Mamahood

A Magical Childhood…

There was an article I read a while back on The Huffington Post  titled, “ I’m Done Making My Kid’s Childhood Magical ” by Bunmi Laditan . It was an “ah ha” moment for me. And I’m so happy that someone was able to pull themself out of that rabbit hole to take notice of it. I shakily raise my hand as I am someone who is trying to make my children’s life magical.

When I look back at my childhood, good memories flood in. I think about playing with my dolls, swimming with friends, going to the park, throwing the softball around with the neighborhood boys, bike rides. To be honest, I have a very small recollection of memories prior to the age of 8. Except that I was well loved and looked after by my mom. But what I do remember and value is the simplicity of my childhood especially growing up on a very tight budget.

But what I do remember and value is the simplicity of my childhood...

In this day and age we are inundated with ideas for us parents to keep our children busy. From arts and crafts, to snacks, to DIY everything, to classes up the ying yang. And when I read it, it means someone else is out there accomplishing it. It can make me feel I’m not fitting in to this new mold of what the “ideal mom” looks like these days.

So yes, I get my fair share of ideas for crafts off Pinterest and we are classed up. But I’m keeping tabs on myself, trying to keep it simple and take it back to basics for my children. To give them the space to build their own imagination and experiences instead of me laying down all the ground work. Because I really can’t remember my mom doing any arts and crafts with me and I turned out OK 🙂

My hope is that my children will look back on their childhood and remember the love and laughter around them. To me thats what truly counts and those are the magical memories I’m going for.

Would love to hear what you think about this article.

 

From my home to yours,

Emma xx

childhoodParenting

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Desiree says:

Beautifully said Emma!

carli says:

Hi Emma, i think iam feeling this at the minute, my secong baby is due in august a week after my son theo turns four eeekkkk, and up to now ive always thrown him parties with lots of people and ive realy tried to go that extra mile by making cakes and invites myself, but this yr being pregnant has thrown me into this cloud of tiredness and i cant do as much as id like. My hubby and I have agreed to throw a small party at home in the garden for him but a few wks earlier incase baby comes early, so im trying to keep it simple and easy on a budget but with all the flare hes used to.
im so worried he will feel pushed out as he is old enough to know.
i just hope him having me around and close by will give him that love and attention he deserves xxx

kc says:

Hi Emma,
Love the article. Thank you for sharing!! As i prepare for motherhood, which has me scared to death. But like you said i turned out ok too. And my mom was a working mom who kept it simple. And i have nothing but loving memories of her and my childhood. Its funny that you shared this article with us because just the other day i thought of just the simple things she would do with me like plau chinese checkers and it made me smile. As always your pics are so sweet.

Wishing you well
kc

Roxanne says:

Hi Emma,
Thankyou so much for sharing that article. That is it in a nutshell. I grew up on a farm in upstate New York. Needless to say there was not a lot of money to go around. My grandparents always made sure we had all the basics, food, clothes you know all that stuff. The best things they ever gave me was all the love in their hearts, the freedom to be a kid and a set of values that is unwavering. We lived by the golden rule. I remember the long walks down the river road with my grandmother. We would stop to skip stones in the creek and look at the fish. My grandfather would trade this and that for pieces and parts to build bikes and soap box cars to ride down the laneway. We climbed trees and jumped two stories out of the hay loft when we were finished cleaning it out. ( which my grandmother was not to keen on…lol ) In the evenings everybody would gather in the kitchen and we would push back the kitchen table and play music and sing and dance and laugh till it was bedtime. We didn’t have alot but we had everything in the world that was important… love and each other. I wouldn’t trade those days for all the money in the world. I am happy to say that I raised my kids the same way and my son is doing the same with his daughter as well.
Simple and uncomplicated is great. So many times I look at families when we are out and about and it’s sad. People sitting at a table for a meal and everybody on their phones or video games and what not. What happened to the days of conversation?
The things your kids are going to remember the most is the times you spent together as a family. The simple things…reading a book together or turning up the music and dancing your hearts out. It’s hard not to want to give them all the “things” you didn’t have growing up. But that’s just it they are just things. They already have all of you and that’s the best there is.
Thanks again for sharing Emma. Hi to all the moms and grandmothers in our community. I wish you all good times and happiness.
Until next time,
Roxanne

Julie @ Girl on the Move says:

When I look back on my childhood it feels magical to me…but we had very little money and my mom made magic happen for us with chalk and a big backyard! We let our imaginations run wild and I have so many positive memories of those days…and a reminder the experiences don’t have to be over the top to be magical

Emma Heming Willis says:

They really don’t! I try to remember to reference my childhood all the time. It’s doesn’t have to be big to be amazing. Keep it simple 🙂

Rosemary - AreKay (RK) says:

Back in the mid 60’s my Mom got a new TV that was delivered in a very large box. That night we babysat for a neighbor’s little girl. We entertained her all evening by placing her inside the box while I sang the Jack-in-the-Box song. When I got to the “Pop Goes the Weasel” part, I hit the side of the box and Connie would jump up. Lots of fun and giggles that night!
Also, my husband and I took another neighbor’s two sons to the zoo. The car trip was an hour and a half drive so to keep the boys from getting bored on the long ride, we bought Chip and Dale (Disney Chipmunks) hand puppets. Michael and Nick had great fun playing with them and using them to wave at passing cars from our car’s rear window!

Emma Heming Willis says:

It’s the simple things!
And I love that you just took your friends kids to the zoo! Wanna come and take mine?! Lol. Just kidding. But I’m sure that Mommy really appreciated that 🙂

ROXY says:

Beautiful article Emma! Thank you for sharing … I completely agree with you in keeping it simple!.. make the ordinary come alive for them… the extraordinary will take care of itself 🙂

Emma Heming Willis says:

Well said xx

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