here in Dallas we had Sears at Valley View Mall. They had THE BEST Toy Dept EVER! It was AWESOME and HUGE! Toys, bikes and all kinds of stuff out for you to play with. There were exit doors to the parking lot right there next to the highway so it was NOT "secure" in the least. Parents would drop us off to go shop while we played. I don't EVER remember a kid getting unruly there and not a single adult supervising and whatever toys we played with the kids ALWAYS put them back. Don't even remember running across a single thing broken or a bully. Nowadays at the local McD's playland w/ mom sitting right there not 5' away and jr is acting like a spoiled brat, pushing down little bitty one's, talking smack, being a bully, breaking things, etc and mom/dad totally lost in space.

So remember "the arm" as the only seatbelt we had. Laying across the back window on road trips. Oh, at church one night my parents left my baby sister IN THE CAR and it was FREEZING outside. They each thought the other got her. It was only AFTER church someone from the nursery asked my mom where she was. She was laying on the backseat sound asleep. Thank God it was a short service Hmm, that's what is wrong with her

We used to walk ALL OVER! Or ride bikes. Go to the local convienence store for candy and a Slurpee. Go to the creek and catch tadpoles. Meet friends at the park. You think I'm gonna let MY KIDS do that now? NO WAY!

[Jaxson]

momof2dfw you jarred another childhood memory in me. We learned to drive at age 10 growing up on the farm. We drove the tractors, combines and trucks on our land. By age 13 be were driving the grain trucks into the elevator, age 15 the semi pulling the grain trailer. Before age 10 we were delegated to mowing duties. By age 16 were we pulling 6 horse gooseneck horse trailers all over this country. That rig was just 3 ft. short of a semi BTW. Stone Mt. in Georgia just about did me in the first time I had to drive that with the horses.

I taught my nieces, nephews and my own children to drive at age 13 on our property. My own kids got to go onto the road when I felt they were road ready, but only our country roads. Then when my oldest got his license it was like pulling teeth to get him to drive. His driver's ed teacher said he was the most ready student he had ever had though.

[momof2dfw]

Originally Posted by Jaxson

momof2dfw you jarred another childhood memory in me. We learned to drive at age 10 growing up on the farm. We drove the tractors, combines and trucks on our land. By age 13 be were driving the grain trucks into the elevator, age 15 the semi pulling the grain trailer. Before age 10 we were delegated to mowing duties. By age 16 were we pulling 6 horse gooseneck horse trailers all over this country. That rig was just 3 ft. short of a semi BTW. Stone Mt. in Georgia just about did me in the first time I had to drive that with the horses.

I taught my nieces, nephews and my own children to drive at age 13 on our property. My own kids got to go onto the road when I felt they were road ready, but only our country roads. Then when my oldest got his license it was like pulling teeth to get him to drive. His driver's ed teacher said he was the most ready student he had ever had though.

LOL!!! Hubby even says the same thing. Driving about 11-12. He got to drive the truck pulling the "gate" to drag the ball fields. I was taught how to drive a "3 on the tree" 65 Ford truck back then too. My grandfathers car was a land yacht. My dad was a truck driver so he also taught me to drive as well and I knew how to go thru the entire "inspection" before he could hit the road. Even though I lived in the "big city" my grandparents lived off and on between the city and small towns. I kid my husband I got to ride up in those big wheat combines and he never did Or drive across fields in beat up cars/trucks.

First day of drivers ed in high school: Teacher asks the question, "who has driven?" I pop my hand up and then look around realizing I have the lone hand sticking up. You gotta be kidding me. I was the only girl in our car w/ a coach and 3 guys. Whenever I was behind the wheel the coach/instructor took a nap. LOL!!! The only thing he ever had to say to me was where to go, to "slow down" AND "you MUST drive with BOTH hands on the wheel for your driving test". Shucks, I came from the country school of driving. One hand on the wheel and the other shifting gears or hanging out the window. I think I was the only one in the entire class that got to drive on the main interstate THRU Dallas.

Oh, and we got to shoot guns when we were kids. Not just bb's either but real handguns and rifles. Target practice w/ phone books or tin cans or out hunting. Nowadays if you gave a 12 year old a bb gun most people would think your telling the kid to go hold up a liquor store.

[Dora Milaje]

Originally Posted by fierce_flawless

Being poor, even if only temporarily, can get you a visit from Social Services.

It doesn't even have to be that. My sister-in-law's son started going through a phase where he'd change his clothes when he got to school in order to look tough. He was starting to cut up a little too, getting mouthy and slacking off in school and whatnot, but the clothes were the final straw. His mother took away all this clothes, giving him seven sets of white shirts, seven pairs of underwear, two pairs of khaki pants, two pairs of blue jeans and two pairs of shoes, IIRC. Didn't even take two weeks for CPS to come a-knocking. To be fair, the lady did apologize, explaining that they have to follow up on ANY report of child abuse or neglect, but that blew our minds. It didn't help that his room was so empty that you could hair an echo - box springs, mattress, blanket and sheets. But I tell you what - that was back in grade four and my beloved nephew is 16 now and the most level-headed, well-behaved young man you'd ever want to know.

Originally Posted by bibit612

I was about 11 years old then, going to get my own Rx!

My mom used to send me around the corner to get her cigarettes. Cut to a few years ago, when they wouldn't let her buy any because she didn't have her ID on her. She was 42! And then they wouldn't sell them to me, and I HAD my ID. Why? "Because you might give them to her." *HEADDESK*

Originally Posted by drjones96

OK here's my take. There are lots of different levels of theft. There's punching someone in the face and stealing their wallet out of their back pocket all the way down to accidentally acquiring new items. This incident is pretty benign on that range of offenses. The kid probably thought that if he put his gum up there and it ended up coming home in a sack that it was ok because it must have gotten paid for....because surely the clerk wouldn't put it in a sack unless it had been rung up right?

Did he ask his mom if he could get the gum before he threw it up there? Because if not, sounds to me like shorty was being a little "slick ass," as my dad would say.

Originally Posted by 925mine

Glad to hear other people grew up like I did.

Here's another one. We were sent outside to play in the morning and got to go back in when it got dark. (Well, that may be a BIT of a stretch, but we WERE sent out for the day, and seldom went in before dark except to eat.)

Annnnnnd we poor kids were all half dehydrated because you didn't want to go inside and have your mom say "Stop coming in and out of my house! STAY INSIDE!!!!" Then you had to look all around the place for a (GASP!) water hose or just go thirsty! I'm telling you, it made a stellar athlete out of me!

Originally Posted by kimmieyky

Anybody remember a rope tied to the barn rafters, taking a leap and swinging down to the hay bales?

We had this swinglike...thing tied to a tree at my auntie's house. I mean a big ol' talllll tree. I have no idea how they even got up there to tie it. Anyway, We would take the swing, CLIMB TO THE ROOF and jump off the roof onto the swing. There was a shed in front of you and the house behind you, meaning you better twist your body fast enough to hit with your legs and push back off the sides. And nobody ever got hurt!

Oh, and one last thing: let's all stand with hands over hearts for the joy that was DODGEBALL! It took me a while to perfect my one-armed whipping throw, but when I did...watch out now!!! Lawd, lawd, lawd, these poor kids are probably on the playground with their Nintendo DS!

[allylang1]

Originally Posted by happycamper5

Here's the best !! A large truck use to ride up and down the blocks spraying [then] Toxic pesticide fog from the back of it and my friends and I followed right behind it ,riding in the Chemical Fog ! ....no wonder I'm not normal!

I had forgotten about that!!! How funny that explains everything!! LOL

[ShanaBrown]

Horrific memory...my brother used to put me in our dryer and turn it on....he'd time me while i went around and around, we were trying for the Guiniss book of World records on drying riding. OMG that was so dumb!

Pretending to be Tarzan, swinginig from vines, jumping off of the garage roof getting the wind knocked out of me once when I busted my lip after my chin hit a wire clothesline strung between 2 trees (but that did little to quench the tomboyishness in me); Swinging on a homemade wire swing and having it break landing on my back, getting the wind knocked out of me, playing in undies outside up until age 8 or 9, staying out late all day until suppertime, riding with no helmets, getting spanked by those horrible thin switches, being allowed to go off with neighborhood kids at age 5 or 6 in Washington, D.C. to get into all sorts of mischief. We had this fave. old house that we loved to throw stones at and once the old woman who lived there came out. We were scared and thought that she was going to call the police, but she gave us candy instead and asked us not to throw the rocks. After that we never touched her house again! ; Skating down our paved driveway with no knee pads and getting scarred up pretty bad, the merry go round, hot metal slides, throwing sand on the slides to make us slide faster, seeing how how high we could swing and then jumping out..staying inside our car w/window rolled up waiting for hours while my mother had meetings after school (She was a teacher) ; having to inhale second hand smoke all of the time because most of my older relatives were smokers...God bless.

[jtur88]

When we played bang-bang-youre-dead games, we used real BB guns. We figured the chances of taking one in the eye were mathematically pretty slim, and BBs didn't hurt much if they hit your clothing from more than about 10 yards. We observed a general rule of aiming low and no shooting at point blank range.

Picture 12-year-old boys running through the back yards and alleys of your town shooting each other with BB guns in 2009.

On nice days, our art teacher would send us outdoors to sketch. Some guys kept fishing tackle in their locker, and would fish instead of sketch, and keep their catch in the art-room sink until it was time to go home.

There was no such thing as a snow day. If you could get to school, you go to school. The students unilaterally declared three afternoon holidays every year. Everyone would leave for lunch and not come back. 1- The worst snow day, 2- the first really lovely day of spring, 3- the day of the crucial World Series game, which was always a day game in those days. The principal effectively combatted #3 by putting Mel Allen's broadcast on the school PA system, but he couldn't do anything about the weather.

I think the last time I saw any kids having fun was about 10 years ago. On any given summer day, there would be about a dozen kids jumping off the US-98 bridge into the St. Marks River, at Newport, Florida. My 50-year-old wife got out of the car and slipped on her swinsuit and went and jumped in along with them.