Teens drinking at Epcot

[notnothin]

This is a very worthy thread.

 

[rayelias]

The law states you are to be 21 to drink.

If you allow your underage children to drink, what does that teach them about respect for the law?

"It's just a sip" to you equals "Laws and rules aren't important" to a child.

It's a much bigger picture than giving them a taste - it's a life lesson, whether you think it is or not.

 

[Jenn0)))]

Jenn0))),
So you went to France and drank. Was that a consequence of your parents' letting you drink or was it your rebelling because they didn't let you drink and you were away from home? I did the same thing when I spent a semester in London when I was 18. As for my motivation, I drank because there are some excellent beers in London, and, as far as I could tell, it was LEGAL and not harmful. It had little to do with what my parents had subconsciously signalled to me was permissible.

Neither, actually.
I was born in France, I went there for my 18th birthday and I got to see all my relatives that I never knew.

 

[eclectics]

Disney makes "Virgin" versions of just about all the specialty drinks you can find at WDW and a lot of places carry non-alchoholic beer. That said, is it wrong for a 16 year old to have some alchohol on occasion? Maybe, maybe not. Do a lot of teens sneak some every now and then? Probably more than you think. Not sure I like the idea of a parent giving it to them though, if that makes any sense at all. That's all I'm going to say.

 

[Luv'sTink]

My experience has been the opposite of a lot of posters....My sister allowed her son and daughter to drink at home at an early age. It did not stop them from getting drunk and parting hard as teenagers at all! Today her son is 26 and an alcoholic, and her daughter is on her way at 20. A friend of my brothers thought it was funny that their daughter could do a shot of whiskey at 10 and not make a face. I don't agree with underage drinking. Not flaming.

 

[azgal81]

I see nothing wrong with giving your child a drink or letting them have a sip of your drink in your own home. I wouldn't do it in public though.

Yes my parents did let me drink alcohol when I was a teen and it did not screw me up. I bet about 75% of teens in high school drink alcohol possibly more. I also bet alot of parents have no clue.

 

[disney4us2002]

I am the OP and I agree with you about the uptight people here. I have a 4 year old DN and 2 year old DN. I know how they can be. I would have done the same thing. And after spending a week at the beach with them recently, probably would have given them the whole drink LOL. (Just kidding in case you couldn't tell).

I only pictured me and DS16, 6 feet tall and counting, looking at least 21, walking around World Showcase after a meal at San Angel Inn and watching Illuminations and maybe letting him have his own marguerita. I never thought it would come to this. You think I may have my first locked thread?

Wow, I read through these pages thinking how lenient or flippant some people are about the law. Most (I only remember a few that said none) agreed that in their home they would allow sips. We have a zero tolerance - illegal is illegal. I suppose I take the uptight award; I will wear it proudly. I thought you were asking about allowing your teen to have a sip or two or share a drink with him, but you meant you are considering allowing him to have his own drink? Why? What purpose would it serve? Is there that much difference in the taste of an alcoholic pina colada vs a nonalcoholic pina colada? Are the glasses different and he would be embarassed to have a nonalcoholic drink? There are some privileges that should come with adulthood.

And for those interested, my parents didn't care that much if I drank during my senior year of high school. I was a graduating senior the year the law in MD changed from 18 to 21 and half of my classmates were "legal" - I was not. That did not, in the least, deter me from drinking far too much in far too many parties during college. Drinking responsibly, imho, is not something that can be learned at 16.

 

[Saxsoon]

I live in a border town, and it probably higher than 75%. Most of their parents think they are just sweet angels. These are not sips either, more like binge drinking to the point of alcohol poisoning. I hear ppl bragging about how they passed out, why should you be proud of it. And yes, if you are a minor, and if you have more than 0% on that breathilizer, then you are screwed.

 

[DawnCt1]

My experience has been the opposite of a lot of posters....My sister allowed her son and daughter to drink at home at an early age. It did not stop them from getting drunk and parting hard as teenagers at all! Today her son is 26 and an alcoholic, and her daughter is on her way at 20. A friend of my brothers thought it was funny that their daughter could do a shot of whiskey at 10 and not make a face. I don't agree with underage drinking. Not flaming.

That seems to be the "European and Russian" experience as well. Alcohol is accepted and introduced at a young age. Kids that drink aren't rebelling so that seems to be "acceptable". However, when one considers the high rate of alcoholism, liberal attitudes towards teen drinking does not work. Last summer my BIL split the cost of an 18 pack with his 17 year old, allowed him to have some and share a can with my DS. We were their sponsors at SOG. DH got wind of it, returned to the hotel room, dumped out the beers they were drinking and locked up the rest. If BIL didn't like it, he didn't say anything. He had no place to say anything. He was breaking FLA. law and the rules of SOG, which is under the code of the military. My SIL is a school nurse so she is at the high school a lot. I often hear her rant on about "parents enabling their kids to flaunt the rules by calling them on their cells" but she doesn't see herself when she finds her boy hugging the toilet bowl late at night.

 

[huey578]

I know I should know better than to post this but here goes. Some background: DH and I drink occasionally at home or in a restaurant. We don't get drunk, we aren't alcoholics, and we are pretty good parents. DS is almost 16 and will be 16 on our next trip. Occasionally when I make a special drink at home say a marguerita or pina colada I will let him have a taste. That is all. We do not let our 16 year old drink. Our last trip to WDW when we ate at San Angel Inn I got a marguerita and let him have some. Not a lot but a couple of tastes. When we go on family vacations (with all the aunts, uncles and cousins) to the beach we will let the older teens have a small drink of wine or a pina colada with just a little alcohol.

Here is the flame alert. Do any of you allow your teen to have a drink in Epcot? I know he is going to ask and I think I know my answer but wanted to see what others do.

I don't see any harm of them having a taste. Kids need to learn if they are gonna drink, they need to drink responsible.

 

[va32h]

I only pictured me and DS16, 6 feet tall and counting, looking at least 21, walking around World Showcase after a meal at San Angel Inn and watching Illuminations and maybe letting him have his own marguerita. I never thought it would come to this. You think I may have my first locked thread?

I will admit that I do not enjoy alcohol at all - and having been married to an alcoholic, probably have a biased view of alcohol in general.

But I won't flame you - this is your son, and your choice.

In your first post however, you mentioned a sip or two of your drink - walking around Epcot with a drink of his own seems a substantially different scenario. No, I wouldn't feel comfortable letting my teen do that.

If you are determined to introduce him to margaritas on this trip, you could order room service, thus avoiding any potential problems or embarrassments if your son should get carded.

As for looking over 21 - I am 35 and look it, and I still get carded. Many establishments card anyone who looks under 40 - certainly someone who looked to be in their 20's would get carded at some point.

 

[inaminute]

I don't know how it's worked for anyone else, but at WDW we can't buy more than one alcoholic beverage at a time--unless the other person (usually me) is there and we both have i.d. Oh, yeah--we're both over 50 and we look it, but we still must provide identification. We've had to do it everywhere. It's either their policy, or we've run into a lot of by-the-book CM's, or we really look a lot younger than we think!

 

[JLTraveling]

Wow...as so often happens here lately, this thread has degenerated to the point of ridiculousness. Nonetheless, to the OP, if you're still reading after all this, here's my advice to you: Don't buy him his "own" margarita. As others have pointed out, it's usually one drink per ID, so it would be hard to get two anyway, and you would be taking something of a risk (very minor, but a risk nonetheless). But there's an easy solution to it. Buy one at a time and share it with him. When you guys finish the first one, buy another. You still get the equivalent of one each, but without the risk. Nobody's likely to blink at two adult-looking people sharing a drink, but that way you can cover the "just in case" scenarios -- the rare uptight CM, security guard, etc. If you're holding the drink, where's the proof that he was drinking it? Disney's not going to make him take a breathalyzer.
To all the uptight terrified people: I was raised in a liberal household that permitted me to drink on occasion. I was also raised going to Disney an average of twice a week or so. My parents used to do this for me all the time. As for uptight CMs, trust me, they're rare. One time my parents and I went to dinner at the Fireworks Factory, when I was around 16 or 17. The server took the drink orders and my Dad jokingly said something about me wanting a daiquiri, but he knew the server wouldn't bring me one. The server said, completely seriously, "Well sir, if you order a daiquiri, and I bring it to the table, I have no control over who drinks it." My parents elected not to go that far, just in case, but they did share their drinks of choice with me. As with almost anything else in life, if you're not hurting anybody, and you're not acting stupid, Big Brother really isn't watching over your shoulder.
Guess what? I turned out fine. I drink to drunkenness now and then, but in a super responsible manner -- prearranging a ride with a friend who won't be imbibing, spending the night somewhere safe...and I have always been that way. Rather than forbid me to drink, and give me a rebellion point, my parents explained the way to do it responsibly, and I listened.

 

[ReggieB]

My experience has been the opposite of a lot of posters....My sister allowed her son and daughter to drink at home at an early age. It did not stop them from getting drunk and parting hard as teenagers at all! Today her son is 26 and an alcoholic, and her daughter is on her way at 20. A friend of my brothers thought it was funny that their daughter could do a shot of whiskey at 10 and not make a face. I don't agree with underage drinking. Not flaming.

Just because European countries have a lower age limit, doesn't mean that there isn't abuse. I think I'm echoing this post. It is the parents responsibility to ensure that their kids are educated about the pitfalls of drinking. One thing to let them have a sip, but another to completely neglect to tell them of the effects. Binge drinking is a huge problem in UK (for example) at present. I do feel however that the 21 age limit in USA is a little unrealistic, considering that kids are off allowed off on their own at 18, however it is the law, which I shall encourage my son to abide by.

 

[Tiggeroo]

I have two soon to be 19yo sons and a dd who just turned 21. I allow them to have alcohol in my home, such as wine with dinner, an occasional beer or a small amount of a blended drink, etc. But I would never let them drink in a public place or restaurant or allow one of their friends to drink in my presence. From the way the law is worded here in NJ, I'm allowed to let them have alcohol in my home, provided by me. This is actually legal. There were some towns here that recently amended their laws to allow you to serve it to other minors provided their parents gave permission. Crazy in my oppinion and not a responsibility i'd want. But as others have said, you would be allowing disney to violate the law and if a ABC agent saw you Disney would get a fine and you'd be in big trouble.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

definately don't do this at Disney, we have witnessed them escort people out of the parks, not sure what happened after that, but a group of people in front of us ordered drinks at that place in the WS where you can get a YARD of beer and then DH got one and we sat near them on a curb and we didn't see what exactly happened but they were passing there drinks around to a much younger person and DH passed his to me. We heard EXCUSE ME after about 15 minutes and we saw D security (i rolled my eyes b.c i look SUPER YOUNG and am very short so i was looking for my ID) go over to the group and ask them to follow them. They were asking about IDs and that was all we could hear from there.

 

[fakereadhed]

His pediatrician recommended Benedryl when he was teething. I think it has some alcohol in it too.

It certainly does NOT contain alcohol in case anyone else is concerned about using it for kids.

Sorry you feel differently but my parents raised me and my sister the same way and we turned out quite well.

I have to say, I am not uptight, and was disturbed by your post rather than the OP giving her teen a sip. Difference is, she was doing it based on a decision about her values instead of giving in to a 2 year-old's demands because he might throw a fit.

 

[DisneyMommyMichelle]

It is illegal in Florida to give minors alcohol, period, end of story, doesn't matter where it is (home or public) or how much it is (a sip or a whole pitcher). If you are caught you can be fined and at least for Fl. residents they can take your license away.

And just since a few people have brought it up I'd just like to say that while my dad has drank my whole life it was made very clear to me that I was not to drink before I was of age (21) and preferably not at all by my mom. Anyway, several of my friends were also raised this way. None of us "went wild". I have never been drunk. I have never had a hang-over. I never even tasted a sip of alcohol until I was around 23. So don't think that just because you teach your children to obey and respect the law that they are going to go wild once they are old enough. You can teach them about alcohol and how to respect it without giving it to them.

If they want a mixed drink give them something without alcohol in it.

This entire post is WELL SAID!

 

[Tiggeroo]

My point is we teach our kids to drive, the balance a check book, to do other things in life. Why would we then turn them out in the world where they can buy alcohol and expect them to know how to handle that?

exactly. Most of your children will turn 21 while at college. Suppose they never drink until that moment. The first time they drink will be away from home on their own with friends you don't know. How will they know how much is ok? Who will watch out for them. But I can't criticize. I struggled with how to handle this issue with my own kids. Each of us needs to decide for ourselves and understand anothers choices on this.

 

[Pugdog007]

I only pictured me and DS16, 6 feet tall and counting, looking at least 21, walking around World Showcase after a meal at San Angel Inn and watching Illuminations and maybe letting him have his own marguerita. I never thought it would come to this. You think I may have my first locked thread?

So is it that you think he'll ask for a drink (as you suggested in your first post) or that YOU want him to have a drink? Is this really for him or for your benefit? It sounds to me like you're having fantasies of being seen as the cool parent that had a drink with his kid on vacation.