Oh, Childhood

Posted: March 28, 2011 at 8:14 pm

I miss you, childhood. I miss the days when…

…money was just a play thing.

playmoney

…the only crap you had to deal with came in having to remember to “poopy on the potty”.

…vacuuming was not a chore, but “Run from the Monster” play-time.

…relationship drama didn’t exist because your best friend was stuffed.

…a simple kiss and bandaid took all the pain away.

Then, there are parts of our childhoods that we let slip away even though we don’t have to say goodbye. We can still embrace that childhood spirit and…

…have all the confidence in the world. Believe we are a singing, dancing, cooking, drawing, running, joke-telling superstar! And love your body for the fun things it can do.

…trust our Daddy to care, love, and provide for us.

…play with vigor. And, yes, exercise should be play. You should do what you love! 

…get excited over the simple things.

…enjoy food. Even if sometimes that means pure comfort on a plate.

beefstew3

Rainy Day Mushroom & Parsnip Beef Stew

  • 1 large yellow onion
  • 4-5 parsnips
  • 1 package white mushrooms
  • 1 lb stew meat, cut into 1 inch chunks
  • 2 cans 98% fat-free cream of mushroom soup
  • 1/4 cup Dijon mustard
  • 2 TBSP Worcestershire sauce
  • garlic powder (to taste)
  • black pepper (to taste)

Clean and peel your vegetables. Slice/chop the onion, parsnips, and mushrooms into fairly even pieces (about 1/2”-1” in size). Spread evenly over the bottom of a slow-cooker. Top the vegetables with your stew meat, cut into 1 inch chunks over the vegetables.In a large bowl, mix the soup, mustard, Worcestershire sauce, garlic powder, and pepper. Pour the mixture over the meat and vegetables. Cover and cook on HIGH 6-8 hours.

Serve over whole wheat pasta, with crusty bread, or just straight up with some roasted green beans if you’re like me and forget to buy the bread at the store.

beefstew4

Ahhh, comfort food. Ahhh, childhood. Who says it has to end?

Question of the Evening – What do you most miss about childhood?

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61 Comments to “Oh, Childhood”
  1. Cynthia says:

    I do miss being a child. I miss that I didn’t have to worry about money or bills or trying not to get in an accident in the rain. I wish that I hadn’t spent my entire childhood waiting to grow up.

  2. Kristina says:

    I hear ya sista! I had a mini-breakdown over getting married….I’m 27 and felt like I just wasn’t old enough yet (holding on to my youth much?)…bills, responsibility, etc…can really slap you in the face sometimes.

  3. I definitely miss the play money!!!

  4. I miss having my sisters around all the time — we would play all day long — outside in the yard, playing sports, practicing plays for my parents, playing with our American Dolls, etc. I loved being with them all!

  5. Re: … relationship drama didn’t exist because your best friend was stuffed.

    I hope things are getting worse with the friend you were hoping to break up with

  6. Lauren says:

    Aw, I loved this! This is why I love my summer job – I get to play with kids everyday, all day. I miss childhood because kids become friends with everyone so easily. It’s so cool to see my campers each week become friends with everyone in the cabin within a day.

  7. Having no idea of what it meant to have food guilt. I’d eat pancakes, donuts, pizza and just play it all off 🙂

  8. Allie says:

    Awww, this post is adorable! Love the recipe 🙂

  9. I miss not being afraid of bugs and liking to get dirty…when did I turn into such a girl?!

  10. I loved this post! Luckily since I’m a teacher I get to hang out with kids on a daily basis.
    However, I miss Saturdays at my grandma’s watching Saved By the Bell with her the most from my childhood. 🙂

  11. I love this post!!!!!!! I miss the freedom of just enjoying life without knowing all the heavy-hearted stuff of this world. Tonight I enjoyed comfort on a plate in the form of meatloaf and pioneer woman’s mashed potatoes and salad 😉

  12. Heather says:

    i miss all the free time…and the NAPS 🙂

  13. lindsay says:

    I love that poster. More than just words there. And I miss childhood when I got to bed at 8pm. haha.

  14. I miss having more time to play!

  15. Such a sweet post! I loved being SO taken care of – dropped off at school, picked up and taken home to a snack, playing and reading all afternoon until I got the “dinner is ready!” call – I just loved my mom and all she did for me! Lucky kids. 🙂

  16. Sarah says:

    Great post! I miss eating whatever I wanted when I was hungry without caring about calories or weight. I miss running around and playing without trying to maximize calorie burn.

    That stew looks delicious!

  17. I miss childhood sometimes too. I miss being able to come home and not have to do any chores or worrying at the end of the day!!!

  18. I get jealous of my kids that they don’t have any responsibility, except to eat their vegetables and put their toys away when they are done playing. They go to “school” each day and just play play play. I want that life.

  19. Oh man, I miss just living in the moment!

  20. I totally miss the playful carefree parts of childhood! =) Your stew looks gooood girl! I had to sub carrots for parsnips in a recipe today and felt lazy for not going to the store to get them. esp since i’m craving those lil guys!

  21. Becca says:

    I miss Bible Camp, and little kid church events. I could be a counselor/worker at Camp now, but I don’t know that I want to give up the magic, you know? =\

    I also kind of miss not having to go to work, and when school was exciting instead of frustrating. Oh, to be five again…

    I still have one of my teddy bears. His name’s George, and he hangs out on my bed all day. 😀

  22. I think I miss all-day exhausting play the most. I used to leave after breakfast and not come home until dinner to spend the whole day running around like crazy. Now, expending energy is a chore. I miss that everlasting natural buzz I had as a child.

  23. I don’t miss childhood much, but if I could think of one thing, it’d be getting SO excited about things. It’s hard for me to do that now.

  24. Oh this is adorable, Tina. I love your blog! It made me missed my childhood and everything it has to make it worth remembering- Yes EVERYTHING about it. You also reminded me of my younger years of complaining with green foods! You’re such an inspiration. Thank you!

  25. I miss being carefree. Now that I am an adult, I tend to be a worrier. It’s funny how we can’t wait to grow up when we’re young ~ if we only knew how good we had it at the time 🙂

  26. Megan says:

    Love this post! Ahh childhood, how I miss you, but you are right, there are things of childhood that can be brought into adult life, and the world might be a better place if they did I think.

  27. […] Tina’s Post that brings back the joys of childhood and reminds us that we can still embrace them!  You never have to be too much of a grown up. […]

  28. Kristi says:

    I miss my biggest worry being what game I should play next… instead of what bill.

  29. Ah, to be a kid again! I miss the practically unlimited play time and the fact that my worries were no deeper than wondering whether I would get to stay up a few minutes longer.

  30. I miss childhood most around the holidays. There’s just something more magical about Christmas, Easter, Halloween and the others when there’s more to it than just seeing your family! Don’t get me wrong, I love spending time with the fam on special occasions, but I miss the excitement of Santa and Easter baskets and Halloween. Kids just get more excited about everything- I guess that’s what I miss!

  31. Kelly says:

    This is probably heavier than you expected but what I miss most about being a kid is my family being together. My parents got divorced when I was 21 and it was (still is) hard. I would give anything to go back to the days when it was just me, my brother, my mom and my dad. Just us 4.

    • Tina says:

      That is definitely something to miss about childhood. I can imagine how hard that is to face and go through…at any age!

  32. I miss when money was a toy too!!! I also miss being young enough to think my parents were happy together and everything was perfect (hunky-dory, as one of the characters on Sesame Street would say). They still have not finalized their divorce, but their unhappiness made a lot of high school, college, and my own relationships difficult.

  33. I miss not having any worries, slumber parties with my best friends, having family around all the time, etc. I think it’s easy to get caught up in life and the everyday things. Your post makes me want to slow down and really savor the moment because it all just flies by!

  34. I miss being able run outside and have no cares in the world, just let my imagination flow.

  35. LauraJayne says:

    I think I miss curling up with a good book and reading until I’ve finished a book!

  36. I miss (1) no bills, loans, credit card stuff, and (2) knowing less sometimes is much less stressful – oh and course the lack of responsibilities. 🙂

  37. Heather says:

    I miss sleeping in until whenever I felt like it and having my mom make breakfast. Best ever.

  38. I miss the days when the only thoughts of money revolved around you being disappointed that you received a birthday card with cash inside instead of a present to open. My, how things change!

  39. I miss the innocense of childhood!

  40. I just printed your recipe in anticipation of the CSA parsnips that are sure to arrive in May! I can’t wait!

    I miss the ease of friendship from childhood. It seemed much easier back then to jump in and make a new friend.

  41. I love this post! I think what I miss most about my childhood was my ability to just sit under a tree and just close my eyes and day dream…now my head is just so full of errands, events, to do lists….so forth. I really want that back

  42. Karen says:

    What I miss most about childhood is the hours upon hours spent playing outside with my friends. There would be some days I would leave after breakfast and not return home until dinner. Kids can’t do that now…to much to worry about!

  43. I miss not worrying about anything and running until you couldn’t run anymore! I still love playing and can’t wait to have kids so I can relive my childhood memories with them! : )

  44. I miss not knowing about death. How morbid, right? But seriously, you just don’t think about sad or scary things when you’re a kid 🙂

  45. I miss the days when my mom would give me $5 and I thought I was rich!

  46. Tracy says:

    That Teddy Bear is so adorable and looks like he (she?) was loved so much over the years. Does Teddy have a name?

  47. I miss childhood so much. I actually struggle with it daily. I am a very nostalgic person so it is really hard for me!

  48. Aww this post made me smile 🙂 but I miss childhood so much! To be honest, I miss having an imagination, the ability to get so involved in a game of Barbies for example, that I would lose all track of time

  49. Dorry says:

    I loved my childhood! I miss genuinely playing make-believe and dressing in costumes with my sisters to put on plays or dance routines for our parents. 🙂

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