ParentMap, August 2006 

Feature: All dressed up for the oudoors From the Editor: About this issue

About this issue

Though I dream of long, aimless, summer-beach days, my extreme schedule has me driving a new hybrid and thinking that my open sun roof somehow qualifies as a nature experience. Sad, I know. However, for a working mom who was raised surrounded by cement in Chicago, it is too often true!

Thankfully, our family is trying to work on our collective nature-deficit disorder. We are so fortunate to live in the once-hidden jewel of the Northwest, where people flock to hike and bike and participate in varying degrees of outdoor activities. The open sun roof just happens to be my outdoor experience at the moment.

And, let’s face it: No matter how we spend time outdoors, in our region we dress for it well beyond our levels of participation. Am I really alone in wondering if all of those moms, dads and kids that I see fully clad each day in what appears to be the latest fashion trend in exercise and activewear, are really that active? Or do they just enjoy the comfort and freedom of clothing that moves with them (“All dressed up for the outdoors,”), regardless of whether they going on a hike or going to school?

As I prepare emotionally to send my little one off to a “real school” like her siblings next month, I will re-read and share the “29 skills a child should bring to kindergarten”. I have great confidence in her to master the listed skills, and it reminds me of the importance of preparing all your kids — regardless of age — for the new challenges that life brings.

Here’s wishing you and your family an enjoyable last month of summer and a successful start for the upcoming school year.

—Alayne Sulkin, publisher/editor