WHY IT'S SO GREAT TO BE A KID

A few weeks ago, we took our nephew to an elementary school carnival.  It was at the same elementary school I went to, about a block from my parent's house.  When I was little, this carnival was the event of the year.  It seemed so colorful, so big, so magical.  I can still remember trying to con my parents into buying me more tickets.  I just had to win the ultimate prize of a baton with sparkly streamers on the end of it.

It was so nostalgic walking with my nephew from my parent's house to the school.  The games didn't seem as exciting as they once did, and the prizes were no where near as cool as that baton in my mind, but that was because I was seeing it through the eyes of an adult.  When I looked down at my 4 year old nephew, I could see his eyes sparkling with the excitement of endless fun about to be had.  It got me thinking about why it's so great to be a kid.  So here are my top 4 reasons of why it's so great to be a kid, inspired by the infectious joy of my nephew.

1.  There's no such thing as too much of a good thing

Grape snow cone?  Delicious!  Strawberry flavored snow cone?  That's good, too!  Orange flavored?  Don't mind if I do! 

Each of these flavors is delicious on their own, so naturally it stands to reason that mixing all of them together would make the absolute best tasting snow cone on the planet, right?  Well, as my old age can attest to, this is not always the case (and wasn't the case in this situation either). 

You know what, though?  I had to admire the kid's willingness to try it.  Who am I to tell him it won't be good?  Maybe he'll love it.

I don't know if he was a big fan of his concoction, but that was the best part of this snow cone vendor.  You could go back and get more flavoring and make it edible. 

2) You get rewarded just for trying

Some might say that we give participation trophies and medals away too freely.  In this case, though, when the little guy didn't knock down any pins, he still jumped for joy when he got a token just for trying.  And then when he did get three baskets in a row, he got even more tokens.  That's a win-win.

3)  It's the simple stuff that matters

Holding hands, choosing to swing on the (free) playground instead of playing more games (that cost money), getting excited by being able to buy not one, but two toy trucks with your tokens, it's this kind of stuff that make kids content.

These are also the things that should make adults content, too. 

You aren't worried about if you have the latest and greatest cell phone or if everyone went to a party you weren't invited to.  You just know that you like your Avengers t-shirt, and that's all that matters.

And you always have someone to carry your coat.

 

 

4)  You always make time to stop and smell the flowers

 

I wrote a few days ago about how I want to make more time to "stop and smell the flowers", to really be present in each moment.  Guess where I got that idea from?  This guy.

 

 

 

He makes it look so simple.  Ah, to always have that childlike wonderment.

 

I loved watching the whole night through his eyes, but the best part had to be as we were walking home, us all holding hands. 

 

I asked him what his favorite part of the night was, and he said, "This part". 

 

 

 

Now I know kids aren't always rainbows and butterflies, but hearing him say that made it hands down my favorite part, too. 

 

How is it possible for kids to be so absolutely endearing?  I guess that's how they manage to get you to buy those extra tickets:)

 

(See here for pictures from when we took him to the carnival last year, and he wore his adorable Superman costume.)

 

 

Did I miss anything?  I'm sure you can think of other reasons why it's so great to be a kid.  Share below!