Quick Facts on Adolescent Experience and Development

Your Most Epic Childhood Memories!

This post was curated from The Top 50 Most Common Childhood Memories by Maiana Lima on Scribd.com

https://www.scribd.com/document/356002477/the-top-50-most-common-childhood-memories

According to Srcribd.com, a poll revealed that for about 73% of people the most potent memories tend to have occurred in the summertime. What’s more is that the beach specifically played a large part in their childhood memories. This comes as no surprise seeing as childhood summers are usually laid back and full of fun, playful activities designed to beat the heat and eliminate boredom. Below is list included some of the glorious things (big and small) that made our childhoods worth remembering.

21 Summer Based Memories

1.    Going on vacation

2.    Swimming

3.    Watching your favorite shows all day

4.    Popsicles and snowballs

5.    Playing on the playground

6.    Going to the arcade

7.    Collecting rocks

8.    Playing tag

9.    Rope swings

10. Hide and Seek

11. Going to the park

12. Hearing the ice cream truck and scrambling for money

13. Playing in the sprinkler

14. Drawing on the sidewalk with chalk

15. Staying up late

16. Road trips

17. Playing with friends until dark

18. Catching lightening bugs

19. Building sandcastles

20. Sparklers on the Fourth of July

21. Running around barefoot

What Our Old Memories Reveal About Us

Source: https://www.psychologytoday.com/blog/longing-nostalgia/201504/what-your-oldest-memories-reveal-about-you

"The childhood memories we choose to hold on to reveal aspects of what we consider important."

The memories we dig out of our cognitive map have some kind of meaning to all of us, differently. We hold on to these memories because we feel some kind of connection to the situation/experience we're thinking of. 

"How that individual understands the meaning of those experiences contributes to their sense of self."

For some, memories create an understanding of who they are. It doesn't matter how big or small the memory is; it brings some sense of identity to the true self.

Question for you: How would you describe your deepest memories? Do you think they formulate a perception of who you are today?

Nintendogs

One of my fondest childhood memories is begging my parents everyday to get a dog. I was very persistent with asking everyday, and even sometimes creating short PowerPoints to display the different reasons why having a dog would benefit me. Eventually, my parents got tired of my persistent asking and mediocre PowerPoints, and decided to take action. The only thing was, the action that they decided to take was buying me the Nintendogs game for my Nintendo DS.

At first, I wasn't very happy with the solution that they came up with. I thought that having a virtual dog was no fun and did not even come close to what it felt like to have a real dog. Then, I learned everything I could do within this game. Not only could I have one dog, but I could have multiple! I was thrilled to have different breeds of dogs running around my virtual house. I became addicted to the game, everyday after my homework was done I would log onto my game and take care of my dogs. I got to feed them, give them baths, walk them around the neighborhood, and even teach them different tricks for treats. I loved taking care of all of my dogs everyday.

Looking back now, I realize that this game did teach me a lesson. It taught me that having a dog would be a lot of responsibility. In order for my dogs to survive, I needed to take care of theme everyday, several times a day. I am glad my parents gave me the game so I could learn everything I needed to do before I got a real dog. I miss my Nintendogs, but I am happy that I finally have a real dog to take care of.

Tamagotchi

Happy #TBT  

 

Oh, Tamagotchis!

 

Who remembers tamagotchis? I remember having about four of these things. Yep. I took care of all four of them. I was addicted! I remember one of my friends asking if she could take care of at least one of them for the day. Nope, didn't happen! The best feeling of owning a tamagotchi was when I first got them; pulling the tab, bringing it to life. What was your favorite moment of the tamagotchi era?

Sweet Memories

It is pretty much a universal childhood experience to ask your parents for candy in line at check out and be met with disappointment when they tell you to put it back. On certain occasions, however, I would get lucky and one of my parents (usually my dad) would say yes! I loved Push Pops, Pop Rocks, Reese's Peanut Butter Cups, Gummy Worms, Jolly Ranchers, and Kit Kats to name a few.

Many of us have fond memories from the past associated with candy or other sweet treats. I assume this is because it was how we were rewarded and often bribed. When you went to the doctors, you got a lollipop. When you got dressed up, rang someone's doorbell and said Trick or Treat, you got a handful of sweet stuff.

I even remember when my dad would go to the gas station he would come out with Tootsie Rolls for my brother and me. For that reason I actually associate the smell of gasoline with Tootsie Rolls. I also loved visiting my grandmother at work, even more so because she kept a jar of Jolly Rancher's on her desk.

Looking back, sugar was our drug of choice and there is little we wouldn't do to access it. Perhaps one of the most elusive candies to get our hands on were those strawberry ones that seemed to come out of nowhere.

Favorite Childhood TV Show

HAPPY MONDAY!! 

What was your favorite TV show as a child? Why was this show so special to you? Describe your favorite episode.

Hit Clips to Spotify

A wave of nostalgia hit me as I watched Justin Timberlake perform at the Super Bowl LII halftime show. I first remember listening to Justin Timberlake when he was part of the famous boy band, *NSYNC. I remember having sleepovers with my older cousins and they would put on their CD's and we would dance, sing, and swoon over the band like every other girl our age. This got me to thinking about the different ways that I used to listen to music when I was younger, and the one way that stood out the most to me was the Hit Clips. Hit Clips were mini key-chain radios that you could bring with you anywhere. The little "clips" of music were on the key-chain as well, and they were interchangeable, so you could stay up to date with the most current tunes. The clips were short, about one minute, and were very low quality. I remember that I had every clip of *NSYNC song that they made for the Hit Clips. I would take it with me everywhere that I went, and I was so proud to show everyone that I had all of the *NSYNC Hit Clips. After Justin Timberlake's performance on the Super Bowl, it got me thinking to how much the way we listened to music has change in just a short amount of time. I remember having Hit Clips, then a portable CD player, then the first iPod, then listening to music on my iPhone. I feel as if everything changed and evolved so quickly as I was growing older. After the Super Bowl, I went on to the music streaming service Spotify, and saw there was a custom Justin Timberlake playlist, which included music from when he was a part of *NSYNC. This brought everything that I had been thinking about full circle for me because I was so amazed that I used to listen to one little short, low-quality clip of this man singing, and now I am on a music streaming service, on my mobile device, that has a whole playlist dedicated to his music over the years.

"Only '90s Kids Remember"

As a millennial, the rapid advancement of technology throughout my childhood was an incredible thing to witness. However, some believe that the whirlwind of social media and smart phones are actually what leaves young people aching for how things used to be a short time ago. For this reason, we hold onto childhood memories tightly and take every opportunity to cherish things that remind us of it, like movies, songs, games, and trends. It is not necessarily that these things were uniquely special or revolutionary, but when you're a kid everything is wonderful and those things were ours.
Ironically, we often use the internet to induce nostalgia and escape our comparatively stressful, dull everyday lives. Personally, waves of nostalgia can wash over me at any time, and for a second I am transported back to the simplicity and warmth of childhood. It can be comforting to look back on how things were when the world was new to you, so this blog will reflect that sentiment.
Hope you enjoy!