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My kids beg to go outside so its not hard at all! On the other hand my sisters kids all veg inside and only go outside when my mom goes over and encourages it!

Oh, it's the same in the U.K. there are plenty of houses near to us where you wouldn't even know they have school aged kids because you never see them. I think the biggest issue is the protection and most children aren't allowed to roam free out of sight of their parents. Most parents don't want to be hanging outside with their kids either, I get it. SIL doesn't let her 8yr old leave their back garden, whereas at that age we were probably walking miles from home everyday after school, building dens, playing in the woods etc. I'm not sure what I feel about letting my LO do that when she's older...

Ugh that's depressing. We're lucky to live in an area where it doesn't snow and never really gets that cold, so I imagine it's easier for us than people who are cooped up inside all winter. We have a swing in our backyard and greenbelt trails all throughout our subdivision which makes it enjoyable to get out and go for walks. LO loves being outside, too. I imagine it'll be more difficult once she's introduced to electronics though.

Just to walk to his daycare or even the store would take longer than that! We very rarely spend a whole day inside. It was a really really cold winter here but we only stayed inside if it was dangerously cold (like below 10). Even then we HAD to go out sometimes.

Yikes. We definitely don't get out much in the winter, but I always wonder why I don't see more kids outside when the weather is good!

If the windchill is above 25 they take them outside at daycare, but that's pretty much all he gets during the week, at least during the winter--we weren't getting home until after dark. And even now, when it's warming up and the sun is still out we still have to stick to a schedule...dinner and bath and bed with not much time for outside play.

We try to make up for it on the weekends, though. D takes him bike riding all the time, or skiing (during the winter, obviously), or we go hiking or something.

ETA: But man, when I was a kid my parents practically shoved us out of the house, as did all of our neighbors with their kids. Dawn to dusk, as long as I stuck near my brothers and we were home by dinner we would be out all day.

as long as it is over 20 degrees we spend hours outside. we walk everywhere and enjoy long walks in the evening.

@lovehoneybee: You had to head home when the street lights came on!

My kid only beats this average because of daycare. If I was a SAHM, I know I wouldn’t take her out as much as daycare does. My LO doesn’t especially like going outside, but likes it when she can play with her friends. But to just go out if it were her/I. No way. Daycare takes them out for 30-60+ minutes every day that is over 20-something degrees (can’t remember exactly). They go out even if it’s snowing (not if it’s like a blizzard, though), raining, etc.

Yes. That's my son. It's killing me, but I can't break out of working long hours unless I quit. Thankfully DH has a shorter work day ("only" 10 hours with the commute) so he can take DS outside if weather is nice. Which might be any day now? Maybe?

My kid would live outside if we let him! The summer months especially. It has to be pretty cold for him not to want to be outside.

This is so sad. I literally spent my whole childhood outside. We always lived on acreage and had horses, chickens, etc. I remember following my older brother into the woods as he cleared a path for us with a machete.....he couldn't have been older than 9! We rode bikes to the neighbors and all around our block, had water fights, and even during the middle of the winter or in the rain, we were out of the house.

I didn't realize it then, but my mom had like no fear. She wasn't worried about hanging over us and watching our every move, worried we might get hurt or lost or scared or kidnapped. Now that I'm a parent, I realize how much freedom she gave us and how different it is today. I think my experience is also much different since I was homeschooled. We weren't gone at school all day.

I'm a big outdoors person (maybe because of my upbringing?) and we have really mild weather here, so my girls usually spend hours each day outside, as long as it's not raining. We have a fully fenced backyard that's great for playing, and we are close to tons of beaches and parks. Even though my oldest daughter is only almost 3, she still gets to go play at the neighbors' house all by herself. I want her to have a childhood like I did! I hope she looks back on her life and remembers her crazy adventures with the band of neighbor kids and countless hours spent in the dirt.

This is a cute article, for those who haven't read it yet:

http://community.today.com/parentingteam/post/what-would-my-mom-do-drink-tab-and-lock-us-outside

I was reading that myopia is on the rise in children and they really need 3-4 hours outside per day to fully mature their eyesight! I'm thankful we live in a warm climate; LO is probably outside for a couple of hours a day.

That's about what we averaged this winter. Between the weather and a newborn it was tough getting out for a couple months there. So glad the weather is warming up!

@Mrs Green Grass: I read that, too, and it worries me because even though DD gets outside quite a bit at daycare and we try for at least an hour on weekend days unless it's crappy out, we just don't get much sun here. The summer is awesome but winter can be months of gray, overcast, drizzly yuck. I read the article as saying that getting outside at all is key, but the quality of the light is also a big factor. I'm really nearsighted and don't want that for DD if it can be avoided...I'm seriously considering whether we need to get a sun lamp (to supplement outdoor time, not replace it).

@Mrs Green Grass: the article I read said they were testing it on some of the Chinese students to see if it makes a difference, so I'm planning to follow along to see what they find out.

Unless it's bitter cold, raining or snowing, LO goes outside for at least two walks or a trip to the playground everyday. We also take her obn errands so that requires walking outside. Since we have no car, she gets out even if she is not running around.

My first reaction was "oh, that's awful." We try to get outside all the time, even though we live in a generally cold climate. We go outside if it's not below zero most days (although frankly there are some days we just don't get out).

My second reaction was thinking about the kids I taught in inner-city Chicago. I never advocated that they go outside and play--it simply wasn't safe to go outside in their neighborhood. When you take the number of kids in the US for whom it's not safe to play outside, the average number makes a lot more sense (not that it's good, but it's a reality).

thankfully we have pretty mild weather even in the winter, and a backyard to play in, so they average about 1 hr in the winter and 3+ in the spring/summer/fall. i'm thankful for our weather!