I'm a little unsure about the lemonade too, and for that matter, the baked goods or other products as well...who knows what handling or prep methods were used.
But I love the entrepreneurial spirit involved, and the friendliness and hope in the kids' faces, and it's a slice of Americana that we can still enjoy, even when everything else seems to be changing so fast.
Are we setting them up to fail, or to learn the life lesson that sometimes plans and hopes work out and sometimes they do not? Depending on circumstance, a stand could easily succeed or fail.
I always stop, seldom drink the stuff, but every kid sitting there gets a buck, regardless. We have driven around the block to do that many times. It's such a small gesture for us, but to them it means so much. And we really want them to "succeed."
One day I was out on a power walk, down a quiet street with almost no traffic, and these three little girls were sitting by their stand. When I got close, I got three big smiles and they sang out "Free for walkers!" Well, I had to have two big glasses of that, but had no cash on me. But I was soon right back, and each of those little cuties got a five-spot.
I've seen some families doing bartl's suggestion, and selling canned soda and water. It's really a better idea, but darn it, some of the fun goes away.