Vegas with kids!

[lukenick1]

Ok I'm only looking for positive feedback on this topic. Don't want to be flamed by anyone for taking my kids to Vegas. Only stopping there for a few days on a 2 weeks road trip to see the hotels, the strip and some shows. So my question is....when my kids are exposed to porn slapper cards and billboards how do I explain???? They are boys ages 8&10.

 

[usnuzuloose]

The best way is explain there are certain things they will run across and that it is very inappropiate ways about seeing women. Explain to them to not take the cards. If you are married maybe both you and your husband can sit down and let them know how it is demeening to women. I know the feeling I get really irritated seeing this. I wonder how these people would feel if they were solicitating there children regaurdless how old they are.

 

[KikiFan]

I'm fairly certain they are not allowed to hand them to anyone obviously a minor. Now they find them on the ground, but they shouldn't be handed one.

Have a great time! I took my daughter to Vegas several times and we always had a great time. Lots of cool things to see.

 

[shortbun]

Don't bring it up unless they do. Never give children more information than they solicit.

 

[MomofM&M]

Funny, when I lived in Vegas, I never noticed the porn slappers. But the last time I visited with my kids and walked the Strip, I was suddenly very conscious of them. The first time I saw one coming up, I improvised and called out, "Look at the sky! Look at the sky!" My daughters were so surprised and thankfully obedient, that they did but kept asking me why? I said, "because mommy said so" and then distracted them with looking at the buildings. I didn't want them looking at the ground because most people unfortunately, after getting the little cards just throw them on the ground. After that, they would just look at the sky and laugh that mommy was being silly. When we visit, I try not to walk the strip. We tend to park and stay at one spot and if we move around casinos, I try to stick with the ones with connecting tunnels or trams. Now that my kids can read, I'm going to have to think about how I approach the billboards.

 

[lukenick1]

Thanks for the info so far.....any other tips?

 

[crisi]

Thanks for the info so far.....any other tips?

Do the strip during the day - far fewer porn slappers - avoid the area down in front of Miracle Mile - lots of them there. Also, Vegas cleans the streets and sidewalks, so far fewer lying on the ground during the day - by midnight you are walking on a carpet of stripper cards. Very few right in front of the big Casinos and hotels - and they are never on property. If you are going to a show, grab a cab, the cab will go door to door and you won't see them. Stay back off the street itself as much as you can - that will avoid the trucks driving by with "Hot Girls to Your Room"

We were there a few weeks ago - it was a lot worse than its been in the past. In the past as a woman no one ever tried to hand me cards - now the are just sticking them in everyone's face. I'm sure they aren't "supposed to" hand them to a minor. I'm also sure that mostly they aren't paying attention and just shoving them at people.

I'd explain the concept of burlesque to them before they arrive. I wouldn't talk about strippers or "hot girls to your room" - but most of the visible advertising is for burlesque type shows.

(We saw Love and Penn and Teller. Both were really good. I liked Ka better than Love though - which we saw last time we were there.)

 

[growinupdisney]

We were there last year in June...after seeking advice from the boards some people made me very paranoid for taking the kids. We were going with my granparents so I was not going to change our minds and not go.

Once we got there I was pleasantly suprised there were children everywhere. We stayed at Treasure Island and my grandparents stayed at the Venetian across the street. Right when its about dark is when we noticed people handing out the "stripper cards" but they always hid them discretely when I walked by with my kids..they didn't even try to hand out one to my dh. They were on the ground where some people thre them but my kids didn't pay any attention.

I wouldn't hesistate to take my kids again they had a great time. We were only there for 3 nights, 4 days which was plenty for us. We mainly did things during the day time and the kids didn't go out on the strip but a couple of times when we were leaving a restaurant and we did see the pirate show outside Treasuer Island which I didn't think was bad at all like other had said.

 

[rszdtrvl]

They do not hand them to little kids, and are careful about handing them (or attempting to do so) to you if you have children with them.

I told my son (14) all about them. At his age, he will probably want to collect them.

Just be honest to your kids. All of the "goods" on the cards are covered up with stars.

 

[lukenick1]

They do not hand them to little kids, and are careful about handing them (or attempting to do so) to you if you have children with them.

I told my son (14) all about them. At his age, he will probably want to collect them.

Just be honest to your kids. All of the "goods" on the cards are covered up with stars.

How honest???? Just say "these ladies are solicitated for sex"???

 

[growinupdisney]

My kids were 16 and 13 at the time so I didn't even mention it to them. That is and was my choice they didn't talk about it and we are a very open family so if it was a issue I feel sure it would have been mentioned. My dd3 had no idea what was going on either and why point it out.

OP its your decision on how to handle it...you can talk about it first or just wait to even see if it's an issue then discuss and explain as you normally would if a situation should arise.

 

[rszdtrvl]

How honest???? Just say "these ladies are solicitated for sex"???

Sounds honest enough to me. But cannot be proven as 100% true.

Depends on how honest you want to be.

 

[Luv'sTink]

No flames here....my son has been to Vegas 4 or 5 times and he is 14; there is a lot of things you can do with kids, not as many as there use to be, but still quite a few fun activities.

We were just there in August...they do not hand them to minors or women (usually) as we walked by they would try to had one to DH and pull them back as I or my son walked by. I was concerned and ready to take a head off for handing one to my son but it was never a problem, we had more trouble with young men taking them and then throwing them.

Now Freemont street experienced that was a bit more dicey!

 

[mybestieismickey]

Don't have any kids but we live only a couple of hours away and visit a few times a year. If we are walking on the strip, we randomly will tell each other "Hands in your pockets! Don't look down!" When we were there in November they were offering their cards to both of us. Not just DH which I don't think I ever noticed before. The only place we noticed them in heavy numbers was north of Ceasars. But that was the only area we really walked after dark.

 

[mas6010]

Our boys were 7 and 9 when we took them the first time. We told them ahead of time if anyone tries to hand you anything or talk to them just keep walking....we were over reacting. This never happened, we were on the strip 3 nights and there was NEVER anyone that tried to hand our boys a thing. I really don't even remember seeing them the last time we were there.
Our boys LOVED vegas and all the lights and fun things to see and do. One must see that was their favorite is Red Rock Canyon. You would need a car to get there, but if possible take them. Have a great trip and they will be fine.

 

[pixiewings71]

We went last summer, we are talking about going again this summer. Our girls were NOT approached or handed cards by anyone. They won't approach woman (ime, I was never approached) or children and if they did they'd have to put with Mama and Papa Bear jumping all over them. lol DBF didn't want the cards either but the guys kept trying to give them to him, he was walking behind us 3 girls so I guess it looked he was alone on the strip, at night, I'm sure the card guys were confused as to why he wasn't taking them all. LOL Finally DBF said "Can Cass (DDthen13, now 14) walk with me so they stop giving me those stupid things?" (he wasn't taking them but he was tired of saying no or walking around them lol) So DD walked with him, it was our perfect solution. That said, your kids will see them, they are all over the ground, we told the girls that some men come to Vegas alone, they get lonely so they hire women to spend time with, they aren't stupid kids and they both said "ooooohhhhhh" as if they knew what we meant....I'm sure my older one did, but I was hoping my youngest was just saying that to play along. lol
Definitely walk the strip at night with the kids, it's so pretty with all the lights! But make sure they understand, they will see people drunk in the streets, people scantily dressed and fliers, taxis and even trucks with billboards with mostly naked women driving down the strip...the funniest thing to me was when DDthen13 said "hey Mom, how come they don't have truck with mostly naked GUYS driving down the strip?" LOL
FTR, we only walked the strip one night, the rest of the time it was daytime and we saw the cards then as well, just not as much as we did at night.