They have friends. They need parents.

I remember when I was a kid, growing up it seems like my mother was always just around the corner.  She had rules when I was little.  A lot of things I couldn't do or places I couldn't go if she didn't know what was there or if it was safe.  I remember thinking, "Wow, to be a boy, she keeps a tight leash on me.", but I come to understand she was just doing her job, being a parent.  She was always watching out for me.  Being a single mother perhaps she was a bit over protective but again I realize that was her job as a parent.  I notice this younger generation, they don't have that same nurturing spirit I guess.  You could pass through a neighborhood and see 3 and 4 year olds wandering about all by themselves.  Even in the house the kids sometimes tell the parents what to do.  When I was a kid I wasn't aloud to close my bedroom door because my mother wanted to see what was going on in there, what was I doing.  Young parents today don't seem to think that way.  A lot of kids are growing up with some of these computers I guess and electronic gadgets.  They're not learning to interact with each other.  The parents don't take time to teach their kids proper manners.  Again, when I was a kid it was "yes ma'am, yes sir" and you learned to stay in a kids place.  Now young kids just jump in your conversation as if they're on your level and no one says anything about it.  They come and go as they please, as if they're paying rent.  I know it seems like a good idea and we do want to be friends with our children growing up, but don't forget they don't need you always as a friend, they need you as a parent.  Learn how to stand firm with your decisions and guide them the right way.  That's my opinion.