How much fun is too much?

Emma enjoying some free fun at the Clinique counter in Hall's Department Store.

Here is a question I ponder constantly....How much fun is too much fun for my little girl? It seems like life provides her so many more opportunities for fun and "treats" than when I was a kid. For example - we are regularly given balloons and stickers by the different super-market chains we patronize. When we go the mall there is a play area, a double-decker carousel, and gumball/candy machines every 50 feet. I am not comfortable with the idea that every where we go, every errand we run needs to be some sort of special something - a mini-amusement park. This can lead to a nauseating sense of entitlement. There are times when I just flat out refuse the free stuff, because I just don't find it beneficial for her to have it.

I definitely want Emma to develop discipline, hard work, contentment, and a tolerance for boredom (something I used to have a much higher tolerance for). I want her to learn that life is not a guaranteed fun-time every day.

But this issue is many-sided. It seems like everything we do is pretty fun. And maybe that's not always because we're doing something overtly special, but because we make everything we do special. We play "alphabet scavenger hunt" through Costco. We smell the different flowers and herbs at the farmer's market. We make up rhymes about our grocery list. We splash in the fountains. We get excited about funny shaped clouds, and little birds in our bird bath, and cars that are painted a funny color.

So - where is the line between teaching your child to find enjoyment in all types of things, even the most mundane, and teaching your child not to expect constant pleasure, but to be content in all things, even the not-so-pleasant?