Allowing 12yo to celebrate with small glass of champagne?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:We are leaving the country for a very special vacation. The hotel provides a bottle of sparkling wine and we are considering allowing DD12 a small half glass to toast with us. Is this in poor taste?

Nobody else’s taste matters. It’s in your hotel room.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:future alcoholic in training

Oh please.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:A very small glass - it’s fine. I started having a tiny glass of sparkling wine at Christmas and
thanksgiving with my family around that age. I’m a productive, responsible mom of 2 with a good job, good marriage and no issues with alcohol.

Also a productive, gainfully employed, decent human whose mother would sneak her a wine cooler (remember those!) in a hotel glass filled to the brim with ice. I have a healthy relationship with alcohol, I assure you, it didn’t taint me.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A very small glass - it’s fine. I started having a tiny glass of sparkling wine at Christmas and
thanksgiving with my family around that age. I’m a productive, responsible mom of 2 with a good job, good marriage and no issues with alcohol.

Also a productive, gainfully employed, decent human whose mother would sneak her a wine cooler (remember those!) in a hotel glass filled to the brim with ice. I have a healthy relationship with alcohol, I assure you, it didn’t taint me.

Everything that you just said may be true, but it’s also true that that is not the behavior of a good mother.

[Anonymous]

We're French and our kids have had sips ever since they were little.

However:

1. Never a glass, or even a small glass. Alcohol is not good for anyone's health.

2. Now they're teens and our oldest is allowed to drink for real in France (not here, because he's not 21 yet), they don't drink. They've tasted lots of things, they didn't like it, so they politely refuse.

I don't quite understand the intense debates this generates on DCUM. I hope real world Americans don't care that much. It's like the intense debate around prepping for the Cogat on the AAP thread. DCUM parents are very high-strung about certain topics!

[Anonymous]

Tiny glass is fine. I’d explain to follow the laws of a country. Don’t drink in America.

[Anonymous]

Where you all finding these tiny glasses?

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:A very small glass - it’s fine. I started having a tiny glass of sparkling wine at Christmas and
thanksgiving with my family around that age. I’m a productive, responsible mom of 2 with a good job, good marriage and no issues with alcohol.

Also a productive, gainfully employed, decent human whose mother would sneak her a wine cooler (remember those!) in a hotel glass filled to the brim with ice. I have a healthy relationship with alcohol, I assure you, it didn’t taint me.

Everything that you just said may be true, but it’s also true that that is not the behavior of a good mother.

That’s your opinion. I’m sure there’s one single thing you do that I wouldn’t agree with, so I guess that makes you a bad mother as well.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:
We're French and our kids have had sips ever since they were little.

However:

1. Never a glass, or even a small glass. Alcohol is not good for anyone's health.

2. Now they're teens and our oldest is allowed to drink for real in France (not here, because he's not 21 yet), they don't drink. They've tasted lots of things, they didn't like it, so they politely refuse.

I don't quite understand the intense debates this generates on DCUM. I hope real world Americans don't care that much. It's like the intense debate around prepping for the Cogat on the AAP thread. DCUM parents are very high-strung about certain topics!

This is the USA, not France. You’d never find me on a French chat board criticizing the French. And I bet if I did the French wouldn’t like it one bit and would be sure to let me know.

[Anonymous]

Yeah, your kid doesn’t need booze. Buy them a Fanta or something. As for European drinking culture, it seems to me to be (or at least once upon a time to have been) controlled by multiple social strictures, such as not pouring your own glass, etc. Europe nonetheless has plenty of alcohol abusers.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Tiny glass is fine. I’d explain to follow the laws of a country. Don’t drink in America.

I don't think drinking at 12 is legal anywhere

I'm generally pretty relaxed about this stuff, and I'd let her have a sip if she asked, but I think 12 is a little too young for her own glass. Maybe see if you can pick up a bottle of non-alcoholic sparkling something at the airport after you land (even a foreign soda might be fun! I always got excited for orange Fanta when I traveled in Europe as a kid) so she can partake in the celebration.

[Anonymous]

Just...why? What possible benefit does this give anyone?

[Anonymous]

Surprised by some of these responses and the amount of thought you're putting into this, OP.

I'm quite the teetotaler myself and on New Year's, I let my 11 year old have sip of champagne. She was like, gross! We laughed, and that was the end of it.

[Anonymous]

It’s weird, I think, to be considering this in advance. In the moment you could offer a tiny amount if she’s interested (my kids would not be). It’s not a big deal but neither is toasting with soda or water—champagne isn’t magic.

[Anonymous]

12? That's way too young. Just no