Parenthood comes with stress and sleep deprivation, elation and excitement and all of the feelings, all at once. That’s a lot to handle. When you have a little downtime as a parent sometimes you just need to check out. I see plenty of social media posts of moms celebrating wine-o-clock or doing cheers with a glass of wine and a sippy-cup. We all need to kick back a bit and mellow out but setting the right example when it comes to drinking is important.
My kids used to call wine “mom-juice” and it was pretty funny but as they get older and more aware of everything mom and dad do, I have to take responsibility for my actions. Obviously, my kids are way too young for school parties where I have to worry about drinking, but it doesn’t hurt to make them aware of the dangers of alcohol and teach them about personal responsibility now.
I am certainly not suggesting that everyone have a dry household. Jason and I enjoy wine with dinner and we will have cocktails every now and then. My kids are exposed to imbibing of all kinds…from family parties to events and celebrations and they even mimic the adults when we do toasts and cheers. We are always conscious of our behavior and try to explain the difference between adult and kids beverages.
Of course, questions about alcohol will only multiply as they get older, especially once they are teenagers. That’s why I am turning to responsibility.org to learn how to approach this issue. It is important to have a strategy for everything as a parent, from potty training to educating your children about the dangers of drugs and alcohol. A reliable resource like responsibility.org is essential because it is packed with expert advice and support.
What do you do if your child asks for a sip of your drink? According to the responsibility.org #TalkEarly campaign, 1 in 4 moms think sipping will deter kids because they won’t like the taste of alcohol and 1 in 5 moms think kids who’ve sipped will be better equipped to resist peer pressure; but according to the experts kids who experience alcohol before age 15 are 7 times more likely to have problems with alcohol. Whatever your opinion is about sipping, talking to your kids about alcohol is the best first step and responsibility.org is there to help figure out how to start the conversation.
Responsibility.org has a variety of campaigns that encourage families to have a lifetime of conversations about alcohol responsibility. These campaigns were created to empower parents to be confident about their own decisions and arm parents with the knowledge and facts to have powerful, impactful conversations. However old your children are, this is a fantastic resource to help prepare for the tough conversations. Being a positive role model is key so I am starting with myself by being a positive influence and making sure we #TalkEarly talk early and talk often.
15 thoughts on “Talking To Our Children About Alcohol”
It’s so important to talk to the kids about alcohol. It’s far too easy for them to succumb to peer pressure in high school and try to be cool. Great post.
I think this is a great post I don’t think alcohol should be a taboo subject in the house. My son is well aware that there are times that we do have an adult drink. When he is curious me explain to him what an adult drink is. I like this post a lot.
I believe it’s never too early to start talking to kids about these things. They see it all the time, and need to understand how to be responsible, and our example is the best thing for them to see.
I think this is a great thing to talk to your kids about at an appropriate age. It seems like a lot of parents wait until it’s too late to start constructive conversations like this.
I think it is so important to talk to our kids about Alcohol. I have two teenagers and I have talked to them often about the dangers of drinking.
I have always wondered about this. Now that my son is five, he is more aware of what we order on the menu!
I don’t drink, but great tips! I do think kids shouldn’t be sipping the alcohol before they are old enough, like the report says.
My kids definitely watch my husband and I like hawks now. They get kind of upset when they see me drinking so I only do it when they are not around.
This sounds like a great site to check out. We definitely want to make sure we talk to our children about alcohol early on.
I think it’s important that our kids have a good understanding of alcohol and the dangers that come with it. This site seems like a great tool to use.
This is such an important conversation to have with our kids. It’s amazing how observant they are – much more so than we might even realize.
This really sounds like a helpful site to look into. These discussions are vital for our kids’ futures and safety.
I think it’s very important to talk to them and make them aware of the dangers! The sooner we talk to them the more of a chance we have to stop them or at least make them knowledgeable.
I love this post and think it’s a great subject to talk to your kids about. I have 2 teenagers and a tween and we have been talking to them about it every since there were old enough to understand.
With younger children, I didn’t realize this is something I should be addressing now. I appreciate you sharing a link so I can look up the responsible steps I should be taking now to protect my children when they’re teens.