15 / will any of you be allowing your 15 year old some Drinks on Xmas day eg sup of desert wine?

[ZeViteVitchofCwismas]

As above inspired by other thread...maybe hot milk with a Tony shot of bailey?

Or is it a no no.

Probably already had alcohol anyway. The more you deny the more they want to try . I think your being sensible.

I think by 14/15 I was allowed pretty much whatever my parents were having, with smaller regulated amounts before then. I'm not a big drinker and never have been.

I think this is fine from young teens, with a meal or at midnight NYE, with family. It models responsible drinking for special occasions and is very different to buying alcopops for a bunch of young teens who will be getting drunk and not supervised and thus vulnerable.

Ds (just turned 16) will have a few ciders over the festive period. I started allowing it around this time last year. Similar thing with my older dc.

Because weirdly he does like the taste of beer. And it's cheaper to give him the neck of my bottle than buy cans of shandy bass 😳

So I'm already getting the lemonade and beer in so I just make him a very weak shandy.

Wine he just wants to join in at the table and "copy" so he thinks he's getting a glass of wine but I doubt he can even taste the wine with it so heavily diluted. But he enjoys it at Christmas dinner 🤷🏻‍♀️

This will be an unpopular opinion, but no. Not for my teenagers. I just finished a course on youth mental health which included alcohol and drug issues. It strongly recommended against allowing teens to consume any alcohol at all. My teens haven't shown any interest, so I'm running with that.

Milk with a tiny shot of Baileys sounds absolutely foul 😄 Just let them have a proper measure with ice. Or a glass of Prosecco. You don’t need to baby them by giving them dessert wine IMO.

Yes, usually a small version of whatever we're having just after dinner.

I think it's important to take the mystery out of it so it doesn't appear more exciting when they're with their friends.
Tbh, most other parents I have spoken with who have of dc the same age are doing the same thing.
We started allowing the small glass on special occasions from 14yrs.

Never made a drink deliberately sweeter etc for them though, so if we have a glass of wine they'll have a small one, if we have a snowball, they'll have a weaker one etc.

Yes you should allow a 15yo to have a few drinks generally, not just at Christmas. They need to build their tolerance up before they start drinking properly when they're 18.

An 18 year old novice drinker is a danger to themselves and others. They don't know their limits, because the only way to find where the limit is is to go over it on occasion. Better they do that in a safe environment at home now, rather than when they're out on the lash when they're 18.

Yes. And I posted on the other thread saying I thought the OP was wrong. A couple of sips with family is not the same as sending off with an armful of alcopops.

Mine are just either side of that age, and I'd be fine with them having a drink, but neither are interested (14 and 17)

I might get a few alcopops in. We'll likely end up having the 14 year olds best friend over at some point tomorrow (difficult home at times) and they might fancy something.

We started the DD's with watered wine with meals at a fairly young age, by 15/16 they were drinking a glass of wine with meals. They have never drunk any of the sugared mixes which is a good thing, they now (older) still stick to plain classic drinks. Their tastes, are however, sadly, very expensive!

@SnitterBug

I honestly don't think a single one of her group has or is desperate to try it

At 15 I would allow a couple of beers or glass of wine. Where’s the harm?

My 13 yo will have a Baileys tomorrow.

Dd 17 can have what ever she likes. She is sensible and never gets really drunk. She drinks vodka or rum

Ds15 isn't keen on beer yet but he will have a Buck's Fizz and then a shandy or a cherry rum with coke. It's really sweet and delicious. But I won't let him have more than a few units.

My daughter was accidentally given a bottle of Reef when she was 14 and enjoyed it but generally didn't much like alcohol until her older brother discovered fruit cider. We would always have Schloer and wine on Christmas day and the children had sherry glasses. They often asked to taste the wine but always chose the Schloer! Alcohol was never a big forbidden thing but it was seen as a treat and they chose something they liked rather than something "forbidden".

I was allowed to drink alcohol at a fairly young age (think Babysham at 8-9) in small quantities, and was drinking a glass of wine with Christmas Dinner by 10. I was the one at teenage parties who would have a couple of drinks then keep an eye on others who had overdone it e.g. helping them in the toilet, covering them up when they passed out, even walking them home & putting them to bed. I was always the designated driver once I had a car, because drinking didn't matter as much to me. Whereas friends who weren't allowed to drink at home would go crazy once they were out & about away from their parents.

I think I can remember a total of two occasions in my life when I've become totally incapable from drink. The first I realised afterwards I had a nasty vomiting virus that lasted 3 days (had only had 4 glasses of wine), the second was when I finally let go and grieved over my father's death with a large bottle of mead.

I would drink on a Friday night after work, but never enough so I couldn't get myself home safely on the 2nd to last train, and now I drink very rarely at all.

Yeah that’s fine, my 12 year old will have a small amount of something if he wishes.

Testina. Qué?

It's hot milk with Bailey's possibly tonight, probably a drop of prosecco or creamant de la Loire tomorrow and desert wines with dessert?

We do not have your dry turkey here...we never have turkey 🦃

@Sunnidaze I agree with you. Research suggests that, the younger people start drinking, the more likely they may drink to excess later

@Sunnidaze

This is also what concerns me

@Dotjones .
I also agree with that because it will happen.

We are letting our 14yr old daughter have a fruity cider too. In our company and with the understanding that it is only with our permission. My 11yr old will be allowed a sip of whatever we are drinking but not their own drink yet

We had one xmas eve. I was about 7 or 8.

we were always allowed a small glass of anything but spirits at special occasions. We never felt the urge to go out and get drunk as teenagers as alcohol had no mystery.

I did the same with my DC. They drink very little and mostly on special occasions, the same as me.

A little won’t hurt.