My eight year old son announced last night that he has a girlfriend. I guess that is kind of cute. It is not his first girlfriend either. I think it is his third one now.

I know it is fairly normal for young kids to pronounces themselves girlfriend and boyfriend. It seems to me that it is happening at a younger age and is much more of a focus for children than it used to be.

My husband and I have discussed this subject many times now with my son. We always tell him not to worry about girls at his age. He then rattles off the names of at least five boys in his class that have girlfriends. Next he tells us all of the girls that boyfriends. He is in third grade, but this same basic discussion started when he was in first grade!

My husband and I were discussing it amongst ourselves last evening. Neither of us could remember our classmates being so focused on the boyfriend/girlfriend thing when we were in elementary school. I am not saying that it didn’t happen, I just don’t think it was so prevalent "back then". I remember middle school being the start of all of that.

This brings me back to my gripe about the television shows supposedly made for children. Most of them include no parental involvement (unless the parents are portrayed as idiots). The kids on these shows seem to live independent lives full of drama and mature situations. I won’t even get started on the clothes that they have the young girls wear.

Of course, you can monitor the shows that you allow your children to watch. They could be watching a cartoon but on the same network hear a preview saying "Can Chase survive the heartbreak of Zoey leaving campus"? I know I am probably misquoting that, but you get the gist. Such drama! It puts love and mature relationships at the forefront of our children’s minds over and over again.

There is another thing that drives me crazy. It is the use of the term "hot". You even hear it on these kid’s shows. She’s hot. I have heard it from my son and his friends. It thoroughly disgusts me. I tell him that children are not hot. What happened to pretty? Cute? Heck, what happened to cooties?

My gripe is not only with television shows. I personally do not approve of the Kidz Bop Cd’s. These songs are grown up songs. The overall theme of most of the songs on the Cd’s is love and relationships. Grown up love and relationships. These songs were originally intended for an older radio audience. Why do they make these Cd’s and market them for young children? Do they constantly need to be exposed to the trials and tribulations of adult life? Aren’t they kids?

Whew. I feel better now that I vented a little. It really is no big deal that my son has a girlfriend. It really is in name only and means nothing. My point is that children these days are growing up too fast. We have corporate America to thank for that. If it sells, they don’t care if it corrupts our children.