I think it's funny that so many people are arguing that a 15 year is far too old to play with younger children, but that OP, who is likely 25-30 years older than the 15 year old, should be perfectly happy to include her in their conversation. |
Yes we expect more of actual adults (OP) than we do of a 15yo. Crazy right? |
How does someone like you even have friends? 🤯 Or is this OP's alter ego saying what she actually wanted to write in her OP? lol |
She didn't shun the kid, she just doesn't want her there. And that's not weird, because people often don't like to socialize with those in a different stage of life. Like a 15 year old and an 11 year old. It works both ways. |
Yes OP, we expect you to be polite and welcoming to EVERYONE that you invite into your home... age should not be a factor. How is this even a question? It's very obvious which people were raised with no home training. |
She doesn’t need to be happy about hanging out with a 15 year old. She doesn’t need to do it again. She asked if the teenager’s behavior was normal, and has found out that it is within the normal range. Case closed. |
Except the 15 year old was her invited guest. And OP forgot to tell the 15 year old she was banished to the basement. |
NP. I just spent a weekend with my brother and 14 year old niece, and she is so self-absorbed. We were trying to discuss the situation in Israel, and she interrupted to tell a long story about a bat mitzvah she went to last year. Her focus on herself is developmentally appropriate, but annoying to be around, so I can definitely see how OP would be irked if this girl were doing something similar. |
A 15 year old should take a steer from the host and be happy to spend time with ANYONE that is in the house...including younger children. It was frankly quite rude of her decline OP's suggestion to go to the basement. If I'm a guest in someone's house and they say we're moving into the living room now, I don't insist on staying in the dining room. |
OP didn't even know about this kid's existence. She didn't extend the invitation to Mr. and Mrs. Jones, and Susie. The Jones' TOLD her they would be bringing Susie. |
Well yeah, just like I would expect a 40 year old to have dinner with a 70 year old more than I would expect a 12 year old to hang out with a 3 year old. The older you are the less it matters. |
I call total BS on this. I was this teen. My nieces are these teens now. They don’t want to babysit. They’d rather hang out on their phones (in my case it would have been with my book because I’m old and there were barely cell phones when I was a teen) or watch the kids’ movie. But if they’re there with the younger kids, even doing their own thing, they are implicitly expected to be babysitting. You can say they’re not, but the reality is that when the younger kids decide to bathe the cat or paint the walls or do flips off the rocking chair or smear frosting into the couch (all real examples), the teen is expected to intervene. The only way to not be expected to be in charge is to stick by the adults. My nieces do this now; I did this long long ago; it sounds like this 15 year old has also figured that out. |
Sounds like OP didn't explicitly tell her to go in the basement (small mercy there) "They came over for dinner on the weekend, and I assumed the 15 year old would want to hang in the kid area maybe playing video games with my 11 year old or just doing whatever with the kiddos. Instead, the teen chose to sit with the adults the whole night, first when we were out back drinking and socializing, then throughout dinner being served and eaten (the kids were served earlier), and even until after dinner. The teen interjected into conversation in a mostly appropriate manner, but still.... they are 15. It sort of put a damper on the evening for me as I felt I couldn't be as open with my friends as I usually would without a kid present and engaged." |
So the 15 year old can't suck it up and be a kid for a few hours?? Play a video game, board game? Go outside and play basketball or another similar game with kids? It's not going to kill them. |
They extended the invite to the Smith FAMILY, kids included. OP did not say that kids weren't included, quite the opposite. |