KIds thoughts on drinking etc

[swellmomma]

All the polls/posts tonight about drinking, drugs etc got me giggling remembering all the comment my children have made about these things.

 

WHen my oldest 2 were very small(2&3 yrs old) I was teaching them about "booze" because they liked to drink out of other people's cups and we were going to a xmas party where the adults would have alcohol. My dd (2) walked in and announced, "gamma likes booze we don't"

 

Years later same dd then 6 was attending gr 1 in ps. Her "what I did for Thanksgiving" story included we went to grandma's and watched her drink all the booze(grandma had 1 glass of wine like everyone else with dinner

 

Just today ds5 announced he was mad at Poppa. When asked why he said "Poppa likes drugs!" Shocked to hear this, I ask what drugs? he says "he takes pills, we are not supposed to take drugs" Poppa takes pills for high cholesterol but made a comment that they were drugs the dr gave him. Time for a talk about medicine vs drugs lol Of course same chid asked is poppa was going to be drinking again at christmas like he did at grandma's birthday party(where he had 1 bottle of beer).

 

Back when we were kids my brother was about 4 and he had been hearing a lot of commercials about not drinking and driving. One morning as we left our home for the long drive to Vancouver Island to see my grandma my brother burst into tears. When asked why he exclaimed "we gonna die!" When my mom asked why he thought that he cried "daddy is drinking and driving! My father was drinking a cup of coffee.

 

SO what stories do you have about your kids and their thoughts about these topics? Do your kids even have thoughts on these topics yeat?

[bumbledeb]

When I first explained about drugs to my boys, the youngest said, with the most serious face and voice,

"If anyone ever tries to give me drugs I will just go to Auntie Karen's house and ask for a fried-egg sandwich."

 

Her fried-egg sandwiches are very good.:001_smile:

[Pamela H in Texas]

My kids are scared to death of alcohol due to a family member. They have had sips but aren't interested. They each claim they'll probably never have their own drink. We'll see. In the meantime, they have been taught that drunkenness is a sin but that there is nothing wrong with drinking occasionally.

 

My kids think drug use is just plain stupid. They know it's illegal. They also believe it's a sin. I hope they don't even try them.

[RoughCollie]

DH and I don't drink alcoholic beverages. We never drank at home, and after we had the kids, we had to stay home to take care of them, and we had to have our wits about us.

 

So by the time the boys were 10, they had never seen anyone drink so much as a beer. I took them to visit our family in Kentucky. All of them drink beer. The kids were horrified -- they thought everyone was an alcoholic because of that.

 

(They were right -- but it wasn't due to drinking one beer.)

 

The kids see all the drug commercials on t.v. They can quote the contraindications and the side effects for each drug advertised. These alone horrified the kids and convinced them that only an idiot would take drugs.

 

I had to explain that medications are sometimes necessary even though side effects can occur, using my heart condition and the drugs I take as an example. I also pointed out that the reason illegal drugs are illegal is that they have side effects that are worse than the ones that legal medications have, including the major risk of having a criminal record.

 

So far, my kids are totally against using any drugs a doctor did not prescribe or over-the-counter medications that I have not given them permission to take.

 

If I have a glass of wine, I am surrounded by my kids all yapping at me about drinking, and they watch me very closely to see if I changed in any way as a result of it. Thus, even though I would like a glass of wine from time to time, I abstain. It just isn't worth the hassle.

 

RC

Edited December 19, 2008 by RoughCollie

[lionfamily1999]

We used to have a neighbor that would drink from sun up to sun down. She had three kids and Jo was the same age as her middle son, so at times the kids would play together. When Jo asked me why I didn't drink I told her, "ladies don't drink beer."

 

The next time we saw Gramma (mil), with a beer in hand, Jo shook her said and said, "I guess you're no lady."

 

Lol, none of the kids like beer, they think all alcohol smells like rotting fruit (rofl). We've discussed what alcohol can do to your insides when you drink too much and how a little can be good for you. I try to give them both sides of the coin, but I'd rather they just stayed little forever and I didn't have to explain these things at all.

[Snickerdoodle]

My kids can have watered down wine with dinner whenever we do (often).

 

They don't think anything about it.

[Dawn in OH]

My husband and I like to have an occasional glass of wine with dinner, a drink in the evening, or a beer at a picnic. We've never hid this from the children. We feel that it's important for the kids to see responsible drinking. We don't want them to think that alcohol is some horrible thing, but we want them to understand drinking responsibly.

 

The kids are still quite young. They've tasted a few things, made yuck face, and decided they don't like it. We didn't want to deny them a taste because that would only make it more interesting for them. They now seem to understand that some adults like to drink and it's an adult thing.

 

When they get older we will discuss drinking too much and driving a car after drinking. But for now, we feel we have set a healthy foundation for the subject.

[StaceyinLA]

The kids whose parents make it so taboo are usually the ones who wind up experimenting and getting into trouble. I think those who are used to being around it/exposed to it in a normal, healthy way tend to think it's no big deal, and therefore they aren't feeling the pressure to try it.

 

This is just my opinion of course. YMMV

[lionfamily1999]

The kids whose parents make it so taboo are usually the ones who wind up experimenting and getting into trouble. I think those who are used to being around it/exposed to it in a normal, healthy way tend to think it's no big deal, and therefore they aren't feeling the pressure to try it.

 

This is just my opinion of course. YMMV

I have to disagree. The kids I knew who were Mormons all grew up to continue following their parents' rules. No caffeine, no alcohol, etc. Whereas ALL of the kids I knew who's parents drank, perhaps a little to excess, but that's such a grey area, ALL of them drink now. And they drink to, what I believe to be, excess. I will say that moderates tend to raise moderates, but the idea that extremists or teetotalers or whatever you want to call them, will create the opposite in their children is not completely true.

[Retired]

My grandfather alcoholic

My father alcoholic

I am blessed not to have the addiction gene. I drank heavily, tolerated like a alcoholic but when I got pregnant. I quit cold turkey

 

I have shared with my children my drinking years during my teens.

 

That it is possible they could become a alcoholic. The dangers for them even trying alcohol.

 

They don't won't any part of it.

 

My father was drunk driving and killed his cousin in a accident.

 

My boys have no desire to drink. they think it is stupid.

 

They are 15 and 11 . I pray that this attitude follows them through out there life

[coffeefreak]

We attended a very conservative church (for a very short while), and one of the things the Pastor used to preach on was that Alcohol was a sin. That the wine in the Bible wasn't wine but grape juice (whatever!). Anyway, we explained to our children that he was wrong, and that Mommy is not sinning by having a drink once in a while. However, hubby's family are good old Irish drinkers, and ALWAYS drink in excess. So, youngest dd apparently heard a "private" discussion between hubby and I about his parents and a "drunken party" that took place last summer, where everyone got so snockered they went skinny dipping in the hotel pool. Several weeks later, I am talking to my mother and she is trying not to laugh. Finally, my Dad chimes in and says, "Did "oldest daughter" tell you about our conversation with "youngest daughter" last week?"

 

"NOOOOO," I said. Apparently, my youngest dd had asked my Mom why she drinks alcohol and junk all the time and why she would want to act stupid? While my Mom was trying to figure out what she was talking about, my oldest chimes in, "THAT's THE WRONG GRANDMA! TELL HER YOU'RE SORRY!"

 

Needless to say, my parents told EVERYONE on my side of the family BEFORE they told me! My youngest DD does not have unsupervised phone calls anymore.

Edited December 19, 2008 by coffeefreak
ETA: I mean no offense to the Irish. This is how dd family discribes themselves :)

[dangermom]

We are LDS and so never drink, but most of my extended relatives are not. So when my parents took my daughter on a trip a year or so ago to visit my aunt, I had to make sure to explain to her ahead of time that she (the aunt) would drink wine, and that was OK for her because she had never made a promise to God not to. So don't get upset when you see her do that, OK?

 

It surprises me when I think of how little my own kids are exposed to any drinking whatsoever, since I grew up with wine on the Thanksgiving table and so on. I don't want them to freak out when they see someone else doing it and think it's a total crime--it's just not OK for them to do it either.

[Peela]

We dont drink- I will drink one glass sometimes when out. Maybe 2-3 times a year if that. Dh doesnt drink (he used to, best he doesn't ).

However both of us have had colourful backgrounds with plenty of drug experiences. And now, we have told our kids that, but we havent gone into any details because they havent asked.

They have an attitude that its really stupid to drink or do drugs.

I think it will refine, though, once they mix with young people who do expose them to things. One of the reasons we like to homeschool is to hold off that exposure for longer. Eventually it will happen though.

[beansprouts]

My husband and I like to have an occasional glass of wine with dinner, a drink in the evening, or a beer at a picnic. We've never hid this from the children. We feel that it's important for the kids to see responsible drinking. We don't want them to think that alcohol is some horrible thing, but we want them to understand drinking responsibly.

 

:iagree: This is how we are also.

 

Alcohol does carry a bit of a stigma among some members of my church (never mind marijuana... :eek:) I have dear friends who feel convicted not to drink, and I respect that. However, they do tend to cross the line and judge others who do not share their convictions.

 

So with my children, I feel a need to preempt this line of thinking. My 9 year old dd has said that she will never drink. I told her that if that is how God convicts her she should follow it (though there is certainly time for her to determine God's will for her life ;)). If she does become a tee-totaler I want her to understand that not everyone will feel led that way and for them there is no sin in drinking responsibly. For my daughter I worry more about legalism than rebellion... my boys may be a different story...

[chaik76]

For years I was worried we would get pulled over because my mom always had a diet coke with her in the car!

I used to worry about this too! (Except it was coffee...)

[melissel]

While my Mom was trying to figure out what she was talking about, my oldest chimes in, "THAT's THE WRONG GRANDMA! TELL HER YOU'RE SORRY!"

 

:lol::lol::lol::lol: Oh, I just laughed so hard I almost woke DD3 :lol::lol:

[GWOB]

We occasionally have a glass of wine, mixed drink, or even a beer or two. I cannot tell you the last time I was drunk or anywhere near it. I believe I should set an example of how to drink responsibly. A glass of wine with dinner here and there or with friends is fine. My kids know that mommy and daddy never drink and drive. Period.

 

I do have a funny story. Dd8 went to a Lutheran preschool. The pastor's wife was one of the teachers. A strict Lutheran preschool. Imagine my horror as I walked in to pick her up as she was mixing margaritas for everyone!:blush::lol: