I don’t know what to do about Ethan. He wants to be able to ride his bike around the neighborhood by himself. At 7.5. On his own.
The Helicopter Parent in me screams NO! Do you know what could happen to you, my baby?! Absolutely not. Not on your own & certainly not without being encased in bubble wrap.
The more reasonable side wonders why not. Our neighborhood is safe. We know people on all 3 streets (our subdivision has a main road which our house is on & then 2 other roads that make a circle). It’s pretty quiet, not a lot of traffic. Ethan’s pretty good on his bike, he is careful about crossing the street, & he’ll be 8 in 2 months.
So far he’s been going with his neighbor friend. There’s safety in numbers so I’ve been fine with that. But Neighbor Friend isn’t always around & I don’t want Ethan to have to depend on NF for his bike riding expeditions. He should be able to go alone sometimes, right? I was lucky, my sister was 1 yr older & we did things together. Gavin’s too young to ride along with Ethan. First off, I don’t like Gavin riding supervised (for Gavin Riding Bike=Broken Ears). Letting him ride around the neighborhood with only his brother is a recipe for disaster.
My dilemma is that I can trust Ethan, I just don’t trust the people in cars or strangers he may meet along the way. Is it right to squelch Independent Ethan or Helicopter Mom?
Here’s my options
- Keep the kid at home, only letting him out when NF is around
- Let him go alone, child molesters & accidents be damned
- Send him out with a walkie talkie so if he gets into trouble he can radio for help
- Other Suggestions?
As parents, how do you balance your need for oversight/safety with your child’s need for independence?
Not pictured is his helmet which is always securely fastened to his head
K~
