I understand...

Recently, I had a conversation with Madeline that went something like this:

Madeline: You just don't understand!! You have no idea what it is like to be a kid!!

Me: Actually I do (and I dedicate this post to Madeline)

When I was a kid, it was the 80's. I have to say, I think the 80's was the coolest decade ever. I mean ever, ever. Everyone was happy, the songs on the radio were happy. We wore flourescent colored clothing and plastic shoes. It was all about girls wanting to have fun....and that meant by dancing and having sleep overs with your friends, and nothing else. Music video's were entertaining. Madonna was still cute and innocent. Michael Jackson dressed up like a zombie and danced with the other undead, and I couldn't get enough of it. I use to dance in my bedroom, with my leg warmer's on, listening to The Culture Club, and Duran Duran on my record player, just knowing that if I practiced hard enough, I too, would be able to be a Solid Gold dancer. I watched "Fame" religiously, and dreamed of going to some...any...school of performing arts when I became a teenager. My Saturday mornings were spent watching The Smurfs, and my evenings were spent watching The Muppet Show, and on special occasions, if we were lucky, an encore presentation of Strawberry Shortcake would come on.

Check out my "Fame" shirt....was that COOL, or what? Even my little sister Erika is decked out in my mom's electric sparkle shirt...everything sparkled in the 80's. (circa 1983)

What else did kids in the 80's do? Collected stickers, of coarse!! Most of us had sticker books, (which were usually one of mom's old photo albums) the coolest stickers included Cabbage Patch Kids, Smurfs, and any that were "puffy", "googly eyed", or "smelly". (I had a mean orange scented Smurfette). I also loved my Cabbage Patch Kid. Her name was Carlette Carlie, and she had brown hair and blue eyes just like me. I imagine my mom and Nana had to sucker punch a few other moms at the toy store to get their hands on her. Thanks mom and Nana. I read Garfield books and Archie Comic books. I threaded tiny beads on to safety pins, and wore them across my shoelaces....yes, friendship pins - because the more you had, the cooler you were. I begged for a plastic bracelet from the quarter machine every time we went to the grocery store, until I had a whole forearm's worth. The coolest bracelets said "Awesome" and "Excellent".
My summer's were spent outside, all day every day. We rode our bikes, and roller skated...with four wheels. We made up dances, and practiced cartwheels, and jump roped. If you got really good, you could double dutch. We walked to the pool and met our friends to go swimming - by ourselves! The closest thing we had to a computer or video game, was Donkey Kong and Pac-man down at the local donut shop, and that cost too much to play anyway. We didn't watch TV during the day because they didn't have kids shows on during the day. Sesame Street, but that was only for an hour. No one had VCR's yet, so we didn't watch movies either. Life was simpler, wasn't it?
My cousin's and I posing for a Christmas pic, circa 1980 (can you guess who I am?)

My favorite movies were E.T., The Goonies, The Secret of Nimh, Firestarter, Splash, and Gremlins. (I can proudly say we have at least 3 of those in our current movie collection)

Yes, times, were different, we did different things, and wore different things then most kids today....but I still had a little sister, still had to clean my room and deal with school yard drama. I had homework, and an allowance, and could only talk on the phone for so long. I took my lunch to school, and got in trouble when I pushed my sister. I stressed about what to wear, and if anyone would see my training bra through my clothes. Every morning that Madeline and I argue over something, I can see myself in her. I see the same stresses, triumphs, the same joys and frustrations that I felt as a child. As she plays with her Cabbage Patch kids, and watches her Strawberry Shortcake DVD's, I can see the generations connect, and see how close we actually are. Letting her know just how much I understand makes us that much closer.

So, on that note, sit down with your kiddo's today, and watch this - let them know what it was like when you were a kid:

http://http//www.youtube.com/watch?v=APTBYQWsnrA