Parents are notorious for saying things like, “well, back in my day we did things differently” or “kids these days are too sensitive.”
While there is some validity to these points, there are also several things that have changed over the years, and with good reason. Installing child seatbelts in cars for instance, or warning pregnant women against smoking.
Regardless, it can be eye-opening to look back on how drastically different parenting used to be for older generations.
These pictures, shared publicly by people in the “Old School Cool” group on Reddit, mostly give me anxiety.
Like #11, holy jeez, is that supposed to be a safety device or a toy?
Anyway, just check out these old-school parenting photos and you’ll see exactly what we mean.
1. “Dad: Let’s take a picture that will make Mom angry 1970”
2. “I was not a popular child. 1995.”
3. “Harley with a baby seat, 1962.”
4. “How kids became legends, 1990’s.”
5. “My mother and grandmother demonstrating safety standards in the 1960s.”
6. “Getting serious helmet-less air in the San Fernando Valley circa mid-70’s”
7. “Budapest Marketplace, 1984”
8. “My dad got in trouble for skipping school because the local paper printed this picture of him, 1984”
9. “Children’s Motor Wheel, 1927”
10. “Stealing a drink of wine at a wedding while my mom (behind me) isn’t looking. (1987)”
11. “Back in the day. 1950s to be exact. Check out that car seat.”
12. “My mother-in-law riding a bear at 2 years old.”
13. “My dad showing off his parenting skills 1985.”
14. “Me back in 1991 just your typical Aussie kid drinking XXXXlight beer and holding a baby crocodile!”
15. “California marijuana initiative rally 1972. That’s me in the box and my parents in the picture.”
16. “Me, 1958, relaxing after my bath with Toby, I was never again this cool.”
17. The ultimate BMX mom.
18. “Car seat safety in 1958. Not strapped into anything, these seats relied on the mother to put her arm out and stop the baby from falling forward.”
19. “No One is Born Racist 1992”
20. “Two boys embracing each other’s culture in 1965”
In fairness, this last one was pretty beautiful, but also maybe just share parts of each others’ cultures that couldn’t kill someone? Maybe?
21. “13 y/o Dad having a taste while the grownups are busy playing cards; upstate New York, August 1954.”
22. “Just a photo of yours truly (at 11 yrs.) petting a full grown tiger. My mom calls it her ‘Bad Parenting Moment.'”
23. “A couple ice skating with their baby, 1937.”
24. “My adorable (4-year-old) mother at a zoo in Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam, 1970.”
25. “A photo of me dressed up as my Dad, with my Dad (1982).”
26. “Infant me, my mother & father at a bar because that’s how parents rolled in the early ’80s.”
27. “My mom showing off her parenting skills 1978.”
28. “The pinnacle of parenting: 1930s swimming lesson.”
29. “My dad and his veterinarian mother, with their pet lion which they raised for two years, 1959.”
30. “My Hilarious Father (with the magazine) and my Grandfather, Grandmother, and Uncle at His Bar Mitzvah in 1972.”
31. “My mom in the hospital after giving birth to my sister. Canada 1978. Smokes and roasted chicken eh!”
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