Age 16 Drinking Limits?
Maybe they've got it right here....you get to drink for 2 years before you can get a drivers license...You can legally buy beer and wine at age 16 but must be 18 to drive...Sounds pretty good, maybe, but while many of you with 15-16 year olds are dealing with driving schools and fender benders in your second car, we're facing our own challenges...
Friday I went to a school social at a wine cellar in Lutry...It was a fun evening of sampling many many local wines, followed by a small dinner. In the conversation I learned of a co-ed sleepover party and parent's concerns over having their daughters attend. I had heard nothing of this and assumed Brenna was not invited..
When I got home though, Dedi mentioned that Brenna had asked to go to a sleep over Saturday night. "Will this be co-ed?" Brenna said "Yes, I mean it's being hosted by a boy's family! But don't worry, the parents will keep the boys separate from the girls at night"...Hmmm...Then Dedi asked, "Will there be alcohol?" I never would have thought of asking this...I mean Brenna is only 15 and there will be parents there!
but...come to think of some of her friends are 16...and things are different here...
Brenna answer "Sure, but not everyone will be drinking..."
So we agreed no sleep over but Brenna could go to the party...Turns out this was a wise choice...
Apparently the party was fun, with dancing and mostly girls hanging out with girls and boys with the boys, but the alcohol was flowing freely and apparently there were a few of the children worshiping the porcelain bowl.
When I arrived to pick up Brenna, I was greeted by a security fence surrounding a 4 car garaged mansion and two guard dogs...this is a big deal here...Not the dogs, just the size of the house... You don't see to many large homes here...I sounded the buzzer and I gingerly walked towards the house and front door. There I read the party guidelines "No hard liquor or Drugs Please"...
ok...
I rang the doorbell and entered...Met the mother who was dressed fashionably cool and puffing away at her Marlboros......"I think Brenna is downstairs..."
Loud music, 16 year olds everywhere...boys running up stairs with 3 bottles of beer in each hand...not a pretty site...
Found Brenna after some searching and was glad to have her safe and sound...I also met a few other parents coming to claim their daughters...kind of reminded me of when we'd drop our kids off at daycare and pick them up after work, but somehow a bit different...
Brenna seemed unfazed by the whole thing. Said it was a shame that some kids drank too much but that she had fun.
In a way this is a bit like the college social life I fondly remember and maybe it's good that kids get to experience this 'freedom' prior to heading off on their own..Also, better this is done in the open under parental supervision, however limited this may be.
Comments ?
...
Cheers, Dave
Friday I went to a school social at a wine cellar in Lutry...It was a fun evening of sampling many many local wines, followed by a small dinner. In the conversation I learned of a co-ed sleepover party and parent's concerns over having their daughters attend. I had heard nothing of this and assumed Brenna was not invited..
When I got home though, Dedi mentioned that Brenna had asked to go to a sleep over Saturday night. "Will this be co-ed?" Brenna said "Yes, I mean it's being hosted by a boy's family! But don't worry, the parents will keep the boys separate from the girls at night"...Hmmm...Then Dedi asked, "Will there be alcohol?" I never would have thought of asking this...I mean Brenna is only 15 and there will be parents there!
but...come to think of some of her friends are 16...and things are different here...
Brenna answer "Sure, but not everyone will be drinking..."
So we agreed no sleep over but Brenna could go to the party...Turns out this was a wise choice...
Apparently the party was fun, with dancing and mostly girls hanging out with girls and boys with the boys, but the alcohol was flowing freely and apparently there were a few of the children worshiping the porcelain bowl.
When I arrived to pick up Brenna, I was greeted by a security fence surrounding a 4 car garaged mansion and two guard dogs...this is a big deal here...Not the dogs, just the size of the house... You don't see to many large homes here...I sounded the buzzer and I gingerly walked towards the house and front door. There I read the party guidelines "No hard liquor or Drugs Please"...
ok...
I rang the doorbell and entered...Met the mother who was dressed fashionably cool and puffing away at her Marlboros......"I think Brenna is downstairs..."
Loud music, 16 year olds everywhere...boys running up stairs with 3 bottles of beer in each hand...not a pretty site...
Found Brenna after some searching and was glad to have her safe and sound...I also met a few other parents coming to claim their daughters...kind of reminded me of when we'd drop our kids off at daycare and pick them up after work, but somehow a bit different...
Brenna seemed unfazed by the whole thing. Said it was a shame that some kids drank too much but that she had fun.
In a way this is a bit like the college social life I fondly remember and maybe it's good that kids get to experience this 'freedom' prior to heading off on their own..Also, better this is done in the open under parental supervision, however limited this may be.
Comments ?
...
Cheers, Dave
posted by DFisch at 10:30 PM
2 Comments:
You knew that I would be the first one...If you are confident that the girls know how you feel about something... If you have said directly that, "It's okay to do 'these things' and not 'these other things'", then you can be sure they know how you want them to behave. After that you can have consequences for inappropriate behavior. At this age, you have to know that they are going to do what they think will be "allowed"! All children do whatever they think they can get away with. Love them, and send them out knowing how you feel. They will make the right choices....You did, didn't you????
Much love,
Ava
Oh yeah!
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