I'm Bored

When teens are bored what do they do? Some may drink and others may play video games, chat, Internet, Facebook, ipod, and iphone. Some say being bored is ok. It actually teaches someone how to think without being told what to think about and what to do. Being bored might be a sign that the teen is working to find their way through a problem or a solution or be creative. Society may not nurture these instincts too much these days because there there are too many shiny, new gadgets to sell. We applaud parents working to parent and teach their teens how to embrace being bored without being distracted or diverted from their mission: to be successful at being them and no one else.

Last week there was an article on a kansascity.com blog: http://blogs.kansascity.com/crime_scene/2010/05/should-parents-let-teens-drink-alcohol-at-home.html

It talks about this being the time of year when graduation and prom parties are in full swing...and sometimes they are "hosted" by parents who full-well know the kids in attendance will be drinking alcohol.

Our Powerofparents.org Web site is a great tool for knowing what the laws are, knowing what to use to start (or continue) the conversation about underage drinking and knowing what the experts say.

We have a job as parents and that is to...PARENT. Teaching our kids about "how" to drink is not the best way to do it. It is illegal for them to drink underage. Are we going to tell them it is OK to break this law, but they better not break other laws? Talk about a mixed message.