Do you allow your teenager to go it alone???

[Chelley00]

Actually, Aruba is a reference to the Natalie Holloway story. That teen was drunk and unsupervised late at night, and left the premises with three teen boys. .

Oops Sorry!

However, you make a great point. A big difference being at night clubs, drinking late at night in a different country than walking around Disney in daylight.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

Do what you feel us best but remember those "teens" that just got arrested and tasered. Not saying your kids are animals but with a group of teens anything can happen. JMHO.

 

[Mouse House Mama]

WDWINFO.COM - (5/29 - 12pm) While details are still sketchy, it appears there has been a major accident at Animal Kingdom this morning that sent several guests to the hospital, and forced an entire section of Animal Kingdom to close down.

According to unconfirmed reports, a piece of equipment being used by workers on a bridge over the ride collapsed, and struck a raft full of guests. According to one eyewitness, the water at Kali River Rapids was "red with blood". Several ambulances and emergency personnel were on the scene. There are no reports of fatalities, but some on the ride were severely injured

Now tell me, does it matter if the parents were with these children or not?
I am a true believer that what is meant to be will be.
I want them more then anything to be safe but I also want them to have fun.
My prayers go out to all these poor people. I prayer they are all ok.

For me it would matter if I was there because I could give medical consent, not have them wait for me to get there. JMHO.

 

[lou7401]

I think they will be fine - let them! Do they go to the mall at home or out by themselves? I don't see the difference really.

 

[hematite153]

...it appears there has been a major accident at Animal Kingdom this morning...

Now tell me, does it matter if the parents were with these children or not?

A big difference being at night clubs, drinking late at night in a different country than walking around Disney in daylight.

I agree with both of these points.

For me it would matter if I was there because I could give medical consent, not have them wait for me to get there. JMHO.

I would actually argue that you'll be in a better position to give medical consent if you were not on the ride with your kids. If you were on the ride then you are most likely one of the injured people requiring treatment. You could be unable to do anything for your kids.

However, if your kids are there without you, you will be healthy and able to make good decisions. Yes, emergency personnel will have to reach you but the OP said that her kids all have cell phones. Make sure their address books clearly state "Parents" and the call will be easy to make. Emergency personnel are trained to look for this stuff. Some people also recommend putting a listing in under "ICE" for emergencies--most important phone call--but this has different levels of regional buy-in.

You could also look into IDonME or something similar that would allow you to enter ALL current contact info (including resort room number). But, given the ages of the OP's kids they might balk at this unless the parents are willing to wear them too.

Do what you feel us best but remember those "teens" that just got arrested and tasered. Not saying your kids are animals but with a group of teens anything can happen. JMHO.

Yes, anything can happen with a group of teens. But, anything can happen with a group of adults too! For the most part, I would say that it is predictable which teens can be trusted and which cannot. I have taken kids & teens aged 9-18 on trips with groups as large as 150. Generally speaking, teachers can identify which students are likely to get into trouble by themselves. I would imagine that the OP knows her children at least that well. (I'd say her comment about why she wouldn't allow her 13yo to go with the other 3 makes it clear that she does know her children.)

 

[Hannathy]

For me it would matter if I was there because I could give medical consent, not have them wait for me to get there. JMHO.

If it was critical "they" wouldn't wait for you any way! You treat first ask later in a life threatening emergency. If it isn't serious then they will do first aid and then get consent. So being with them doesn't matter an iota. So let me get this right 5 people get minor injuries at a park that had 50,000 people there today if not more, and 50,000 yesterday and the day before, you get the idea, and because of this I should keep my kids on a leash or in a bubble. Sure.