Moms Talk: Summer is More Structured Nowadays, But the Kids Seem Happy Enough

Has summer vacation changed since you were a kid? 

When we asked our Moms Council this question, we expected to hear that life nowadays is faster-paced and more structured, and a little lamentation about the loss of open-ended playtime.

Sure enough, some moms pointed out that more women work full-time than when they were little, which increases the need for formal activities like day camps. But overall, it seems that the goodness of summer is still good, no matter the logistics.

Click on the links below to see a couple of time-honored summer traditions still going strong in Castro Valley:

• Vacation Bible School hosted its first kids at Redwood Chapel in 1958. Over the past 17 years, more churches have joined in and more kids than ever are attending. Click here to see a video of what happened at this summer's camp.
• Horse camps remain prolific and perhaps even more accessible than ever for the uninitiated. Click here to see options available for kids and grownups through the end of this summer.

Now let's hear from members of our Moms Council.

Summer vacation: What was yours like compared to your kids' now? What has changed? Is it a plus or a minus?

Dana Leipold 

When I was a kid, summer vacation meant freedom. We could sleep in, watch cartoons until noon, play until dark and go to the beach every day (I lived in Southern California, Huntington Beach). It was unstructured and free flowing and awesome ... mostly because my Mom was a stay-at-home-mom and so were a lot of my friends' mothers. 

My kids today go to camp and summer school because I work and need child care during the day. They get to do a lot of cool things like learn about sea creatures, do fun science projects, meet new friends, go hiking and nature exploring, etc., but they don't really have a lot of free time to just hang out like I did.

I worry that they will resent that fact later in life, but then I also think they don't really know any different. This summer my schedule was more flexible, so I did have a few weeks where we did nothing, and it pretty much drove me and my kids up the wall! Go figure! 

Amanda Sanders

When I was a kid summer vacation was a time of freedom. I had no scheduled activities. My time was spent playing outside with the neighborhood kids, playing tag, riding bikes, roller skating.

My mom would call for me when it was time for dinner and I would run home from whoever's yard I happened to be playing at.

My daughters do not know this carefree existence. Their summers are filled with day camps to keep them busy while my husband and I are at work.

Sometimes they get to go over to a friend's house to spend the day, or have someone come over to our home, but there is no random playing out in the neighborhood. 

I feel that it is more safe to have them in a place I know, rather than be worrying about them and thinking up crazy scenarios in my head about what could go wrong. My girls don't know anything else and seem to be happy with the way their summers are. 

Tracy Mills

Every summer when I was growing up, we drove to Washington to stay for a few weeks with my grandparents. Vacation was a combination of camping, sightseeing and playing with friends. 

I am trying to do as much of that with our kids as I can, although we haven't camped with all three kids yet. My daughter is doing several day camps through the summer, which I do not remember doing. All of the camps I remember were overnight camps. 

For my two youngest, the biggest change is having their sister home more of the time since they are 2 and almost 1.

Jamie Ireland

I think my summers were similar to my kids'. My dad was a teacher and my mom stayed at home, which is the same in our household today. We take little trips and go camping.

The difference I see is that there aren't too many other kids out in the neighborhood to play with. We used to just call up a friend and go out to play. Now everyone seems so scheduled that it can be hard to find playdates. Maybe when my kids get a little older it will change.

Lauren Edwards

We had more unstructured time when we were little, and my husband and I are both big believers in the value of that, assuming you have the luxury of a safe place to roam. On the other hand, I'm quite certain my stepdaughter is thrilled to pieces with the diving lessons, gymnastics classes and soccer clinics that her mom has stocked up on for their summer together.

TV is better today than when I was little, with more options like an entire channel dedicated to Disney. Back in the day, my family would assemble in the living room with a sense of togetherness to watch "The Wonderful World of Disney" once a week. Another favorite was Mutual of Omaha's "Wild Kingdom," also a shared TV event.

With so many highly produced TV options today, usually featuring smart-alecky tweens who aren't good role models, I have to say that I'm glad my stepdaughter is at day camp rather than in the living room, where TV temptation could get the best of her.

But some things haven't changed, like imagination.

My friends and I used to improvise new scenes for the movie Planet of the Apes, which required a lot of bravery and rescue. We spent much of our time running away from something or someone, leaping across "hot lava," and melodramatically keeping our balance while escaping across the tops of walls. No matter the game, there was always hot lava to outrun or hop over, even if we had switched to playing The Sound of Music. When you're 10, even the Swiss Alps resemble Krakatoa: East of Java.

My stepdaughter and her friends are just as creative and more so. And it seems that hot lava never goes out of style. One time as a soccer coach's assistant, I used hot lava to get the girls to pass long and play more of the field. I oranged-coned the center of the field and said, "This is hot lava." I didn't have to say another word. They totally got it.

What's different today is that some of their make-believe games get filmed on a Mac Book Pro. They turn on the camera and make dolls, cars and stuffed animals perform dramatic scenes in front of the screen, often involving death and sometimes even nudity, both of which are hilarious to a 10-year-old. The girls edit scenes and rearrange sequences, though I have yet to see a completed plot.

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