Steevenson has his first loose tooth, y’all! It’s one of the bottom/center ones. I shared the news on Instagram and everybody quickly chimed in and said I needed to “take a bunch of pictures of him” while it’s still in there. And because it seemed like a good idea, I grabbed my camera and asked him to smile REAL big. That’s when he lifted his arm and said, “Daddy, tickle me!”. 😆
Seeing his wiggly tooth got me thinking about childhood memories. I don’t remember losing any of my teeth, do you?
I read an article recently that said family trips to the beach (collecting seashells and playing in the sand) and games (especially hide and seek) were among the most common responses when folks were asked to recall their happiest days as a child. Recording the music charts and obsessing over collectible toys also conjured up strong memories for lots of adults. (Here’s to mix tapes and Monchichis- LOL!)
And here’s something wild, nearly three-quarters of those who took part in the poll (73% of 2000 people) said the beach played a part in their happiest memories. I don’t think I saw the beach til I was an adult, but I do have super fond childhood memories of our family vacationing/fishing on lakes in Minnesota and Canada though.
Research also showed that our strongest childhood memories are more than ten times as likely to be events that took place in the Summer compared to any other season. Makes sense since kiddos aren’t usually in school during that time of year, but it also makes me want to be more intentional about creating fun memories in the other three seasons too! 🙂
Clinical Psychologist, Dr. Nihara Krause, said: “Spending shared quality time together as a family is extremely important; not only does it help to strengthen family bonds and connections and improve communication, but shared time also ensures children feel prioritized and cared for.”
What’s interesting about one of my favorite childhood memories (spending time with my family and friends at our place on Willard Lake in Ontario) is that other than this photo (my Dad texted me yesterday) of our family’s trailer/screened porch at Pleasant Point Lodge…
…I don’t have any photos (or videos) of the details of those trips. The cooking, the card games, the connecting…they’re all just old movies in my mind now. And sure, I’d love to have some more pics of our family Canadian fishing trip adventures, but the memories are just as magical without them. They feel almost like a dream at this point, but they definitely shaped who I am today so I can still feel that they happened. And the older and busier I get with my own “baby”, I do think it’s okay to not capture every little thing for keeps. But his last mouth-full of baby teeth? I gotta admit, that was a pretty fun smile to snap. 😉
So tell me…what is one of your fondest childhood memories? I want to hear details!
Layla
PS- And speaking of Monchichis…here’s a funny/not funny story: My dad flew to Philadelphia for work one time and bought two big Monchichi dolls for me and my brother while he was there. We were probably 4 and 7 at the time. He put them on the back of the taxi he was taking at the airport, but forgot about them after talking to the driver and getting something out of his luggage in the backseat. Of course, they fell off as the cab drove away, and by the time my Dad remembered, they were nowhere near the airport. I don’t know why that memory stuck with me all these years…or why my Dad thought he needed to tell us- ha!
Had to Google Monchichis! Learned something new today, thank you!
We didn’t always have money to travel, but loved playing softball, working in our vegetable garden, making homemade icecream in a wooden churn, catching lightning bugs, riding bikes in the yard and just playing outside.
My earliest fond memory was at 3 years old when my brother, Dani, returned safely from Vietnam. He made the mistake of telling me that he tried to bring me home a monkey but Customs forbid it so he brought me a jewelry box instead. I still have it and I still feel guilty about being upset that I didn’t get the monkey. Looking back now and understanding I was only 3 at the time but as an adult I am just grateful he came home at all. Those were tumultuous times during the war – especially Vietnam. I would later – around age 13 – get the best memory of my life…my horse. We spent many happy years together bonding, showing at horse shows, and riding.
Going to my grandmothers. She didn’t live far from us but my childhood was mostly spent bounced around house to house. Driving up to my grandmothers street gave me stability and peace. I knew I wouldn’t be bounced around for a bit.
Today now as a middle aged adult, as I can’t quiet my mind at night as is it reviews the day or work yet to complete….. I see myself passing all the familiar streets and landmarks …. and there… turn right on Roosevelt and I’m almost to Mamaws…. I ‘walk’ around her house through her garden and inside each room of her house seeing every piece of furniture. Even the giant window fan in her room that beckoned to me on a hot summer day to lay across her bed and as my eyes fluttered and sleep overtook me.
This guided imagery helps settle my mind at night and works like a charm so I can drift off to sleep plus it keeps my Mammaw Kings memory fresh.
Beautiful and touching
So sweet! Thanks for sharing that!
One of my favorite memories was a family vacation we took to San Diego. We went to the San Diego Zoo, spent the night in a hotel, then went to Sea World the next day. At the hotel my Dad played with us in the pool, but my favorite part was after we got our pajamas on we got to go to the vending machines and get a soda and snack and then sat on our beds ate our goodies and watched TV. I thought eating in bed and watching TV was just the funnest thing. To this day (I’m 62) periodically we will eat dinner in bed and watch TV and I get that same excited memory.
When our kids were young my husband and daughter would go get the hot dogs when we would go to CSULB baseball games. One time my husband asked our son if he wanted to go too. Our daughter immediately got very quiet, after some prodding we found out that the was a special thing to her that she and her Dad did together. So sometimes the silliest, simple things can make the best memories.
I had a small plastic Monchichi figure and I just treasured it! Haven’t thought about that in forever 🙂
My most vivid childhood memories are about going camping in our pop up camper because my teacher dad painted houses in the summer to help make ends meet and camping was the cheapest way for us to get anywhere.
I also have a very clear memory of the smell & feel of my mom’s lotioned, tanned, freshly shaven legs sitting with me on the couch reading out loud from The Boxcar Children. It was a summer night, hot as heck in the house (no air conditioning) and yet my sister and I snuggled close together with my mom to hear the chapters. It just feels like home when I think of that. Thanks for triggering the memory this morning!
I have numerous childhood memories, my family did lots of things when I was young. Lots of camping trips, lots of amusement park visits, lots of events/activities at church, lots of trips to grandparents. Both parents were very involved and we spent time together as a family. My favorite vacation was in 1965, the summer I turned 10 (now you know how old I am!). We went to Oceanside, CA and spent nearly everyday at the beach. Mother would pack a lunch and the worst part of the day was the 30 minutes they made me stay out of the water after eating!
The most important part of making memories is being together, as a family. It doesn’t always involve spending money and travel, it’s spending quality time – reading, puzzles, games, dancing, singing, fun – together. And, as near as I can tell, you got that part down!
I’m 64 yrs. old. My fondest memories are the picnics we would have at Forest Park in St. Louis. My Mom and at least four of my aunts would start early in the morning, frying chicken, making potato salad and other sides, and packing it in the coolers. Most often, we all would hop on a bus that we rode to the park, with a wagon and all the other items needed, loaded into one of those wire shopping buggies you don’t see anymore. Imagine four women, 9 kids, a wagon with the cooler (watermelon always included!) and buggy riding the city bus! Major undertaking! We would arrive at the park and find a shady spot with a picnic table, between the Art Museum, Grand Basin and the Zoo. Kids would scatter, some to the Zoo, some to the basin, with at least one Mom remaining behind to guard our belongings. This would be “home base” for the day. We would do our thing, have our noon meal, play tag and wade in the Basin before packing it all up and heading to the bus stop before 4 pm to ride home. We did this quite often, at least twice a month, if I remember correctly, for many years, until the kids got too old for it. ( I was the baby of the group, so when we stopped all this fun I was around 7 or 8 years old) Not long after that point, we had to move from our city house to a whole new suburban environment, and life changed dramatically for our family. Dad had passed away when I was 5 yrs. old, and we tried to stay put in our house in the city, but Mom needed the aid of her family, who lived nearer to our new home. We all missed the city life for many years after, and whenever we got the chance to return, it was heaven!
I am also from St. Louis and remember similar picnics with aunts, uncles and cousins visiting forest park and our wonderful zoo!!! We always had homemade fried chicken for the picnics in the park also!! Our family liked to go to Onondoga Cave and Meramec Caverns in the summer too. 🙂
The MOST memorable was the year my older brother graduated high school. Our parents figured it might be our last family vacation, so Daddy took a month off and we traveled the perimeter of the United States. New Jersey to visit my Uncle e and his family, Philadelphia, New York, DC, Niagra Falls, Hamilton,Ontario, Yellowstone, Seattle, LA, San Francisco, San Diego, Tijuana, Grand Canyon, Carlsbad Caverns. We were 18, 16, and 5. No reservations, no cell phones. We would call home every Saturday night so my brother could talk to his girlfriend. In Carlsbad, we learned that our school had burned on Thursday. Trip over-straight home. My Dad was the principal and Mother the librarian. Even so it remains the most momentous trip of my life. I’m writing this as I’m having breakfast in SD after a 2 week stay in Denver. I took advantage of this trip to get a visit to the “middle” states. After this, I have 6 more states to go to check all 50 off my bucket list. That trip certainly gave me a love for travel.
Swingsets, barbies, neighborhood hide and seek, trampolines, going to Florida to visit grandparents, church three times a week where I saw my closest friends. Those things compose my childhood memories. I lost my first tooth while having lunch with my best friend in her driveway at a kiddie table eating corn on the cob. I took a big bite to try to clean the cob like my dad and the tooth stuck in the cob. Ha!
Thanks for inspiring the memory trip! One of my favorites : my siblings and I had a great aunt Mabel that would stay with us when our parents would travel. If we needed a distraction from missing them, we would sit on the couch and she would show us her “ ballet” moves😂 we meant she would charge out of a bedroom and do a series of leaps or spins clear to the kitchen! She wasn’t the most graceful so the room would fill with laughter in no time!
Did you know they still sell Monchichis? I had one as a kid and loved it! My sons friend has one and just looking at it had me back down memory lane… it looks exactly the same. Pretty cool
I went to the cattle sale with my daddy on Monday. When it was time for me to attend school, I told my parents I could go every day except Monday. I had to go to the cattle sale with daddy. Sweet times with my daddy.
Oh my! That trailer/screened porch looks a lot like our lake house we had when I was growing up! We don’t have any photos of it, but you’re right. The memories are always there. I wrote a blog post when I turned 50 about all those childhood memories. The ones that stuck out the most are exactly what you describe, especially our beach trips. We live in SC so the beach is close and one of our favorite places. Loved this!!
(@queencitymama89 on instagram. ;))
And American Top 40 with Casey Kasem was a highlight of our week at the lake. We wrote down the countdown on a paper plate every week. I wish just one of those paper plates now!
Absolutely the beach… we live in a beach town … and it would take us about 30 minutes or so to actually get to the “sand and surf”.. It was amazing for me and my siblings… we didn’t really have the funds to take a Vacation .. so to speak.. but oh those day trips to the beach!!! Wonderful memories…..
Love to read your blog and your stories.
What about adopting again. Sorry for being curious… please keep us updated.
With love
Giselle