NEGATIVES?

A comment I recently read on Twitter about scheduled eating got me thinking about a few things that are realities in my kids' lives, but not of their traditionally-schooled peers. We don't live by the clock. Sure, we sometimes have to be somewhere at a certain time (doctor's appointments, club meetings, dance, and gymnastics, etc.), but for the most part, we live at our own pace. By "we", I mean the kids and I because Husband has a full time job and has to be there on time. Anyway, we generally go to bed around the same time at night and wake up at the same time each morning (except for Baby and I because he is still fairly nocturnal). The kids never like to eat breakfast immediately after waking, so there is usually a relaxed, waking up period before anyone asks for food. We eat lunch depending on what else we have to accomplish that day. Dinner is late, by American standards. We snack when we're hungry in between meals.

Some people would fault me and say that my kids will freak out when they hit the "real world" and discover that there is a Schedule to things like eating and sleeping. I have to disagree. There is only a Schedule, if you want there to be one. For example, my kids plan on going to college. College is run according to class times, and therefore, a Schedule. Except that you have some flexibility in when you schedule your classes. More importantly, if you choose to attend a college, then you have chosen to live according to that Schedule. That's what it's all about to me-Choice. I chose a career in education. That meant that on work days, I had to use the restroom and eat according to the school's Schedule. Sometimes it sucked, but I always recognized that I had decided to be a teacher. Husband works in a more traditional, office setting. When he has to go to the bathroom, he goes. When he's hungry, he snacks at his desk, and so on. Adults have way more flexibility in their daily lives than any schooled kid.

Some parents stress about raising their kids to have financial success. We definitely want our sons and daughters to be able to live independently, but our biggest goal is that they grow up knowing that they have choices and that your choice always comes with responsibility. That's why we don't skip dance or gymnastics classes on a whim. Mom drives around like a madwoman to fit things in on days when she has to be at her part time job. Dad plans vacation days carefully, so as to not interfere with his professional life. I don't equate learning to eat on command as a requirement for a happy life.