What did your parents tell you NEVER to do?

[cathmom]

I know someone whose parents told him that he could do anything else, just never marry a Catholic. So he married a Catholic.

 

On a smaller scale, my dh has told the dc that they should not eat pepperoni because it is bad for children. Result: they all love pepperoni.

 

Also food-related: when my 2nd dc was starting solid food, someone recommended eating frozen peas. When dh found out, he said that no dc of his should eat frozen fruit or veggies. Result: they all love frozen veggies. They will get out a bag of veggies from the freezer and just eat them!

 

What examples do you have? Is this common?

[Daisy]

I'm racking my brain. Okay, Okay.

 

1. NEVER let the baby go out without a cap. My DD hated caps of any kind and even at 2 months old she would scream until you took it off her. So no caps!

 

2. NEVER boil corn on the cob for longer than 3 minutes. Well, I do and I like it better, so there!

[Tammy]

and I didn't......and I am thankful.....for only half a leg to shave, LOL! You can't even see the hair on my thighs.....YIPPEE.

 

.

[Guest Katia]

My mother told me to NEVER leave food on my plate. And NEVER to leave left-overs on the table. Everything should be eaten.

 

So, I have always eaten everything and I'm fatter than a pig.

 

However, trying to change doing this, even though logically I know in my head it is incorrect behavior..........I have trouble leaving food. Because I feel I'm disobeying my mother.

 

PS: I let my dc leave food in their plates AND on the table! I don't want my dc as messed up as I am.

[laughing lioness]

Date a black boy. We lived in a very racially mixed neighborhood and I had many friends that were black. My parents had a couple of good friends that had adopted interracially and they saw so much prejudice against thier children. They also had a good friend who had married an Indian and their kids were treated very poorly, too.

My dh is about as white as you can get. My oldest dd, however, is head over heels over a Hungarian (dark skin, awesome accent -ethnically Asiatic).

[Parrothead]

My mother told me to never hitch-hike, so I haven't. She also told me to never pick up a hitch-hiker, but I have twice.

[Miss Marple]

To *never* leave home without wearing clean underwear. "You might get into an accident and have to go to the hospital."

[BMW]

Don't eat yellow snow.

 

And we passed that rule on to our children.

 

So far, it's been obeyed by all.

[lionfamily1999]

Don't put a plastic bag over your head... they never really said why, but they said not to so vehemently that we obeyed.

 

The first time my son put a plastic bag over his head, we (my husband and I) were both shocked frozen. Then the irrational overreacting commenced. Now, he doesn't put plastic bags on his head either ;)

[specialmama]

NEVER sleep with socks on, and NEVER eat ice cream before going to bed: it'll give you nightmares.

 

Whatever :001_huh:

 

I have done both. No nightmares.

 

Also... NEVER say never.

 

Never? :tongue_smilie:

[DB in NJ]

1. Never marry a man you meet in a bar. (I did).

 

2. Never leave home without clean underwear on. (I don't).

 

3. Always wear mascara. Always. (I do).

 

:D

[Desert Rat]

Never put pennies on the railroad track. They told me I would derail the train and cause much mayhem and death. :o) We lived near the tracks. Of course, freshman in college the new group I was with suggested this very thing. I was aghast and then very embarassed to find out my parents had fibbed. I still laugh about that.

[LauraGB]

Usually, whatever they vehemently told me not to do, I made certain I did. :blushing:

 

The only exceptions I can think of are:

 

1. Don't use anyone elses comb or brush.

2. Don't drink out of anyone else's cup/glass. (How I toiled over the communion wine!)

 

I still adhere to these rules, and so do my dc.

[pqr]

lie, cheat, steal or do anything dishonorable.

[C_l_e_0..Q_c]

Never date a Muslim. My parents had seen friends' daughters (more than one) who married Muslim men, and got in a lot of trouble when the marriage didn't work out.

I always thought it was because they were prejudiced (they still are) but they were right on one point: child custody can get tricky, with international laws, and differences in societies. Although it's not necessarily because the man is Muslim.

Anyway, when this cute Muslim man at karate let it be known that he was interested, (and I was too, he had a great smile, and was very very kind) well, I couldn't bring myself to say yes.

[Danestress]

never ride a motorcycle, never put anything on a credit card you can't pay off.

[kalanamak]

Not parents, but mother:

 

Never sign anything you don't understand.

Never marry a man with the intention of changing him: you won't.

 

 

From my father:

 

Never ride on the back of a motorcycle (if you want to ride one, drive it...he trusted me more than young men).

[astrid]

Never cut your own hair.

Never put anything in writing that you wouldn't want the whole world to read.

Never stick your elbow in your ear.;)

 

 

astrid

[Kay in Cal]

was my parents (joking) mantra during my childhood. The only problem--I really thought that everyone was required to go to medical school. Be a ballerina--medical school first, then ballet school. A lawyer would do medical school first, then law school. Etc.

 

I discovered as a teen that this was not the case, but regardless I only dared to change my major from pre-med AFTER I was at college. :glare:

[Peela]

I am racking my brain because she wasnt really that kind of mum- but my mum did have a thing about children not wearing black. So I never wore black as a child and was almost afraid of it. I am now in my 40s and enjoy wearing black sometimes, but its still quite a big thing for me to do.

The other one was having my hair cut short- she would keep my hair short even though I desperately wanted long hair as a kid, and I have had it long most of my adult life.

[Paz]

Not my parents but my ob when I was pregnant with dd told me not to eat high fat foods like french fries. What did I want to eat the entire pregnancy? French Fries! I didn't even think about eating them before they were forbidden.:lol:

[Just Another Jen]

1. Never eat burnt food. (?)

 

2. Never drive a car without shoes on- because if you are in a accident your feet will get cut up.

 

I never said that my family was sane....

[Tracey in TX]

Don't eat yellow snow.

 

And we passed that rule on to our children.

 

So far, it's been obeyed by all.

:lol::lol::lol:

GOOD rule to follow!

[Tracey in TX]

1. Never kiss a boy on the first date. (Kissed DH before our first date!)

2. Never go to a rock concert. That's where the "bad" kids hang out. (Begged to see Loverboy in the early 80's. Parents threatened to ground me until I was 40 if I went. SO, took my kids to see a free Loverboy concert a few years ago. Called mom to say it was too late to ground me. I was already 40 :))

3. Never talk back to a teacher, police officer, or husband. :lol: (The cop is the only one who gets my perpetual respect!)

4. NEVER, EVER, EVER buy Japanese products.

[CactusPair]

1. never drive without my seatbelt (followed)

 

2. never get into a car with someone you don't know (didn't follow--wish I had)

 

3. never get my ears pierced (did repeatedly and now regret it, though it was fun at the time so I guess I don't regret it after all--just hate all those holes and I don't even wear jewelry anymore!)

[gardening momma]

To *never* leave home without wearing clean underwear. "You might get into an accident and have to go to the hospital."

My youth group leader always brought that up whenever we went somewhere in the church van! She was a nurse, so she may have seen some dirty underwear in her day!

[gardening momma]

Not my parents but my ob when I was pregnant with dd told me not to eat high fat foods like french fries. What did I want to eat the entire pregnancy? French Fries! I didn't even think about eating them before they were forbidden.:lol:

With dd5 I had some trouble gaining weight, so my OB told me to eat...anything! :hurray:

[MindoverMatter]

1. Never leave the house without clean underwear or without making your bed.

 

2. In life, these 3 people are hard to find ... once you find them be sure to hold on to them: a honest Mechanic, a trustworthy Doctor and a good Hairdresser.

[sagira]

My mom told me:

 

-to never have s*x before I was married (I didn't)

-to never go on car trips with a guy you hardly know (I went with future dh, I just knew I could trust him -- nobody else, though -- I was right :))

-to never break a boy's heart -- when boys are hurt they may retaliate -- I tried not to, but I may have hurt some anyway, just not intentionally.

-Yes, the dirty underwear thing too, but I honestly don't care if I have dirty underwear, you know? Or happen to be wearing underwear with a hole in it.. I really don't. I realize each person cares about what's important to them.

 

E.g. to my mom it's really important that her hair look nice. That doesn't register with me. My hair is wash and wear, and I don't even look at it until I see it in pictures, and then I think it looks fine anyway :)

Edited December 3, 2008 by sagira

[Jen in PA]

The one that always worried me was never flip a light switch on and off rapidly because it can start an electrical fire. I still get nervous when I catch my kids playing with a light switch.

 

Also, I remember being told never to go under the bleachers with a boy, and I had no idea what my mother meant by that for years. I wasn't naive, I just had no clue what bleachers had to do with anything:confused1:

[elegantlion]

I'm trying to think....

 

1. avoid talking about politics, money, and religion with strangers :lol::lol: (obviously that was before this message board)

 

2. Don't tell you husband about everything you did before you met him. :001_huh: (after 16 years of marriage I've probably spilled the bean about everything by now)

 

That's all I can think of.... I think most of the advice went in one ear and out the other.

[buddhabelly]

NEVER sleep with socks on

 

What's even odder is that is the only advice I can remember receiving from them. :confused:

 

When I finally pressed them on this and asked them WHY one should not sleep in socks, they actually said, "Because your feet won't grow!" My parents were obviously of the "whatever works" school of parenting...:lol:

 

julie

[Delighted3]

I always wear clean underwear, because not to is...well, yuck, but I do hate to spend money on underwear, so my unmentionables sometimes look a little ragged and I always say to my Mom when she is visiting and helping me with my laundry that if I ever have to go to the emergency room, I hope they are more interested in saving my life than they are in looking at my underwear :001_smile:

The one thing my Mom did impress on me that is so dated is that you shouldn't wear white shoes after Labor Day or black shoes after Easter. I've tried to move on, but you know some things are just too ingrained.:lol:

Joy

[coffeefreak]

I was just about to post the white shoes after labor day thing. She also has issues with pantyhose and sandals (I do to but most southwesterners don't).

 

The other thing she told me never to do? Never be a stay at home mom.:smilielol5: Here's a loose quote from my childhood: "It's stupid when women put themselves in the position of totally depending on their husbands for household income. Besides, you wouldn't like it, you're much too smart to be happy at home."

 

When we had our 2nd dd and I decided to stay home with both the girls (up till then dh had worked nights and I had worked days), she called me and in her whispered, confidential voice she said, "Is he (my hubby) making you do this? I could move out there and work nights and watch the girls during the day.":scared:

 

Boy were they shocked when we started homeschooling a year later!!!!!:D

[Kris]

*sigh* The list was endless. Since I don't have all night --

 

Never take rides -- or candy -- from strangers. This became problematic when I got lost on my way home my very first day of first grade. They realized later they showed me several times how to *get* there, but not how to get home and, of course, everything looked different going the other way! (It was quite a long walk, but I'm sure not as long as I remember. If I ever get back up there again, I'll be checking on that. :lol: ) So I turned on the first street instead of the second street and ended up in No Man's land! I don't know if we didn't have a phone, or if I didn't know the number, but I didn't know our address, either, and my Mom didn't have a car. A guy saw me walking down the middle of the street -- bawling, of course -- and offered to help me. Of course, he was one of "them" -- what to do?! Since he lived near the school, he called over there while I sat on the porch -- and the treat he offered me, which was surely poison, was left untouched on the porch next to me in case I changed my mind. Yeah! Right! I'm not falling for *that* old trick! The principal came to get me and I had no choice but to get into the car with him so he could take me home. We got there and my mother was outside -- frantic -- and the look on her face when we pulled in? I quickly thought I should probably have let the "bad guy" do whatever it is they do, because anything my mother would come up with was surely worse. I was leaning out the window as we were pulling up, hollering at her that it was okay, who this guy was -- I was talking as fast as I could. Fortunately, mom and dad felt guilty, so I was spared. ;)

 

Don't get off the bus. They sent me on the bus by myself to go visit my grandparents one summer and I was told that I was not to get off that bus under any circumstances. So, of course, as soon as it stopped -- in Reno! -- that's exactly what I did. As I was heading into the terminal, a lady walking behind me asks, "Where are you going?" Good grief! My mother had spies EVERYWHERE! Well, of course, the lady was just asking me where I was traveling, not challenging me about getting off the bus. So I told her -- and got right back on that bus. I didn't see the inside of the Reno Greyhound terminal until I was well into my 30s. :lol:

 

And of course "don't hitch-hike" -- which I did. And my Dad picked me up one afternoon. :lol:

 

The clean underwear thing? Definitely. But *that* I did do. :D

 

ETA: Gotta love Google -- one mile. I can't believe all that stuff is still there.

Edited December 3, 2008 by Kris

[Colleen]

I can't think of a single thing that my parents told me to NEVER do. Maybe that's my problem.:D

Edited December 3, 2008 by Colleen

[SquirrellyMama]

My dad told me never get married and never have children. I did both. He told me recently to not have anymore children (his reasoning is that they just ruin your life). I told my dh that we just had to have another one :) He vetoed the suggestion.

 

My mom told me never wear long dresses because I was too short. I only wear long dresses when I wear them.

 

Kelly

[Jenny in Atl]

I can't think of a single thing that my parents told me to NEVER do. Maybe that's my problem.:D

 

Your not alone. ;)

[unsinkable]

I always wear clean underwear, because not to is...well, yuck, but I do hate to spend money on underwear, so my unmentionables sometimes look a little ragged and I always say to my Mom when she is visiting and helping me with my laundry that if I ever have to go to the emergency room, I hope they are more interested in saving my life than they are in looking at my underwear :001_smile:

The one thing my Mom did impress on me that is so dated is that you shouldn't wear white shoes after Labor Day or black shoes after Easter. I've tried to move on, but you know some things are just too ingrained.:lol:

Joy

 

Joy, depending on how sick you are, the ER staff will be so interested in saving your life they will cut off all your clothes in an eyeblink and drop them on the floor. Maybe you'll get them back (shoved in a plastic PATIENT'S BELONGINGS bag.)

 

So don't worry about your underwear status. :)

[Delighted3]

Unsinkable,

That's good to know. Maybe then I would have an excuse to buy some new ones.:lol:

Joy

[Tammyla]

Don't go out or to bed with wet hair.

 

And of course the clean underwear were a given.

[coffeefreak]

OKOKOK Here's what I never understood about the clean underwear thing. Once you've worn it for more than 10 min, it's not clean!!!! AND, not to be gross, but if you do end up in the emergency room, it's usually even more "not clean" as a result of the accident, if you get my drift. I for one have never said anything to my kids about clean underwear except, "have you changed your underwear today?" The other just doesn't make sense to me:confused:

 

Sorry, you can now return to topic:D