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When I go to Manhattan, even for just a day, there's always a small part of me that wants to stay. There are real bagels there! And you can walk out at any time of night and find something to eat. And oh, what would it be like to raise a city kid!
I'll never know because as much as New York City jerks at my heart, I come crashing back down to planet earth when I return home to the country. I don't think my kid will be any worse for it. But I won't lie. I know the children of friends who live in urban areas are different from my own.
They are true city kids. And you know yours is one too if he/she ...
Has never suffered the awful itch of a mosquito bite Considers the sidewalk an integral part of any good game Thought the cow in the pasture on a long road trip was a spotted horse Has been to so many "pride" parades he doesn't know if he's gay, Puerto Rican, Irish ... Looks forward to 16 for the party, not the driver's license Has only seen a sky full of stars on the third grade field trip to the planetarium Assumes going for a walk means going to the neighborhood store Learned to share early because there's always a line for the swings at the park Expects to go to a different museum every weekend Has never ridden in a car not driven by a stranger Can sleep through fire sirens, garbage truck alarms, and the woman in 2B screaming at her good-for-nothin' sonuvabitch son, but God forbid you take them somewhere quiet! Can stand in a moving vehicle without losing his balance Is used to dinner arriving on the front of a bicycle Gets to sleep in the same room as his bicycle because it would be stolen if it was left outside Usually eats sushi or masala dosa for lunch but likes peanut butter and jelly "for a change of pace" now and then Speaks a foreign language she's just learning with a perfect accent because half her classmates are fluent Has never gone for a swim in water where he couldn't see the bottom Can tell you every subway to take to get to your destination before she's old enough for braces Has told you they'd prefer to wear their running shoes because "they're easier to clean if they get dirty from the man peeing on the sidewalk." Is impressed when she starts elementary school and finds out it has "its own park" Knows what a "stoop" is Has a buddy who lives over top of a store (that her family doesn't own) Automatically refers to any bird as a pigeon The toes of his shoes are ground down from dragging his feet on concrete when he rides his scooter Calls the person who cares from her when Mom and Dad are at work her "nanny"Are you raising a city kid? How can you tell?
If your kid doesn't fit, check out: 25 Signs You're Raising a Country Kid
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