Cupcakes and Cashmere

Sweet Child of Mine

October 16th, 2009

There are certain aspects of my childhood that bring me just as much pleasure now as they once did many years ago (hence why I’ve convinced my boyfriend to accompany me to a pumpkin farm this weekend). This time of year makes me nostalgic for lots of reasons and it got me thinking about some of the things that aren’t quite as fun now that I’m older. I wouldn’t wish for it to be any other way, but sometimes it’s nice to look back fondly at some of the simpler things that brought me so much joy.

1. Jumping in puddles.
2. Making retainers out of pretzels (it wasn’t as glamorous once I got a real one).
3. Playing make-believe.
4. Mixing five Slurpee flavors in one cup.
5. Building mazes for my dwarf hamster (I’m still creeped out that I even owned a rodent).
6. Overalls.
7. Back-to-school shopping. Nowhere near as fun when I have to pay.
8. Collecting things that had no true significance. Stickers. Pogs. Trolls.
9. Prank calls.
10. Trying to fall asleep on Christmas Eve.

What little things made you inexplicably giddy as a kid?

image via flickr

http://annainthedistrict.wordpress.com/ Anna
Such a great post! A few things that I miss from childhood:
1. watching the same movie over & over (grease, clueless to name a few..)
2. monopoly marathons
3. back to school shopping–both clothes and supplies!
4. playing freeze out (rolling down all the windows in the car) when if finally got chilly in TX
http://www.fiveblondes.com Lauren
I miss my mom dressing me and my sisters up in the exact same dress for holidays (or just shopping trips), getting a tree on Christmas with the whole family from our bush, and waiting for the bus in our little “end of the lane way house”! It was the cutest little shed like thing that we had for when it was cold, because we had a very long drive way! Also, seeing my sisters every day, because we don’t get that anymore!
http://Www.kentuckyblonde.blogspot.com Jayme
Pogs, beanie babies, American girl dolls, playin hookie to watch nickelodeon! Selling magazines to win those weebles! And collecting keychains and pens.
Brooke
Oh, fun!
– being dropped off at the mall with friends, to roam around with NO PARENTS!
– watching movies over and over and over and over….
– secretly 3-way calling BOYS on the phone to find out who their LIST of liked girls was
– playing and swimming in the pool alll day long, to be incredibly exhausted with chlorine-sung eyes at the days end.
Crystal
My boyfriend and I are going to a pumpkin patch tomorrow, with a hay ride included!
*Collecting pogs, stickers, and beads
*Footed pajamas
*Snow days
*Watching the same movie over and over again (home alone, honey i shrank the kids, and homeward bound)
*Playing hide and seek until dark
*Jumping on my bed
*Dyeing Easter eggs
*Christmas morning
*Visiting my grandparents at their beach house
*Never having to go to school on my birthday (born on Thanksgiving)
*Dunkaroos (no one knows what this is)
Crystal
*Collecting pogs, stickers, and beads.
*Watching the same movies over and over again (Home Alone, Honey I Shrank the Kids, and Homeward Bound)
*Riding my bike till dark
*Footed pajamas
*Christmas morning
*Jumping on my bed
*Mixing all of the fountain sodas together
*Jumping in piles of leaves
*Missing school for snow
*The smell of fresh cut grass
*Back to school shopping-I loved lisa frank
*Those book catalogues your teacher would hand out and you could order things through the classroom, loved that.
joe
Dirt
http://2bydesign.blogspot.com/ Erika – 2byDesign
Ohhhh, I love this post! Man, I’m remembering so many great things…
1.) Summer. Didn’t care back then that it was 115 and my hair would turn green in the pool.
2.) Monsoons.
3.) Making a retainer out of a paper clip. How NOT fun is that??
4.) Friendship bracelets.
5.) Popsicles that turned my mouth blue, red, or any other color.
6.) Mixed tapes.
Hmmmm, I must admit that I actually still love most of these! Wonder what that says about my maturity??
http://heart-of-light.blogspot.com Rachel (heart of light)
I loved getting my plate of scrambled eggs when I was a kid because my mom would draw a happy face on them with ketchup. I guess that’s gross if you don’t eat ketchup on eggs, but I loved it.
http://allwomenstalk.com All Women Stalker
The Christmas song Silent Night.
Back to school shopping.
Summer at my grandparents’ house.
Swimming in the river.
Potato chips (because junk food was forbidden in the house)
-meream
http://www.melissabxoxo.blogspot.com Melissa
Great post! Mine include….
1. rolling down the hill in the summer
2. Cute lifeguards – they seemed so wise and mature back then!
3. Making tents in the living room with my sister
4. Saturday morning cereal and cartoons
5. Barbie fun
http://none MrsMose
I used to get so stoked for all the holiday cartoon specials that would come on, like Garfield’s Halloween, It’s The Great Pumpkin Charlie Brown, The Grinch, etc. I still have VHS tapes full of those shows that I recorded with all the great retro commercials! My husband and I always break them out for holidays and are looking into coverting them to DVD so we can show our future kids someday
I also used to love when my Mom mopped the floor. She would take the chairs and bar stools and put them into the living room while the floor dried. I would always go get my blankets and pillows and make a really cool “tent-fort” by drapping the blankets over the chairs.
http://corksandcaftans.wordpress.com Corks & Caftans
So cute. Simple pleasures, I love it.
Mine are easy:
1. getting a bath in the sink
2. making chocolate chip cookies and only eating the dough.

http://corksandcaftans.wordpress.com
http://kerensgotyourtongue.blogspot.com Keren
Aw, number seven hits closest to home. School shopping is wicked :p
http://www.ciaochessa.com Chessa!
I love how nostalgic you are:) I think that this post and the one about your grandpa and the ice cream are two of my faves.
For me, definitely jumping in puddles and chasing pigeons, flying kites at the beach and the park near our house, playing on the tire swing in our back yard, sledding in a huge metal dish in the winter, going for ice cream inthe summer, chinese on thursdays with my family as we watched family ties and the cosby show, getting new books, playing house with my sister and cousin, getting a tent for christmas one year but still building forts, sitting on the porch with my dad when there was a thunderstorm, getting a new box of crayons! so many things to list:)
http://www.ciaochessa.com Chessa!
omg…someone said mix tapes! totally:) I loved making mix tapes. in fact, I still have so many of them at home. it’s just that I don’t have a tape player to put them in… lol. I don’t think I will ever get rid of them.
http://lovelylovelyu.blogspot.com/ Alyssa
The pretzel retainers remind me of making a duck mouth out of pringles and sticking those Bugles chips on all of my fingers. haha. Other childhood memories that make me happy:
-Climbing trees
-Snow forts
-Building forts out of chairs and blankets
-Sparkly nail polish that when dry it smells like grapes
-Polly Pockets
-Beanie Babies
-Ring lollipops
-Making (and eating) cookie dough with my mom
-Playing “Lava” or “Lava Tag” (if you touch the floor you lose, or die as we always said haha)
http://engagedtobengaged.blogspot.com brandi
OMG pogs!!! hahah the bf and i go to the pumpkin patch every year! can’t wait. i think we are going next week!!
xoxo
http://www.iheartkiwi.blogspot.com breezy
“camping” in the backyard… boy, do i miss that! we made some amazing forts back in the day.
oh and playing four square at recess… can’t forget about that.
Marley
Aw, this time of year definitely reminds me of childhood wonders:
-Dressing on Halloween for school
-Arts and crafts made for the holidays (especially the turkey hands and Christmas ornaments)
-Baking cookies
-Picking out a Christmas tree
-Four day weekend (well, that STILL rocks!)
-Wrapping presents
So many good times! I can’t wait to have kids of my own and partake in the fun festivities again!
Marley
Aw, this time of year definitely reminds me of childhood wonders:
-Dressing on Halloween for school
-Arts and crafts made for the holidays (especially the turkey hands and Christmas ornaments)
-Baking cookies
-Picking out a Christmas tree
-Four day weekend (well, that STILL rocks!)
-Wrapping presents
So many good times! I can’t wait to have kids of my own and partake in the fun festivities again!
Katie McCarty
Ive always been obsessed with overalls. I think thats why I love the come back of Rompers. They a Unisuit without the weird buckles. I had over 20 pairs and even made all my friends dress up in overalls for my 11th Birthday party. Barbies and babies were another thing. I wish my imagination was still kid like. Their spirits are so carefree and fun.
http://thelilbee.com The Lil Bee
Em, I adore this list! And it’s so funny because all next week and the week after I have guest posters sharing their fave childhood memories on my blog, so that I can take time off for the bebe. I did a list of my own, too, which will post at some point while I’m “off”…it was such fun to put together!
http://www.egotrippingatthegates.blogspot.com Dana
pogs.
once, in elementary school, i had a slammer with a wicked New York Knicks hologram on it. I threw it out in my paper bag lunch by accident (gasp!), and made the janitor go through the entire thing to find it. ah memories. and back to school shopping WAS the best back then.
xx
http://silkesband.blogspot.com saara
Jumping in puddles is something that makes any child in any country extremely happy. Why?? I also loved it as a kid and I laughed out loud cause it was so amazing… but why is it so funny??
http://dessertordisaster.wordpress.com/ liv
-gushers!
-when my mother surprised me with ballet costumes. i was obsessed with tchaikovsky’s swan lake as a small child, and so i received beautiful handmade tutus and feathery head pieces.
-bonne bell lipgloss. yup! i’ll admit it.
http://neutraltuesday.blogspot.com Emily
this post literally brought the biggest smile to my face!!!
lets see…
- playgrounds
- sledding
- eating tuna fish sandwiches at the beach and inevitably getting sand all over it
- trick-or-treating
xx
neutraltuesday.blogspot.com
http://www.myfavouritethings-chloe.blogspot.com Chloe
Oh my goodness, I had completely forgotten about pogs until now, I was obsessed!
Right now the one that comes to mind is trick-or-treating! It was downright magical…the thought that I got to dress up and go collect as much candy as I could absolutely free!
We could all definitely learn a thing or two from our childhood selves and remember to always take pleasure in the little things!
http://myclosetmylife.blogspot.com J.
I totally miss sofa cushion forts!
http://www.thingsidothinkwearseelovedream.blogspot.com b.a.
pogs! oh man, that takes me back. we used to play for keeps at recess & get in trouble cause our teacher said it was like gambling. ha!
http://www.dreamsequins.com dreamsequins
That pic is just too adorable. I need to get some rainboats that keep my mood cheery- black Wellies seem so bland in comparison!
http://liza-with-a-z.blogspot.com/ Liza
Jumping in puddles…will NEVER get old.
I <3 those rain boots!! Haha
http://liza-with-a-z.blogspot.com/
http://liza-with-a-z.blogspot.com/ Liza
This list made my day!
Those rain boots are <3…jumping in puddles NEVER gets old!
http://liza-with-a-z.blogspot.com/
http://www.pomegranateandpatchouli.blogspot.com Alya
OMG a lot of childhood loves are universal. Back to school shopping was a favorite! Buying a new bag-pencil case-outfits.. Aah the things that excited us back then
http://frecklesandfringe.blogspot.com/ freckles and fringe
Silly Putty
Peanut butter on a spoon
Taking care of Barbies and Stuffies
Christmas Eve
First Day of School jitters
Helping mom bake
Playing ministicks with Dad
Choosing the perfect pumpkin
Raking leaves and jumping in them
The first snow fall
Movie night sleepovers
Lip Smackers
http://www.froufroufashionista.blogspot.com alison
ahh back to school shopping – i am reminded of it whenever i go shopping at Staples.
another favorite pastime is helping my mom bake or helping her clean house.
xox
http://www.soloden.com Jules
Great list you have here. Looking forward on your next post. =D
Summer
A Writers Den
Brown Mestizo
http://thejourneyisourgoal.com Casey
Summer break…definitely my favorite, haha. Also, Christmas stocking stuffers, but I am lucky enough to keep getting those.
http://thirtysomethingstyle.blogspot.com/ Amanda Correa
This post brought back so many fun memories!! I am now watching my kids relish in small (big to them) delights and it is so much fun to see! Puts so much in persepective!
Mary Grace
Ah, the old days!! I also enjoyed collecting pogs and stickers as well as shells, pretty rocks, newspaper & magazine clippings of my favorite celebrities and movies, and songs for my mixtape. And playing make-believe was definitely fun, fun, FUN! Additionally, I miss writing letters or simple notes to my friends, talking on a telephone for hours and hours, playing cops and robbers or ice-&-water, and weekend outings and strolls in the park/mall with family. It’s just not the same now that we’re all grown up.
P.S. This post is lovely.
http://www.capecodmakeover.blogspot.com Amy S.
ha! we used to fashion retainers out of jelly bracelets. again, not as glamourous when we got the real deal. love your blog!
niki
stirred up such sweet moments. Many of us get nostalgic this time of year, i guess its all about home, family and friends. Imiss saturday morning wathing cartoons with my little sister and eating toast and tea. sunday roast dinners, the shed at the back of the garden which we turned into our little house. marbles, barbie dolls, giant gobstoppers that wouldnt fit into my mouth, pop rocks,riding the bus to school. My first bra, ironing my hair with my mums iron! Digging for the largest worm in the garden! i coul go on and on…o sweet childhood….
http://www.chocolatelemonade.blogspot.com Catie
Ohh I loved my dwarf hamster. My dad bought me, my brother, and my sister 3 dwarf hamsters, which we brought home on Mother’s Day as a “present.” They were so cute though, and she definitely learned to love them. Lovely post btw
http://my.blastoffnetwork.com/mclmarketing Shannon
I totally remember pogs! thanks for this list, it made me smile and think back to all the great things about being a kid
Jena
This is totally making me recall things I have not thought about in such a long time.. wow
I loved:
*decorating the tree and cookies at xmas, dyeing eggs at easter
* swimming in the pool for hours till I looked like a prune while
pretending to be a mermaid lol
*playing hide and go seek right when it was starting to get dark
*sleepovers at friends houses(we’d never sleep lol)
*dancing in my friends garage, making up dance routines to michael jacksons “Bad” cd lol, and making whoever was around our audience
*sitting at the dinner table at nite w/ my dad teaching me to draw
*loved feeding those little birdys that would hop all around at the park lol
*watching punky brewster on the weekends, i loved her two different colored boots! she was so cool haha
*going to the u-pick to pick strawberries w/ the family
*playing duck hunt and zelda w/ my brother on the original nintendo, which we still have lol
I could go on and on..:)
*