Where does one procure a spear and why in the world would an American child need a chance to throw one? They will throw anything they have anyway. I have three 9 1/2 year-old boys – everything is a weapon. Pretty familiar with it all.

Soon, their father will take them to the shooting range (we like to go ourselves) and teach the boys all about REAL gun safety and shooting. They have already been asking about going pheasant hunting. My husband hasn’t been in a long time (because of the kids) and he and his brother want to initiate them.

I’m a nut about the seatbelts, too.  I’m always having to remind them to strap in – it’s a man thing, I think. Even my husband forgets sometime. I feel like I’m going to fly out of the car without my seatbelt. My kids are so skinny that according to the “suggestion” from the safety pros, they would be in a carseat until 9th grade if my husband’s pre-teen size is any indication of my boys future size. They haven’t even hit 70 pounds yet.

Deconstructing appliances isn’t nearly as fun as it used to be. I regularly took apart and rebuilt clocks and the like all around my house as a kid and played with my pocket knife all the time (Cajun grandpa and all). I am still the “handy” one in the family. Now with circuitry and little plastic parts, things aren’t as easy to “reconstruct”. One of my boys is building a little robot, though, and going to computer camp to learn how to build bigger and better bots this summer. 

Spear throwing? How about Nerf launching or Airsoft gus? Do those count?

The motor cycle guy is an asshole.

If anyone tried to put my kids on a motorcycle it would get bloody and ugly…quickly.  I am clever and quick.

I actually told my teenager if she had a bf and i saw them on a motorcycle i would pull them over and humiliate her to the extent that she would be too mortified to speak and then I would deal with him.

Needless to say, this has not been an issue.

My girls though are pretty rowdy and pretty adventurous.  Nothing worse than whiners and kid who cannot cope.  It is our job to give them those skills since schools seem averse to administering consequences.

I try not to smother the adventure in my kids. It is hard, they are all girls and one of them has a life threatening allergy to fire ants. Like moments after being bit she stops breathing. It is everything I have to let her out of the house. But we have to let them explore or what is the point?

However, do not let that lead you to believe they are free to do what they want. We are hardly bohemian. I just want them to be troopers and not afraid of everything.

I was going to comment that he turned out fine, but now that I think about it, it might explain the hair loss and the absent-professorism….

It’s hard to fight the urge to overprotect, but I accept the main premise, if they don’t develop some toughness and perspective, life is going to kick the shit out of them.