Suzanne points us over to a great post she wrote for Playborhood.com, about two young Decaturites who decided they wanted participate in a great American past-time this summer: making money!

Here’s a taste of Suzanne’s post, entitled “An Old Fashioned Capitalist Summer”, to wet your appetite…

Today, my 9 y.o. and her friend put together a lemonade stand. Each cup was “$.50.” However, the sign had very small writing in parentheses in the bottom corner saying “Or $.25 if you prefer.” They hoped that no one would notice the fine print in the bottom corner. They were equipped with my crystal pitcher (which I reluctantly donated b/c my daughter wanted a “classy operation”) and the usual cups and napkins.

Click over to finish the story and see how the kids made a whopping 15 bucks!

Suzanne also suggests we use this post to alert the greater Decatur area of lemonade stands in the city throughout the summer so “none of our residents have to go without cheap lemonade on demand.”

So feel free, though I’m sure there’s an iPhone app for that. 

Spurred by our recent conversation about playground safety, Suzanne follows up with a video and probing questions for readers about the “free-range” chickens children of Decatur.

First up, the video.  It features the prof. who recently made the national news for letting her 9 year-old take the NYC subway alone.

Suzanne ties it all back to our little freedom-loving hamlet…

Probably pretty much everyone who spends a little time in Decatur will see them…. free range kids.  You see them walking in flocks from school in the afternoons… biking through neighborhoods and occasionally hanging out with friends at Dairy Queen, Greene’s or Chik-Fil-A.

It appears that we may be on the edge of a new trend and are relatively unique.   Check out [the] You Tube video on the Free Range Kid movement and also look for Lenore Skenazy’s blog and book on the topic.

…Is Decatur a free range kid utopia?  Why?  Are Decatur parents who let their kids go free range being irresponsible or are they just letting their kids live a normal and fulfilling life?

Or put the overly simplistic way:  Child leashes or MARTA cards?