Hi Austin,
I'm also from crazy divorced home, though I depended on my older sister to cook or ate Life cereal for several meals (basically all the time--still enjoy it). My little sister says she did her own laundry at 6, but my memory is a blur (perhaps I only wore dirty clothes).
I don't think this early independence is necessarily to be celebrated. It is a painful thing of absent parenting, shirking responsibility to provide supervision and a safe home. I am not a conservative, overprotective mom by any means, but I think parents (especially those traumatized by absent parents) should know the value of a safety net. I desperately do not want to repeat what my parents did for my kids. I am probably too permissive and allow too much freedom, but I try to let them know that I am there if they need me and that they do not have free reign--they are part of a bigger entity (family) & have responsibility, rules (not a lot), and must make some compromises.
I agree with you that some are so overprotective, monitoring kids' every move. How stifling! However, I think kids derive security and self esteem from some boundaries. I know I didn't like being the only kid on the block who didn't have to ask permission to go places. It made me feel like an orphan who no one cared about.
